FabulousFoodBabe

Just down the hall from Vegetable Disinformation, I assume. ← Oh dear. I have a story about that, too. Hydroponic tomatoes. Chef Frank Lopez (we called him "F. Lo"), God rest his soul. My veggie professor.

Skyline Chili, 2 a.m.. Lots of Coke or Pepsi (for the "elevator up" effect). Either a three-way, dry, extra crackers, or a cheese coney, extra mustard.

Mine aren't as fancy as Docsconz's ... but here goes. Blue Hill at Stone Barns (January, August, and this Thursday night!) Per Se (March) Cafe Gray (April) Craft (May) Alto (September) Blue Hill NY (September -- Juan cooked for us, it was exquisite) The Bar at the Four Seasons ( ) Alta (February), Greenwich And because I projected that Thursday's dinner will be on the list, I'll add one more: Hudson House, Nyack (august or september or something? I can't remember the date, but I remember everything else. Wonderful) Ahhhhh. I feel well fed just thinking about it! [Edited to add: l'Impero was probably tied with Craft food-wise, though I had a better time at Craft. And in 2006, somehow, some way, I will get to Alinea, and WD-50.]

Can I have ten points, too? :-D Congratulations! What an experience that was. PM me for any insider-info, if you need it. My hope is that I'll be actually working IN a restaurant! I'm enjoying the time off, wearing good shoes, pants that fit and getting to see my husband and kids a little bit (plus getting ready for a major kitchen renovation here and getting my book to an agent) ... but the Babe has gotta get a job. So I'm looking forward to some good family meals, hopefully eaten sitting down and for more than 5 minutes. Oh -- and to eat again at Per Se (which we probably will in March), and Babbo.

IBP installed a wonderful Meat Fabrication room at the CIA. It's really beautiful. And as part of our curriculum, we have to watch IBP films showing how clean and sanitary and safe the IBP plants and methods are.

Back when a McDonald's franchise was considered a license to print money, the company required every franchisee to have $600K cash accessible -- real money, not stocks, not equity. They had to work in the business, under a manager, for something like 6 months learning to run the shake machines, fry the fries, open/close/clean, take care of the drive-through. I'm sure the personal stakes are higher, and I'm sure the work requirement is the same. And I think you can probably double that I know few CEOs who would actually give money to someone to run with a great idea and no experience in implementing it. Please don't discount what is being advised here. And do look outside your immediate circle of support. Professors, business owners (successful AND failed). Call a headhunter who works with VC firms and ask her or him. People love to mentor other people, and you'll make some good contacts in the process. As one who's been where you are (and nearly lost her Manolos over that same attitude), I can say that no one is trying to rain on your parade. Please listen.

Aw, nuts. I have shoes that match that hat! Back to the topic ... As I was reading this thread, I realized something: I tend to buy certain items at the same store because I know where they are. I have a heck of a time finding peanut butter at new stores, for example. And apple butter, and Polaner all-fruit. That is, of course, when I'm not harvesting, roasting and grinding my own peanut butter; roasting and pureeing my own apples, and digging into my supply of fresh wild strawberry preserves that I put up at the end of every season. Really.

I agree -- but considering how critical the book is of IBP, I doubt it will ever happen.

I made a huge batch of almond spritz dough with a bit of rum in it, and piped it onto my finger and into my mouth. I did it over and over and over again, and it was worth it.

Thank YOU, MizDucky, for the best visual of the day -- you, in that hat, buzzing around in your cart and playing chicken with the kiddie-carts, singing, "Don't take me alive."

I read this on a vacation soon after it was published -- apparently, some college(s?) have it on the required reading list for incoming Freshmen. It's really, really interesting and provocative. I'll never look at a Wal-Mart in the same way again. I'm not really a fast-food eater or Wal-Mart shopper, for my own reasons, but this gave me a lot to think about. Grub: I recall the line the author wrote about the flavor enhancers and aromas. The one that stands out is how he could have sworn he was smelling a burger off the grill. And it was just a test tube. Wow.

What KatieLoeb said (and said very well). If your ultimate goal is to own a restaurant, please don't underestimate how many people will take advantage of a person who is owning a place and running it, without having done the work. Any small-business owner can tell you some hair-raising stories (don't worry, I try to block them out). And a lot of venture capitalists and banks refuse to finance restaurants ... the ones who do want proof that the person has an idea of what they're doing. (I know this from personal experience.) Heck, even your insurance rates will be lower if the owner knows what's going on! Partners are a different story ... oy.

OMG, Snowangel, I think you too are living my life. What you said, what you said. The part I quoted is really what it comes down to. I've watched my kid pack it on this summer, even though he worked as a golf caddy two days a week and on a farm three days a week, rode his bike a lot, etc. It broke my heart for him, but I was so grateful that he was finally balanced and comfortable and could take pleasure in things. His medication being adjusted, and we can see the difference already in his appetite. Adding food choices to an IEP -- what a great idea! My son is in high school now, and is making good choices most of the time. I'll take it. He gets lots of help in school, but about a year ago, it was coming down to more tutoring or more medication. We didn't like those options (adding three more hours a week of sitting in front of a book seemed kind of cruel to a kid who's having a hard time paying attention) so decided to take the money we'd spend on a tutor, and spend it instead on a trainer at a gym. Wow -- what a difference. The trainer is in his late 20s, very cool, and very smart. He likes video games AND exercise, and preaches (in a big-brotherly way) that you can do both but without the health, you got nothin'. Life dealing with this is not easy, but not boring! And being able to provide good food for them is one of the few things we can actually provide that no one else can.

We're going there for Christmas dinner. Anyone been since this thread started so long ago?

I can easily make six figures..... doing something I hate. When you have a passion for something (food), and work hard at it, I truly believe that success will follow. ← That's absolutely right. But success in the restaurant business is different than in other industries. There's a lot that your success depends on, that it's nearly impossible to control. And it takes a long, long time for the financial success to catch up to you. The city is full of really great chefs that make very little money, who've been at it for a long time. And at the risk of being yelled at here: are you male or female?

Ooh, I love these! In 2006, I will eat every meal sitting down or at least not standing up. I will make my husband learn how to put one meal on the table that doesn't involve reheating or making a phone call. I will find a job! I will learn to cook something new -- a cuisine, an ingredient. I know it's out there ... I will teach people to view cooking as an adventure, and food as something not to be feared! I will read Frank Bruni's column every week, no matter how painful it is This is the year I will try to not get frustrated when I see how other people use their knives I will taste one thing a week that I've never tasted before I will use one method each month that someone else teaches me I will give free cooking lessons to people who want to learn but have no way of affording it ... I will be a better wife, mother, friend, cook, teacher We will have a new kitchen at our house, and a big party to celebrate it! (you're all invited ...) My kids will continue to be the reasons I regret nothing in my life before they came to be. If it had gone otherwise -- even the misdirected career choices I'd made -- they wouldn't be here. I will finish school and I will get an agent to look at my book. And I will not apolgize for having a family and putting them first when they need to be. And last, I'll be thankful everu day to eGullet; through it, I've connected with like-minded, terrific, funny, interesting and provocative people. Happy, Merry, Joyous! Fabby.

Oh, man. I'm sorry this is piling up on you right now! It never does get easier, does it. I've been through this, too. I had to finally choose which was most important to me: getting him to eat more and a variety of foods, or just being glad that he's finally balanced, comfortable and productive, and feeling like a part of what's around him. My son's appetite was pretty much gone at first, and then it adjusted. What we saw was that the meds don't kill the appetite -- they still get hungry, and they will eat when they are. BTW, I really believe that most of the ADD diagnoses for boys has to do with the lack of activity - I don't recall where you live, but when the wintertimes were bad, my kids really had problems with attention spans and concentration.

Wow. Okay, whatever. Seems like nerves have been hit -- I recommend a little OTC pain reliever and a massage. But, the discussion is now personal instead of on topic, and when people start getting pointed and wishing for comeuppances and public humiliations/humblings, well, that does not nourish me.

O-M-G, I am SO with you on this one! It drives me nuts. I don't "like" grocery shopping, but I like to look around. My favorite stores always have their people say, "if you need anything, let me know - I'll be [wherever they are]." Perimeter stuff is refrigerated, or used to be, for the most part, and needs replenishing more often. It's easier to refrigerate and maintain the cases when they're on the outside walls of the store (I have NO idea why freezers are always in the middle, except that there's not room for them on a wall). An enormous A&P FreshMarket opened in the next town, and it's got these huge aisles and customers are always bumping a** with one another in them. Their produce department is set up like a little market, and it's impossible to get through. Drives me insane. Endcaps -- those open-box displays -- really do get more use in the interior aisles. And there's a science to the music that's played ... it's more to keep people happy, upbeat, and wanting to stay a little while. When I want to focus on what I'm doing and not get distracted, I plug into my iPod.

Yes, the thread seems to have plenty of that, along with snark (despite the disclaimer). ← Ouch! I'm wounded! Seriously, I am sure you meant to PM this to one another, instead of posting it for my really curious eyes to see. Oh -- PatrickS said: That's pretty much what JenniferI and I (and someone else -- maybe you?) were saying upthread. I think I mentioned earlier in this topic that a winery my husband worked for pulled their ads immediately when they realized that parents were letting their kids watch The Simpsons. And it does make me smile that Cinnamon Toast Crunch is now made with "whole grains." What IS a whole grain? Anything like "natural flavoring"? Yick.

Of course it's well and good to say that -- because it IS the parents' responsibility when the children are young. I'd quit harping on this if someone out there could please, please, give me a way these corporations get advertising and marketing to little kids without the parents' consent and active participation. Hey: Maybe everyone could register their household with the Feds, and then they can tell us what television shows, commercials, and periodicals we are allowed to have! If we are a "fat kids" family, no Ronald McDonald or Count Chocula. The possibilities are limitless. Maybe someone out there could give their specific examples of who will determine what junk food is, where the money for said regulation is going to come from. And really, if you say this is for the childrens' protection, it's a matter of time before some smart attorney sues on behalf of the children, pockets her/his gazillions, and your kids will all get a free box of Shredded Wheat.

Congratulations! Great school -- you worked hard to get in. A different kind of hard than in the restaurant business. All the people I know who work in management came up through the ranks, and your having an MBA will put you academically over most of the people ... who've gotten thier "MBAs" via experience, after a four-year degree. And too many smart, educated people have failed in the industry because they just don't get it. Do you have any experience working in a restaurant? If you don't, get some -- just trail if that's all you can manage -- bus, chop vegetables, wait tables, anything you can. Having a passion for food is part of it. Restaurant work is not for the faint of heart -- you may hate it. Columbia's placement people may have a line on this -- have you talked to them?

Too funny! (and true ...) To the person who said upthread that corporations are just out to make a buck ... what else should they be doing? Rhetorically, I mean. Stated purpose of a business, blah blah blah. Couldn't agree more with the comment, too, about what will be defined as junk food. Nutritionists have been barking about it for as long as I can remember. At one point, it was declared that "Pizza is the most nutritious junk food." You don't have to be a parent to care about kids. You don't have to have fat kids to care about what is happening to them. (I personally would prefer to see mandates against slapping, spanking, shoving, berating, ignoring, or allowing kids to have a sedentary lifestyle. But none of that is gonna happen.)

I have a sort of crazy notion: Why not treat milk as a food, not a beverage? I know it's liquid, but so is soup. (I'm amazed at what can push people's buttons! Yowch!)

I hope someone from the General Mills Amen Corner answers this -I want to know who they are. In the meantime, can the rest of us have a crack at it? (I personally admire the parents who stand up to a shrieking toddler. It ain't easy, but it happens all the time.)