Memories of working in a kitchen still makes radio and TV presenter Natalie Pinkham think twice about eating out
When I was 16, my older brother Sam told me I needed to get a summer job, to prove to my mum and dad that I had a good work ethic. We got in the car, stopped at the first place we saw and asked them to give me a job.
It was a golf club. I was so shy that I was blushing, but my brother literally pushed me forward. There was a washing-up job going in the kitchen and Sam just said, "Yep, she'll take it." So that was that.
I did quite well at washing-up and got promoted to doing fry-up breakfasts, which was a real honour. You had to put them on a shelf then yell out a number. There was a woman who would come out after I'd mumbled the order and scream it at the top of her voice. So I was learning some good life lessons about asserting myself.
One part of the restaurant was a bit smarter than the other. Once they held a sit-down meal and asked me if I could do silver service? Of course, I said, obviously not having a clue.
I buttered some bread, cut it up into little diamond shapes and arranged it perfectly on this silver platter. Then I tripped over and the whole thing went everywhere. Luckily, the door to the dining room was shut and no one saw, so I picked it all up and put it back on the tray, took it in and served it out.
Unfortunately, some of the pieces had bits of carpet fuzz all over them. Serving it was awful; one of the waitresses was trying to distract customers while I flicked fluff off the bread. The memory still makes me think twice about eating out. When I recall what happened in that kitchen, I dread to think what goes on everywhere else.
Natalie Pinkham will be reporting from the pit lane for BBC Radio 5 Live at tomorrow's Chinese Grand Prix.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/apr/16/natalie-pinkham-my-saturday-job
English Defence League Amir Khan South Korea Roberto Mancini Executive pay and bonuses Folk music
No comments:
Post a Comment