[Melting_Harps]

As a former/retired chef, who mainly got into food for the sheer glutinous delight that only slightly justifies enduring the backbreaking Industry, this is truly a cruel fate but may have been for the best if she had to deal with eating disorders and mental health issues.

Untreated mental illness is the norm in that Industry, as is substance abuse and suicide.

So given the abuse (physical and mental) in addition to her eating disorder and mental health problems chances are she probably wouldn't have made her first year working line without severe consequences. Culinary school often depicts a false-reality of the Industry, and rarely do most of its graduates fare better than a seasoned cook who made his way up from the dish pit/prep cook in my experience, because doing that at least vets people who actually can still show up after what is a romanticized view of an abusive, low paying, high stress work environment.

I'm glad she was able to identify her illness and despite this affliction she was able to persevere and live her Life as best she can but their are likely no words to adequately describe the ordeal this would do to a cook despite this journalist's best attempts.

I normally dismiss Social Media as a viable means for non-vanity based, shallow, vapid forms of communication and will often refer to it as the cesspool that it is, but I'm glad this was there to help her recover. Especially since COVID killed most people's social life.

[senectus1]

I've worked in the hospitality trade for about a decade before i got in IT.

The hospitality industry is a shadowy, drug and crime filled industry. Its truly disturbing know what shit goes on in our food production area's.

[jka]

Have you heard of / do you have any opinions on Unichef (UK)? ( https://www.thenationalchefsunion.co.uk/about-unichef/ )

(I'm a software developer curious about food technology, and interested in the industry, problems, and potential improvements)

[Melting_Harps]

> Have you heard of...

Vaguely from this [0], and I find rather it painfully ironic that one of the supporters (Bourdain) of that book died from suicide in what was likely ongoing depression and unresolved mental health isses that led to former bouts with substance abuse in addition to a horrible catastrophic relationship spat occurring in public.

Personally speaking when I first read Kitchen Confidential when I was a prep cook in catering during university I knew he was very likely going to take his life.

As a former developer myself, smart contract/blockchain stuff, with an emphasis in Supply Chain with several years in the Auto Industry, my opinion their is really not much that can be solved with software alone before the underlying machinations and culture of the Culinary Industry itself is resolved. COVID was a real wake up call, but not much has changed from what my former colleagues tell me, other than a slight pay raise ($1-2) for tenured and seasoned cooks. That was hard to justify from management during 50% capacity most of the country is still dealing with.

We had touch-screens to manage our individual orders/tickets on our station to help expo streamline things, and while that was interesting (my station's screen had a tendency to disconnect in the middle of service when things got super heated or wet from a persistent leak) and gave us a little autonomy to coordinate with the other stations it could and often created more problems than solved if the expo was mediocre which is why they got rid of them.

Maybe if you focus on tax or payroll related stuff for accounting, especially with how to deal with PPP? Also if you can find a way to lower food losses/costs that could be incredibly useful? But all of this could and should be done with creative menu offerings that utilize the 'scrap' and upsale the protein in another dish.

0: https://www.instyle.com/news/40-chefs-share-their-favorite-c...

[jka]

Thanks! My view has been fairly limited, from (rarely) cooking at home, and where 'locally sourced' tends to mean 'walking to the shops' instead of any kind of vendor relationships.

What's the PPP challenge you mentioned, and (at the risk of sounding like I'm stealing your ideas; not my intent, I'd prefer to read and reflect them out here) what would you change about the industry culture if you could?

[Melting_Harps]

> at the risk of sounding like I'm stealing your ideas...

I'm also a former fintech founder, so I know that ideas are nothing without the execution to make them into reality. So don't feel bad about that, just keep me in mind for a consultant role later if you like what you hear. ;)

PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) [0] [1] [2] 1/2 is what was given to restaurants in the US during the shutdown due to COVID and the to support resteraunts now operating at 50% capacity; they have stipulations (most of it had to be paid as payroll) that many accountants have never encountered before and will likely require assistance to ensure they qualify for forgiveness. This could be enough of a MVP to make a suite of other tools, but that alone would be where I would start if it were me.

Unfortunately I don't have much experience in the culinary Industry in the UK (I did farm in Cornwall, though) as I never got to do my stage at The Savoy in London in 2014 which my ex-fiance setup (hostess) due to the massive floods and damage to the transportation system.

Sidenote: Bento and Bentocart are both YC backed startups that may have a position for you to integrate into if you're looking for a pre-existing project.

0: https://www.merchantmaverick.com/ppp-loan-forgiveness-rules/

1: https://www.merchantmaverick.com/ppp-restaurants/

2: https://www.restfinance.com/restaurant-finance-across-americ...