A Day in the life of a trainee pastry chef
By Melanie Lee - Sunday, Dec 18, 2011
More than a year ago, Genevieve Koh left her cushy job as a graduate tutor to return to her first love – baking. “Baking was something I’d wanted to do in my 20s, but my parents objected to it,” she recounts. However, after two decades of working “somewhat unhappily” in a range of jobs that also included customer service, executive headhunting, and current affairs radio producing and presenting, Genevieve felt that she no longer wanted to live life with regrets.
Today, she is in the final term of the 17-month WSQ Diploma in Pastry and Bakery Arts programme at At-Sunrice GlobalChef Academy. It is a professional programme that is recognised nationally by the F&B industry, and upon graduation, Genevieve and her classmates will be looking for jobs in bakeries, restaurants or hotels. This is a drastic career switch that shocked many of her friends because of her educational qualifications: Genevieve holds two Master’s degrees in Public Administration and International Political Economy.
The Fabricate Chocolate Decorations class starts at 8am but already by 7.50am, the whole class is present and decked neatly in their chef’s uniforms. “There’s utmost respect for the culinary profession here. As such, we are expected to be disciplined and committed,” explains Genevieve as she scribbles out the cleaning roster on the board.
At 8am sharp, the regular morning line up takes place where the instructor briefs them on the lesson while the trainees share their learning experiences with each other. It is a good way to prepare themselves for the day ahead, as well as to hone their presentation skills.
The instructor for this class is Chef Yann Le Coz, a French pastry chef with over 23 years of experience in the kitchen. It is an apprenticeship style of learning, so at different points of the lesson, he demonstrates different decoration techniques such as making chocolate tubes, or painting chocolate eggs. After that, he lets them work in pairs to try these tasks on their own. “Chocolate must be treated with respect,” he repeatedly reminds the class as he goes round to inspect their work.
It is the first time that Genevieve is doing chocolate decorations, so she is particularly careful with how she handles the chocolate. “Being a trainee pastry chef is demanding – especially at my age when I’m no longer as nimble or energetic,” she says, as she gingerly joins two chocolate egg halves together. “I’ve learned to accept that things are never straightforward in culinary school. You won’t always get things right straight away.”
Fortunately, this is a close-knit class, and Genevieve makes it a point to approach any of her 12 other classmates whenever she needs help with something. “Because the training is so intensive, we’ve become close and we never make a fuss about helping one another. I’m very grateful for the moral support they’ve provided. As a perfectionist, I often get quite anxious and stressed in the kitchen. But my classmates would encourage me to relax and take things easy. They’d remind me why I’m doing this in the first place,” she says.
The close bond is evident with the friendly camaraderie in the kitchen. There is much laughter and chatter even as the chef trainees go about their work efficiently and meticulously. This is despite the fact that these trainees are all at different stages of their lives – with the age range of this class is from 20s – 60s. Genevieve says she felt “right at home” when she first met them. “We all share the same burning passion for baking. Some of my classmates faced similar objections from their parents coming here so we could relate easily to each other.”
Four hours later, the trainee chefs proudly display all their chocolate decoration showpieces and excitedly snap pictures of their work with their mobile phones. “I’m always amazed by the final products after the end of each class. The work we do here is really is an art form,” says Genevieve.
To her, this hands-on, creative process is what makes her want to be a pastry chef despite the long hours toiling away in the kitchen that leave her with body aches. And while Genevieve knows that she is “not young anymore”, she does not see her maturity as a handicap in the upcoming job search. “I actually feel there are many opportunities out there and that my previous work experience is complementary to what I would be doing as a pastry chef.”
“I have never been happier in my life,” she adds.
