This year I have been a piece in the puzzle of joyful occasions for approximately six or seven thousand people. When I do my yearly roundup in middle January I can give you a more specific number but for the purposes of this post I believe that number will suffice.
At Reservation the function or banquet team had delivering happiness down to a science. L and I worked tirelessly to ensure that we made food look and taste good. We knew without thinking because of the number of functions that we worked how to do things and make the show run smoothly. I have to admit, I kind of miss the well oiled machine that was our function team. We could do functions at Reservation for twenty five as well as we did for six hundred or even double that.
So on Friday night at Without Reservation on top of our regular service we had a four course meal for forty, which incidentally, was going at the height of service, which made it rather interesting.
Simple set up, salad, soup, mains and desert. Salad was either a Caesar or house salad. Soup was a tomato herb. Main choices were steak, chicken or salmon and desert was crème brûlée. Chef and I have had experience doing parties like this and have it down to a second nature.
In order to smoothly run a function there are certain things that must be done in order to ensure that the food is good, the service is good and that it goes well. From our end Chef and I and the brigade knew what we were doing and how to do it. The Front of House well that is a whole different matter.
At Reservation it was a well oiled machine. Everyone knew their respective roles and how to fulfill to the best of our abilities. I feel that at Without Reservation the Front of House staff does not necessarily have much experience with doing parties such as this. And it showed.
To my eye, orders did not go smoothly. The count initially was wrong which adversely affects our ability to put out the right amount of proteins in a timely fashion. Naturally Chef and I were able to deal with it but it is my observation. So rather than having a coherent order sheet we had to three separate times try to figure out the front of house notations and in fact walk them through giving us the information in a meaningful way so that we could do our job. It worked out fine though and just took us a few shakes of the tree to get it right with the front of house. THIS IS NOT CRITICISM, it is OBSERVATION and more over is something that Chef and I will be able to correct going forward based on our experience.
The food we put out looked good, tasted great and was well received by the customer. He and his team will be back which is always a nice feeling. Compliments were sent from the client to the kitchen and I felt pretty good about what we accomplished.
Samuel Johnson once said; “Art and nature have stores inexhaustible by human intellects; and every moment produces something new to him who has quickened his faculties by diligent observation”
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
A la prochaine
SDM
Showing posts with label Front of House. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Front of House. Show all posts
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Politics (file under No, not going back… just considerations)
Machiavelli once wrote; “The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it.” How true?
When I was working at Reservation there was a fair amount of politics. The politics that existed between the front of the house and the back of the house. The politics that occurred between the entire front of the house. That of the back of the house. That of suppliers. Customers, etc. Politics abounds everywhere.
One of the things that always occurs to me is that in our society we exist largely in a meritocracy. I say largely because in theory we exist only in a meritocracy. Though both you and I know that this is far from true in any meaningful sense. Although it is a great idea to cling to.
At Reservation, there was an excessive amount of politics. There were those that were the elite and were treated as such. Then there were the plebes and then the slaves. As I look back at it now, though a good experience, I was nothing more than a slave. Please understand that this is nothing more than an observation. I was a willing participant and allowed myself to be taken advantage of. What that says about me is a whole different matter.
Now, at Without Reservation, I am watching as the ugly face of politics is trying to unseat the very real progress that I have made. The disconnect between the front of house and back of house is a little less so than it was at Reservation. However, the politics at Without Reservation seem somehow more vitriolic. More designed to instill pain and suffering and in my opinion it is because of a complete lack of understanding as to how a kitchen runs.
There are always going to be differences between colleagues for any number of reasons that are too many to list here but I am considering each and every one of them. As I am getting older I am able (for perhaps the first time in my life) to remove myself from the rabble rousing and saber rattling. For the most part because engaging in the politics of the workplace does absolutely nothing to help me, to advance my career or to help me get to where I am going. As a point of personal privilege here I would also like to say that I don’t consider what I am doing as a career. I think it is a personal choice that I have made to bring happiness, joy, satisfaction and the like into my life.
My fervent desire is that I see the political issues lesson as time goes forward. My belief is that they probably won’t. However, knowing this arms me with a massive amount of knowledge and leaves me the ability to formulate my next move. A lot like chess or war really. What would Sun Tzu say?
At any rate, as I consider this, I know that I am becoming something closer to what I have always longed to be. And though we are all political animals (in the Animal Farm Napoleon kind of way) I think that my lack of participation in the entanglements of politics is actually making me a better person.
Orwell wrote in Animal Farm; "All that year the animals worked like slaves. But they were happy in their work; they grudged no effort or sacrifice, well aware that everything they did was for the benefit of themselves and those of their kind who would come after them, and not for a pack of idle, thieving human beings."
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
A la prochaine
SDM
When I was working at Reservation there was a fair amount of politics. The politics that existed between the front of the house and the back of the house. The politics that occurred between the entire front of the house. That of the back of the house. That of suppliers. Customers, etc. Politics abounds everywhere.
One of the things that always occurs to me is that in our society we exist largely in a meritocracy. I say largely because in theory we exist only in a meritocracy. Though both you and I know that this is far from true in any meaningful sense. Although it is a great idea to cling to.
At Reservation, there was an excessive amount of politics. There were those that were the elite and were treated as such. Then there were the plebes and then the slaves. As I look back at it now, though a good experience, I was nothing more than a slave. Please understand that this is nothing more than an observation. I was a willing participant and allowed myself to be taken advantage of. What that says about me is a whole different matter.
Now, at Without Reservation, I am watching as the ugly face of politics is trying to unseat the very real progress that I have made. The disconnect between the front of house and back of house is a little less so than it was at Reservation. However, the politics at Without Reservation seem somehow more vitriolic. More designed to instill pain and suffering and in my opinion it is because of a complete lack of understanding as to how a kitchen runs.
There are always going to be differences between colleagues for any number of reasons that are too many to list here but I am considering each and every one of them. As I am getting older I am able (for perhaps the first time in my life) to remove myself from the rabble rousing and saber rattling. For the most part because engaging in the politics of the workplace does absolutely nothing to help me, to advance my career or to help me get to where I am going. As a point of personal privilege here I would also like to say that I don’t consider what I am doing as a career. I think it is a personal choice that I have made to bring happiness, joy, satisfaction and the like into my life.
My fervent desire is that I see the political issues lesson as time goes forward. My belief is that they probably won’t. However, knowing this arms me with a massive amount of knowledge and leaves me the ability to formulate my next move. A lot like chess or war really. What would Sun Tzu say?
At any rate, as I consider this, I know that I am becoming something closer to what I have always longed to be. And though we are all political animals (in the Animal Farm Napoleon kind of way) I think that my lack of participation in the entanglements of politics is actually making me a better person.
Orwell wrote in Animal Farm; "All that year the animals worked like slaves. But they were happy in their work; they grudged no effort or sacrifice, well aware that everything they did was for the benefit of themselves and those of their kind who would come after them, and not for a pack of idle, thieving human beings."
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
A la prochaine
SDM
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Bringing Loved Ones into the Fold
This past Saturday after a long day I sat down with all my colleagues and waited for C to be done at the bar. As so often happens it is a rag tag group of mainly Chefs and cooks with a few servers interlaced. This week Executive Chef’s girlfriend was also with us and we struck up a conversation about my blog and excellence. S is an interesting woman. She is our event lead and very capable.
As we spoke we started with my introducing C to the family and how that may or may not have been a good idea. We both agreed that in this case it probably was a good idea because it would give her a greater insight into what I am going through on a daily basis. Introduce her to the realities of the life that I have chosen for my own selfish reasons and possibly produce some understanding and compassion. All things that I agree with. I try to explain to C what it is like to go through the transformation that I am going through and the journey that I am on. I think, for anyone, not just her, it would be near impossible to understand the complexities of the kitchen without having actually been in the environment yourself. But to C’s credit, she is working to understand what I go through. Not just because she loves me, but I think, almost as importantly, it is an interesting life that we chose to live. Although sometimes, especially recently, I have been feeling that the life, “this thing of ours,” as Anthony Bourdain says, chooses us.
At any rate, S and I then started talking about my blog. She told me how much she appreciated it, as it gives everyone that reads it a greater window into our vagabond lifestyles. The fearless. The free. The misfits of society that purge their souls to make your plates the delicious feasts that they are. All the while remaining hidden behind the iron curtain of sizzling pans and moaning convection ovens.
As we spoke S and I both expressed our desire that a server, a bartender, hell, even a dishwasher do the same thing that I am. As from that there would emerge the most accurate representation of the industry.
I told her that I was going to include, however briefly, this conversation.
Another interesting thing happened on Sunday which also relates to this topic. There was an issue, which I will not be specific about, between some members of the kitchen staff. There is a breakwater between the front of house and back of house. In fact it is one that is never breached. The front of house deals with the front of house and the back of house deals with the back of house. There is no overlay and no reason for interaction in the affairs of the other. Especially as relates to working relationships. At any rate A and Pastry Chef J had come by the grill after watching the Jays lose. I made them a late lunch and they decided once the rain started that they would wait for me and we all would go for a drink.
Finished my duties I punched out and A and I were waiting for Pastry Chef J. For some reason one of the kitchen staff was crying. Of course I know the reason but I am being somewhat diplomatic here. First mistake… CRYING in the KITCHEN! What are you thinking? So of course the event got a little blown out of proportion when one of the hostesses decided to get involved and came and started speaking to A and I like she might someone in the front of the house. I casually reminded her, through her raving, that it was not a good idea for her to get involved in what clearly involved the “culture” in the back of house. She continued. Well needless to say the event became a multitude of issues all rolled into one.
The first was the initiator of the event by crying. To those of us that are older we recognize the negative attention seeking involved with the crying incident which was the result of a comment that in the kitchen should not make anyone cry. The second was the hostess feeling that it was okay for her to get involved.
The result was that Pastry Chef J had to deal with the initiator and A and I had to go for a drink before she could come. Of course in the end everything worked out for the better but it really got me to thinking about the disconnect between the front of house and the back. How the breakwater has to exist. How there can not be some incestuous relationship between the two as it would degrade the working culture of the kitchen.
In the end when C was hearing “us,” the back of house creatures that we are discuss the event she was not impressed. I tried to explain to her that that is how the kitchen operates and it is not likely to change. As long as there are cooks. As long as there is food to be cooked by misfits, miscreants and me, it would appear the kitchen dynamic will remain explosive. BUT IT WORKS! At any rate, when C and I spoke about it, she was none to impressed and I tried to explain as best I could. In the end she understood what I was saying but not the culture aspect of it. I know that as time goes by she will and so will the rest of you.
Oliver Wendell Holmes once wrote; “A moment's insight is sometimes worth a life's experience.” HOW TRUE!
Are you dreaming big and inspired? Did you do something today that was new? Frightening? Are you ready to live? TODAY?
A la prochaine
SDM
As we spoke we started with my introducing C to the family and how that may or may not have been a good idea. We both agreed that in this case it probably was a good idea because it would give her a greater insight into what I am going through on a daily basis. Introduce her to the realities of the life that I have chosen for my own selfish reasons and possibly produce some understanding and compassion. All things that I agree with. I try to explain to C what it is like to go through the transformation that I am going through and the journey that I am on. I think, for anyone, not just her, it would be near impossible to understand the complexities of the kitchen without having actually been in the environment yourself. But to C’s credit, she is working to understand what I go through. Not just because she loves me, but I think, almost as importantly, it is an interesting life that we chose to live. Although sometimes, especially recently, I have been feeling that the life, “this thing of ours,” as Anthony Bourdain says, chooses us.
At any rate, S and I then started talking about my blog. She told me how much she appreciated it, as it gives everyone that reads it a greater window into our vagabond lifestyles. The fearless. The free. The misfits of society that purge their souls to make your plates the delicious feasts that they are. All the while remaining hidden behind the iron curtain of sizzling pans and moaning convection ovens.
As we spoke S and I both expressed our desire that a server, a bartender, hell, even a dishwasher do the same thing that I am. As from that there would emerge the most accurate representation of the industry.
I told her that I was going to include, however briefly, this conversation.
Another interesting thing happened on Sunday which also relates to this topic. There was an issue, which I will not be specific about, between some members of the kitchen staff. There is a breakwater between the front of house and back of house. In fact it is one that is never breached. The front of house deals with the front of house and the back of house deals with the back of house. There is no overlay and no reason for interaction in the affairs of the other. Especially as relates to working relationships. At any rate A and Pastry Chef J had come by the grill after watching the Jays lose. I made them a late lunch and they decided once the rain started that they would wait for me and we all would go for a drink.
Finished my duties I punched out and A and I were waiting for Pastry Chef J. For some reason one of the kitchen staff was crying. Of course I know the reason but I am being somewhat diplomatic here. First mistake… CRYING in the KITCHEN! What are you thinking? So of course the event got a little blown out of proportion when one of the hostesses decided to get involved and came and started speaking to A and I like she might someone in the front of the house. I casually reminded her, through her raving, that it was not a good idea for her to get involved in what clearly involved the “culture” in the back of house. She continued. Well needless to say the event became a multitude of issues all rolled into one.
The first was the initiator of the event by crying. To those of us that are older we recognize the negative attention seeking involved with the crying incident which was the result of a comment that in the kitchen should not make anyone cry. The second was the hostess feeling that it was okay for her to get involved.
The result was that Pastry Chef J had to deal with the initiator and A and I had to go for a drink before she could come. Of course in the end everything worked out for the better but it really got me to thinking about the disconnect between the front of house and the back. How the breakwater has to exist. How there can not be some incestuous relationship between the two as it would degrade the working culture of the kitchen.
In the end when C was hearing “us,” the back of house creatures that we are discuss the event she was not impressed. I tried to explain to her that that is how the kitchen operates and it is not likely to change. As long as there are cooks. As long as there is food to be cooked by misfits, miscreants and me, it would appear the kitchen dynamic will remain explosive. BUT IT WORKS! At any rate, when C and I spoke about it, she was none to impressed and I tried to explain as best I could. In the end she understood what I was saying but not the culture aspect of it. I know that as time goes by she will and so will the rest of you.
Oliver Wendell Holmes once wrote; “A moment's insight is sometimes worth a life's experience.” HOW TRUE!
Are you dreaming big and inspired? Did you do something today that was new? Frightening? Are you ready to live? TODAY?
A la prochaine
SDM
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
