Two chefs considering "the life"! - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Deborah452 · RV-Dreams Community Member

Two chefs considering "the life"!

Ckerr · RV-Dreams Family Member

Welcome! Chefs are always welcome

No matter what you decide I'm sure you will make lots of friends here. I know we have.

Talensnana · RV-Dreams Family Member

Welcome, RVIng is an amazing adventure. This site has some amazing information. Not sure if you would work on the road, but I have always thought it would be fun to taking cooking classes on local cuisine when we travel. Might be an idea to help pay for the lifestyle.

Sushidog · RV-Dreams Family Member

I was a sushi chef for 20 year and I'm planning to take my knives on the road when I retire to a FT mobile lifestyle. Though I don't plan on working FT, many sushi bars (and I assume other restaurants too) get swamped on the weekend and could use the help of another Chef, at least a couple nights a week. Even if you only work as a sous chef, prep chef or line cook, below the level you are used to, I'm sure your extensive culinary experience will easily get you a temporary job on the road if that's what you are looking for. There are a lot of areas, like the mountains during ski season or the beach during summer that need seasonal help, and will give you a bonus if you stay with them the entire season. With any luck you might even find something compatible with your current skillset. Be advised that you may need to get a current Serve Safe certification and/or food handler's certificate for each state you decide to work in. I have worked on both coasts and each state has different regs, some even have local food handler regs. that vary from state regs., which must be complied with. Weird.

Speaking of cooking classes I used to teach sushi making classes myself, and know other chefs who also teach cooking classes, conduct cooking demos, etc. to promote product vendors, supermarkets, book sales, etc. Most of these folks travel extensively, so this business concept may dovetail with your travel plans. I am good friends with one chef who does this and who now has a local TV show, and developed his own product line of seasonings that he also promotes, so you never know what type of business it may evolve into. The residual income from passive, supermarket sales of your special, say "dueling chef" seasoning line would match well with a FT mobile lifestyle - and you could write off quite a bit of your "business related" travel expenses too. Can you say, "Bam"? Or maybe your dueling chef catch phrase might be "Touche"! I can envision the book cover now....

Chip

AZbillsfan · RV-Dreams Community Member

Hi! I'm a Niagara Falls native and have been living in Lake Havasu City for the last 11 years. Just a lurker on this site, still need to keep working fulltime, but wishing I could be fulltime RV. There were some great ideas for you in the other replies. Good luck to you both.

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

Chefs? I volunteer to be food tasting guinea pig. biggrin Chip already has promised (I'm pretty sure it was a promise wink wink wink ) a pot of Cajun style crawdads on the boil for me whenever we hook up after hitting the road.... smile Mangeons! Passe les ecrevisse!

Welcommmmmmme. Fooooooood! biggrin biggrin biggrin

Brian

-- Edited by biggaRView on Tuesday 4th of August 2015 10:53:32 AM

Dog Folks · RV-Dreams Family Member

Welcome. Lots of good information here.

The pros' of full time living? Everything, including no more cold & snow!

The con's: Everyone has different things they are uncomfortable with. What is not acceptable to some is not even an issue to others. As others chime in, you will need to assign the relative importance. For example a "deal breaker" for my wife was she would not buy an RV that lacked a walk around bed. For me it was the unit had to have aluminum framing. These may not matter at all to you.

Some cons of small importance: No newspaper, or pizza delivery readily available. Small shower areas.

-- Edited by Dog Folks on Tuesday 4th of August 2015 11:04:28 AM

bjoyce · RV-Dreams Family Member

"Some cons of small importance: No newspaper, or pizza delivery readily available. Small shower areas."
You will be amazed at the number of campgrounds that list pizza places that deliver in the paperwork they supply. Many also have newspapers for sale.

Can't help you on the shower. Ours gets about 10 minutes of use a day with both of us taking showers.

-- Edited by bjoyce on Tuesday 4th of August 2015 01:38:49 PM

Sushidog · RV-Dreams Family Member

Looing forward to it Mon Cher. We'll crack open soda pop with the foam on top and pass a good time, I guarontee!

Chip

Deborah452 · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thank you all for the replies and the welcomes! We still have a lot of research to do but we are so intrigued by this lifestyle. Everything I have read has said that no one has regretted this lifestyle once they've committed to it. Before we start out, we want to make sure we are ready.

We are thinking that we will follow the seasonal chef positions around the country. I have a lot of experience as a private chef and have worked on many ranches out in Montana and Wyoming. Maybe we start there. Many of the suggestions you gave us, we've already thought of and are working on those ideas. That you all had the same ideas means they must be good ones!

Looking forward to doing some more research on this great forum!

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

Deborah,

First of all, welcome to the RV Dreams. When I first read your introduction, I was hesitant to say anything because I can't cook and thus, I can't relate to your occupation nor give advice on "taking it on the road."

On the other hand, I should point out that forums are not the thing by which to judge this lifestyle. Granted, we do have a good number of active members here on RV Dreams (as on any other type of forum), but the number of those that registered and have become inactive on the forums may very well have given up the lifestyle. I'm sure that health reasons could be the major reason for folks to give up the lifestyle, but I'm also sure that there are a lot that tired of it and have quit. For instance, suppose you visited Montana and some restaurant offered you a job that you couldn't refuse. Would you be willing to still live in an RV in such a cold place? Or, would you be willing to pass up the job?

By the way, as an aside, we wintered over last year in Colorado and found the winter here where we are to be absolutely beautiful. The cold in Colorado is a lot different that the cold in Oklahoma, the state we moved from.

A large number of the folks here are retired, so they don't necessarily HAVE to generate an income from employment. I have to believe the perspective on the lifestyle could possibly change for you, so I'd almost be willing to suggest that you consider a used RV instead of a new one. That way, if you have to leave the RV lifestyle, you could be more apt to recoup most of your investment in that RV.

Good luck with your research and planning.

Terry