The presentation of the chef in everyday life: Socializing chefs in Lima, Peru

Abstract

Over the past two decades, Peru has seen a dramatic expansion of restaurants and attention to Peruvian cuisine, a phenomenon known as the "gastronomy boom." Peruvian chefs have become national celebrities, their entrepreneurial and culinary efforts portrayed as a means of transforming Peru into a more prosperous nation. In this paper, based on sixteen months of ethnographic research in Lima, I examine socialization practices in two culinary schools to elucidate how culinary work is linked to person formation in Peru. I show that instructors encourage students to eschew business practices locally classified as vivo (dishonest and crafty) in order to become more orderly. They also instill in students the importance of having the ambition necessary to achieve international prominence. Together, these lessons promote a template for a new, ideal Peruvian citizen whose combination of extroversion and restraint exemplifies Peru's potential in the global economy.