Desperation is never a good approach towards hiring.  I know how difficult staffing is right now, believe me – I hear it every day from every chef that I communicate with.  But desperation hiring is, more often than not, a… Continue reading

The good news is that restaurants are beginning to see an increase in sales as more and more customers return to in person dining in addition to their new habit of ordering for home delivery.  So, as life starts to… Continue reading

It happens now and again, that question comes up on-line, usually from individuals new to a professional kitchen, or those who have little idea about how kitchens work.  “What is the difference between a cook and a chef”?  Sometimes, it… Continue reading

We have all heard it before; it is perpetuated in the media, by our politicians, guidance counselors, professors, our peers, and sometimes even parents.  You know that generalization about the position of cook and the inference that somehow it is… Continue reading

What we do, how we act, and what we believe is influenced by many experiences in life.  It is safe to say, that we are, to a very large degree, a product of those experiences and inspirations.  When we stop… Continue reading

It always upsets me to run into a cook with a bleak attitude towards working in a kitchen.  When an individual complains about the hours, his or her team, a lousy chef, a restaurant that doesn’t care about them, about… Continue reading

Watching exceptional and sometimes surprising football this past weekend I realized that it is not old fashioned to give it all you’ve got.  It really shouldn’t matter what we are doing: work, fun, hobbies, sports, exercise, school, family, or relationships… Continue reading

One of the many things that I find truly amazing is a person’s ability to assimilate, understand, categorize, blend, envision, and call into action thoughts from a variety of experiences and do so with relative ease.  This happens progressively throughout… Continue reading

Every person has needs that go beyond food, shelter, and clothing.  Of course, we require those important things to survive, but survival to the average person is never enough.  Getting by does not inspire and will never address the potential… Continue reading

The real question is: “Is it ever a good time to become a restaurateur?”  The underlying answer stems from one simple word: “uncertainty”.  Entering the restaurant business has always been like a non-swimmer jumping in the deep end of the… Continue reading

This is the time of year when far too many of us put together a list of new year resolutions only to find them on the shelf collecting 365 days of dust.  I thought that rather than go through that… Continue reading

I know you remember the first day that you slid your arms into the sleeves of that chef’s jacket with your name embroidered under the title: executive chef.  It was that first time in the lead position – the commander… Continue reading

My, oh my, did you see that sky Sunrise to sunset It can take your breath away In the darkest night A million stars make us wonder How could we be so wrapped up in who we are When in… Continue reading

The trials and tribulations associated with the restaurant business are many – it is not an endeavor for the faint of heart.  Finding the right concept, building in the right location, finding, and training the best staff, nurturing the team,… Continue reading

My grandfather came to the United States from Norway at the age of 17.  He worked his way over on a ship as a carpenter and set his sight on the fortunes that would await him on our shores.  Like… Continue reading

It seems as if our society is on the threshold of decay.  That is an awful opening sentence, but there are numerous indications that it is true.  Differences of opinion are to be cherished, but this expression never crept into… Continue reading

Alex Honnold may very well be the greatest climber of all time.  Although he has climbed many of the most serious mountains in the world, he is best known for his free solo climb of El Capitan in Yosemite National… Continue reading

Nearly every professional cook or chef will agree that discipline in the kitchen and adherence to certain rules and methods is critical to success.  Kitchen careerists live by these rules, imbed them in their subconscious, and rely on them every… Continue reading

I have mentioned many times before how my love for the kitchen stems from the appreciation I have for the diverse types of people who work there.  Every day in a kitchen is a learning experience – not just in… Continue reading

Desperation leads to ineffective decision making.  This is always, always, always the case.  Decisions based on panic are like the amateur carpenter who keeps making the wrong cut on a length of board until there is nothing left.  It seems… Continue reading

This is one of those reflective moments – we all have them – a time to think back rather than forward and simply wonder how the future will compare and who will hold the keys to progress.  I was reading… Continue reading

Sitting is the chef’s office, or what some might refer to as a storage room with a desk, it is always enlightening to look out on the kitchen and watch the motions of those who have found a home in… Continue reading

Kitchens are great equalizers – it is the place where individual talent and exceptional intellect can be less important that dependability, organization, focus, and teamwork.  The kitchen is a place where those who are successful come to the realization that… Continue reading

To make a difference – this is something that many of us seek and so few of us think that we accomplish.  At some level we all make a difference, even if only in one person’s life, one situation, one… Continue reading

Most of us tend to gravitate to what we can control.  We have an innate desire to do what we’re good at and avoid what we are not.  It is the fact of control that differentiates comfort from a lack… Continue reading

I have been following the current Rolling Stones Tour without Charlie Watts for the first time in 59 years.  He was, like so many drummers, far more important to the band than many would have thought.  He wasn’t flamboyant, didn’t… Continue reading

It’s time to accept where we are, listen and understand where we might be going, put aside our frustrations and begin to establish a working strategy that is based on what is inevitable.  Yes, I’m talking about what it will… Continue reading

At this time, when it seems so easy to complain, to point fingers, to question, and sometimes even to bail on a career in the kitchen – I offer these insights for a professional cook:  I am a cook, hear… Continue reading

Twenty years ago, yes twenty years, our lives changed forever.  When those terrorists without a soul, with evil and hate in their hearts chose to attack innocent people who were just going about their lives and sent a message to… Continue reading