wax311

It sounds like you've had some really bad experiences in the restaurant business so far, but it's because of the people that surround you, not because of you. I mean someone tried to kill you, holy fuck. Did you stay at that place after that happened? This guy you are talking about is a complete douche, regardless of how talented and "passionate" he is. Passion is not exemplified by breaking stuff when you mess up. The guy can't control his emotions and has serious anger management issues. You shouldn't be comparing the amount of "passion" that this guy has with the amount that you have. You shouldn't decide to quit the restaurant business because you'll never live up to the amount of "passion" that guy has. He may be talented and he may be up-and-coming, but he's a douche. You could quit the business and go to school and do one of the options you said, but SOMETHING drew you to the restaurant business, and something has kept you there even after a hit was put out on you. I suggest you quit and find another restaurant to work at, under a chef who is not an abusive ego-maniac, and see how you like it. If you're in an atmosphere where you like your chef and you like the other people around you and you STILL want out, then I say do it. Edit: And it makes sense that his "passion is infectious but it's not rubbing off on me". You clearly find serious faults with him, and you don't want to model yourself after him, so you won't be influenced by his enthusiasm as much. And after reading your edited post, you need to leave this place immediately, and possibly file a suit against the restaurant, because no human being should be treated this way. Are any of the staff members that threatened you and tried to harm you still there? Serious, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU DO NOT SPEND ANOTHER DAY IN THAT KITCHEN. And find a lawyer.

I really like Ten Tables in JP. It's probably the best value for fine dining I have ever had or seen. On Tuesday nights they have four course tastings with wine pairings for like 40 bucks. The food is consistently very good, whereas in my experience some of the more expensive options in Boston are pretty inconsistent. Craigie Street is very good but a bit pricier, and for a special occasion I'd hit L'Espalier, and I've heard great things about O Ya.

I would love to attend this year's chefs' congress, but tickets are 375 bucks! I'm a cook, and that's a LOT of money to me. I still might go, but damn, I really wish this was more affordable to people like me who aren't making the big bucks just yet. Anyone have any idea how to get in for less that one week of a humble cook's paycheck?

At a few of the restaurants I have worked at, there have been a handful of cooks who had been hired temporarily. Where I work now, we had one guy from Hawaii come in to ask for temporary work while he interviewed at a few places around the city for a sous chef position. We were understaffed but did have a sous chef, so we took him on as a line cook. He left after a few weeks, and shortly thereafter we hired someone good, as my chef was able to use the extra time to do more interviews and hire the best candidate. And aside from restaurants which seem to be frequently understaffed, there are also catering companies looking for temporary help. I don't think there's no such thing as a temporary cook.

Great. I'll be traveling hopefully all across the U.S., spending lots of time in California during the trip. I actually don't anticipate spending a ton of time in Maine other than my two weeks at Primo (you got me), maybe another week or so but we'll be doing lots of non-work related stuff too, like WW rafting the Kennebeck, having some fun at Old Orchard Beach, ect. But if I need some money, maybe we'll spend a little more time there if we can find some well-paying events.

I have a tentative stage set up in Rockland, ME. I definitely should consider serving like you folks have suggested. Would it make sense to sign up at some temp agencies that do catering events? Are there any national agencies out there? Or should I simply look on the craiglist board for where I'm heading to?

On July 1, my girlfriend and I are leaving town in our recently purchased 1978 Winnebago and traveling around the country for 6 months to a year. Along the way, I will be staging at some very good restaurants for about two weeks at a time. I already have a couple tentatively lined up. We have been saving up for almost a year for this trip, and while we have managed to save a significant sum, we have decided that in order to stay on the road and travel the country for more than 3-4 months on the money we have saved, we will have to work along the way. This is mostly due to the increasing price of gasoline, which we are anticipating could reach $5/gal at some point during our trip (our camper gets 10mpg, so we will be choosing our routes wisely). The problem with staging at very good restaurants is that it is expected that it will be unpaided. I haven't really asked either of the two chefs I have spoken to (one in California, one in Maine) about getting paid for my work because of this underlying expectation. So, here are my questions: 1) Can/should I ask to get paid as a stagiaire? Does it depend on the restaurant? Would chefs be turned off by this, even if I told them about my situation? 2) Assuming I can't get paid as a stagiaire, how else can I get temporary work (2-4 weeks at a time) as a cook in which I will both learn a lot and be compensated decently? Thanks for your input, much appreciated. -Wax

"Detrás" - Spanish for "behind" is used frequently in many kitchens including mine. I wouldn't say that the phrase "behind you" or any other equivalents has some magical way to get the kitchen to freeze like the OP suggested. Saying "behind you", "hot stuff", "sharps", "detrás", or any other phrases are simply warnings to prevent people from bumping into each other, getting burned, or getting cut. We're talking about simple communication skills that are necessary in tight kitchens - not magic. Edit: I'd like to add that I say "behind you" in places outside of work (by habit) and people give me weird looks for it! Like say I'm in a crowded store, and a lady looks like she's about to back into me, so I say, "behind you" like I normally do in a kitchen, and they always turn around and look at me like I'm from another planet. Excuse me for warning you that you're ass is about to rub up against me! (If it's a cute girl, I'll hold my tongue.)

I have to agree with Hathor, one week is probably not enough time to travel in Europe. Considering how much money it costs to fly there, you're better off saving up money for a little while longer so you can afford to go for at least 2-3 weeks. You'll probably be spending $800+ for the round trip flight depending on where you go, so you should try to invest more time into your trip. If you only go for one week, you'll feel like you're already on your way home when your trip is just getting started. That said, I have gone to Spain for a few weeks, staying at hostels and eating really good food. My girlfriend and I spent 8 days in Barcelona, 8 days in Madrid, and 5 days in Valencia. I would probably skip Valencia if I were to do it again (although the paella was amazing). Hostels were really cheap, so we were able to eat well.

This is my advice. Pick the one restaurant you really want to work at. Be persistent in letting them know you want to work there in any capacity possible. Call, email, mail a letter, fax your resume, go in for dinner, and do everything you can to bother the hell out of them until the chef gives up out of frustration and lets you wash dishes or cut vegetables. I trailed one day at L'Espalier in Boston for my culinary school internship. This 18 year old kid was working sautee that day. I asked the sous chef how he got a job on the hot line at such a good restaurant. The sous said that when the kid was 16, he bugged the chef for weeks until they decided to let him stand in a corner and WATCH. He observed everything in the kitchen for a couple weeks every day, and then one afternoon someone called in sick and they needed help with prep. That's how he got his start. Just don't take no for an answer.

When peaches were in season over the summer, at my restaurant we breaded them in crushed up amaretti cookies and deep fried them. We cut peaches into wedges and breaded them with the standard flour-egg-(amaretti)crumb breading procedure, with the flour mixed with a bit of brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. We served it with maple almond gelato - probably one of the best summer desserts I have ever had. It's a fun take on peach cobbler.

I don't think there is a clear cut answer for the proper timing between courses - too many variables. If it's very busy and a restaurant needs to turn tables or feed a pre-theater crowd, then obviously times between courses is shorter. If reservations are well-spaced out and customers are not in a hurry, then a few extra minutes between courses is nice for some diners. Now I'll be honest and say that I do not have lots of FOH experience (I've been stuck in the kitchen). However, I will venture to say that I believe the proper timing is best determined by the server on a table-by-table basis. Well-trained servers should be able to send fire tickets and pace each meal based upon what they think is the proper timing for each table, all variables considered. After all, table 12 might be trying to catch a movie, while table 13 wants a nice, long, romantic dinner. And if a server anticipates that a table is significantly slower or quicker than the average pace at that particular restaurant, he/she should communicate that to the kitchen ASAP.

Hello to everyone. First time posting here, have been lurking for a while and I think this is a great forum. One day this guy has the nerve to tell me, "You are not a good cook because you do not baste your proteins." I get pissed. I work at a pretty authentic Northern Italian restaurant in Boston. We never baste our proteins. Meats are usually cooked on our wood grill. Fish is usually pan-roasted, skin side only, and finished in the oven (we do grill, fry, and poach fish sometimes though). My chef, who has spent a couple years cooking in Italy, told me that Italians generally do not bother to baste their proteins. It is my understanding that basting is French technique. I respond, "So I am bad cook because I don't bathe my meat in hot, aromatic, bubbly butter? If that's true then there aren't any good cooks in Italy. Go back to your kitchen and continue spongebathing your hangar steak to medium rare, and don't forget to clean behind its ears, Frenchy." Okay maybe I didn't say that, but I thought it. A while before this conversation, I did one-day trails at three top Boston-area restaurants. All of these places used the pretty much the same basting technique on proteins - sear in oil or clarified for a little maillard action, add whole butter or beurre monte along with a clove of garlic and sprig of thyme, and stand there like a madman, spooning hot aromatic butter over the protein. To me, it seems like a lot of fuss - a couple times I saw cooks baste themselves into the weeds, and once they were weeded, surprise they stopped basting, as if it wasn't important anymore. So here are my questions for all of you: How much of a difference in flavor does basting make? What are you trying to acheive? What's the science behind it? Do you baste more when it's slow because you are bored? Does your chef make you do it? And most importantly, is it really worth the time and effort?