Mama Said (File under days like these)

First off, last night I completed another experiment. I managed to convince myself that pork tenderloin and Tandoori go together with Napa Cabbage on big old Kaisers. I will admit that I had to cheat and buy a Tandoori Masala powder but I then had to kick it up with a very special smoked paprika that my stepmother gave me. Ohh it is so good. I also added cayenne and chili flake. I have to admit that creating the paste at first I was a little unsure. But nothing that a little olive oil and love (read butter) couldn’t fix. I actually ended up with the right colour and the flavour was bang on for what I was aiming for. My guinea pig said that he enjoyed it thoroughly and again to my mind the only thing that would have made it better would have been to share it with C. Though I can guarantee that I will come up with a better way to do the Tandoori. Including starting from scratch. All in all though a good experiment.



Tandoori Paste



Tandoori Pork



A very familiar shot of me



The end result...

Today was an awesome day. I wanted to reveal to you just how much comes in when we order. Today was light day but all the orders included; a case of olive oil, one case of eggs, a case of plum tomatoes, a box of candy, a case of butter, a case of cream, two cases of various spaghettis. And that was just dry goods. Then the fish arrived. Today we only got about thirty pounds of Salmon, five pounds of mussels and six pounds of 31-40 shrimp. Then came the vegetables, a case of plum tomatoes, five different kinds of fresh herbs (tarragon, Italian parsley, chives, basil and thyme), eggplant, spaghetti squash, carrots, baby carrots, russet potatoes, Yukon gold potatoes, onions (each of the last three in 50 pound amounts), zucchini, rutabaga, fennel, gooseberries, micro greens, spinach, romaine hearts, etc. I think you get the idea. When produce comes in it takes me about twenty minutes minimum to put it away. When it is an obscene order it takes me about forty minutes.

I had a short day today but when I was finished my paid work I paid careful attention to how the Garde Manger does things. I asked her to lay out what all the plates are for me so that I could understand. She suggested that it would be better for me to pay really careful attention for twenty minutes. No writing, just paying attention. She told me that she envied me because the passion that I have is obvious. She asked what I wanted to do eventually and I told her that it was my mission in life to have not one but at least two restaurants. She laughed and smiled brightly and it lead me to believe that she understood me at least a little bit more. She explained to me how certain things get done and was happy to answer all of my questions. I paid careful attention to the way that she designed her station. This caused me to start thinking, which then in turn start me asking questions.

I asked Head Chef what the proper way was to set up a station. He answered in his usual manner by using his example. He explained how he sets up his station bit by bit and it made an incredible amount of sense to me. I then asked about the way to set up Garde Manger. He suggested that I look at the way it is set up now. Understand the functionality of it. Build upon it and when the time is right make it my own. I made little scribble diagrams of how it is set up now and made a mental note that I am going to phantom practice. By that I mean set up a fake station and then ask one of my friends to judge me on my performance. I can already see efficiencies that I will set up at my station when the time is right for me to become Garde. I have set a very difficult timeline for myself to get to Garde and it coincides with us at Reservation beginning to get busy. I would say I think I can do it but instead I’d like to say that I KNOW I CAN AND WILL DO IT. Thanks C for teaching me how to believe in myself.

I had another experience today which I won’t elaborate on but it taught me a lot about the way that the kitchen functions. The role of the Executive Chef and how it is mandatory that the ship be controlled at his whim. I was grateful to experience what I experienced today and it caused me to reevaluate the way that I will be in the kitchen a little.

In short today I learned how to set up my (not currently but soon) station. Tomorrow I am going to take pictures of all the stations so that I can start internalizing how I would do it. How it is done now and how I can make it better. This is part of the journey and part of the learning and I am excited, as always, to become more than I currently am, through diligence and hard work (not to mention a little talent, passion and drive).

I also had an awesome dream last night about Michel Bras and the food he presents. It involved C and I being invited for dinner. The whole purpose of which was to give me a first hand experience to make my food better. At the end of the dream Bras and his wife asked C and I if we would like to stay with them a while so that I could learn more. We both jumped at it and now I’m left wondering if I am supposed to figure out a way to get to Aubrac. What do you think? C certainly thought so, as did I in the dream. There is no question I will spend some time either in Italy or France next year. The only question is where.

John Wolfgang von Goethe once said; “A really great talent finds its happiness in execution.” And I find happiness each and every day. Do you?

Be inspired tonight. Dream. Live. Succeed.

A la prochaine

SDM