Special Thanks to my super talented son, Jordan, for creating my intro music and for editing my pod casts! You can follow him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Stickittothemanstudios
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Live to Cook!
Regards, Chef Dave
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Tuesday, June 24, 2014
The Perfect Storm Part 2
I hope you were able to listen to the first part of the Perfect Storm pod cast. If not, feel free to catch up on the worlds worst day for any restaurant employee....when 3 major events converge all on one day. Then come back here and tune in to part two where I explain how we cater the San Diego Chargers during their training camp!
Special Thanks to my super talented son, Jordan, for creating my intro music and for editing my pod casts! You can follow him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Stickittothemanstudios
Special Thanks to my super talented son, Jordan, for creating my intro music and for editing my pod casts! You can follow him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Stickittothemanstudios
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Meeting People-The Best Part Of My Work
The industry I work in can be very draining. (I may have mentioned this before :p)The hours are horrendous. Recently, I worked from 2 am until 8 pm. There are times when I question why I even continue to do it. Chef Achatz was my teacher in culinary school. There were times when I couldn't stand him because of his vile attitude. But in the end he taught me a valuable lesson; we do this because we love it. In many ways I cook because it is the only thing I know how to do. But I also do it because I love the people. The people that have touched my life along the way. Relationships that go beyond customer and into friend. I love to create for people bringing them joy and excitement and meeting new friends in return. In this blog I will give some examples of what I mean.
I fondly remember meeting a customer when I worked at a fine dining Italian restaurant. She was sitting alone drinking a bottle of Opus One. Her love of fine wine drew me into conversation. Her name was Lou Anne and we continued to talk wine and food each time she returned. As the relationship grew, she invited my wife and I to take advantage of her unused timeshare weeks. We vacationed in Sardinia that year. On a family trip to D.C., she was our tour guide to several of the Smithsonian museums. And we also enjoyed a week in Williamsburg, VA vacationing with her and her partner.
Portobello Yacht Club had many regular customers. Larry and June were one of my favorites. He was a Priest. She was a nun. They fell in love, left the church, and married. They always wore matching shirts. We dined with them even enjoying dinner in their home. We invited them to our sons birthday party.
Another customer, Lou, worked in the Pentagon. He invited us to visit him while in the area and we took him up on it. He gave us a private tour of the Pentagon. He sent each of my sons AirForce hats and shirts.
A talented customer created a doll in my likeness that still sits upon my shelf.
I met Denis, a wine rep for Kenwood and Valley of the Moon wines. He invited my wife and I to visit him in Sonoma Valley. He gave us a VIP tour of both vineyards and had a private dinner in the vineyard hosted by their Chef.
I became friends with another wine rep for an Italian wine. He invited us to stay in Tuscany in a 14th century villa with an infinity pool that overlooked Tuscan vineyards and hillsides. There we received a private tasting with the winemaker of a Il Poggione. So amazing!
I also had the privilege of meeting Franco Dragone who directed many of the early Cirque Du Soleil shows including La Nuba. He invited me to take my family to see La Nuba with front row seats.
I cooked for the winemaker Frescobaldi who was the largest wine producer in all of Italy. He said that my food was the closest to true Italian that he had eaten in the US and asked me to come to Italy and teach him to cook. Unfortunately, I never took him up on it. (Wonder if there's a statue of limitations on this one!)
I have recently met a couple who ask me to create a special meal just for them. I love when someone asks me for this! It shows how much trust they have in my abilities and allows me to truly create. They come in regularly and always bring me a special bottle of wine as a gift.
It is these relationships that have been spawned through a mutual love of food that I cherish and which makes the long hours of being a Chef bearable. As for my old Chef, Achatz, he ran into my mother many years after I had finished my culinary schooling. She updated him on my success in the industry. He was delighted to hear about his previous student, and in his failing health, passed on his 20 inch Henckel slicer to me. And in a way, I feel like he handed down his sword.
I fondly remember meeting a customer when I worked at a fine dining Italian restaurant. She was sitting alone drinking a bottle of Opus One. Her love of fine wine drew me into conversation. Her name was Lou Anne and we continued to talk wine and food each time she returned. As the relationship grew, she invited my wife and I to take advantage of her unused timeshare weeks. We vacationed in Sardinia that year. On a family trip to D.C., she was our tour guide to several of the Smithsonian museums. And we also enjoyed a week in Williamsburg, VA vacationing with her and her partner.
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| Now this is what I call a time share! |
Portobello Yacht Club had many regular customers. Larry and June were one of my favorites. He was a Priest. She was a nun. They fell in love, left the church, and married. They always wore matching shirts. We dined with them even enjoying dinner in their home. We invited them to our sons birthday party.
Another customer, Lou, worked in the Pentagon. He invited us to visit him while in the area and we took him up on it. He gave us a private tour of the Pentagon. He sent each of my sons AirForce hats and shirts.
| It was after hours when we toured this amazing office building and hub of our military! |
A talented customer created a doll in my likeness that still sits upon my shelf.
 |
| What do you think? It kinda looks like me! |
I became friends with another wine rep for an Italian wine. He invited us to stay in Tuscany in a 14th century villa with an infinity pool that overlooked Tuscan vineyards and hillsides. There we received a private tasting with the winemaker of a Il Poggione. So amazing!
I also had the privilege of meeting Franco Dragone who directed many of the early Cirque Du Soleil shows including La Nuba. He invited me to take my family to see La Nuba with front row seats.
I cooked for the winemaker Frescobaldi who was the largest wine producer in all of Italy. He said that my food was the closest to true Italian that he had eaten in the US and asked me to come to Italy and teach him to cook. Unfortunately, I never took him up on it. (Wonder if there's a statue of limitations on this one!)
I have recently met a couple who ask me to create a special meal just for them. I love when someone asks me for this! It shows how much trust they have in my abilities and allows me to truly create. They come in regularly and always bring me a special bottle of wine as a gift.
It is these relationships that have been spawned through a mutual love of food that I cherish and which makes the long hours of being a Chef bearable. As for my old Chef, Achatz, he ran into my mother many years after I had finished my culinary schooling. She updated him on my success in the industry. He was delighted to hear about his previous student, and in his failing health, passed on his 20 inch Henckel slicer to me. And in a way, I feel like he handed down his sword.
|
Live to Cook!
Regards, Chef Dave
|
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