[Sca-cooks] Rant: And speaking of cooking equipment...

[Nick Sasso]

-----Original Message-----
Well, obviously I'm employing a negative connotation to "hobby" _as
it was used_, which is not to say all hobbyists are posers or
dilettantes, but many of the people who have done the most to make it
an expensive hobby (essentially indicating some really screwed-up
priorities) are hobbyists who often do tend to be posers and
dilettantes. Most pros don't buy a $400 stock pot, and 99.9% of the
time I'd question the need for the existence of such an item, much
less have any imperative for me to buy one, hobbyist or not.

Thinking back, I also realize it's been a while since I've bought a
big stockpot; maybe the prices have gone up a lot. But for a 30-
quart, it seemed like an awful lot...

Adamantius   > > > > > >



I'm in a boat similar in size and construction to yours.  To me, you are
different from a hobbyist in that cooking is "what you do".  A hobbyist does
something for relaxation or entertainment, while you, I and others like us
cook and immerse ourselves in cookery because that is what our calling is. .
. what our spirits or souls cry out for.  Food and cookery is our art form
of expression and satisfaction.

Ever moreover, the use of the term in the story you told seems even more of
a demeaning sort of pat on the head.  Hobbyist buy the latest fad gadgets
and overpriced do-dad cooking pots/pans at kitchen boutiques.  Serious cooks
more likely shop at restaurant supply stores for "nigh indestructible" tools
of the trade that are utilitarian as well as effective.

I would dare say that chef is a term not only for a current resterateur or
television personality.  It is a mindset and a way of seeing the world
tyhrough food colored glasses.

niccolo difrancesco
(also not a hobbyist . . . though not a professional again yet)