International Chef Day – 20 October

International Chef Day is observed on 20th October, this day was created especially for chefs to celebrate their noble profession and to highlight the role and responsibility they share. This international observance is considered to be a symbolic day for every chef around the world.

The day exists to acknowledge the future of food from encouraging the next generation of chefs to promoting healthy eating and the importance of food provenance. Its a duty for every chef to pass their knowledge and culinary skills to the next generation of chefs with a sense of pride, enthusiasm, and commitment to the future.

This year’s International Chefs Day 2024 campaign theme is “Growing Great Chefs.“ It provides a passion for making young minds learn and nurturing culinary talent. It is vital for us to teach children about the impact that the production and consumption of food have on the environment.

History of International Chef Day

International Chef Day was created by Late Chef Dr. Bill Gallagher in 2004, he was a chef and businessman in South Africa. He started this day to celebrate the chef’s profession, to share and pass on our knowledge and culinary skills to our children. It’s our legacy to help children get excited about healthy food and our industry.

Sponsored by WorldChefs (a non-political professional organization), which was created in 1928 in Sorbonne, Paris with August Escoffier as the organization’s first honorary president, the holiday emphasized eating healthy.

Chefs are the “engine room” of a restaurant. Without a chef, there is no restaurant.

Going out to restaurants is one of our favorite activities because we get the chance to taste the best cuisine created by the chefs that work behind the scenes. International Chefs Day is a day for them and is probably one of the best opportunities people can get to learn how to cook and connect with chefs in their local area. It’s also a great opportunity to teach kids how to cook and inspire them to become chefs.

In today’s challenging times we all are left to feel anxious & stressed. What we do know, is that we need to keep ourselves and others healthy. Having a strong immune system and eating “stress-busting” foods will help us through these challenging times. Here is a time when we can all be in this together! The Worldchefs way to do that is by Preparing Children for a Healthy Life!

With international airlines grounded, domestic travel restricted, a salaried class suffering pay cuts, added to the general COVID-19 fear, hotels are not getting guests. As a result, many chefs and other staff are laid off by many hotel chains as well as standalone outfits.

Unfortunately, uncertainty is still around many of us but Nestlé Professional has made fantastic adaptions to the toolkit to make online learning easy and accessible.

How to participate

You can spread awareness of International Chefs Day using the hashtag #InternationalChefsDay. Prepare some of your favorite recipes at home and post your pictures using the hashtag #InternationalChefsDay. You can also post pictures of your favorite chef and their signature dish. There are many workshops held on this day based on the theme of the year. Now Worldchefs has partnered with Nestlé Professional to teach children around the globe about the importance of healthy eating by hosting fun-filled workshops worldwide.

At home, parents and kids can discuss healthy diets, menu planning, and cooking together. When kids are involved in shopping for and preparing food, they develop a good and healthy relationship with what they eat.

Those who have personal chefs do something special for them today, such as buying them a meal at a high-end restaurant, giving them the day off, or switching roles and making a meal for them. Those who don’t have a personal chef may get one today. Some may even use the day to take steps towards becoming a personal chef.

International Chefs Day Quotes

A recipe has no soul. You, as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe-Thomas Keller
“If you want to become a great chef, you have to work with great chefs. And that’s exactly what I did.” – Gordon Ramsay
Cooking is at once child’s play and adult joy. And cooking done with care is an act of love-Craig Claiborne
“A chef is a mixture maybe of artistry and craft. You have to learn the craft really to get there.” – Wolfgang Puck
“I started cooking professionally because I had hit a point in my life where I was just sort of lost and cooking was something I had always loved and so I grabbed onto it.” – Amanda Cohen
‘Chef’ doesn’t mean that you’re the best cook, it simply means ‘boss.’ – Tom Colicchio
One of the greatest pleasures of my life has been that I have never stopped learning about Good Cooking and Good Food-Edna Lewis
“Chefs don’t make mistakes; they make new dishes.” – Elizabeth Brigg
I always had a fantasy of being a chef, because I like kitchen life. – Geoffrey Rush
“On the occasion of Chefs Day, wishing you all the success and prosperity in your culinary skills. May you keep impressing people with your cooking.”