Harvest America CUES BLOG

chef

  • CHEF OWNERSHIP – SCENARIO #2

    This is the second of three chef/ownership scenarios drawn from the initial article on that “OWNERSHIP THING”. Sabrina’s Scones and Crust: Sabrina has worked in various pastry shops throughout the Pacific Northwest and has built a strong reputation for her… Continue reading

  • CHEFS CHASING THE OWNERSHIP THING

    I don’t believe that I know a single professional chef who doesn’t have a deep seeded desire to own a restaurant. Some are more obvious about the desire then others, some hide it pretty well, but underneath the façade of… Continue reading

  • LINE COOKS WHO TAKE THE LEAP

    At some point, fairly early on, restaurant cooks make a decision to either view what they do as a transitional job while they look for something that they really want to do, or decide that cooking is their life calling… Continue reading

  • BECOMING A GREAT LINE COOK

    Whether you are a product of a formal culinary education or working your way up through the school of hard knocks, it is likely that all roads leading to the position of chef will move through the line cook position.… Continue reading

  • A LINE COOK’S VIEW OF SUMMER MONTHS

    It’s pushing 10 a.m. when an evening line cook finally rolls out of bed. The July sun is starting to really show its ability to bear down with penetrating heat and the humidity is bringing those first beads of sweat… Continue reading

  • COOKING FOR THE RUSH

    I remember when I first encountered the jazz influenced improvisational music of Eric Clapton as a member of Cream. Many of my age were in awe of the speed and almost frenzy nature of this adrenaline infused music that started… Continue reading

  • BECOMING A MASTER OF YOUR CRAFT

    I just finished watching a YouTube video clip of Jeff Beck and Stanley Clarke performing their incredible music at a jazz festival. I watched the clip four times in a row until I knew that I had to get back… Continue reading

  • IN THE KITCHEN – SKILLS ARE THE DRUG, CONFIDENCE IS THE HIGH

    Many have pointed to the abuse of drugs and alcohol that seems far too commonplace among restaurant employees. It may be part of the culture, possibly a release from the accentuated stress that exists in kitchens, and it may simply… Continue reading

  • LIFE IN THE KITCHEN – WHAT A LONG STRANGE TRIP IT’S BEEN

    Quite often I have read posts from individual cooks who express a high level of dissatisfaction with their choice to work in kitchens. In some cases this dissatisfaction leans towards contempt – loads of anger pointed at the job and… Continue reading

  • THAT KITCHEN SENSE OF URGENCY

    There are some things in life that can’t be taught. Only the experience of impending doom can push a person to dig deep and find solutions that they never thought were possible, discover skills that were never present before the… Continue reading

  • HEY CHEF – WHO ARE YOU?

    What does it really mean to be a chef? Is it strictly a position of authority – a position well-earned through time, trial and error, loads of cooking skills, business savvy, and a brand that helps the operation and the… Continue reading

  • BEING A CHEF – THE PASSION AND THE COST

    Let’s first separate those three types of cooks who stand tall behind a range: Those who consider cooking to be their purpose in life, the career choice that inspires them, and the choice that let’s them jump out of bed… Continue reading

  • A LINE COOK’S LEGAL VICES

    The dictionary may define a “vice” as a bad habit or fault, but sometimes those habits cause less harm than the definition may imply and far more joy than one might assume. We all have a vice or two, some… Continue reading

  • IS THE KITCHEN A COOK’S “SAFE PLACE”?

    Look around the kitchen and pause to really assess what you see. The lifeblood of the kitchen is not found in stainless steel, contemporary equipment, or even the ingredients that fill cooler and storeroom shelves. The lifeblood of the kitchen… Continue reading

  • THE CHEF’S INTELLECT

    It is certainly true that professional cooks and chefs live in a tactile world. The kitchen is attractive to many as a vehicle for working with your hands – building and creating dishes and presenting them with flair that inspires… Continue reading

  • WHY COOKS HANG OUT WITH COOKS

    In the era of social media the term “friend” has been misconstrued. A Facebook friend is likely distant from the true definition that has been an essential part of a full life since the beginning of time. A social media… Continue reading

  • WHAT MAKES A CHEF’S JOB SO CHALLENGING

    If you cook in a serious way, if you have defined the process of cooking as something that you want to invest in, if you find that the passion of working in a professional kitchen is something that inspires you,… Continue reading

  • I REMEMBER – A CHEF’S REFLECTIONS ON TIME

    It was 1964 when Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones sang: “Time is on my side, yes it is.” I wonder now if there is any truth to that statement. When you are 14 years old, as I was, time… Continue reading

  • I LOVE BEING A CHEF BUT I’M MAD AS HELL

    From that first moment when I held a spatula in my hand at the age of 15 and was shown how to flip a pancake and how the flick of my wrist could coax an egg to gently change sides… Continue reading

  • THE RECIPE IS A BOOK WORTH READING AND HOLDING CLOSE TO YOUR HEART

    There has rarely been a better time for a book like this. I don’t normally use my blog to talk about books that you really should read. My focus is to pay respect to cooks and chefs, restaurateurs and servers,… Continue reading

  • A COOK DEEP IN THOUGHT

    If you are a restaurant cook – how often have you paused to think: “Why am I doing this”? Every cook understands that there is a balance of good, bad, and ugly with most careers, but at times it does… Continue reading

  • THE WINE EXPERIENCE /THE WINE CULTURE – A CHEF’S PERSPECTIVE

    Is it possible that an area like the North Fork of Long Island could become the next serious wine region of the country? What differentiates the Napa Valley, Paso Robles and Sonoma County of California from the Willamette Valley of… Continue reading

  • THE MOST IMPORTANT TOOL IN A PROFESSIONAL KITCHEN – A COOK’S HANDS

    Cut, stitched, bruised, burnt, swollen and callused – a cook’s hands are a testament to the torturous work that they endure and the symbol of an incredible work ethic that they represent. It is not uncommon for people to take… Continue reading

  • A LINE COOK’S LIFE DIRECTION

    “There’s nothing worse than a feeling of being lost.” -Chef Daniel Boulud These are such important words from a chef and restaurateur whom many consider one of the worlds finest at his craft. They gave me a moment of pause… Continue reading

  • HOW TO BECOME A SUCCESSFUL CHEF – A BAKER’S DOZEN

      This may not turn out to be my most popular article, but it might very well be one of the most important for a cook or chef planning on a long, successful career in the kitchen. If we take… Continue reading

  • THE ORIENTATION OF A NEW COOK – WELCOME TO THE CLUB

    “Welcome to the camp, I guess we all know why we’re here.” These opening lyrics by the Who in their dramatic album “Tommy” referred to an underlying understanding of purpose. Anyone could interject numerous scenarios that point to common beliefs,… Continue reading

  • 24 HOURS IN A PROFESSIONAL LINE COOK’S LIFE

    Yes, the life of a cook is based on routine – a routine that may be different, but a routine never the less. What differs is the amount if time dedicated daily to the environment of the kitchen and the… Continue reading

  • WHAT DRIVES A CHEF

    The vision of extreme work ethic always inspires me. Extreme may be an over-used word, but not in the restaurant business. A chef’s life is a life of never-ending focus on food and the workings of his or her kitchen.… Continue reading

  • THE EFFECTIVE CHEF’S NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS

    Why do we bother to create a list of year to come resolutions when more often than not we disregard the list soon after it is written? Is it because of a tradition that lacks commitment, or because we know… Continue reading

  • A COOK’S “LIFE IN THE MOMENT”

    The world spins around us, life takes us in many different directions – some exciting and rewarding, some seem to spin out of control, but in all cases we have to take it in stride. There are macro issues of… Continue reading