These women aren't complainers, and the fact is, cooking is a physically and emotionally consuming profession for anyone. Imagine spending up to 16 hours a day on your feet, chopping, lifting, pouring, stirring, whisking. Imagine doing this in kitchens where temperatures can reach upward of 110 degrees. Then imagine the stress of timing the preparation of each plate's component parts, plus the emotional pressure of making it all taste good . That's cooking, and that's not always very romantic, nor is it usually well paid.
Most line cooks start without benefits, vacation time, or sick leave.
All of the women I interviewed work long hours at a physically demanding job. Rather gets up at five every morning to open her bakery, where she is on her feet usually until seven or eighth at night. Alcocer-Thomas runs the kitchen at Jeffrey's five to six nights a week. Most successful chefs are fairly compulsive about their work, women no less than men. And it definitely takes that sort of compulsive dedication to advance through the ranks.