Meet the Gold Coast’s top female hospitality heads breaking up the boys club in the kitchens

‘You had to work twice as hard as the boys and never complain’: Four female Gold Coast hospitality heads reveal their experiences making their way to the top and how they’re bringing diversity to the workforce today.

Katrina Barlow from Cafe All Sorts in Kirra is one of many female head chefs bringing diversity to kitchens across the Gold Coast. Picture: Jerad Williams

ALTHOUGH society has come a long way, industries dominated by women still typically reflect household roles — cleaning, caretaking, teaching and accounting. So why is it that hospitality is still largely a boy’s club?

Ahead of International Women’s Day on Friday, Taste spoke to four women directing hospitality ventures to hear their experiences.

Most have had to fight to get where they are, but they’re now disrupting the landscape and helping to create equality in the workforce.

Kirra chef Jess Hayes began her career in Seattle in the US and says she had to work much harder to prove she could keep up with her male colleagues.

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Jess Hayes from Saint Helens in Kirra. Picture: Jerad Williams

“I got a job straight out of culinary school in a big restaurant out of Seattle,” Jess says.

“I was one of only two other girls in the kitchen and there was a staff of about 30.

“You had to work twice as hard as the boys. You have to be the best chef in the kitchen and never complain.”

Jess went on to lead a team of chefs at the prestigious Mitchelton Winery in Victoria, where she says her authority was regularly challenged.

“I was the executive chef and I had to definitely assert my dominance,” Jess says.

“You have to say, ‘I’m the boss’ — they (colleagues) don’t assume it, until you do show them you’re the alpha.”

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Katrina Barlow from Cafe All Sorts in Kirra. Picture: Jerad Williams

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Katrina Barlow, the head chef at Cafe All Sorts in Coolangatta, spent eight years working offshore cooking for hungry blokes on an oil exploration station.

She says she became “one of the boys”, dealing out banter and moving on from quarrels quickly.

“It was almost another identity I took on to get through,” Katrina says. “I was the only female cook. It is most certainly a male-orientated place out there.”

Katrina says in a kitchen with at least one female chef, the dynamic is healthier and operations run more smoothly.

“There is more ego involved in males in general,” Katrina says. “Women, if they’re out the back cooking, we generally handle pressure a bit better than males. You can feel the energy of that when you’re on the line.”

Jenna Finch and Kellie Rolfe had careers in five-star hotels and restaurants before opening Tedder Avenue cafe Hot Shott.

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Jenna Finch and Kellie Rolfe own Hot Shott in Main Beach. Picture Glenn Hampson

Jenna recalls being taken back by the behaviour of a group of Saudi Arabian delegates while she was working for a high-profile Gold Coast resort.

“A lot of them didn’t want to deal with me purely because I was a woman. Being a woman in that week was hard,” Jenna says.

“It was a massive learning curve, but you learn people’s culture. And I got to meet the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.”

Kellie leads the kitchen at Hot Shott and previously worked as the sous chef at Palazzo Versace.

She says she had some wonderful female role models when she started her career, and now she’s empowering the next generation of chefs to pursue their dreams.

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Kellie Rolfe with on of her creations. Picture Glenn Hampson

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“We’ve had the chance to work with great mentors,” Kellie says.

“Now we’re becoming mentors for younger passionate people.

“We can see the ones that are very passionate and we love nurturing our team.”

Jess, who co-owns Saint Helens restaurant with her husband, says one of the biggest challenges in her career was becoming a mother.

“The hardest thing for me was having a child,” she says.

“Being a chef is not conducive to family life
at all.

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Jenna Finch says she had to fight to move up the ladder at one of her old jobs but luckily had a manager that recognised hard work. Picture Glenn Hampson

“If daycare had crazy hours that would be awesome. It’s a very tough balancing act.”

While that’s an important issue to tackle, all women agree they’re seeing a change towards a more inclusive workplace.

“The newer generation of male cooks are more chilled out and more aware of harassment and being respectful,” Jess says.

“There are more female head chefs too.

“Female head chefs, in my opinion, the kitchen does tend to be a little more relaxed, egos are left at the door more.”

“The industry itself is getting a lot more representative,” Jenna says.

“Women especially have come so far.”