Task 2
Questions 13-18
Read the article about a celebrity chef. For questions 13-18, choose the correct answer
(A, B, C or D). Mark your answer on the answer sheet.
Adam Walker – Celebrity Chef
My first contact with the restaurant trade came when I was about fourteen. I was looking for a weekend job to earn a bit of money, so I asked my uncle if I could help out at his restaurant. I just used to peel the potatoes and wash the dishes, but I absolutely loved the place, especially the kitchen. It was full of noise and there were people running around everywhere. I was fascinated by it all, and I actually got paid for it! Even the occasional celebrity would come into the restaurant. Everyone was really friendly too.
I found school hard and did poorly in my final exams, so I decided to leave at sixteen to train to become a chef. My friends laughed about it and joked that cooking was for girls. That didn’t bother me, though.
It was exhausting at college and I had to get used to getting up earlier than when I was at school. The really tough bit was the practical part of the course. This was when we had to go and work in a kitchen. Some of the chefs could get really angry if you made a mistake. I nearly ended up in tears on more than one occasion, although I can laugh about it now. Nevertheless, I learnt a lot about the profession during this time. It didn’t seem to matter that I had no social life.
After college, I worked for a couple of years in London. However, I realised that there were so many graduates that if I really wanted to succeed, I had to do something different. That’s why I got a job in Italy. It was great learning to cook in another culture, although I struggled a bit with the language at first. I could have spent more time there, but a year seemed about right, especially when you consider the long shifts I was working. Italy’s an amazing place. I wish I had travelled round more. Maybe I’ll buy a holiday home in Tuscany one day.
When I got back home to Britain, I opened up my own restaurant. We do all sorts of fish dishes from tuna steaks to squid and octopus. I’m on my feet all day, but I’ve got no regrets. I’m very passionate about cooking, and one day someone suggested that I should write a book. Living abroad makes you appreciate your own culture more, so I decided I’d do something on our national cuisine. After all, you’ve got books on everything from low-fat diets and vegetarianism to how to cook on a small budget. I knew there was a market for books on cooking, and I was right. The book became an enormous success.
I often get asked how the TV programme about me started. A lot of people assume we just wanted to copy the cooking programmes that were already on television. What actually happened is that one day a friend who works in TV turned up to interview me about my book for the local news. When she arrived, I was having this furious argument with one of the waiters. He’d been rude to a customer and I was really angry. I even smashed a plate on the floor. The camera crew thought that this was great TV and that’s how the series about my restaurant was born.
What did Adam enjoy most about working in his uncle's restaurant?
What did Adam find to be the hardest thing about studying to be a chef?
When he thinks about his time in Italy, Adam regrets not
What is Adam's book about?
The people from the TV company got the idea for a show about Adam
Which of the following would Adam say about his career?