A cook is a professional individual who prepares items for consumption in the food industry, especially in settings such as restaurants. A cook is sometimes referred to as a chef, although in the culinary world, the terms are not interchangeable. Cooks' responsibilities include preparing food, managing food stations, cleaning the kitchen, and helping the chefs. Restaurants will give a title to the cooks according to their designated stations. Examples are broiler cooks, fry cooks, pantry cooks, and sauce cooks. History In 776 BC, Coroebus of Elis who won the Ancient Olympic Games in a sprint race was also a cook. In the Middle Age of Northern France (around 9th-15th century), being a cook was a known profession in the community. In a sense, cooks were acknowledged as trained craftsmen. Taillevent wrote in the Le Viandier- a classic recipe collection in Medieval France- that he underwent different levels of training such as being an apprentice and journeyman before he acquired a master grade. The master or queu attained knowledge passed from one generation to another. Georges Auguste Escoffier (1846-1935) described cook in the Brigade De Cuisine as the Cuisinier. They help the top levels in the hierarchy, such as chefs, and prepare specific dishes. Ming China During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the profession of cook was one that served, on the most part, the upper echelons of society, serving the likes of merchants, officials and landlords. The development of the culinary world in China during the Ming dynasty, due to the new ‘New World’ crops, such as maize, potatoes, and chilis, created an environment which led to a new and quality foods being accessible to more and more people in Ming China. The new variety in foods on offer to cooks even led to various instruction manuals and recipe books on food preparation. Cook employment The cooks that prepared and cooked the food for those of the Chinese population that were in the upper echelons of society and therefore could afford it, would operate through inns, restaurants and even by roaming the streets as a street vendor, thus offering customers a variety of options. However, despite the growing variety of foods and food sellers in Ming China, the services of most of the professional cooks was reserved for the elite class. The Court was an extremely large employer of cooks throughout the entirety of the Ming dynasty, with over 9,000 cooks