Author ORCID Identifier
Eulanda Sanders: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9009-8640
Executive Summary
Despite women comprising a majority of the U.S. restaurant workforce, they remain significantly underrepresented in culinary leadership and elite recognition. Using an exploratory, descriptive design that draws on secondary data from the ACS, NRA, U.S. Census Bureau, and the James Beard Foundation, this study maps gender disparities across the culinary career pipeline. Women represent approximately 54% of the restaurant workforce but only 24.8% of chefs and head cooks, with a substantial gender wage gap persisting across the occupation (NRA, 2026; U.S. Census Bureau, 2024). Of 402 James Beard Award winners analyzed, 71.6% were male and 28.1% female. Disparities intensify at higher levels of authority and prestige. Findings indicate that gender inequality reflects systemic barriers in advancement, compensation, and recognition, producing a "broken pipeline" in which workforce participation fails to translate into proportional leadership or recognition. Implications include recommendations for award transparency, leadership development, and structural reform across the hospitality sector.
Recommended Citation
Sanders, Eulanda A. and Harris, Andra
(2026)
"From Kitchen to Canon: Women and Culinary Recognition Executive Summary,"
ICHRIE Research Reports: Vol. 11:
Iss.
5, Article 4.
DOI: 10.61701/850858.596
Available at:
https://via.library.depaul.edu/ichrie_rr/vol11/iss5/4
Included in
Family and Consumer Sciences Commons, Food and Beverage Management Commons, Food Studies Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, Inequality and Stratification Commons, Leadership Commons, Leadership Studies Commons, Social Justice Commons, Work, Economy and Organizations Commons
