An Interview with Pastry Chef Jessica Craig
Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jessica Craig. She has had an impressive career over the past few years, working at renowned places such as L’Artusi and Locanda Verde. In this interview, Craig talks about her childhood, the start of her pastry career, as well as the formative and memorable experiences she has had in the culinary industry.
What got you interested in the culinary industry?
It started around my junior/senior year in high school when there was pressure to pick a career path. I originally wanted to be a lawyer and took a civil law class around this time. However, one day, I was having a conversation with my sister and she said, “Well, you’re always in the kitchen, why don’t you explore culinary arts?” It was true that I was always in the kitchen - I had been helping my mom with cooking and groceries (for a family of 11!) since I was little. I also loved trying different things, and exploring weird combinations such as Oreos and orange juice! I followed my sister’s advice and started researching culinary schools, and that’s how it began. My sister inspired me and made me realize how cooking was a large part of my life already and so it was something that I would enjoy pursuing.
How was your experience with the culinary arts degree?
It was really important for me to obtain a Bachelor of Arts degree. I was so young, just right out of high school, and I wanted to gain more knowledge and experience. The culinary arts degree definitely helped with that. I tried many things that I hadn’t heard of before and gained some work experience in the field. I was definitely very interested in the pastry parts of the course. However, I still wanted to maintain a large breadth and learn everything first, including culinary aspects. A lot of pastry chefs have hard-set rules, but exploring the culinary side of things gave me the opportunity to test these limits. It was also at NYIT that I found that I had a natural talent in the kitchen, which made me want to pursue this career even further.
After the culinary arts degree, you worked in several different types of positions. What were your best experiences in the culinary industry?
I would say working in the Hamptons was a memorable experience for me. During this time, I gained some recognition. I had my first article written about me – I think this is the first time I actually considered myself a real pastry chef! I loved the mentorship experience, and the chefs were very forward-thinking in providing employee benefits like health insurance. These were things that I realized that I definitely took for granted when coming to New York. But what I remember the most is that they treated me so well. My boss continually encouraged me to get out of my shell, I was super shy! He would take me to events and make sure that I was introduced to everyone he met – he always made me feel included. I have had lots of amazing experiences since then, but I would say that working in the Hamptons was one of the best.
How did you handle the toxic parts of the industry? How did you deal with racism in the culinary industry?
The culinary industry is definitely tough to maneuver, but there is something about this industry that is very familial. We just get each other. And this network of people is helpful when you’re dealing with tough situations, where you are overlooked or mistreated. However, I am a strong, stubborn girl. I have learned to push back and speak up. But unfortunately, there isn’t always a happy ending. I know I have been very lucky in comparison to other counterparts that have tried to assert themselves – many had experiences that forced them to walk away from the industry completely. Community is so important and I have found that it has been really helpful to be involved in a community where you can find black voices, not just chefs but all kinds of people in the same room. It’s amazing to see how many of us there are when often we have felt invisible.
How do you think COVID changed the culinary industry?
When many restaurants were closed, it caused a lot of people in this industry to question the choices they made for their careers and wonder if they were being taken advantage of. Culinary Industry is one that historically thrives on low wages. Employers often reduce wages, expecting that employees will earn a certain percentage in tips, but this is rarely the case. Good tips are only given out in higher establishments and when you imagine the types of people who are able to work in these types of establishments, there is a sort of inherent discrimination in that. COVID made the hiring pool that much smaller. A lot of the older, more established chefs started to leave to create their own businesses or walk away from the industry entirely. Many others chose different job paths. This caused many employers to re-evaluate their employer retention and the business practices in the work environment. So we hopefully should see conditions in the industry change for the better.
What advice would you give to those interested in entering the culinary industry?
If you can afford it, go out and eat. It can be something low-budget, just have an appetizer, dessert, or one drink. Get your foot in the door, talk up the bartender, talk up the barista. Check out food Instagram accounts and reviews. I guess my biggest piece of advice would be that culinary school isn’t a necessity and don’t let that be a barrier for you. Reach out to people. Slide into the DMs. If you resonate with what a restaurant is doing, most likely you will like working there. At the very least, ask for a stage and see what it is like.
Now, here are some rapid short-answer questions.
Past-time? Roller Skating
Favourite Dessert? Rainbow cookies
Chef you Admire? Amanda Cohen
Favourite Place to eat? Loring Place – great for vegetable-forward cuisine
Underrated Ingredient: Salt!
Ese Onokpasa