dishy
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈdɪʃ.i/
rhymes: -ɪʃi
Forms: form: dishies
form: dishie
Etymology: From dish (“vessel for food”) + -y (forming familiar nouns).
Senses: examples: text: In hostels, everyone is expected to wash and dry his or her own dishes. If you make it known that you are willing to take over this chore in exchange for a small contribution, you may find lots of willing takers. Never underestimate the laziness of travellers. One night Roger Blake made $8 in ‘tips’ by doing this. He then asked the hostel owners whether he could set up as a ‘dishy’ for tips only.
ref: 2005, Susan Griffith, “In Extremis”, in Work Your Way around the World, 12th edition, Oxford, Oxon: Vacation Work, →ISBN, page 564:
text: I found a job washing dishes at Fish on Parkyn, one of the Sunshine Coast’s leading restaurants. […] When I got the job as a dishy at Fish on Parkyn I don’t think anyone there expected I would last long.
ref: 2010, Jessica Watson, “The Starting Point”, in True Spirit: The Aussie Girl Who Took on the World, Sydney, N.S.W.: Hachette Australia, →ISBN, pages 27 and 31:
text: My years as a ‘dishy’ in a commercial kitchen showed me the importance of balancing an element of play while simultaneously managing time and tasks wisely.
ref: 2014, David Adrian Pierotti, “Importance: Create Your Dream Based On What’s Significant”, in Making a Living vs Making a Dying: How to Do What You Love and Love What You Do, Bloomington, Ind.: Balboa Press, →ISBN, page 34:
text: He began as a dishy at a Whitianga restaurant, he worked at Omara's at nearby Matarangi, he did his formal training at Bay of Plenty Polytechnic, and travelled and cooked in Australia and the Pacific.
ref: 2015 October 15, Denise Irvine, “Luke's Kitchen, at Kuaotunu, on the Coromandel”, in Stuff, archived from the original on 12 Mar 2022:
text: Jessica [Watson] volunteered and flew to Vanuatu to join the boat, paying for the airfare with funds saved from her job as a dishy.
ref: 2017, Adrian Flanagan, “Jessica Watson”, in The Cape Horners’ Club: Tales of Triumph & Disaster at the World’s Most Feared Cape, London: Adlard Coles Nautical, →ISBN, page 274:
text: Leah Blefari has seen it first hand, from working as a dishy and bakery attendant, to crewing for big hospitality companies Red Rock Leisure and Peter Rowland Catering.
ref: 2018 April 9, Portia Conyers-East, “Tonic & Grace Arrives on Glenferrie Road”, in Broadsheet, archived from the original on 21 Jan 2024:
text: “I started [to work] as a dishy and went from dishy to kitchen-hand and then I started working in a chicken factory as a cleaner,” he [Mitch Aldawsari] says.
ref: 2019 April 2, Christopher Sanders, “Mitch Aldawsari and the secret to Real Falafel”, in The Adelaide Review, archived from the original on 10 Aug 2020:
text: Nem refers to head chef Nemanja Babic, a Bosnian-born immigrant who came to Australia at age 19 and began his hospitality career as a ‘dishy’ at Courgette before rising through ranks to become sous chef.
ref: 2021 April 19, Emma Macdonald, “Corella alights elegantly on Lonsdale Street.”, in HerCanberra, archived from the original on 20 Apr 2021:
text: In transitioning into these jobs, Jarrah started at the very bottom, as a dishy.
ref: 2022 February 21, Johnny von Einem, “Andalusian memories with food truck La Flame”, in CityMag, Adelaide, S.A.: Solstice Media, archived from the original on 22 Feb 2022:
text: Will, now a man in his 30s, remembered working as a dishy at Pizza Hut as a teenager.
ref: 2022 July 14, Claire Sullivan, “I Went To Pizza Hut’s All You Can Eat Restaurant and Had an Existential Crisis”, in Vice, archived from the original on 14 Jul 2022:
text: The award-winning chef originally studied accounting but found a love for food after working as a "dishy" at Wollongong's Harbourfront to get through university.
ref: 2023 February 22, Desiree Savage, “Dapto burger restaurant Culture Sauce is expanding their reach across Wollongong, Shellharbour”, in Illawarra Mercury, archived from the original on 13 Mar 2023:
text: “I started as a dishy, then went behind the bar, worked as a fryer and then they had staffing issues and I ended up running the kitchen.”
ref: 2023 July 26, Gabrielle Becerra Mellet, quoting Jess Roe, “Perth chef Jess Roe heads to cook-off, representing WA at 2023 Nestle Golden Chef Hat Awards in Sydney”, in PerthNow, archived from the original on 26 Jul 2023:
glosses: A dishwasher (someone who washes dishes).