On 2006-02-03, jmcquown > wrote:

> Purely IMHO, age 35 is a bit late to be getting into the professional
> cooking game. The OP mentioned Emeril and Rick Bayless; they didn't just
> spring from the foam and come out cooking. Whatever your opinon of these
> folks and those who went before them, they put in a lot of hours in the
> school of hard knocks before anyone ever heard of them.

I don't think starting late is a problem. Better late than never. But
yes, even the biggies paid their dues. Emeril was no overnight
wonder, having worked as a kid in the industry, completing a
university culinary program, and paying his dues in France before even
trying to get a good position in his home country. There are
exceptions, to be sure, but not many. Jumping right into the trenches
would also be a good way to discover if it's really what one wants. I
attended a small cooking school and discovered it was not, but then
I'm weird.

nb