To Toque or Not To Toque

 

 

When I first started in a restaurant that implemented the brigade system, I was fascinated by the hefty gentlemen wearing the tall hat. This beast of a man would patrol up and down the service line barking out ticket numbers and critiques with the intensity of a mad dog with rabies. I would finish the night not covered in sweat but soaked with the smell of cheap coffee and bourbon saliva. Though it seemed harsh in the beginning I realized that this over-stressed and out of shape gargoyle of a man was doing his job to perfection. He was “getting it done” to the highest standards which allowed him the honor to wear the big hat, better known to us kitchen folk and culinarians as the Chef toque.

The Chef toque originated in the late 1700’s as a symbol for a cook. The first person culinarians turn to in any quest regarding esoteric French cooking wisdom is Augusta Escoffier, who in my mind is the most famous figure in French cuisine. While Escoffier didn’t popularize the toque as culinary headgear, it was the work of “Chef of kings and the king of Chefs” Marie-Antoine Careme back in the 19^th century. Careme implemented the Chef toque to establish rank and skill within the brigade system in the kitchen for which he created.

The Chef toque is designed to have 100 pleats or folds within the body of the hat symbolizing the hundred different ways to prepare an egg. Chef Essential Pepin said “I think that the egg is probably one of the greatest foods that we can have in the kitchen, whether we cook it by itself or combine it into a soufflé or custard, or other type of thing. For me, I can’t live without eggs.” It is said within this industry that it is essential to know the history behind the Chef toque and the knowledge of the 100 different egg preparations in order to wear this monumental piece of Chef Attire.

So with this knowledge of the meaning behind a Chef toque, next time you are in a restaurant and you see someone wearing it; test the person’s knowledge about this historic and extremely important piece of the Chef’s uniform. Let’s see if that person is Chef-worthy enough for the pristine honor.

As a brain teaser, let’s see how many egg preparations you can name. Anyone that emails me 60 or more different egg preparations will receive a gift personalized from me.

Good luck and enjoy your Tastebuds!