The Dark Side of Michelin Star Chefs | Fame, Fear, and Fatigue in Fine DiningFueling the Fire: How Michelin Chefs Fall into Addiction |Addicted to the Line: Substance Abuse in High-End Kitchens |High Heat, Higher Costs: The Drug Culture Behind Michelin Stars |The Secret Ingredients They Never Mention: Drugs and Burnout |When the Kitchen Becomes a Trap: Addiction in Haute Cuisine

Substance Overload: When Chefs Turn to Toxic Coping Mechanisms

A large part of cooks use drinks and not ideal things just to manage unfathomably long days at work. In upscale kitchens, especially where significant, important restaurants are in Europe and America, using drugs such as coke is a real momentous problem. Anthony Bourdain, who wasn’t a top-star chef but knew a lot, wrote in Kitchen Confidential about how normal drugs are in high-deal restaurants–and a large amount of chefs say the same thing.

Mister Bourdain said things such as, we took medicine to stay sharp, drank a lot late at night, and sniffed stuff to keep going. It’s awful, but you’re scared to take a break. When chefs keep being unkind to themselves, usually, they become really sad, end up in the hospital, or, sometimes, they even choose to stop living—which is very, very sad.

When Stardom Turns Tragic: Stories of Chef Suicides

There was this amazing chef, Chef Benoît Violier, who had a restaurant that was just called the top restaurant in the entire world. But then in 2016, everyone was extremely sad because he died, and it looked as if he decided to stop his life. And another chef, Chef Homaro Cantu from Chicago, he was great at making food in a great science way, and he did the same thing in 2015.

His friend said he was just too stressed with financial problems, pressure, and being much too tired. Why do people, who are doing the best in their jobs, decide to stop living? It’s because those bright stars they get for cooking amazingly don’t actually make the sad parts inside them go away. It’s unusual, but when their kitchen looks more perfect on the outside, inside the cook might be feeling even more unpleasant.

The Hidden Costs of Fine Dining: It’s Not All About the Money

Even though people think those famous cooks make you get a big amount of money, that is not always true. There’s a top chef, Chef Sébastien Bras in France, who got the highest stars, but he said he didn’t want them anymore in 2017. Mister Bras said the stress of every single meal having to be unfathomably perfect was much. I just wish to cook and feel happy, he said.

Chef Fredrik Berselius, who has a location in Brooklyn with two bright stars, agreed that it’s not always so great, saying phrases: this is a sizeable problem, because behind all the cooking with small details, trying to make things seem very fancy, and workers needing a large amount of skills, there’s several costs piling up really high.

And those cooks? They remember all the details in their heads–what it’s like when understanding all of it (made bigger recollections), when people don’t grasp how tough cooking can be at every little pesky step (inferior existential understanding), and when chefs know all the parts of preparing food for a dish (understanding of a totality)–but it feels too tiny and annoying (very small and detailed level).

False Perceptions and the Reality of Chef Burnout

People think chefs with Michelin stars have a great amount of money, but actually, they don’t earn as much as you believe. Even Chef Daniel Patterson, who has a Michelin star in California, said in an essay that nobody tells you how to deal with feeling like a failure–feeling alone–or being unfathomably scared that you’re not proficient at enough, every day.

Chefs like him are not only tired because they have to move a lot at work–they’re also tired because they have to keep trying to be perfect, even though it’s really hard. And feeling worried, tired all the time, or having a scare where you have trouble breathing—those don’t count as truly great moments where chefs take a break. But this isn’t, in fact, the case, chefs working in upscale foods can’t simply take a day off when they feel unwell.

Mental Health: A Hidden Crisis in the Culinary World

That’s because people don’t really talk about the problems in your head–instead, they just keep them quiet. A study in the UK in 2019 found that, out of all the people working in places such as hotels and restaurants, 85% had a tough time with their feelings, and it’s the chefs who feel the worst. They keep moving forward, even though their days are very full, and winning those upscale stars essentially doesn’t happen if you don’t have people giving you a lot of money, or if you don’t generate extra cash in other ways.

It’s really a big surprise because everyone sees chefs and thinks, wow, they’re doing very well, but they are working utterly hard, or difficult, and not always for a lot of money. In addition, handling the judges who give out the stars and keeping significant secrets slowed deliberations a lot in their heads, making them really need a break, but not getting one. It’s hard to remember the good times or be with your family because you’re always busy. Kitchens are similar to pressure cookers – things get heated in more ways than one. Chefs have to keep trying really hard to be the best and hold on to their stars. But that means that sometimes they don’t do well in just being themselves or with their own family or friends.

Family Sacrifices and the Loneliness Behind the Plate

Sadly, they can feel awful about themselves for a long time. René Redzepi, the cook from a very good restaurant in Denmark, once said his wife had to take care of their children all by herself because he was extremely busy trying to earn stars and not missing any work. Mister Redzepi didn’t go to celebrations or events at school because he was always at his restaurant.

A large amount of cooks who get special prizes from Michelin judges sometimes end up with broken marriages because they’re never home. The kids end up not seeing their mom or dad a lot because everything in the family has to work around the times of the restaurant. And when a person who decides if food tastes nice or not grasps an upscale dish, that dish might mean someone missed the chance to feel cared for and be with family.

There’s a problem where cooks sometimes become stuck using things they should not use or try to forget problems by pretending they’re not there. Birthdays and school activities because my wife was taking care of them. A large amount of chefs that work all the time to be exceptionally positive can end up not staying married. Sometimes their children barely see them, and families have to do everything when the restaurant says it’s okay, not when they want to.

And do you realize? Every time someone important gets an upscale meal on a shiny white plate, it seems like someone’s love or friendship might be getting lost. People can get wrapped up in cooking so greatly they forget about other fun things.