Thomas Edison once said; “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Not for me though. I love to work. I love what I do and where I am going. As such today presented another opportunity that I must weigh all the options and ensure that it is exactly what I want. That said I felt pretty good at the meeting.
As I blogged a few posts ago, I had a meeting with the Executive Chef of a prominent club in Toronto. I arrived sharply at 3 and spoke with him about what he needs, wants and desires as well as what I want, need and desire. We then walked around the various facilities to give me a feel for the place.
Its operations are huge. Perhaps four times as big as Reservation and at least ten times as big as Without Reservation. There are three distinct levels of service and thus expectation. The walkins are massive and filled with the most delicious, fresh and awe inspiring ingredients. The general feel of the place was good and seemed to be something that I might like to do.
When we returned to Chef’s office we spoke for a few more minutes. By the way, it really is true that all Chef’s get a bright corner office with lots of natural light, the best computers possible, etc. True in dreamland that is. Chef’s offices I have come to learn are small, filled with endless amounts of knowledge, clipboards, prep and staff lists, etc. But the office was nice enough and clean. We spoke all in for about an hour and within a few minutes I had the feeling that this was someone I could work for. He made sure that I was willing and able to be at work for those hours at which I had to chuckle. I always show up. He liked that!
Thus, the opportunity is, to work breakfast and lunch services for the time being. I have the freedom to create specials every day which include pasta, pizza and sandwiches as well as fish, meat, etc. This sounded very good to me. He was very honest in saying that it may not be the dream job for everyone out there but it is one which has the opportunity to create, to move up and to be part of a team. All things which resonate with me greatly.
Steady work. Stable. BENEFITS. I can buy into the pension plan.
So next I need to speak with my incredible fiancé and get her opinion on the matter. Executive Chef and I are scheduled to speak again on Friday. I look forward to resolving these issues so that I can start the process of working my way up the ladder to achieve exactly what it is that I intend to achieve.
As I was typing this Executive Chef sent me some material regarding menus, etc. He also looks forward to speaking on Friday.
I guess I have some serious soul searching to do. Luckily I am good at searching and have a soul.
Arthur Rimbaud once wrote; “The first study for the man who wants to be a poet is knowledge of himself, complete: he searches for his soul, he inspects it, he puts it to the test, he learns it. As soon as he has learned it, he must cultivate it! I say that one must be a seer, make oneself a seer. The poet becomes a seer through a long, immense, and reasoned derangement of all the senses. All shapes of love suffering, madness. He searches himself, he exhausts all poisons in himself, to keep only the quintessences. Ineffable torture where he needs all his faith, all his superhuman strength, where he becomes among all men the great patient, the great criminal, the great accursed one--and the supreme Scholar! For he reaches the unknown! ....So the poet is actually a thief of Fire!”
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
WHY NOT?
A la prochaine
SDM
Showing posts with label Fresh. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fresh. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Alice Waters, Alice Waters, Alice Waters (File under There’s no Place Like Home)
I admire and respect Alice Waters beyond what words could possibly say. She is, as I have mentioned here before, the mother of California Cuisine and started with nothing more than the desire to cook good food responsibly.
Many of the twenty five or so books that I have read in the past week include Alice Waters as the writer of the Foreword, Preface or Introduction. By my count it is no less than twelve that I read this week.
As I have mentioned here before Alice Waters started Chez Panisse in California. She started as a novice with nothing more than the desire to make great food with great ingredients. Some of the highlights of her words follow here.
In “Fresh” by Janet Fletcher Alice says; “ To my way of thinking, the proliferation of farmers’ markets is the single most and heartening development in this country in my lifetime… Farmers’ Markets bring us the greatest variety of the freshest, tastiest, and most beautiful food there is, food that is neither wastefully packaged, cosmetically waxed, nor irradiated.”
In “A Celebration of Woman Chefs” Alice says; “There is something that women understand instinctively in a way that men, perhaps do not; that food is primarily about nourishment. Cooking is more than art; It is a daily sacrament in which we act out our commitment to each other, to society, and to the earth.” WHAT A STATEMENT! Think about that for a minute or two and I’m sure that it will bake your noodle just as it did mine. Such a beautiful sentiment, PERFECTLY WORDED. And I’m a man. Moreover she says; “perseverance and unswerving dedication are ultimately rewarded.” Good to know.
One of the woman Chefs I came across in that book is Deborah Hughes. And I must say that I really like her. She co owns the venerable Harvard staple Upstairs at the Pudding. The Pudding for those of you that don’t know was a secret society at Harvard and can boast on its wall the trophy kills of Teddy Roosevelt. She says that schools don’t teach much about; “the relationship between common sense, chemistry and the work ethic, and may be robbing young chefs of their intuition – You can’t be a good cook without intuition – You must learn the fundamental components and techniques but it takes your instincts to create.” WOW!
Another Chef I have always admired is Lidia Bastianich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lidia_Bastianich). She says; “Food for me is really the protagonist. I can only transport food or exalt it.” And “The product is 50% or more of what I do. I have to embellish it or bring it out or dress it up a little bit – as simply as I can.” PROFOUND!
I also took the time to read Chez Panisse Café Cookbook, Chez Panisse Vegetables, Chez Panisse Fruit and Chez Panisse Desserts.
In the cookbook she says; "The concept of an open kitchen is a simple one: cooks and diners should interact and cooking smells should fill the room.”
In Vegetables Alice says and I find this very telling and important; “We didn’t know how to manage a kitchen and fill orders for dozens of different dishes at once, so we hit on a format we have stuck with ever since: one menu, no choices, one price.” Also very telling is; “A few principles have emerged… the finest food is produced and grown in ways that are ecologically sound.”
In Fruit she says; “Pay attention to what you’re eating.”
I am going to dedicate a full post to Waters’ Book “The Art of Simple Food.”
Are you dreaming big and inspired? And what’s more, are you working each and every day in pursuit of that dream?
A la prochaine
SDM
Many of the twenty five or so books that I have read in the past week include Alice Waters as the writer of the Foreword, Preface or Introduction. By my count it is no less than twelve that I read this week.
As I have mentioned here before Alice Waters started Chez Panisse in California. She started as a novice with nothing more than the desire to make great food with great ingredients. Some of the highlights of her words follow here.
In “Fresh” by Janet Fletcher Alice says; “ To my way of thinking, the proliferation of farmers’ markets is the single most and heartening development in this country in my lifetime… Farmers’ Markets bring us the greatest variety of the freshest, tastiest, and most beautiful food there is, food that is neither wastefully packaged, cosmetically waxed, nor irradiated.”
In “A Celebration of Woman Chefs” Alice says; “There is something that women understand instinctively in a way that men, perhaps do not; that food is primarily about nourishment. Cooking is more than art; It is a daily sacrament in which we act out our commitment to each other, to society, and to the earth.” WHAT A STATEMENT! Think about that for a minute or two and I’m sure that it will bake your noodle just as it did mine. Such a beautiful sentiment, PERFECTLY WORDED. And I’m a man. Moreover she says; “perseverance and unswerving dedication are ultimately rewarded.” Good to know.
One of the woman Chefs I came across in that book is Deborah Hughes. And I must say that I really like her. She co owns the venerable Harvard staple Upstairs at the Pudding. The Pudding for those of you that don’t know was a secret society at Harvard and can boast on its wall the trophy kills of Teddy Roosevelt. She says that schools don’t teach much about; “the relationship between common sense, chemistry and the work ethic, and may be robbing young chefs of their intuition – You can’t be a good cook without intuition – You must learn the fundamental components and techniques but it takes your instincts to create.” WOW!
Another Chef I have always admired is Lidia Bastianich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lidia_Bastianich). She says; “Food for me is really the protagonist. I can only transport food or exalt it.” And “The product is 50% or more of what I do. I have to embellish it or bring it out or dress it up a little bit – as simply as I can.” PROFOUND!
I also took the time to read Chez Panisse Café Cookbook, Chez Panisse Vegetables, Chez Panisse Fruit and Chez Panisse Desserts.
In the cookbook she says; "The concept of an open kitchen is a simple one: cooks and diners should interact and cooking smells should fill the room.”
In Vegetables Alice says and I find this very telling and important; “We didn’t know how to manage a kitchen and fill orders for dozens of different dishes at once, so we hit on a format we have stuck with ever since: one menu, no choices, one price.” Also very telling is; “A few principles have emerged… the finest food is produced and grown in ways that are ecologically sound.”
In Fruit she says; “Pay attention to what you’re eating.”
I am going to dedicate a full post to Waters’ Book “The Art of Simple Food.”
Are you dreaming big and inspired? And what’s more, are you working each and every day in pursuit of that dream?
A la prochaine
SDM
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