Life on The Line- Being a Line Cook

Ross hathaway, Line Cook at The Fish House

We caught up with Everett Whiting of The Fish House to ask him some questions about what being a line cook is really like. Everett spent many years as a line cook early in his career from the age of 14. He went on to culinary school in Italy and spent nine years as a personal chef in L.A. in addition to spending a summer with MV Clam Bakes. 

Martha’s Vineyard’s thriving restaurant scene employs hundreds of line cooks over the summer months.  They’re the ones dropping the fried clams and onion rings in the fryolaters, grilling the meat, and making the sauces. Despite being the heart and backbone of a restaurant, they rarely get thank yous from diners and employment benefits are a bit of a unicorn. They work intense hours in front of hot grills radiating suffocating heat and hear the hum of the order printer in their sleep.

You will not see a line cook holding a clipboard, sprinkling truffle flakes onto your mushroom risotto. Rather, line cooks are the men and women who are preparing your food in a timely fashion on sort of a kitchen assembly line––sautéing, grilling, baking or frying, very often in an environment many call controlled chaos. They’re responsible for preparing food including chopping vegetables, butchering meat, and preparing sauces. They’re sautéing, grilling, baking, or frying while carrying out the head chef’s orders and are expected to stick to the chef’s vision for any given dish. And they are prepping everything needed before their shift begins. They are doing a lot of things at the same time and they do it all through the heat, the burns, and the cuts, with swollen feet and heavy knees. They work long hours––it’s a very rare thing that a line cook works an eight-hour day. 

In order for a line cook to be successful, he or she has to be able to communicate clearly with the kitchen staff, staying alert, listening to their head chef, and often working closely with an expeditor who serves as the liaison between the kitchen and the wait staff. Showing up early gives them a leg up and can help to eliminate the stress of getting caught short. The French phrase ‘mise en place’ which means everything in its place is an important practice for line cooks––being ready is half the battle.

Being a line cook is one of the most grueling lines of work––it’s stressful, with long hours–– the pay is usually not great, but at the same time a line cook is the lifeblood of any restaurant and many of them will tell you that it’s a very rewarding and satisfying job.

What’s the number one quality a line cook should have & why?

You have to have drive!

As a line cook, what stresses you out the most?

The beginning of a shift is always stressful to me. Am I ready? Do I have everything I’ll need prepped? Trying to anticipate what might go wrong and being prepared for everything is key.

What’s the number one lesson you’ve learned as a line cook?

It’s about timing 100%. You have to have good timing to make this fast-paced job more manageable.

What’s it like to date a line cook?

With the long hours line cooks work, your significant other very often becomes second. It’s not easy to manage a relationship while you’re working long, stressful, and strenuous days.

What’s your favorite thing about being a line cook? 

When things work out. When your timing is good, it’s so gratifying. You know, you can be a builder and take a year to build a house and someone may still not be happy, but when you cook for people and they have a good meal thanks to you, in one night, it’s the most satisfying thing.

Do you cook for yourself when you’re not working?

I usually grill some protein and make a salad––nothing fancy.