I spent a lot of time working in restaurants as a younger man, and think Ms Agg has only touched on the issues women face.  First, the work is highly physical.  Hefting 50 pound bags of potatoes or hundred pound sacks of flour is difficult for many women; it's a fact that men have more upper body strength.  When I was promoted to kitchen manager/chef, 70 hours a week on my feet was the rule rather than the exception.

I also found kitchen staff to be more abusive than any field I have worked in since.  The work is stressful and extremely time-boxed, and everyone accuses everyone else of malingering and incompetence to keep the pace up.  Pranks are more or less constant, since a sense of humour is mandatory, and some of those pranks border on abuse.

Most women can't handle the atmosphere.  And the fact that most kitchen staff are younger men with more hormones than sense means sexually offensive behaviour is also rampant.