--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My dad was in the restaurant business…" description: "\"My dad was in the restaurant business, but I didn't really think about following him. Had I done better at school, I don't know if I would have been a ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ba/david-chang-8104_about_my-dad-was-in-the-restaurant-business-bu_182935.png" --- # My dad was in the restaurant business, but I didn't really… ![“My dad was in the restaurant business, but I didn't really think about following him. Had I done better at school, I don't know if I would have been a chef.” quote by David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ba/david-chang-8104_about_my-dad-was-in-the-restaurant-business-bu_182935.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ba/david-chang-8104_about_my-dad-was-in-the-restaurant-business-bu_182935.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ba/david-chang-8104_about_my-dad-was-in-the-restaurant-business-bu_182935.png) > “My dad was in the restaurant business, but I didn't really think about following him. Had I done better at school, I don't know if I would have been a chef.” [David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chang/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on a career path shaped by family background but not predetermined, noting education could have led to a different profession. **In simple terms:** Family influence didn't dictate my career; education might have. Key Takeaway Consider how background and education shape choices. Themes career family influence identity choice education Mood reflective thoughtful Type personal career philosophical When to use this quote - career planning - culinary arts - family business - education decisions Key Concepts social expectations personal agency career development Questions to Reflect On - How might your life differ if you pursued the family trade? - What role does education play in career decisions? A Different Perspective Education alone may not determine passion; personal interest matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Chef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chef/) [Dad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dad/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Restaurant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restaurant/) [Restaurant business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restaurant-business/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) ## Related quotes > [It's tough, you know: I'm a chef first, and a restaurant owner, way before I was ever on Food Network, and it's a tough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-fieri/it-s-tough-you-know-i-m-a-chef-first-and-a-restaurant-owner-way/) [Guy Fieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-fieri/) > [All the awards in the world, you can get into all the nightclubs, they'll send you the nicest clothes. Nothing better than walking into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/all-the-awards-in-the-world-you-can-get-into-all-the-nightclubs-they/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [Get to know the Chef and you will start to enjoy dining out even more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-walters/get-to-know-the-chef-and-you-will-start-to-enjoy-dining-out-even-more/) [John Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-walters/) > [Hospitality is central to the restaurant business, yet it's a hard idea to define precisely. Mostly, it involves being nice to people and making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lanchester/hospitality-is-central-to-the-restaurant-business-yet-it-s-a-hard/) [John Lanchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lanchester/) > [Days off are few and far between in the restaurant business. But on an hour off, I like to have a glass of wine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-zakarian/days-off-are-few-and-far-between-in-the-restaurant-business-but-on-an/) [Geoffrey Zakarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-zakarian/) > [I don't know nothing about the restaurant business, but I've been around a barber shop all my life. That's where I used to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-johnson/i-don-t-know-nothing-about-the-restaurant-business-but-i-ve-been/) [Larry Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-johnson/) > [In the restaurant business, there's the concept of pivot. Pivot to the stove, pivot to the refrigerator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-douglas/in-the-restaurant-business-there-s-the-concept-of-pivot-pivot-to-the/) [Tom Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-douglas/) > [If I wasn't acting, I would want to be in the food and restaurant business. 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It's the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-zimmern/having-been-in-the-restaurant-business-our-job-in-the-restaurant/) [Andrew Zimmern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-zimmern/) > [I come from the restaurant business; you're talking to a guy used to working 12, 14 hours a day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-schilling/i-come-from-the-restaurant-business-you-re-talking-to-a-guy-used-to/) [Bobby Schilling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-schilling/) > [I grew up in the restaurant business, and that's always something I wanted to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-foles/i-grew-up-in-the-restaurant-business-and-that-s-always-something-i/) [Nick Foles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-foles/) > [In the restaurant business, if you break even, you're lucky. It's a really hard business, it's a survival business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominique-crenn/in-the-restaurant-business-if-you-break-even-you-re-lucky-it-s-a/) [Dominique Crenn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominique-crenn/) > [If anything is good for pounding humility into you permanently, it's the restaurant business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/if-anything-is-good-for-pounding-humility-into-you-permanently-it-s/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [As an outsider to and observer of the restaurant business, one of the things I most admire about it is the risks people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lanchester/as-an-outsider-to-and-observer-of-the-restaurant-business-one-of-the/) [John Lanchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lanchester/) > [A couple of months ago, I was down in Florida for the Food and Wine Festival. And this journalist grabbed me and said, 'How…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-colicchio/a-couple-of-months-ago-i-was-down-in-florida-for-the-food-and-wine/) [Tom Colicchio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-colicchio/) ## More by David Chang > [In New York, we're always confined with spaces. Our restaurants are difficult to navigate as cooks and to operate. We fight against the buildings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chang/in-new-york-we-re-always-confined-with-spaces-our-restaurants-are/) [David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chang/) > [If you ask what people say what American cuisine is, they cannot really do it. I don't know what it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chang/if-you-ask-what-people-say-what-american-cuisine-is-they-cannot/) [David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chang/) > [When I was in Japan, everyone wanted to work for Pierre Gagnaire, and they wouldn't miss a beat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chang/when-i-was-in-japan-everyone-wanted-to-work-for-pierre-gagnaire-and/) [David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chang/) > [Lifes too short to just breeze on by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chang/lifes-too-short-to-just-breeze-on-by/) [David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chang/) > [Say a child raises this beautiful beet. It's going to give her a sense of ownership, and that changes everything. 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