Shopping for a Pitmaster

[pixelchef]

Mr. Meyer,

When selecting a chef for such a unique NYC dwelling, what process did you use in finding the right person for the job? Did "Barbecue Chefs" apply, or did you have your eye on someone special? If so, why?

Thanks so much,

pixelchef

[Danny Meyer]

Let's be clear about something: there's almost no such thing as a barbecue chef. There are great pitmasters -- mostly in barbecue country -- but they'll be the first to say it takes years and years to refine their product. None of them was going to move to New york, and none of them could have handled the complexities of running a big, bustling New York restaurant. Most of the classic barbecue joints do a handful of things really well, over a short period of the day. (A lot of them just close whenever they run out of product).

We picked Kenny Callaghan to be Blue Smoke's chef, who had been a sous-chef working with Michael Romano for 8 years. He got the job because he's not only a great cook, but he's passionate about execution, consistency and excellence. He's also a real guy with no airs. He's not a chef who's out to re-create the culinary world. Barbecue is a journey of taking each day as an opportunity to figure out what went wrong and what went right yesterday, and acting upon what you learned today. That's what Kenny does best. He's persistent and won't quit until he gets it right. In that respect, barbecue is good job security.

For two years before we opened, Kenny travelled back and forth with Michael Romano to train with Mike Mills and to learn his way around a smoker. He also travelled around the country to understand what barbecue meant in the various barbecue capitals. He attended competitions, worked with pitmasters in Texas, and kept learning and learning. This fall, he and Michael attended the Southern Food Alliance symposium on barbecue in Mississippi. Then they competed for the first time at the Murpysboro Barbecue Invitational (they finished 4th and beat last year's champion). Additionally we invite pitmasters into Blue Smoke's kitchen all the time. They're free with advice. The learning never stops.

And the learning curve has been steep. Blue Smoke is 9 months old, and as of this morning, we were still talking about dramatic things we learned just yesterday. That won't quit for a long time.

Also, it really feels good to promote from within. Especially someone like Kenny.

[pixelchef]

Awesome answer, just what I was looking for. I have ultimate faith in this venture for you and your team. Thanks so much for taking the time to answer my question, and best of luck!

[Danny Meyer]

Thanks for your interest!