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BODY, MIND AND SOUL – COOKS ARE IN IT TO WIN IT

23 Friday Aug 2019

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It was 1959 when the late great Miles Davis released “Kind of Blue” one of the great jazz albums of all time. Over his creative career – many of the most accomplished musicians of a generation got their start or at least their inspiration from playing with or listening to Miles – he was, to many, a genius.

The greats and soon to be greats were attracted to Miles and built their careers around playing with this creative genius. Herbie Hancock, John McLaughlin, Ron Cater, Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, and Joe Zawinul of Weather Report all had their start playing with Miles. Hundreds of others including Carlos Santana, Prince, John Legend, John Mayer, and Jimi Hendrix reflected on how Miles Davis influenced their own creativity and style. He was their Yoda.

“I’m always thinking about creating. My future starts when I wake up every morning…every day I find something to do with my life.”

-Miles David

Miles was fully engaged with his body, mind and soul and as a result – his music was an extension of the person that he was. The very best cooks are Miles Davis protégés, even if they are unfamiliar with his music. It is the creative energy of body, mind and soul that is at the center of great cooking whether you are a line cook, prep cook, or chef.

Our industry has it’s own Miles Davis Pied Pipers: Thomas Keller, Alice Waters, Joel Robuchon, Alain Ducasse, Daniel Boulud, David Chang, Grant Achatz, Dominique Crenn, Stephanie Izard, and hundreds of other talented chefs are driven individuals who attract others – drawing energy from their body, mind and soul. Serious cooks are in constant search of, and in real need of that something that separates cooks from great cooks. Nobody knows what that something is until they become part of it.

“Anybody can play. The note is only 20 percent. The attitude of the musicians who plays it is 80 percent.”

-Miles Davis

To paraphrase Davis: “Anybody can cook. The recipe is only 20 percent. The attitude of the person who cooks is 80 percent.”

Miles would have understood and appreciated the regimented exactness of Thomas Keller and Daniel Boulud because even with his improvisational style there was a foundation of discipline. He might not have understood the free form nature of Grant Achatz and Dominique Crenn, but their beautiful creative thought would have inspired him. He would have responded with enthusiasm to the seemingly loose style of David Chang because it is cooking that comes from the soul. Miles was the perfect example of ambassador for body, mind and soul.

tony and I

Serious cooks are truly connected with their craft, the tools that allow their application, and the food that they have an opportunity to interpret. Like Miles, they thrive on the creative connection to body, mind and soul that cooking provides. They have little patience with those who fail to see how important their work is and with those who simply view the job of cook as a process and a means to an end resulting in a paycheck for hours worked. They don’t understand and certainly don’t appreciate those who demean the profession and the privilege of being a cook just as I am sure Miles Davis would have little patience for those who simply read the notes on a page and play without a connection to body, mind, and soul.

So, here is a primer on being a chef with that connection to body, mind and soul:

[]         BODY

Cooking is such a physical endeavor. There certainly are many other physical careers, but few that use the body in such an all-inclusive manner. The cook who is in tune – is in tune with every ounce of physical interaction in the kitchen environment and with the food and he or she touches. The finger tips can distinguish rare from medium, the hands control the flip of vegetables in a pan; the legs, feet and back are in constant motion as a cook bends, turns and lifts throughout a 10-12 hour shift; and the tinge of heat on the brow, arms and face is intense and ever-present. A cook is “all in” physically and as such – totally in touch with his or her environment.

[]         MIND

The nerve ends in a cook’s brain are firing in rapid succession. The charged directives from the expeditor: “ordering…fire…pick-up…in the pass…” represent a cadence, a beat – similar to the pace orchestrated by Miles Davis as he led his musicians through a difficult arrangement. The cook’s brain is busy categorizing orders and their timing, referencing the sub-conscious database of cooking steps, and activating his or her flavor memory through the process of taste, season, taste. The eyes are ever focused on scanning the signs of cooking (caramelization, reduction, grill marks), the status of fellow line cooks, the details of an order, and the condition of station mise en place. All of these images are sent to the brain for analysis and action every nano-second. When the mind is alert and fully engaged then the magic of a functional kitchen appears to be beautiful and as smooth as a piece of improvisational music – organization out of impending chaos.

Painted in Waterlogue

[]         SOUL

Miles felt his music – he felt it deeply – much deeper that physically and mentally – he felt it in his soul, his essence, his reason for being.

“Music is an essential part of human existence. Listening to music leaves a major impact on each one of us. It can boost your mood, reduce stress and improve your health and overall wellbeing.”

-Norbert Juma

The same can be said of passionately prepared food. “Food is an essential part of human existence. Enjoying food leaves a major impact on each of us. It can boost your mood, reduce stress and improve your health and wellbeing.”

Those who play passionate music are feeding your soul and expressing theirs, just as those who cook passionately feed your soul and express theirs. There are so many parallels.

Miles music was a reflection of who he was, what he was feeling, and how he was connecting with people and the environment around him. Whether it was his instrument, the superbly talented musicians who surrounded him, or the audience mesmerized by his creativity – what occurred was a soul connection. In a kitchen filled with talented cooks who feel the power of what they do, have the skills that define great cooking, and are connected with fellow cooks, and the charged environment of the kitchen – the result will always be soulful food. Thomas Keller’s perfectly executed French cuisine is soulful, Dominque Crenn’s uniquely creative interpretations and controlled improvisations are soulful, and David Chang’s representation of culturally influenced flavors is deeply soulful.

When cooks prepare food with soul it is because they understand the ingredients, they are in tune with the history of the culture behind a dish, they appreciate the farmer, the fisherman, and the rancher who brought the ingredients to his back door, and they respect the process of cooking – moving those special ingredients from their natural state to a plate in the pass. Soulful food is not a given – it comes from dedication and passionate connections.

“I believe, from reading biographies, that the great musicians have also been great cooks: Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Max Roach. I think I’ve worked out why this is – unsociable hours, plus general creativity.”

-Jamie Cullum

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Be a Cook Connected with Body, Mind and Soul

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

Restaurant Consulting

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THE PROBLEM WITH TREATING COOKING TOO MUCH LIKE A SCIENCE

08 Sunday May 2016

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I know the legitimate response to this title is – “cooking is a science.” There is a chemical and physical change that takes place during the application of heat or the process of fermentation that scientifically transitions food from one product to another. This process, when understood, is quite predictable and controllable. Understanding and control allow individuals to create a consistent result, one that can be replicated with a high level of confidence. To a manufacturer, this is something that is desirable, but to a cook or chef, this approach takes away the soul of what it means to be engaged in this business. Some may disagree, but I find predictability at this level to be confining.

I wrestle with this topic since I do find that following classical, time-tested, consistent methods of cooking – essential to our trade, but this current rush to define what we do in scientific terms and methods seems different. Just because we can eliminate variables with a more scientific approach doesn’t mean that it is the right approach. Allow me to offer some parallels from other crafts (cooking is, in my mind – still a craft, and cooks are craftspeople) to bring home the point.

I am, as are many cooks, a big fan of accomplished musicians. I appreciate real talent (although I may not like all of the styles of music) in any musical genre. When I witness or listen to a musician who has mastered his or her craft, I am in awe even if I don’t particularly enjoy their choice of music. When I witness that artist in a live venue and see them weave some spontaneity into a song, making it imperfect in relation to a recording, I feel the uniqueness of the moment and respect the right of the artist to vary from the standard. This makes their art interesting and enjoyably unpredictable.   On another spectrum, I love great coffee and truly appreciate the business side of companies like Starbucks who have standardized the process of roasting, grinding, and brewing coffee, and training baristas to prepare espresso drinks the “Starbucks way”, so that customers in Seattle and customers in Boston can enjoy the exact same cup of coffee. This allows a company with thousands of stores to be in control of the guest experience and in the business of making money. With all of this structured scientific approach, I still prefer to visit a local coffee shop and find a cup that is uniquely theirs. When a craftsperson puts his or her signature on a product or a dish, a one-of-a-kind experience is the result. To me, this human element of unpredictability is what creates an experience worth looking forward to and worth spending money on.

There is a fascination with breaking down cooking into definitive chemical processes and then look for ways to adjust with formulation to create an identical end product that people can depend on. It is amazing to know that this is possible and as a result we tend to rely on this being the case. Consistency does have its place, but again – what do we lose as a result? It is possible for a vintner to produce a wine void of any variance in taste and in turn – oblivious to vintage. Yet, there is something intriguing about anticipating variances in bouquet, character, mouth feel, and taste from year to year. Anticipating a great vintage because Mother Nature was kind, the soil composition was perfect, the vintner cared for the grapes as if they were his or her children, and the wine maker’s palate was tuned into a perfect blend is one of the most significant parts of the wine experience. Knowing the chemical composition of grape juice and blending to a defined formula somehow misses the reason why many people are so into wine. The same is true with food – it isn’t the recipe that makes a plate of food great, it is the way with which a cook intuitively knows how to work the ingredients and attach his or her signature.

“Professionalism in art has this difficulty: To be professional is to be dependable, to be dependable is to be predictable, and predictability is esthetically boring – an anti-virtue in a field where we hope to be astonished and startled and at some deep level refreshed.”

– John Updike

The rule of consistency has convinced restaurateurs to strive for this goal above all else. It has even been said that even consistently mediocre restaurants can be successful because customers know what to expect. But, consistency is rarely a goal that inspires highly creative cooks or attracts new customers with the promise of a pleasant surprise. In fields where creativity is the carrot that so many employees seek to reach for, predictability through a scientific approach towards connecting the dots, and using time-tested convenience items will turn the best employees away and bore a significant portion of customers looking for an experience.

“Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative.”

-Oscar Wilde

So, this is where I am torn. I have always been an advocate for time-tested methods, being true to those cooking methods that have been proven to please, and maintaining a dedication to the foundations of classical preparation – yet, I am fully aware that the great restaurants and the best chefs are always looking to surprise, to tempt, to educate and build something new and exciting. It is possible to blend both – to respect the foundations of cooking that have defined our profession, but build on those foundations with an exciting twist that challenges everyone’s interpretation of what is flavor, and what is good looking food. This is the balance that every great restaurant and chef should seek.

Even in sports, there are two schools of thought on the importance of the science of the sport, the mathematics behind winning, and the excitement that teams and spectators seek.

“If you talk to any pitcher (in baseball), consistency is the most important thing.”

-Jamie Moyer

This may be true from the team and coach perspective (winning is the most important goal), but spectators are always waiting for that unexpected knuckle ball or stolen base. It is the unpredictability that keeps people on the edge of their seats, fully engaged, excited and anxious to come back again. It is this same unpredictability, improvisation, and unscientific pattern that keeps craftspeople, like cooks, engaged in their positions and excited about tomorrow.

Marketers know that a certain amount of consistency is important for a portion of the market that thrives on “no surprises”, but are also aware that for a business to continue to grow and attract the attention that leads to on-going success, a level of anticipated unpredictability will attract the innovator and early adopter audience that builds a restaurant’s brand.

“People like consistency. Whether it’s a store or a restaurant, they want to come in and see what you are famous for.”

-Millard Drexler

This is absolutely true until it no longer is. Those businesses that rely on what has worked in the past and the scientific standardization that leads to consistency may find it difficult to change when the need presents itself. From the standpoint of being prepared to excel and excite, there is a mantra of consistency that does work. A restaurant and chef needs to focus on the following:

Be consistently good, consistently interesting, consistently unique, consistently confusing, consistently pushing the envelope, and consistently make customers question their own interpretation of what is good.

I am still torn, but know that when it comes to businesses that draw their energy from creativity – the unpredictable nature of art trumps the need for scientific consistency.

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

Restaurant and Culinary School Consulting and Training

“COOK FOR ME” – GIVE LINE COOKS A CHANCE TO SIGN THEIR WORK

06 Friday Nov 2015

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There is a tremendous amount of pride that is churning in professional kitchens. Every cook who is serious about their job is committed to making that picture perfect, properly prepared, and delicious food that is represented on a restaurant menu. Although it may not always seem evident, cooks are happy when their food brings enjoyment to others.

Early in a cook’s career he or she is focused on building strong foundational skills, learning as much as possible, and executing the chef’s vision and style through the food prepared every night. Receiving approval for a job well done, even though it may only be a nod from the chef, carries significant importance. Each cook is evaluated every day based on the last item he or she prepared. This is part of trial by fire, a probationary period that can last a few weeks for some and many months for others.

Underneath this desire to get it right and receive that nod of approval lays a frustrated artist. All cooks want the opportunity to put their signature on a dish or a menu. This is how each cook will begin the process of moving from prep to line work, to sous chef, and eventually the helm of their own kitchen some day. Every chef needs to build up to his or her signature; it is what defines their personal brand.

“Creativity is a great motivator because it makes people interested in what they are doing. Creativity gives hope that there can be a worthwhile idea. Creativity gives the possibility of some sort of achievement to everyone. Creativity makes life more fun and more interesting.”

Edward de Bono

Restaurant chefs who do not see this, or simply refuse to relinquish any responsibility for planning what a restaurant’s food flavors or presentation might be are simply denying those frustrated artists an opportunity to grow.

Now, I do need to clarify that giving cooks a chance to define a portion of the restaurant’s menu and execute their own creative dishes must still require a high level of competence, trust, and trial and error, but if the chef is to mentor great cooks and keep them as part of the team, then this process of building up to a signature must take place.

Let’s take a moment and look at the reasons for and the requirements necessary for this artistic expression to take place:

[]         TRUST:

Allowing and encouraging a cook to be creative must be based first on a level of earned trust. The cooks peers must trust that the individual will enhance the team’s image and not drag it down with poorly executed ideas. The chef must trust that his or her brand will not be tarnished by an ill-prepared cooks performance. The service staff must trust that the cook can deliver on the promise of well prepared and exciting food (the server’s gratuity depends on it), and the customer must trust that the item they select will provide the same level of satisfaction that they are use to.

[]         BECOMING A MENTOR:

Every chef, if he or she is to build a team and develop a positive reputation for the restaurant, must invest a significant portion of time to mentoring, teaching, training, and guidance. Creativity always follows this commitment on the part of the chef. All competent chefs are teachers and mentors.

[]         COMMUNICATE:

If a chef is to develop an environment of creativity and trust, he or she must learn the distinction between critique and criticism. It is very easy, and quite destructive, to simply point out mistakes (CRITICISM), it is another thing all together to build a cook up, point out areas where there are issues and then work with him or her to improve (CRITIQUE).

[]         EMPOWER AND ENCOURGE:

Once trust is earned, training is second nature, and communication is provided and well received, then it is time for the chef to allow the cook to take responsibility for creativity. Give cooks the chance and cheerlead their effort.

[]         PUSH AND CREATE BENCHMARKS OF EXCELLENCE:

Know excellence, demonstrate what excellence looks like, practice excellence, and expect excellence from every cook. When excellence is the benchmark then it becomes the only way to proceed.

[]         CELEBRATE:

When a cook takes a stab at creativity, make sure that everyone knows that this is his or her work. If the menu item works well then applaud the effort, if it doesn’t work well then offer critique and encourage them to try again, and again.

Restaurants have done an excellent job of creating predictable menus that are designed to be comfortable for guests and staff. Predictability leads to control and control leads to a better chance of success, or maybe less of a chance for failure. Predictability is however somewhat boring. Predictability creates routines and routines lead to habits that are difficult to break. Unpredictability makes many people uneasy, uncomfortable, and concerned about failure. On the other hand, unpredictability can be interesting, exciting, challenging, and fulfilling once the task is complete.

People do inherently resist change, especially when they have been programmed to act or work a certain way for so long. This is why some cooks and chefs have a very difficult time when a guest asks for an exception or modification to a menu item. Those who are use to unpredictability tend to relish the opportunity to waiver from the norm and even view special requests as a positive challenge to their skill set.

Once a person truly understands cooking and how it works, successfully builds a palate that is based on a full library of flavor memory, and has a repertoire built from life experiences filled with food benchmarks, the creative process is no longer daunting – it is challenging and fun at the same time. Great chefs see this potential in their cooks and work to nurture, push, and challenge them to exceed everyone’s expectations. Great chefs encourage cooks to build their brand and put their signature on a restaurant menu.

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There are many ways that this can be done, but whichever way chosen, I implore every chef to integrate creative opportunities for your cooks, opportunities that push them out of their comfort zone and can, as a result, launch your restaurants reputation.

[]         LET YOUR LINE COOKS DEVELOP THE NIGHTLY FEATURES AND AMUSE BOUCHE. Ask them to map out the item(s) on paper first and have them explain their approach to a dish before testing it. If the item makes sense, have them prepare a sample for tasting and involve all of your cooks in this phase. Give everyone an opportunity to offer suggestions and them let them fly.

[]         LET YOUR LINE COOKS PLAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN BUILDING SPECIFIC MENU ITEMS BASED ON THE CHEF’S OVERALL VISION. Have a menu taskforce that brainstorms, tests, and presents suggested items. This way every cook will own the menu as if it were his or hers.

[]         PROVIDE AMPLE RESOURCES FOR COOKS TO USE AS BENCHMARKS. Build your kitchen library of books from other outstanding restaurants and chefs. Encourage line cooks and prep cooks to study them and ask questions about how a particular dish is made. Challenge them to implement another chefs item or method as a feature item on the menu.

[]         COOK FOR ME AS AN INTERESTING OPTION IN THE RESTAURANT. One of the more interesting approaches that I took in an operation where I was the chef was to offer a menu choice entitled: “Cook for Me”. This was a choice for adventurous diners who would opt to turn over the entire menu decision-making process to the sous chef or me. This was a five-course dinner for one price without any parameters (unless the guest had food allergies). The server would explain the option and the guest would simply say: “Tell the chef to cook for me.” Either the sous chef or I would then turn to each station cook and ask him or her to create a dish that fit into a general flavor theme.

It was, at times, very challenging – especially on a busy night to slip out of the zone and be creative, but it certainly did push cooks to think differently. I would equate this to being given a market basket of ingredients and a timeline to quickly design a menu and execute it to a cook’s highest standards.

I know that you can come up with countless other ways to prepare and push cooks to be creative. This is an exciting and incredibly rewarding part of a chef’s job. Give cooks a chance to sign their work, build their brand, and light the fire under each and every member of a kitchen team.

“Every job is a self portrait of a person who does it. Autograph your work with excellence.”

Source Unknown

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

http://www.harvestamericaventures.com

COOKS AND MUSICIANS ARE CUT FROM THE SAME MOLD

09 Sunday Nov 2014

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A common thread, a core philosophy on life, and a shared heartbeat can make you believe that cooks and musicians may be twins from different mothers. The similarities of their craft, the dedication required, and the innate talent that must be present point to an uncanny understanding, one that might easily demonstrate that if a chef were not cooking for a living, he or she might very well be playing music and vice versa.

Both music and food require very definitive skill sets and mindsets from those who choose to make their interest, a career. True, there are many who attempt both careers and are unsuccessful due to a lack of respective DNA, but what attracts individuals to these fields is still largely parallel. Here are some examples of those parallels:

  • To be a musician requires an ear for harmonic sound; to be a cook requires an acute palate. It would be very difficult for anyone to become a successful musician without an ear for organized sound and just as difficult for a cook without a responsive palate.
  • Both musicians and cooks need to have a natural sense of rhythm. It is this rhythm that allows them to function.
  • Both musicians and cooks share a commitment to the foundations of their craft. Musicians learn to read music and understand scales and chord sequences. Cooks learn about knife control, foundational cooking methods, and how to adapt recipes to accommodate variables.
  • Even though certain musicians and cooks may be born with remarkable talent, they are only able to apply this talent through consistent practice, practice, and more practice.
  • Both musicians and cooks are influenced by, and heavily rely on the influence of other accomplished artisans who came before them.
  • Cooks and musicians see the beauty and sometimes the “lack there of”, in their surroundings and use this as a stepping-stone for developing their artistic signature.
  • Musicians and cooks respect, appreciate, and care for their tools of the trade whether a beautifully made guitar, violin, or drum kit, or a razor sharp French knife, slicer, or flexible boning knife.
  • Musicians and cooks live by organization (even though some music may seem to drift), an appreciation for putting notes, or ingredients in a specific position, or incorporating them at precise moments in the process of making music or a signature dish.
  • When young and eager, many musicians and cooks try to flex their creative muscle, occasionally to extremes, as they experiment with what could be, but over time, they mature with their craft and build a brand around how they interpret notes or food ingredients.
  • Musicians and cooks become one with their craft and frequently blur the meaning of self.
  • Cooks and musicians thrive on the adrenaline rush that comes from knowing their stuff and being able to execute their craft at a very high level.
  • Both cooks and musicians enjoy pleasing others with their work, but are even more concerned with meeting and exceeding their own standards of performance. They find that meeting these personal standards and even winning the respect of their professional peers, trumps any recognition from those who pay to consume their work.
  • All serious musicians and cooks are true to their craft and feel honored to be able to make a living while doing what they love.
  • Inherently, all musicians and cooks are teachers who take great pride in sharing their skills with others who aspire to become accomplished in those fields.

Here are some parallels that through observation, I feel are apparent:

ERIC CLAPTON and GRANT ACHATZ:

Both artists are revolutionary and evolutionary and over time have matured with their craft. Clapton from the anything goes band: Cream, to his solo career as a respected blues guitarist and singer. Achatz from his adaptation of molecular cuisine, to become one the world’s most accomplished restaurateurs and culinary alchemist who blends classical preparations with contemporary flair.

“I found my God in music and the arts, with writers like Hermann Hesse, and musicians like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, and Little Walter. In some way, in some form, my God was always there, but now I have learned to talk to him.” 
― Eric Clapton

BELA FLECK and THOMAS KELLER:
Both artists are undeniably the perfectionists of their trades. Bela from his work with The Jazz inspired Flecktones to his accomplished work with bluegrass, classical and even world music. In all cases, his versatility on the banjo is amazing. Keller, through his undeniable fanaticism towards food finesse, has accomplished what few others have been able to. From The French Laundry to Bouchon, Ad Hoc and Per Se, he has shown the same level of perfectionism with food that Bela Fleck does with varied genres of music.

“When you acknowledge, as you must, that there is no such thing as perfect food, only the idea of it, then the real purpose of striving toward perfection becomes clear: to make people happy, that is what cooking is all about.” 
― Thomas Keller, The French Laundry Cookbook

JEFF BECK and FERRAN ADRIA:

Experimentation and pushing the envelope define both of these artisans. Jeff Beck in his growth as a musician beginning with the Yardbirds, work with Rod Stewart, Jan Hammer during his electronic jazz phase, and on to an extraordinary solo career as a master of tone and one of the top ten guitar masters of all time. Beck morphed numerous times as he chose to experiment with different styles of music and pushed what a guitar was capable of doing. Ferran Adria, through his space aged restaurant: el Bulli, went where no cook has gone before. As much as Grant Achatz pushed his career with molecular cooking interpretations, it was Adria who invented the methods and became the bridge between cooking and scientific possibilities.

Creativity means not copying.

Ferran Adria, Washington Post, Oct. 11, 2011

STANLEY CLARKE and MARIO BATALI:
A consistent, always interesting, rhythmic backbeat continues to be the hallmark of these artists and their influence on others. Stanley Clarke was the keeper of the musical footprint for Chick Corea, Return to Forever, and Animal Logic. His solo work and adaptation of a unique bass player style has earned him the respect of musicians from every genre. Mario Batali, one of America’s most influential and successful chef/restaurateurs, carries a similar backbeat in his multiple restaurant concepts. His style, and more importantly, his consistent steadiness as a restaurateur is the envy of everyone else in the business.

“The very common error of young or unconfident cooks is to keep putting more of their own personal ideology into a plate until there’s so much noise that you really can’t even hear a tune. You can say more in an empty space than you can in a crowded one.”

Mario Batali, Harvard Business Review

JOHN BONHAM and MARCO PIERRE WHITE:

In your face, is probably the best way to describe both of these extreme artists. John Bonham, former drummer of Led Zeppelin, created a beat that made you marvel at his rhythmic style and feel sorry for the drum kit at the same time. Marco Polo White – referred to by many, as an extremist in the kitchen, or even the devil himself, was always powerful in the way he approached his work, the food he prepared, and the fellow cooks that he verbally battered on a daily basis.

“If you are not extreme, then people will take shortcuts because they don’t fear you.” 
― Marco Pierre White, The Devil in the Kitchen: Sex, Pain, Madness and the Making of a Great Chef

STING and ALICE WATERS:

Two descriptors come to mind when talking about these artists: Elegant and Class Acts. Sting, a teacher by trade, became one of the world’s most recognized and admired musicians as he began with The Police, subsequently moved on to a long and rewarding career as a solo singer/songwriter/musician, and now Broadway playwright and composer. Alice Waters is the chef of common sense advocacy for wholesome, natural cooking and the first flag waver for farm to plate mentalities in restaurants. Her restaurant, Chez Panisse was the training ground for many of the farm to table chefs of today. She is the Grand Dame of the restaurant business, as Sting is the noble gentleman of rock and roll. Both are consummate artists and accomplished storytellers through their crafts.

“For to sit in a room full of books, and remember the stories they told you, and to know precisely where each one is located and what was happening in your life at time or where you were when you first read it is the languid and distilled pleasure of the connoisseur.” 
― Sting, Broken Music

I could certainly go on and on with comparisons, and it may be a stretch to build a case for genetic similarities, but there is little doubt that those who are creative, share a unique bond, a common set of traits that make them who they are.

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

www.harvestamericaventures.com

DO YOU COOK TO LIVE OR LIVE TO COOK?

14 Monday Jul 2014

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My son, a technical education teacher once said, “There are two types of workers in the world; those who shower before work and those who shower after.” I thought this was quite profound and a way to categorize the type of work people do and the mentality of those who do it. Having been around restaurants and kitchens in particular, for many years, I could classify people who work in kitchens as those who take on the role of cook to simply pay their bills vs. those who see the opportunity to cook as a calling; a form of personal expression.

There are ample opportunities for both types of cooks in an industry closing in on $500 billion in U.S. sales alone. Those who work for a paycheck can and often are, accomplished at their craft, however, it is a job. In some cases, operations can even disregard the talent portion of cooking and substitute stringent standards and procedures, convenience and foolproof methods to compensate for a lack of real cooking talent. The end result can still be an acceptable product, one that relishes consistency above all else. This is fine; there is a substantial market for this type of restaurant. Those who view their position as an opportunity to learn, grow and master skills, who thrive on any opportunity to self-express through food, are in a much different mental and emotional space.

In 1968, Frank Zappa and the Mother’s of Invention, recorded an album titled: We’re Only in it for the Money. This was, of course, a satirical work that poked fun at the culture of the time and did not reflect, at all, Zappa’s insatiable thirst to be creative and expressive. He was, as many musicians would agree, a genius of composition and an exceptional guitarist who looked at music as a medium for communicating his gift. There are many chefs and cooks today who seek to use food in the same manner that Zappa used music. These are the relentless craftspeople that seek perfection in what they do, the cooks who work with food because it is what they were meant to do.

There are a growing number of very talented and committed chefs who have been able to serve both the desire to make a very good living at cooking as well as satisfy their true need to make a statement and live to cook. We know their names: Boulud, Keller, Vongerichten, Ducasse, Waters, Samuelsson, English and numerous others who have built culinary empires while continually exceeding customer expectations. This marriage of desire and need is admirable and well deserved, however, what about the tens of thousands of passionate cooks who also have a need for expression and are always in search of knowledge, skill and perfection? Those great chefs came from the same seed of commitment that these young cooks share.

I just finished watching a video tribute to the late Charlie Trotter who, in many American chefs eyes, was the driving force behind a movement towards culinary artistry and self-expression that prominent chefs share today. He was, for those who did not have an opportunity to dine at Charlie Trotter’s in Chicago, a true culinary genius. It was not just his ability to cook, but more importantly his knowledge of and appreciation for ingredients that set the tone in his kitchen. It was his passion for unheard of service and attention to detail that became the foundation for the great restaurants that followed: The French Laundry, Daniel, Gramercy Tavern, Tru, Alinea, Gary Danko, Eleven Madison and many, many others. There was little question that Trotter made a good living, but more importantly, he raised the bar and helped to create a new level of commitment to excellence. His kitchen and dining room was populated by young cooks and servers who shared a level of passion for creativity, discipline and unwavering commitment to doing it right. These are the people who have become the new generation of chefs and restaurateurs; those professionals who provide an environment for yet another wave of crazy cooks and servers who live for the opportunity.

Tribute to a Legend – Charlie Trotter

The beauty of the restaurant industry is in those diverse opportunities for individuals passing through, in search of a way to pay the bills as well as those who are prepared to immerse themselves in a life of food. Just as there are those opportunities for different levels of commitment there are customers looking to restaurants for different results. Some are seeking an opportunity for nourishment and price while others are interested in the experience of sharing the passion of the cooks and chefs who are giving it all. The plate is the canvas for different levels of art appreciation.

From the back of the house perspective, it is the level of commitment on the part of cooks that sets the tone for the restaurant and the experience of guests. Diners can feel that passion when they walk through the door and when they enjoy the first taste of food. The passion in the back of the house seeps into the overall experience of the restaurant; from the ambience to the quality of table top appointments; from the breadth and appropriateness of the wine list to the true hospitality and service excellence displayed by the front of the house staff. It all begins with the type of individual leaning over the stove. How important is food to the cook? How dedicated is the cook to learning about the ingredients and building his or her flavor memory? How focused is the cook on painting the plate in such a manner that the food experience becomes as much visual as taste?

Do you cook to live or live to cook? This is a question that everyone who collects a paycheck in a restaurant should pose and answer. What do you bring to the table?

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Harvest America Ventures, LLC

www.harvestamericaventures.com

Follow our blog at: www.culinarycuesblog.wordpress.com

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DOES MUSIC BELONG IN THE KITCHEN?

02 Wednesday Jul 2014

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DOES MUSIC BELONG IN THE KITCHEN?

It was inevitable. As cooks and chefs grew into the role of artist so too did they join the ranks of talented expressionists who use a multitude of mediums. If the chef is truly an artist, then it would make sense that he or she would be and should be inspired by those who write, draw, paint, sculpt, sing and play musical instruments. I have long viewed cooks as frustrated artists who are in search of a vehicle of expression that also pays the bills. When thought of in this regard, cooking is the ultimate art form. Where other forms of artistic expression may appeal to one or two human senses, cooking appeals to all of them.

Writers, poets, sculptures, musicians and painters draw their inspiration from life and from things that stimulate their sensory perception. To deny them access to these stimuli would be to deny their art. It would thus be easy to apply the same rules to kitchens and cooks. To deny cooks access to sensory stimuli would be to deny their ability to create for the plate.

Many chefs, (I was one for many years) are opposed to music in the kitchen. There are legitimate reasons for this stance: music could be considered a distraction, musical tastes will differ in a kitchen causing potential friction among team members, and music will limit the necessary verbal communication that must take place in a kitchen throughout the day. All of this is very true, however, there are benefits.

Music has an emotional, spiritual, physiological and psychological effect on people; in this case, cooks. The temperament of a kitchen is critical to success and when people are happy, they produce happy food. Controlling the type, volume and sequence of music can be used to reinforce all of those positive emotional and physical feelings.

Calm, soothing music in the morning can be used to set a positive tone for the day as the kitchen comes to life. Fast paced music that reflects on good times can be used to keep an effective pace during prep when the sheer volume of work needs a healthy push. At service time, the music must be replaced with the cadence of the kitchen. Focus on orders, the expeditor, the chatter from the service staff, sizzle from a sauté pan and clink of china on the pass are the only sounds that have a place during this critical time. Finally, at clean up a good dose of musical energy will help to inspire the team to get through the final phase.

Does music actually inspire cooks to create? There have actually been numerous studies to try and prove or disprove this theory.

“Both Schellenberg and Levitin agree that music will have different effects on your brain and behavior depending on how it makes you feel. Want to be alert and focused? Try an upbeat song that puts you in a good mood, whether it’s Mozart or Miley. Want to step away from a problem and relax in order to find a solution? Play anything you like — and don’t dismiss those sad songs you like to mope around to.

“When we hear sad music, it allows us to empathize with the composer and the musician and makes us feel connected to them,” said Levitin. This empathy, he said, can allow individuals to glean creative insights they wouldn’t otherwise have.”
Here’s Proof Music Can Do More Than Just Make You Feel Good

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/24/music-creative_n_5511501.html

There are mixed feelings on the part of chefs. Eric Ripert does not allow music in his kitchen at Le Bernadin. His rationale would be hard to argue with and the end result is a restaurant that most aspiring chefs would kill to work at. Rated as one of America’s few Michilen starred restaurants and one of the finest in the world, pushing him on this issue would seem to be fruitless.

http://curiosity.discovery.com/question/listen-to-music-in-kitchen

Others find that music is an essential part of restaurant life and critical to building team spirit and high levels of productivity. Many of these chefs are aspiring musicians as well. Dean Fearing from the Mansion at Turtle Creek is one of the country’s most admired culinary figures who also plays a mean guitar in bands comprised of fellow chefs. Steve Schimoler, owner/operator/chef at Crop Bistro in Cleveland is also an accomplished drummer whose band “Cream of the Crop” performs around Cleveland and at the restaurant carrying the same name.

http://www.thisiscleveland.com/restaurants/cleveland-chefs/steve-schimoler/

Although the media and Food Network would have us believe that chefs are the new rock stars, it is really the influence that music has on their everyday hard work in the kitchen that is most important. So, back to the original question: does music have a place in the kitchen? This is really up to the operator to determine. We do know that music is important to people and can, in many cases, positively impact on morale, creativity and production. If a chef can control the sequence of music throughout the day and appease the team with music that universally inspires, then this may be an issue for even the older stalwarts like me to reconsider.

If I were to embrace music in a kitchen that I was responsible for, here is a possible music playlist that I could accept and use to inspire:

5 a.m – 7 a.m. – BREAKFAST SHIFT
A mix of Switched on Bach, Bela Fleck, Yo Yo Ma, Pat Methany and Early Pink Floyd.

7 a.m. – 1 p.m. – PREP SHIFT & DELIVERIES
A eclectic mix of music from the 60’s and 70’s including Little Feat, Allman Brothers, British Invasion Groups, California Groups like Quicksilver, Jefferson Airplane, and Grateful Dead as well as a touch of Hendrix and British Blues. Of course I couldn’t forget the Gipsy Kings, Los Lonely Boys and Bob Marley.

1 p.m. – 5 p.m. – CRUNCH TIME PREPARING FOR SERVICE
A bit of hard guitars like Joe Satriani, Stevie Ray, Joe Bonamassa, Walter Trout, Eric Clapton,Eddie Van Halen, and Jeff Beck (the best guitarist on the planet).

5 p.m. – 11 p.m. – SERVICE
No music, only the pleasant sounds of the the ticket printer, clanging china, service staff chatter and the chef calling out orders.

11 p.m. – close – BREAKDOWN
Line cooks choice. What ever gets them through it. I’ll close the office door.

What would your playlist look like?

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER
Harvest America Ventures, LLC
http://www.harvestamericaventures.com
Restaurant and Culinary School Consulting, Training and Coaching

Follow our blog at: http://www.culinarycuesblog.wordpress.com

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WHY DEMOCRACY DOESN’T WORK VERY WELL IN A KITCHEN

01 Tuesday Apr 2014

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WHY DEMOCRACY DOESN’T WORK VERY WELL IN A KITCHEN

The foundations of our country stem from the concept of democracy or as clearly stated by Abraham Lincoln in the Gettysburg Address: “a government of the people, by the people and for the people…” a bold, and noble statement that most Americans take to heart, appreciate and support. We have the right and the obligation to vote for representatives who, at least in theory, have our best interests at heart and who stand tall to lobby on our behalf. In truth, we have seen this work at some level, but realize that a true democracy, where everyone has a say in decision-making is far from realistic. Yes, the compromise is to vote in representatives and if they disappoint us, vote for their replacement. We have also seen how representing multiple thoughts, ideas and beliefs can drag on for extensive periods of time without, in many cases, any resolution. This is the price that we pay for the freedom to speak our minds and have independent opinions. Democracy is not always perfect, yet it is still the best system around.

This freedom does not fit every situation, thus the focus of this article. I am a firm believer in participative environments where individuals have an opportunity to be expressive, but from experience still support the need for kitchens to run very similar to the military. This may seem like a contradiction – I don’t believe it is. There is a time for debate and a time for action. Kitchens are environments where a need for action is the one constant. I read once where there is a need for chefs to make decisions multiple times in any given minute. It is his or her experience leading to holding that title that allow for calculated decisions that keep the machine in full motion. Furthermore, just like in any company, it is the vision of the leader that keeps the ship on a constant course, provides stability, sets the environment for positive movement and provides a level of predictable trust in the minds of consumers. But what about the need for change?

We should not feel that democracy be constantly present for positive change to occur. I have been an advocate for change for decades and have promoted a need to look at things differently in restaurants and in culinary education; however, I also realize two key realities:

1. As much as anyone might promote the need for change, very few people are actually comfortable with the concept
2. All successful change stems from an effective leader who creates an environment of trust, helps to educate an audience along the way, and is not afraid to make decisions even if they go against public opinion

Apple Computer (still my favorite company) lives by a mantra that many of us are quite familiar with:

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
― Apple Inc.

The interesting thing is that the company, during its most incredible surge from near bankruptcy to becoming one of the largest, most profitable and still most admired brands in the world was run by a person who hired the best and brightest, yet ran the company like a crazed dictator. He had the vision and no intention of allowing anyone to waiver from that vision while at the same time giving them incredible autonomy to ideate and create. Is this a contradiction? Maybe so, but it really is how the concept of democracy has any chance of being successful in business.

In kitchens, it is always important to hire, nurture and encourage young cooks who have creative minds and fresh ideas. At the same time, if these same individuals are unable or unwilling to follow the lead of a chef who has the responsibility to make the right decision in any given moment and who must ensure that a consistent, quality product is present to the guest, time in and time out, then that young cook will not find an avenue for their ideas. There is a time and a place for expression and a time and a place for following the lead. This is something that far too many young cooks do not realize or are willing to accept. The result in a kitchen can be chaos. It is the “yes, chef” model that must prevail when the kitchen is in battle mode, when the dining room is full and guests are anticipating a dish that they have high expectations of.

The ideation opportunities for young cooks must still exist, but it needs to happen when the time is right. Chefs must create those opportunities for interaction and idea sharing or tomorrows kitchen stars will eventually become discouraged and look for better opportunities elsewhere. Failure to ever provide those times when ideation and change occur will inevitably result in missed opportunities for growth and competitiveness in a very intense marketplace.

At the same time, it is the chef who must separate a fresh short-term trend from something with staying power that might eventually shift the course of the ship; this is also something that experience can control.

“Fashion changes, but style endures.”
― Coco Chanel

It is the chef’s job to ensure that the “style” of the restaurant and of cooking in general is never lost in the fever of keeping up with “fashion”. A kitchen “of the people, by the people and for the people”, may not provide the answer for long-term success, but it will, to a degree, keep things interesting. The challenge is always maintaining a balance of democracy and reasonable dictatorship.
I would be willing to bet that the most influential chefs and restaurateurs of the day are masters at this balance. I would almost guarantee that Thomas Keller, Gary Danko, Danny Meyer, Daniel Boulud, Grant Achatz and numerous others know when to provide those opportunities for creativity and when to reel it in when situations dictate the need for a “yes chef” response.

A word to young cooks working their way through the kitchen brigade: “learn to respect the chefs experience, vision and need to control. In the early days of your career, one of your primary jobs is to do what is necessary to make the chef and the restaurant look good. If you do this, I would almost guarantee that the opportunities to express your ideas and opinions would find a home. I would also guarantee that when you find yourself in that eventual position of leadership – balance in democracy is what you will choose as well.”

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER
Harvest America Ventures, LLC
Restaurant and Culinary School Consulting, Training and Coaching
http://www.harvestamericaventures.com

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100 IDEAS A WEEK, IS ONE OF THEM BRILLIANT?

27 Tuesday Aug 2013

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So here is the dilemma – I can’t turn it off! I can’t stop designing the next great restaurant concept in my head. Is this a problem? A good friend of mine, in a totally different field, suffers from the same disease: always thinking about the next great concept. His spouse told me once: “he has 100 ideas a week, and one of them is brilliant”. Are we all living under the delusion that the next great idea is just hiding under the surface and with a little nudge we can build the next Microsoft?

Here is an example of how relentless the process can be:
* I am oftentimes unable to sleep because I am planning a concept that came to me while I was having that last cup of tea before bed.
* I finally bought a pocket digital recorder so that when ideas came to me while driving, I could store them for later planning.
* I plan my part of family vacations around the restaurants I want to visit, not just to enjoy the food but rather to stimulate more ideas.
* I have more cookbooks than I will ever read, but they are there primarily to stoke the fires of creative thought: “how could I tweak this idea and make it unique to me”.
* I read quite a bit, but the majority of my books are written by chefs and restaurateurs about their daily routine. I am constantly using a highlighter throughout these books to point to ideas I might use later on.
* I walk through stores, not to purchase, but to look for ideas on restaurant decor, systems for delivery, service tips, etc.
* I have framed pictures in my office, not of scenery, but of restaurants, kitchens and chefs.
* When dining out, I always frustrate my wife when I am taking pictures with my cell phone.
* I walk 2-3 miles every morning and oftentimes find myself lost in thought about an idea. If only I could remember to bring that digital recorder with me.
* Even in the shower, I find myself drifting off with an idea about a restaurant concept.
* Empty buildings and stores are always fuel for the concept planning fire. “Just think what could be done with this space”!
* When in a restaurant with friends I need to work hard at keeping my focus on them and not spinning around looking at how they execute their system and how I might make it better.
* Although I am coming to the later part of my career and rarely cook in restaurants anymore, I still make my daily prep lists and market orders for meals at home.
* I even take pictures of my own food at home and post them on Facebook!

The whole process is like that annoying ringing I used to get in my ears after attending a rock concert in the 60’s. No matter how hard you try, it just won’t go away. How many ideas have come and gone? How many of them were brilliant or will the next one be the real winner? Fortunately, or unfortunately, I have never invested my bank account in one of these ideas. Then again, what if I had and it really was brilliant? I guess I will never know, but it is still fun thinking about and developing a cool idea.

Does anyone else suffer from perpetual idea overload? By the way, the photo is from “The Big Night”, a movie that I consider as great as Casablanca.

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Chefs and Servers with Different Motivations

06 Tuesday Aug 2013

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When chefs and service staff are not on the same page the guest experience is confused and disjointed. When I have referenced the importance of team in the kitchen I am concerned that some might think that if that “culinary island” is in sync then the guest experience will be great. Team refers to a cohesive effort on the part of all staff members to create that exceptional dining event.

What motivates your staff on a daily basis (keeping in mind that you, as a manager or chef, cannot motivate another employee. This is something that they must do for themselves)? What can you do to help insure the right customer event?

Your official job is to create the environment for positive self-motivation. This, of course, begins with selecting the individuals with the “right stuff”, orienting them to the operation and its philosophy, training with gusto, investing in providing the right tools, creating forums for open communication between all team members, empowering people to make decisions, recognizing people for their role and thanking them for going the extra mile, setting the example for others to follow, providing honest critique and when necessary demonstrating how to correct areas that need attention. The most important piece is creating ample opportunities for open communication.

Chefs are typically motivated by the creative process. Their motivation is the tactile process of work that brings an idea to fruition on the plate. The hard facade that often accompanies the image of a chef is really just a protective crust that hides the fragile artist underneath who takes real pride in bringing out flavors, presenting their art on a canvas (plate) and seeing clean plates return from the dining room. That mis-step that brings excellent food to ordinary, incredible ingredients to ruin, fresh food to something that is dry and inappropriate or a smiling guest to the unhappy recipient of a plate of food that is below their expectations is devastating to a serious cook or chef. Self-loathing happens on a daily basis among cooks and chefs who are serious about their craft. As “up” as they may be when things go right, the lows are pretty severe when they don’t. They eat, drink and sleep “food”, their closest professional companion. They relish incredible ingredients and bow to those who are able to make magic food out of what they are given to work with.

Servers are certainly pleased when guests are happy with their experience, however, the compensation system that restaurants have adopted for waiters drives them to work for the reward of a great tip. In the end, it is the gratuity that demonstrates to the server that they have performed at an acceptable or greater than acceptable level. It is rare to find a server today who is just as pumped about food as the chef. You rarely see a service staff member blurry-eyed from reading cookbooks until 2 a.m. or spending their day off hanging out at other restaurants to help refine their craft. We (restaurants) have not created the community of food lovers who know as much about the ingredients, cooking and flavor profiles as the chef. This is not the fault of the server, it is the fault of leadership not paying attention to how critical it is for chefs and servers to share a similar passion. Without this passion and commitment, the guest experience is disjointed.

On those rare occasions when I have experienced a restaurant in complete sync, it is incredible to sit back and watch what transpires. Cooks and service staff carry on conversations about food, other restaurants, as well as wine and food/wine pairings they have experienced. The staff meal is a collaborative event with front and back of the house laughing, sharing stories, quizzing each other on tonight’s preparations and truly enjoying each other’s company.

The end result is always a better customer experience because service staff and cooks are truly interested in how the food is perceived, how the flavors marry with that wine that the sommelier suggested, and how many times the guest pulls out their smart phone, not to talk, but to take pictures of the food.

When chefs and servers share the same inspiration, the guest can feel it. These rare restaurants are always first on everyone’s list when it comes time to make a reservation.

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The Spark of an Idea – A Restaurant is Born

28 Sunday Jul 2013

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Are you an idea person? Maybe you are more of an implementor. Or are you a bit of both? Does this picture represent you:
* I can’t stop my brain from working overtime
* I have lists of ideas everywhere
* I have many sleepless nights while new business ideas keep me awake
* I think about the next great restaurant while in the shower, driving to work, having dinner at another restaurant, preparing my mise en place at the restaurant where I am currently employed, or just walking through a number of unrelated businesses and seeing something that sparks that creative thought process.
* How many times have you designed that next killer restaurant on the back of a bar cocktail napkin?
* Do you scribble business ideas on a legal pad while suffering through another pointless business meeting?
* How often have you said, “you know what would work great in that building”?
* Maybe a friend, lecturer, announcer, business colleague says something that sends you into “another creative thought utopia” never to return to the original conversation.

The question is, what do you do with these ideas? How do you focus your creative thought process and move beyond idea to concept and bring that concept to fruition? What keeps you from being the next wildly successful entrepreneur?

When I was in the classroom I would ask young culinary and hospitality students how many wanted to own their own restaurant. The vast majority would raise their hands. I would always follow up with “I hope to convince you not to take that route”. Why would I ever say that? I felt justified because of the statistical data that demonstrated incredibly high failure rates among entrepreneurs. My job, I thought, was to help them put these thoughts of owning their own on the shelf and concentrate on becoming successful employees. Well, I was wrong!

Every decent chef that I know has or had a dream to be a restaurateur. It is, after all, the great American dream. Entrepreneurship is a right of every citizen and no country in the world is more open to welcoming private business than the U.S. What was terribly wrong with my classroom approach was attempting to stifle that creative gene that so many chefs have. That desire is an itch that needs to be scratched.

No one ever really gets ahead by playing it safe. A few will succeed and some will fail, but everyone should have an outlet for those ideas that keep them up at night.

So what keeps you from taking those ideas and running with them (hopefully it is not just teachers who are trying to help you to play it safe)?

Here are a few classic responses and solutions:
* I don’t have the money (find a partner who does and who believes in you)
* It is too risky and I am afraid (no pain, no gain). The beauty of being in the restaurant business is that if you fail at entrepreneurship, you can always go back to working for someone else.
* I don’t have the time right now (sooner or later you really won’t have the time – act on the idea now)
* I have too many current commitments (that will never change unless you begin to adjust some of your priorities)
* I have a well-grounded life-partner who tells me to chill and be happy with what I have (if they are truly your partner it is time to have that “I need to do this” conversation)
* I don’t have the business knowledge (go back to school and build that knowledge base)
* I lack the confidence to follow through (take the leap, learn as much as you can, practice and you will be impressed with how your confidence with change).
* I am too old (Please!!! There are many examples of entrepreneurs who started in their seventies.)

As I sit in front of the TV and watch another episode of “Shark Tank” I am really disappointed as the “Sharks” step on another dream and watch the rejection on their faces. To many, that great idea is what helps them to be complete. It needs to find a home or those sleepless nights will continue until they find an idea that sticks and builds enough traction to fulfill their creative dreams.

Do you have that next great restaurant concept tucked away in your subconscious? Light a fire under it, do your homework, find answers to those roadblocks and take that entrepreneurial plunge. Capture the excitement, it is what makes this country great.

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RESTAURANTS NEED TO PAINT OUTSIDE THE LINES

07 Friday Jun 2013

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What ever happened to creativity and the fun associated with developing something new, exciting, delicious and trend defining in restaurants. Certainly you could cite those handful of unique restaurants that grace the cover stories in trade magazines, win James Beard Awards and Michelin stars, and are home to chefs with names that are present on the tip of everyone’s tongue, but what about the other 950,000 restaurants in the United States along with business cafeterias, college cafes, and health care facilities? Are there exceptions to the rule, you bet, but they are few and far between.

Playing it safe is the rule of thumb, until someone creates that “ah ha” moment in restaurant dining that reinvents a segment. Do we really need another shop that serves Pizza Margherita, Ameri/Mexican restaurants with burritos and Chimichangas, white tablecloth operations with Shrimp Scampi or Veal Piccata? I have found myself many times referring to how important the classic dishes are and that they are always great to fall back on because after all – they sell! The problem is not their acceptability or the taste profile; the problem is that the industry is too boring. Did I really say that? Yes, the restaurant business is boring.

Customers play it safe, just like restaurants do, and thus the cycle continues. Those chefs and restaurateurs who try to break the mold gain notoriety among journalists, young chefs looking for excitement and that 2% of the population referred to as innovators, but walk down the street and you will find dozens of restaurants who are content (or stuck) with doing the same thing that everyone else does.

I am not a fan of what has been referred to as “molecular cuisine”; however, I am fascinated by those chefs who are head-over-heals committed to pushing that envelope. Grant Achatz, Ferran Adria, Wylie Dufresne are part of the pack of rebels who (forget what you think about the food) are trying hard to pull us out of our shells and learn to “think different”.

Steve Jobs was a genius. Some loved him and others despised him. Say what you will, but as the soul of Apple Computer he embraced creative thought above everything else. He had the uncanny ability to go beyond what people wanted or needed, he anticipated what they were going to need before they ever thought of it. So too is the case with a few contemporary chefs and restaurant owners/operators.

If Achatz, Adria and Dufresne are too radical for you, consider some who have been with us for a long time, treasure the classics, but who interpret those items in a way that breaks the barriers of “playing it safe”. Eric Ripert, Thomas Keller, Charlie Trotter, Alice Waters, Charles Carroll, Daniel Boulud, Gavin Kaysen, Marcus Samuelsson and Cat Cora all continue to move their creative ideas to the forefront of restaurants that carry their signature while 950,000 others continue to ignore the need to be just a little unique.

Part of our job as chefs is to educate the staff members who work with us and the guests who choose to grace us with their presence. Of course, I am fully aware of the fiduciary responsibilities that go along with taking the helm of a restaurant and the fragile nature of restaurant economics. It is also our responsibility, however, to grow our business, attract new customers, and most importantly: exceed guest expectations with a food experience that is far greater than the sum of its parts.

To quote a culinary friend of mine from the past: “There is little talent in cooking a steak. Certainly there is a skill that goes along with timing and organization of a char-grill, but the talent is in preparing a chicken leg or inexpensive cut of meat in such a way, and presented with such unique grace, that its value far exceeds that of even the best steak.”

Please do not misinterpret what I am saying: I love classic Italian, French, Asian, German, Polish, Irish, Norwegian and every other traditional ethnic food. I sometimes salivate just thinking about that perfectly cooked steak, but how often is it that a restaurant experience truly excites and builds unforgettable memories?

Creativity is not exclusive to high-end restaurants. Starbucks was a real “wow” when they first began. The quality, the variety, the atmosphere were game changers. When was the last time that this type of change has taken our breath away in the coffee business? I would dare say that there is little difference between the Starbucks of 1990 and the one of today. Remember the first time you experienced an Au Bon Pain or Panera Bread and how it was fun to take it all in? Where is the next game changer hiding?

Playing it safe has a price. The price is complacency and transition of unique concepts into commodity restaurants. I am waiting for the next Steve Jobs in the restaurant business to catch everyone else off guard. Every once and a while we need to paint outside the lines.

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