You might assume that chefs eat everything, since they work with so much food all day. In reality, chefs tend to avoid specific foods for many reasons, including taste, quality, and personal preference. Some of the most commonly craved foods by regular people are the ones that make some chefs secretly roll their eyes or steer clear. These are the foods some chefs admit online that they rarely, if ever, eat.
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Well-done steak
Unless a customer requests it, most chefs think that overcooked steak is a waste. It’s just not what steak should be like, and all that flavor and tenderness are wasted. If they’re going to eat steak, they will almost always order it rare or medium-rare.
Truffle oil
Chefs know it’s mostly a fad. Since most truffle oil is synthetic and cloying, they’d rather have real truffles or no fake truffle flavor at all.
Pre-made salad dressing
Chefs know they’re just sugar, preservatives, and mostly not even real oil and vinegar. A homemade vinaigrette is literally three ingredients and can be done in a minute, and it tastes better.
Frozen dinners
Since chefs know how simple and fast it is to prepare a decent meal from scratch, frozen, microwave meals are a complete turnoff. They view them as having no flavor, being too salty, and just not a quality product.
Fast food burgers
After cooking with quality meat every day, most chefs know a frozen fast food burger patty just isn’t going to compare. If they want a burger, they will either make it themselves or go to a place they know makes it right.
Chicken nuggets (mass-produced ones)
Chefs may make some gourmet, unique chicken nuggets, but when it comes to the old-school, mass-produced ones, they will avoid them like the plague. They know they’re made from questionable meat products and mystery fillers.
Caviar on everything
Chefs understand caviar, they know how expensive it is, and they know it’s not just a flavoring to put on anything. When chefs see people dump it on things or use it as a sort of status symbol, they will just roll their eyes.
All-you-can-eat buffet food
Chefs know what’s really going on behind the scenes at these buffets (food sitting out too long, careless handling, general lack of quality) and will likely avoid them. They would much rather order something fresh to their table.
Overly sweet cocktails
Chefs much prefer a well-balanced cocktail to a syrupy mess of sugar and alcohol. If they want a drink, they will likely order something simple and done well, like a classic old-fashioned or martini.
Processed cheese slices
Thin, rubbery cheese slices with no flavor? No thanks, say most chefs. They will reach for a good block of cheese instead.
Artificial sweeteners
Most chefs will avoid artificial sweeteners, as they either taste weird or like chemicals to them. If they want something sweet, they will use real sugar or opt for natural sweeteners instead.
Food trends just for Instagram
Rainbow bagels, black burgers, or desserts covered in edible gold? Chefs know these were made for the photo rather than for actual flavor, and will generally look down on people partaking in these fads.
Shark fin soup
Chefs who know the facts will refuse to eat or cook shark fin soup. This is because of both the ethical concerns of how it’s obtained and the fact that the shark fin is more about texture than flavor (the actual broth is what’s important in the dish).
Farmed salmon
Most chefs will avoid farmed salmon for a variety of reasons: quality, flavor, and environmental concerns. They will usually wait for the season to catch wild salmon instead.
Boneless, skinless chicken breast
Chefs know it’s a fad diet food that’s bland, dry, and boring. In fact, a lot of chefs refuse to use boneless, skinless chicken breast in any of their dishes. When they want chicken, they use thighs or buy the whole bird and use it all.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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