He ladled on the sauce, made earlier in the day by the saucier, and then walked the finished dish over to Sottha Khunn, the executive chef, who looked it over, covered it with a silver dome and, with a flick of his wrist, signaled for the plate to be delivered to an expectant diner. Camelo did this all night long. He plated food and poured sauce. And not just this particular evening. This is his routine six nights a week.
Opportunity certainly abounds.
With the strong economy and the steady increase in two-worker households, more people are eating out. And as more restaurants open, the demand for restaurant workers just keeps growing. According to projections by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, food preparation and service will be the fastest-growing occupations through 2006. Among chefs, cooks and kitchen workers alone, the government expects an average of 1.27 million jobs to be created each year. But for all the job openings, there can be only one executive chef in every restaurant.