Some of my very favorites: Newborn baby smell. Doesn’t last for long. Unspoiled. Japanese villages food stalls. New cut lumber. Old car smell. As opposed to the clean, factory-generated new car smell. I’m talking an old Rolls Royce or Bentley Town Car that has endured five kids, three grandchildren and cartons upon cartons of DunhillsContinue reading “Smells”
Category Archives: food service
How Much is Too Much?
A question for the ages… To the person who says that “you can have too much of a good thing,” I say they obviously weren’t living alongside me in Las Vegas in the eighties. Too much money? Right. I have no animosity or envy of rich people. I want them to succeed the same asContinue reading “How Much is Too Much?”
Working Stoned
When I think back on the entirety of my working career, I really went to work stoned. A lot. When you are a young chef candidate, you are crushing long hours with other young hopefuls, and guess what? Every one of them is high. Once you attain a level of autonomy and say-so in anContinue reading “Working Stoned”
Give Me a Break
I’m playing this online golf game and I sink an extremely difficult eighteen-foot putt over a huge break for a birdie. My opponent has about a seven-foot putt to tie me. The slope is almost impossible to navigate, so what happens? The machine says, “player took a gimme.” Kiss my ass. When I play golfContinue reading “Give Me a Break”
I KNOW Why Me?
I am my best ally and my own worst enemy. I elevated myself to levels of euphoria and visited the depths of the abyss. From the year 1974 to 1987, if given any two choices, I would indubitably choose the option that was the worse for me. Consistently. Knowingly. When I entered the higher echelonsContinue reading “I KNOW Why Me?”
Don’t Forget Dessert
As Executive Chef in fine dining establishments in the eighties and nineties, I witnessed firsthand the changing landscape from the traditional (classic) dishes to the new, colorful platescapes that overzealous chefs, with their squeeze bottles in hand, chose to paint like graffiti artists. I liked SOME of the new look plates, and I was oneContinue reading “Don’t Forget Dessert”
A Little Something Extra
I was involved in one position or another in restaurants in my journey. Part of that journey was as a tipped employee. I loved that position better than any I held afterwards, even after I ascended to the Executive Chef position in a starred French restaurant. Why? I was single and working in a majorContinue reading “A Little Something Extra”
Loneliness
I like being alone, but I suppose feeling lonely is a curse for some. Others can be alone even when surrounded by other people. I am one of them. I think I equate people with being antithetical to a clean and healthy planet. I would be alright with a smaller world population, or even better,Continue reading “Loneliness”
No Pressure
I think we would all like to think we would be cool under pressure, and able to lead masses of people if need be. Right. Very few are the stalwarts, impervious to distraction. Single-minded, yes? But in a good way. These are the people I want placed in charge of keeping our citizens safe (includingContinue reading “No Pressure”
Here We Go Again
In this dangerous world, our nation’s defense is Priority One. Or at least it should be. What do you do when you want to attract the best recruits possible to join our naval forces? Lower the standards, of course. The business sector has been doing it forever to attract workers who just don’t want toContinue reading “Here We Go Again”
