She Brings the Heat Trends from Smithfield Culinary

Smithfield Culinary Smithfield Margherita Smoke’NFast

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

In 2020, Forbes found that just 6.3% of the head chef positions at prominent US restaurant groups were held by females.¹ According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 22.8% of chefs and head cooks in 2021 were women.¹ But the heat is on. During the fall of 2020, of enrolled undergraduates at the Culinary Institute of America, 48% were women.¹ Today, there are nearly 20 Michelin-starred female chefs in the United States.²

The heat always rises.

As more women are coming to the forefront, the industry is evolving. For example, some women have changed their approach in the kitchen¹ And some female chefs are feeling encouraged that the world is being more open to having female voices represented, especially in positions of leadership.¹

Stoking the flames helps everyone.

According to a recent survey, 56% of American workers have had a professional mentor while 76% believe that mentorship is important.³ One way to keep women ahead in the kitchen is for them to seek mentors with both similar and dissimilar interests, and of various age groups.³ Other advice to encourage female leadership in the industry is to focus on encouraging and nominating women colleagues for industry awards, speaking engagements and attending women’s forums.³

When asked, “What advice would you give your
younger self?” our chefs had some insights:

“It’s a marathon, not a sprint. I think I started my career sprinting. This is all I’ve ever wanted to do. I was fortunate when I was very young to say food is what I love.”

-Melissa Chickerneo

“I think probably just realizing that mistakes aren’t a bad thing, and they actually spark creativity. And so don’t be afraid to make a mistake because you’ll kill it next time.”

– Lynn Hay

“One thing I would say about the business is what you don’t learn … as you get further in your career, knowing how to manage people, how to market your business, how to read a P and L. Once you become a chef or executive chef or own your own business, knowing how to run a business is really important.”

– Debbie Gold

“What I would say is that there’s so many different pathways right now. The possibilities are endless. So, if you’re interested in food service, find a spot for yourself.”

– Suzy Wagner

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