IDEAS IN FOOD

It's a Begining

Using and understanding relationships to inspire innovation. It's a relatively simple concept. In relation to cooking it involves building a body of knowledge.  In order to innovate efficiently and well, one must understand the basic relationships in the kitchen. Not the relationship between chefs and cooks, the relationships between ingredients and their environment. Cooking is about what happens when you apply heat or cold to an edible object. It's about how different proportions affect you final outcome. It's about how structures are affected by being altered, whether it's the way that you butcher an animal or whether you peel celery or whether you apply liquid nitrogen or moist heat to a raspberry. What happens next is the question that drives chefs and scientists alike. If you can understand the basic relationships then you can make an educated guess about what happens next. This knowledge is what leads to innovation because if you understand why something happens then you can puzzle out a better way to do it. Life is not just about getting from Point A to Point B, it's about doing it well and enjoying the journey.

For a Better Burger...

use butter. Some days I feel as though our lives play out like the plot line from a bad soap opera. Whatever can happen usually does. At times like these meals call for quick, easy and tasty. They are as much about sustenance as they are about nourishment. A great burger can do wonders for a worn out psyche. A little bit of grated cold butter and grated onions can elevate a simple burger to something truly special. Add a healthy pinch of salt, a good bun and a lot of love (from a well seasoned cast iron skillet) and you've got the perfect meal at the end of a day of packing. Butter, it really does make everything better.

Love is...

pumpkin pie. It's one of the few things that I've cooked in recent times. There have been a few pies, biscotti, rugelah, and the occasional thrown together meal (mostly peanut butter sandwiches) when Alex was taking care of business outside of the house. It's been a hairy and hectic few weeks and somehow eating has not been a priority so much as a necessity. Food as fuel is a new concept and one that I'm thankfully starting to leave behind me. The pies, well those are for my husband. Because he loves them and because he deserves a little something special for dealing with the chaos right beside me. He makes sure there's always food in the house, a glass of water or juice at my elbow when I'm nursing, and at least one well cooked meal (not an easy feat) every day. All this in addition to dealing with the myriad details that go along with childbirth, death, holidays, and birthdays. So the fact that he enjoys eating my cookies and pies all day long means that I will bestir myself to bake them, no matter what else falls by the wayside. It may look like a simple pumpkin pie, in reality it's so much more...

The 12 Questions of Christmas

Why is mozzarella elastic?

Where do ideas come from?

At what temperature does collagen begin to denature and turn into gelatin?

Is it delicious?

What allows for balance?

If we have a better understanding of the ingredients and the process can we make better food?

What does your gut say?

Did you smile?

What is necessary?

What is extraneous?

Do you you know why?

Can you say yes?

Thank You

Two words, two syllables, mountains of meaning. We would like to utter these words to those we know and those that know us and take the time to visit with us and share ideas. Happy Holidays and thank you.

Inspirations

Today I came across a a blog post by one of my favorite fiction writers, Marjorie M Liu, about finding inspiration which links to an article by musician Andrew Bird (I've never experienced his music although I will definitely make it a point to check it out after reading his piece). Inspiration is something that we struggle to find on a daily basis. It rarely arrives in a flash of light or as an explosive discovery. Instead our search is more like fitting together the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. For quite some time you can connect the pieces almost absently, it's more about individual couplings than the whole. At some point you realize that you can see the image that you're chasing. It may be rough and unfinished but it is clearly visible and the remaining pieces almost fall into place.

Well, that is if you're lucky. There is certainly a rush of exultation when an amorphous idea becomes a reality and a surge of adrenaline appears to carry you towards the finish line. In cooking many times those moments are where the real work begin. We often craft individual versions of our ideas first and the real test is recreating them so that they can be reproduced in volume by other hands with no discernible loss of quality. It is a constant challenge and one that we enjoy.

Our path this past year has been a surprising one. Had anyone asked us a year ago where we would be now I'm sure that we would have answered "in a restaurant". Clearly that hasn't happened and instead we have wandered an entirely different and novel path. The cooking classes have been amazing for us. We are constantly inspired by the people who come to our sessions. They question us, challenge us, and teach us new things every day. On the one hand we miss having an audience to cook for every day. On the other hand we have the flexibility to explore all of ideas and share them with others in ways that we might not be able to in a restaurant setting. For today this blog is our inspiration. Our readers are a big part of our motivation. We thank you for visiting us today and any other day you wish to join us. We couldn't do it without you.

Thoughts on Blogging

A big part of being a blogger is a need to be heard. You know that you’ve got something to share and blogging is your venue of choice for communicating that information. The soul of a chef revolves around the desire to feed people. You want to create amazing, delicious food and nurture your diners in whatever style works for you. For some chefs that means creating old fashioned comfort foods, for other that means pushing the envelope and challenging the senses with modern creations. The beauty of our profession is that it makes room for chefs of all different varieties to find their audience. The blogosphere does the same thing for its bloggers. It creates a medium through which people can reach out and find their audience.

Of course every action produces a reaction. They may be positive or negative or somewhere in between, there are always reactions to the things we do. Over on Eggbeater Shuna is talking about whether blogging openly about work can be a positive thing. In her case there were serious ripples and repercussions stirred up by her writing. That happens. Lots of people are driven to shut down their blogs or write anonymously to protect their peace and privacy or that of the people close to them. The creation of parameters is a personal decision, one that is more fluid than most because bloggers can always reconsider and shift directions according to their comfort level.

Creating a blog is insidious. Once you begin it eases itself into other aspects of your life. You begin to look at experiences as blog posts, debating whether something is interesting enough or perhaps too interesting to write about on the site. You discover that the line that you have drawn in sand about what is material for the blog and what is personal begins to blur. You feel as though your readers accept you completely, forgetting that they are only exposed to the small fragment that gets published each day. You are complimented and vilified by turns and you wonder how people find the vitriol to fling at someone they don’t know. Somehow we rarely question the compliments, a quirk of  human nature and our own egos. You remember that you have donned the target of your own accord and remind yourself that when you speak publicly you invite any and all responses. Still, at least in our case, you keep on blogging.

Some days it’s tough to say what you believe. There are moments when omission feels like the greater part of valor. There are always people who will agree unequivocally with what you have to say and those who will disagree completely. You will be alternatively an inspiration and a scapegoat.  You’re going to make big mistakes and accidentally step on lots of toes. You’re going to meet very interesting people and make connections that would never have been possible before you started blogging. You’re going to learn where those lines underneath the shifting sands are actually etched in the stone beneath. Your website will be a tool for self-discovery if you’re open to the process. As we say in the kitchen, it’s all about execution.  If you’re going to blog, do it wholeheartedly and make it your own. Authenticity is more important than polish.

Comments

We do not know if we have ever clarified our policy on comments.  For the record, personal attacks that do not appear to be constructive in any way will not be published.

Sticking My Nose Out

People often ask us how or why we started blogging. At this point I usually must confess that I have a love-hate relationship with the internet.  I love that it is a twenty-four hour resource where I can find a wealth of information at the touch of a keyboard and where I can communicate with people hundreds or thousands of miles away. I can find people that share my interests and make connections with them. On the other hand, the lack of privacy bugs me. As easy as it is to look up information on any subject, I know that people can actually look up information about me. I'm not saying that people want to look me up per se, I'm just saying that they could. Of course I have a website so I'm an easy target. With a blog you never know when someone's going to take random potshots at you just because they can.

On the bright side, we've met amazing people through this site, ones we never would have run into through the course of our day to day lives. In high school my friends and I would settle ourselves on park benches (Union Square was a favorite spot) or on stone steps and watch the passers-by. It was a fascinating pastime, both for the fashion and for the various social interactions. I still love to sit back and observe. There are websites that I adore, places I visit every day who will never know that I've been there. I rarely comment, I don't IM, and I'm not a great correspondent, although I always have good intentions. I'm intrigued by the world although most of the time I like to keep my distance. The world wide web is a good place to express yourself and still maintain the illusion of detachment.

In this same vein of occasional and unreasonable timidity, I'm not fond of large gatherings of people who I don't know. Why? Because I hate introducing myself to strangers. Chefs especially are a funny clique-ish bunch. They are either incredibly warm and friendly or polite and utterly disinterested. A few stilted conversations and awkward handshakes and I'm ready to run for the hills. On the other hand, I love when people come up and introduce themselves to me. The idea that people are interested enough in what we're doing to want to say hello is an awesome one.  It makes me smile every time it happens. It also makes it easier to chat because I know there's a common thread to follow. Often one thing leads to two or three and a conversation is born.

Last month Alex and I were invited to the launch party for Gourmet.com.  We had a little trouble when we called the number to RSVP. The first woman couldn't find us on the list and transferred us to another woman, who repeatedly asked us if we were sure that we had been invited because it was an extremely small venue and she had never heard of us. Alex assured her that he was looking at an invitation that had arrived in the mail. She was unconvinced. Finally a light bulb went off when she asked us if we were blog. Well, we aren't but we do have one. She found us on the other list.  We shrugged it off and besides, she had piqued our curiosity. Exactly who was going to be at this party? Predictably we (more like she)  hardly recognized any of the faces and it wasn't until afterwards when we read the various recaps around the web that we discovered who was actually there. We were at that elusive crossroads between being unknown enough to actually observe and enjoy the show and familiar enough to make some connections and not feel like wallflowers. For me it was the perfect position to be in. I truly enjoyed myself. I realized afterwards that we hadn't stepped up and introduced ourselves to anyone at all.  Perhaps it was a missed opportunity. On the other hand, the lack of pressure actually allowed me to enjoy myself, at a party. Miracles do happen and that particular adventure was a direct result of what we do here.

Blogging is an interesting journey. In the beginning the goal was simply to occupy ourselves and keep from going insane out in Colorado. Along the way it became something more than an exercise in motivation. It became a way of communicating and a method for sharing ideas and learning more about food and about ourselves. The site absolutely has allowed us to get in contact with other chefs and foodies that we might not otherwise have had the confidence to approach. It's opened doors for us and given us opportunities that may not have come our way.

Recently we had some cooks in one of our classes who were talking to us about isolation, a topic that we are intimately familiar with. They said that our blog helped them feel connected to other cooks around the country. It was huge compliment and one of the best ones we've ever gotten. I realized afterwards that those sentiments were exactly why we blog. Because when we began this we were those cooks who felt as though they were missing out on what was really going on in the food world, beyond the television shows and glossy magazine pages. Some days we're still looking for that connection ourselves. Some days we get to be the connection. It's a small thing that makes all the effort we put into this feel worthwhile. That's why we created this website and that's why we still feel as passionate about it today as we did on the first day we began.

Opinions

One of the great things about this website is the exchange of ideas. We throw concepts out with our spin on them and invariably they come back to us with entirely new slants and shadings from the different perspectives of our readers. We love that.  We firmly believe that the only way cooking, or any process for that matter, can evolve is by asking questions and challenging ideas. There is always room to grow, to learn more, to make mistakes, and to try again. Lord knows we've made plenty of mistakes in the past and will make many more before we're done.  Success is a wonderful and often times elusive goal. In our experience there is as much to be gained from the process as there is from those brief moments of completion.

Every chef is out there trying to express their idea of the perfect meal. This meal changes daily or hourly depending on the chef. All we have to guide us is our vision and the input of our cooks and diners. We do our best to listen and to adapt and to be open to the opinions of others.  Let me be clear here, we are open to the opinions of other people and they will often influence the way we look at a particular situation or idea. This does not mean we are always going to change our opinions. After all, we don't even agree on everything. Now sometimes it can take us an hour or a day or two to digest a conversation or email and to extract the salient points without being unduly influenced by our egos or that of the speaker/sender.  I do find it interesting when people have only one side of a story or situation and choose to draw their own conclusions without bothering to investigate the full story, and then expect their opinion to carry weight. I am sure we've been guilty of it ourselves and it begs the question of why. What are we trying to accomplish with that approach and why have we chosen to be one-sided? It's always important to get your facts straight before you weigh in. We do our best to assume that in most cases constructive criticism is intended and to view the dialogue in that light. In any case, accepting someone else's opinion does not mean that you have to embrace it or make it your own. It simply means that you understand what a person is saying to you and acknowledge their thoughts and their wish to share them with you. Sometimes though, the approach makes a real conversation impossible. Please do share your thoughts with us and please don't expect us to  to always agree with you. A conversation is much more interesting when all parties are allowed to have their own opinions.

*As for the picture, that is a pumpkin-white chocolate cheesecake with spiced apricot strips, a dessert which produced a vast number of opinions, for better and for worse.

Progress

Construction, even if it is in the basement, is insidious. Dust somehow blows through the cracks and make it's way all the way up the second floor each and every day that there is work being done. We're making progress on the flood repairs. As these things tend to happen, once they opened up the walls to replace the paneling, new problems arose and there were complications. A job that was meant to be done in two weekends is now going on four weeks.  Thankfully progress is being made and the work is solid. Although two cooking classes have been sacrificed to the work being done, come hell or high water, we'll be ready for the hydrocolloid classes this weekend. Which is not to say that the construction will be done, just that we'll be able to move a good percentage of stuff from the basement back down there, thus freeing up the space necessary to hold the actual classes. Sometimes the closer you get to the finish line, the harder it is to maintain your focus and stay on your game. Once you get there though, it'll all be worth it.

About Food

Lately I'm sensing a trend that is slowly coalescing around us. People are starting to associate us with a narrow focus on scientific ingredients and techniques. This particular pigeonhole has surrounded us several times in the last few weeks and I'd like to take a moment to clarify our approach to cooking. I'm the first to admit that we like to experiment and to play in the kitchen. It's the backbone of our philosophy, creativity in the kitchen. There is an underlying foundation to our improvisational outlook and that is the quest to create amazing food. Food that excites the palate and the eye, that teases the senses and makes you want to come back for yet another bite.  Food that leaves you staring at an empty plate wishing for just a bit more. This cuisine can be innovative and modern, it can also be creative and very rustic. It depends upon the ingredients available, our mood, our guests, the season, the weather, and a myriad range of ever-changing variables too fleeting to detail here.

We love the range of new ideas and ingredients that constantly pass through our horizon. Like many chefs we use them to improve our food and calibrate textures and flavors to our specifications. Never forget that they are a means to an end and not the reason for cooking. There are many chefs who use them to spectacular effect because they suit their individual styles. Things like sous vide cookery, transglutaminase, and hydrocolloids can be found in a surprising number of kitchens, where they play a supporting role and are simply used to help focus that particular chef's personal vision of their food.

For whatever reason science in the kitchen  is now either revered of villified, according to personal philosophies. Instead it should simply be acknowledged and accepted as useful information for any kitchen. New ideas, cooking methods and ingredients are simply building blocks to help us understand how things happen and to improve our culinary abilities. They are not a world unto themselves.

As chefs, we should not underestimate how much we can learn by asking questions and trying new things, nor should we feel obligated to focus solely on the cutting edge. Our points of view are ever-evolving as is our culinary style. Science is an important part of what we do, although it's not everything. There is great pleasure to be found in simplicity and science can help us to achieve that. In the end it comes down to flavor, texture and presentation. It comes down to beauty on the plate that will be pure enough to last from the moment you smell it coming towards you to the lingering effects of satisfaction and comfort at the end of your meal. That's our philosophy and that's what we strive for with every dish we create.

The Art of Perspective

Sometimes we forget that everyone has different opinions about almost everything. The differences may be clearly defined, my favorite color is blue, Alex's is green, or they may be much more subtle, he likes his steak to be rare, while I like it somewhere between rare and medium rare. In the first instance, although we may both like blue and green, there is a clear delineation between how much we like each hue and how often we will choose that color when given the option to express a preference. In the second case, the differences are very slight, so much so that our steaks are almost interchangeable, although there are subtle differences which will affect our enjoyment of the different taste and texture sensations of the beef.

This past week we ate pizza pebbles at WD-50 and an experience that resulted from this was illuminating. Basically when you place these pebbles on your tongue and begin to chew, they crumble on your palate. You've probably scooped up your pebble with a bit of pepperoni puree and your entire mouth is coated with an intense burst of pizza flavor in two textures. The effect is slightly astringent, so that at first your mouth goes slightly dry, amplifying the effects, and then as you continue to chew, the grainy texture combines with the saliva in your mouth to create a smooth emulsion, which easily slides down your throat, leaving a lingering pizza finish behind. The experience is very intense, and for those of us who love pizza, as I do, it can be very pleasurable. The flavor took me back to my childhood, where my favorite treats were frozen Celeste Cheese pizzas and these little frozen treats that I remember as pizza bites, which were basically small pastries filled with sauce and cheese that exploded in your mouth, a sensation that was duplicated in a very different way by these pebbles.

Not everyone appreciated them as much as I did. The person sitting next to me (who was not Alex), seemed slightly confused. "They taste like Combos" he said, in way that clearly conveyed that Combos were not his favorite childhood snack. Interestingly, in a later conversation with Wylie about the pizza pebbles (which he demonstrated by video at the conference), he made the exact same reference. "They taste just like Combos." he enthused. Clearly, he enjoyed those cheese filled pretzel snacks. And upon reflection, they really do taste like Combos because the outer pretzel coating had the same slightly astringent effect on the cheesy filling as his pebbles did. The tough thing about expressing yourself is that even when people get exactly what you're going for, there's no guarantee that the experience will touch them in the same way that it excites you.

We all work hard in or kitchens, whether professional or amateur, and I'm sure we've all had moments where we've wondered how people could dislike something that we've produced and feel passionate about. Sometimes we make mistakes. Sometimes people don't understand what we're going for. And sometimes, they get it completely and just don't like it anyway. A thick skin is almost mandatory in this profession. Calluses are our friends. No matter how open to constructive criticism we must be, in the end, if you love what you're cooking, then you can never be sorry that it's on your menu or your plate.

Where I Stand

Much like people, businesses have their own personalities. They tend to reflect the philosophies of those at the the top and can range from very tightly regimented and organized, to the loose and carefree. There are successful examples of the full spectrum of management styles and as the world evolves many new styles are appearing almost daily. Our generation is witnessing a full scale change in the way people view the work environment and their own work ethic. Our peers saw an increase in self-owned businesses and entrepreneurship. We grew up in the hey-day of the IPOs and absorbed the concept that smart choices, sacrifice, and hard work, in that order, will earn you millions of dollars if you're willing to pay the price. These days most of us aren't willing to sacrifice everything to the almighty dollar, although the option still exists. We learned that school is not always the answer and that student loans eventually have to be paid off, no matter what your real world salary turns out to be. The last ten years have shown us that credit is so important.  Credit card debt has been the downfall of more than one acquaintance over the years. We saw that you can't have it all, no matter what people tell you.  If you spend all of your time at work your family life will suffer whether you're willing to acknowledge it or not. All those years without sick days or vacations or personal health days will never come back. So they had better be worth it.

We are very lucky in that we were exposed to both the old school style of hard work and hard knocks and the newer so-called "Me Generation". We saw what happened when people slaved away for years and then watched their pensions evaporate in a plume of embezzlement and bad management. In the culinary world we have seen the transition from a system of apprenticeship to a much shorter system of schooling. The debate rages on endlessly as to which system produces the better cooks. We still believe it's not the system, it's the individual. The cream always rises no matter where you leave it to set. We do our best to evaluate a chef on his or her talents and execution, rather than on their pedigree and PR. Almost certainly unconscious preconceptions and partialities color our views, and we do our best to judge on actual merit whenever possible. The older we get the more we understand how important our own life experiences have been in shaping our own culinary efforts.

Recently I've been working through some issues with management styles. I've been asking a lot of questions that aren't always appreciated. This is not because I don't understand what is being asked of me. I ask questions because I want to understand why I am asked to do things that I may not comprehend fully or agree with. Truthfully this is not always a positive characteristic in an employee and I can try to be more sensitive to that. I've been blessed to work for a series of businesses that never minded my asking why, because my understanding allowed me to do my job more appropriately and more efficiently. I can fulfill my duties better if I understand the reason behind a request because that will tell me what the real priorities are. Sometimes a job description includes everything except polishing door knobs and there's no way to know which tasks are the important ones until you dive in. Sometimes a job is more than what's listed in the job description. Sometimes it's not. Life is a lot easier when you know exactly where you stand.

The Pursuit of Power

Kitchens are tight spaces where people work closely together. The hours are long and you are forced to become close to those you work with. Sometimes, too close. There's a certain amount of machismo in many kitchens. The attitude, which was rather famously and accurately depicted in Kitchen Confidential, tends to be one of toughen up or get out, for better or for worse. We've all worked in these kinds of places (kitchens or not) at one time or another. Thankfully these types of workplaces are on the wane and most modern businesses are much more user-friendly to both male and female employees. Still the mentality of needing to be tough to survive, especially in this business prevails. It's can be hard physical labor.  It demands mental agility and stamina to make it through the long, busy hours of prep and service. It can break down spirits and it can make people stronger. As in any profession, the key is picking the right situation to help you grow and move farther along your desired path to becoming a Chef.

Some times it can be hard to determine what actually constitutes harassment. Women are often accused of being too sensitive to the bawdy conversations and harsh attitudes that can prevail in the heat of a kitchen. Friendliness is often misconstrued as sexual intent. That type if situation can go both ways. Friends will stand close and whisper or sling a casual arm around another person's shoulder.  That's perceived as a reasonable or even a welcome action. Someone else will see this happening and think that they can do the same thing. If you're not as close to that second person, the same actions may not be acceptable, but it's hard to explain the difference in your response. Small issues morph quickly in tight quarters and so people are extra careful, either to not step on toes or to stomp extra hard with a big "just kidding smile", according to their natures.

When things like this happen, male or female, you are left with a dilemma. How to respond to the unwelcome invasion of your personal space? I'm very fortunate in that I am married and I do work with my husband, so advances are rare. When I was younger, this was not always the case. In many situations I would be repulsed by subtle body brushes, suggestive comments, or outright overtures. It was always difficult to decide how to respond. In those close conditions, making an enemy can make the workday seem interminable. There are many subtle forms of sabotage that can be employed to slowly hound someone out of the kitchen. It never seemed in my best interests to come forward and make a big deal out of these situations. It always seemed as though it would just make things worse. Silent suffering seemed to be the way to go.

I was saddened to realize recently that things haven't changed very much. People, men and women, are still hesitant to come forward when they feel that subtle pressure from someone they work with. The smartest offenders are careful not to cross those invisible lines or do anything concrete that one can point a finger at. Interestingly, as i grew older I realized that this type of subtle aggression is simply about power. It's the way that certain people have learned to maneuver to get what they want. Although it may manifest itself as sexual harassment, it's not about any physical chemistry. It's about domination. It's about someone trying to use you to get what they want.

Over the years I've grown less afraid to challenge people. I'm learning to stand up for myself and defend my personal space and my right to be. Still, when I see situations unfolding or hear stories, I can relate to them. I understand that feeling of frustration and helplessness, that desire to lash out and define boundaries, and the fear that the repercussions will be worse than the suffering that you're currently undergoing. Today I say fight back. I say stand your ground.  I say define your boundaries and own your space. It won't e easy, in fact it will probably be incredibly difficult to do. Still, I believe it's better to suffer for  your right to be, than to suffer because you're afraid to be. People shouldn't be able to gain their power at your expense. It's important to remember that you have power of your own.

How to Defuse a Flash in the Pan?

Years ago, at the restaurant where I met Alex, there was this other cook named N. N had been working there for a couple of months before I began and he seemed to flit in and out of the kitchen. I didn't even realize that he was supposed to be a full time cook in the beginning because he wasn't around very much.  He usually worked the middle spot on the line, supporting Grill and Saute. He seemed to operate on this special plane that I simply couldn't comprehend, one with many days off and seemingly few responsibilities. There were rumors that he got the job as a favor to someone or another. He seemed somewhat clumsy but I was too caught up in learning my own station to pay him much attention. That is until a couple of months later when he started working garde manger.

At this particular restaurant, garde manger produced the cold apps and cold garnishes, and plated all of the desserts. It was a two person station in a small area and the partner cooks needed to work together well. N. was a slightly heavy set Nordic type, blond, blue eyed and well over six feet tall. He tended to move slowly and own the space where he was standing. On the nights we worked together I would have to do laps around our station to get to mise en place because I could run around the table faster than he would move to get out of my way. There were moments when we found common ground and could share a smile or a brief conversation. Most of the time though we made quite a pair, the small Asian woman and the large Nordic male snapping and snarling at each other all evening long. I thought he was sloppy and lazy and slow, he probably thought I was a bossy, know it all bitch. We were stuck in this spinning canoe unable to  to synchronize our paddles.

My perception was that he had more experience than I did, because he normally worked on the line. I couldn't understand why he moved so slowly and seemed so disorganized.  Even our plates reflected our differences. My plates tended to be much tighter and daintier than his. We quickly realized that we would have to divide up tables rather than plates because otherwise the discrepancies would be glaring. Yet somehow Chef never pointed out the differences. He would comment on our plates individually. He would occasionally tell us to shut the hell up and stop fighting, although he never  said a word (that I know of) to either of us about the fact that our plating styles were so different. This only fueled my fire because how could we figure out who was doing it correctly if Chef never  commented either way? Whenever I worked with any of the other guys our plates tended to match up much more closely. Eventually N. was moved off garde manger and soon after that he left the kitchen entirely.

Recently I was reminded of this old partnership. I've been witnessing something similar, although not exactly the same.  It brings back all of those unpleasant memories. We all want to get along with the people we work with and it's just not always possible. There are many skaters in the world. They build themselves up by telling everyone how much work they do while close inspection shows the water flowing in through the holes in their canoes. We've all worked with these kinds of people, whether it be in kitchens or out. We've all silently cursed as we cleaned up their messes or bailed out their canoes, while they earnestly explained all of their hard work to whoever happens to be in charge. Often their propaganda is believed, at least in the beginning. All you want to do is shine a spotlight to expose the rickety structure behind their extravagant showpieces.  There's no way to do so gracefully. You just have to wait for things to crumble on their own. Or not. I feel that I've been singularly unhelpful lately, trying to counsel someone on how to deal with this kind of situation. I just didn't have any good answers. So I'm appealing to all of you, any advice out there for dealing with Grand Masters of the flash in the pan? Has anyone ever resolved a situation with someone like this successfully? Any and all responses will be greatly appreciated.

Week One in Montana

I can hardly believe that as I write this we've been here for exactly one week. It seems like we been here for eons, as so much has happened in such a short time. Lately we've been talking a lot about food and it's effects as we helped set up the employee kitchen with Ben and Lorraine. The idea is to feed nourishing, tasty food to the staff while keeping in mind seasonality and frugality. What this means is that many of the people we are feeding work outside, tending to people, animals and the earth itself. In many cases this involves hard physical labor and so we want to nourish them and set them up for the afternoon's work. There are no siesta's here on the ranch. So, producing tasty belly bombs that will have people feeling leaden and sleepy half an hour after lunch is not in the plan. As the temperature increases we know that appetites will plummet, although calories and nutrients will be even more important to keep people going through their day. So we're talking about cold salads (both vegetable and grain based), lots of fruits and vegetables, leaner proteins and many variations on Gatorade style drinks and iced tea. Part of the trick is layering the menus so that people don't feel as though their always eating leftovers and still avoiding waste. We are in a remote location so there are minimums to be met and deliveries are only once a week. We want the meals to be fresh and diverse so that people are excited about coming in to eat. It will need a bit of ingenuity and flexibility, two talents that will serve the kids well anywhere else they may go in the future.

In spite of the fact that we will all be working hard, the cabin style accommodations and the rec hall dining make it feel like summer camp for adults. The lower kitchen is lucky in that they will be serving the same core group of people all season. This will allow them to get to know their audience and really cook to their tastes. In a place that can be far from home, mealtimes are often so much more than food. Over the past week as people have arrived and the group has grown, dining periods have grown louder and smiles have bloomed more often. People are slowly starting to relax and build relationships. Meals are their time to re-charge their batteries in the midst of a busy day. It's important to remember that while you're cooking. The staff may never know how much care and thought has gone into the preparation of their meals, and that's perfectly okay. They just have to enjoy their food. In this situation the dining hall is the home base, the chefs are  nurturers and a good time should be had by all. We're very lucky in that we have a great team so far. I'm feeling very confident that Ben and Lorraine will be able to shoulder their responsibilities well.  I think it will be a real growth period for both of them and that their cooking skills and confidence will blossom in these green Montana hills.

Our kitchen? We actually haven't spent much time up there these last few days. We've been taking the opportunity to help streamline things down below and we'll move our focus to the lodge as the time for guests grows near. We're not really serving anyone until next week and even then the numbers are low in the beginning. For now the action is in the employee kitchen because that's where the people are. Because it's just fun to cook regardless of what we're cooking or who the audience is. When it comes down to it, we just like to play in the kitchen.

Rain

It's still raining. To some extent this has been a good thing. We've roasted chickens, savored good cheese with crusty bread and wine, and even made some old fashioned "gravy" slow cooked with country style pork ribs and poured over rigatoni. There has been fabulous chewy, butter drenched slices of toast and little chocolates from Jacques Torres (the milk chocolate dipped pretzels are so decadent and buttery), many cups of tea and a roaring fire in the fire place. We've caught up on our reading and cleaned the house from top to bottom. Patty has splashed through puddles and the cats curl up happily, purring in time to the drumbeat of the water hitting the roof. It's been a rather enjoyable couple of days. And now, now I'm ready for a little sunshine. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for tomorrow.

Feeling Good About Food

All of us, especially chefs, have such complicated relationships with food. I shared a meal recently with someone I love, a close friend. She purchased the meal, picked things that she thought I would like, things she liked and things for both of us.  There was generous bounty of food. She anticipated the meal and went to some trouble to make sure that it would be pleasurable for both of us. We ate and talked and laughed.

It was good meal and as always I finished before her. Those of you in the business probably understand that eating slowly is not an easy thing to do. Eating quickly becomes an unconscious habit that is very hard to break. Anyway, I was content to relax and chat while she finished her meal. When she realized that I was no longer eating, she looked over at me and said "Is that all you're going to eat?" Now I had eaten well by anyone's standards, a couple of fried soft shell crabs, a good sized potato croquette, a generous helping of sauteed spinach, a small taste of shrimp salad, a few olives and a rather large roll.  I don't think she intended to make me feel bad. Under her words was threaded the clear implication that I had not eaten enough. I had not appreciated enough. The guilt broke over me like wave. The people-pleaser in my head forced me to eat more until I felt sick and stuffed and suddenly angry at the manipulation. I had been full and now I was slightly nauseous. I  eat more often than she does and less at each sitting.  There's nothing wrong with that.  The fact that she had engineered dinner did not mean that I had to force myself to eat as much as she did.

So afterwards, as nicely as I could which was probably not nicely enough, I asked that she not do that anymore. That she let me enjoy my meal without implying that I need to eat more. It happens periodically, the comments about my consumption or lack thereof. I wanted it to stop so that I could enjoy meals with her comfortably and without guilt. She apparently did not even realize what she had said and became upset at the idea that I felt pressured to eat. Her response was to eat more herself. It filled me with incredible sadness. Once again I felt bad because she didn't need to eat those cookies. I doubt she even tasted them. She ate them out of some sort of grief that I could not fathom or ease. The only evidence of it was there in the crumbs on the table.

Here in America eating can be such a complicated thing. It's not just about the enjoyment of a meal. Somehow dining became part of the definition of who we are and our stature in society. The restaurants we go to and our ability to get reservations differentiate us from the crowd. We are judged by our appearances in different situations each day and our weight is a huge part of that. Our attitudes toward food are hardly ever lax, we're either eaters or diners. We're home cooks and gourmands. We're health food addicts and junk food lovers. We're carnivores and vegetarians. We define ourselves by the way we eat.   

I suppose my wish for today is that people could relax a bit and enjoy their food. Because I eat quickly I always stop before I'm done so that my brain can catch up with my stomach and figure out that I'm full. When I don't remember to do that I pay the price in discomfort.  I remember the days when I had more time and ate more slowly. Whenever possible I still savor the pleasure of a relaxed meal with equal parts food, drink and conversation.  It can be such a wonderful indulgence regardless of what kind of food is being served. And yet, there's always someone with their plate half-hidden by a napkin, quietly eating their food in relative silence and unhappiness. They may be the life of the party at various moments and they may claim to foodies or gourmands. Yet somehow when food is in front of them there is a shadow that won't go away.

One of the things we've changed over the years is the way that we cook. Back in the day and even now, we often hear the phrase "fat is flavor". That's baloney. Flavor is flavor and fat is fat. In some cases I've actually found that fat can mask flavors and keep them from being clear and true. I think that we can create great meals that have people pushing back from the table feeling satisfied and comfortable instead of bloated and overwhelmed. It's an evolving process and one that I regard very seriously. It's taken years to get Alex to work with me on this, he just looked at food differently. We're working together now. I want people who come to my table to feel good about eating. I want them to have an amazing meal that makes them happy. I can't solve other people's problems with food. I can't edit the baggage they bring to the table. What I can try to do is make things a little bit easier and a lot more delicious, for all of us.

A Few Basic Guidelines

I'd like to address a couple of issues that arose from a recent post. Actually I would like to clarify our approach to eating out, learning from other chefs and what we actually write about here. In the past we've written about our experiences in restaurants. Although I tried to make note of the fact that these were observations from one-time visits, the reactions to many of the things that we, mostly I, wrote were inflammatory. Several of them didn't make it onto the blog, as they came in the form of calls or emails. Oddly even on posts that were clearly written by me, Alex got the most grief about what was said. For some reason people think that Alex and I have the same opinions about everything. Now clearly we agree on many issues, though anyone who is married or in a serious relationship will tell you that no one agrees on everything. Frankly we hardly ever agree on a basic cooking method for a particular piece of meat of fish, much less on a reaction an entire experience at a restaurant. Anyway, after the responses we got last year I reconsidered my approach to writing about restaurant experiences. Only a fool completely ignores their critics.

Actually I didn't realize how many people actually read this site until I saw how upset people were by my posts. I'm not a stat-counter type of person. I can write more freely if I imagine that I'm writing just for myself. I try not to think too much about who else might be reading. That is not always a good thing. I'm very much a "live in the moment" kind of person. I do something and then I forget it. It's one of the things that drives Alex crazy about my cooking. I'll get fixated on an idea, figure it out, and then put it completely out of my head. If Alex asks me to recreate something months later I often won't remember what he's talking about. If I don't write it down at the moment I figure it out, it's gone. If I don't write about a place as soon as I've experienced it, the salient details slowly fade. Once I do write something down I forget it even more quickly because I have written it down and there's no need to remember it. Although I'm exaggerating a little bit, for the most part this really is the way my brain works.

Alex has a much more detailed memory than I do. He can remember exact dishes from meals we've eaten ten or more years ago. It's actually pretty amazing. He doesn't like to write about his experiences outside the kitchen because he almost always gets in trouble when he does.  Somehow even when he thinks he's being completely complimentary, he's always a little too honest and ends up getting chewed out. His inner editor is a bit lax. So for the most part, he tries not to say too much about about other people's food in public forums. I understand where he's coming from. I just think that we learn so much from experiencing other people's food and restaurants that I can't not write about it.

Years ago, I read Jay Jacobs book A Glutton For Punishment, Confessions of a Mercenary Eater. In the book he talks about his time as a restaurant critic for Gourmet and the fact that he was only allowed to write positive reviews. He considered this a scandalous practice and so did I. Especially since he did visit the restaurants multiple times.  If a restaurant is bad on several different visits over a period of weeks then it is probably a bad restaurant. On the other hand, if you only visit a place once and have a negative experience, there is a good chance that you simply caught them on a bad day. We all know how one person's bad day, especially if it's a key person in the organization, can snowball into a bad day for the entire establishment. Some days are simply crazy and things go wrong from the moment you wake up and all you can do is hang on to your sense of humor and make it through. No one would ever want to be assessed on day like that. It's so much harder to create an outstanding experience than it is to create a unfavorable one.  So I decided to stop talking specifically about the negative ones. I'm not saying that bad things don't happen and that we won't mention them.  We probably won't say where a adverse experience happened because it probably won't be relevant to the conversation. We're not restaurant critics, we're consumers who are there to learn and to experience. The conversation will be about what I or what we learned from the experience, not about who did what, when and how. Good experiences, like the ones we had recently at Lupa, Momofuku and Ssam Bar will be mentioned because they are worth mentioning. Sometimes we have mixed experiences, like the one last Saturday. We have meals that encompass the not so great and the extraordinary all in one sitting. In those cases again, we probably won't mention any names because we want to see where the Chef and the establishment will go. Because we believe that a flash of genius will probably develop into something more, given the time and space to grow. But we'll mention elements or experiences because they inspire us and lead us further down the path to culinary evolution.

Those are the guidelines. We all know there will be exceptions to the general rules.  I would also like to note, because it's come up, that just because we haven't written about a place doesn't mean we didn't enjoy it. Sometimes we need time to  mull things over, sometimes things come up and sometimes we just don't write about an experience. Ssam Bar being a case in point, we had an exceptional meal there last week and never mentioned it until now.  With all of the things we do, in and out of the kitchen, there isn't always time to  write about everything.

Lastly I'd like to make a point about learning. As children we all learn through imitation. We all study our trade and read cookbooks and share techniques. It's nothing to be ashamed of or to look down on. We've all head the the adage that if you give five chefs the same recipe you'll end up with five different results. I believe that's true. For every famous or unknown chef with signature dishes, except perhaps Adria and even his inspirations had to have come from somewhere, anyone willing to do a bit of detective work can trace those dishes back to another chef. It's not about where the dish comes from, it's about the execution in it's latest incarnation. In that controversial post I used the phrase "too reminiscent of others that came before" and I want to clarify that. There's nothing wrong with doing something like another dish that has come before.  It's just that if you are going to riff of a well-known creation it has to be better than the original and it has to speak to your own muse. If your dish simply reminds people of the original version without garnering an appreciation for your unique interpretation, then there's no point in calling it your own. We may not always appreciate or even respect that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Upon reflection though, it is the truth. 

Now and Then, Today and Tomorrow

Recently we visited a relatively new restaurant for the sole purpose of checking out the desserts. The pastry chef is young and has received a lot of press and we were curious. Our dessert excursion was paired with dinner at another restaurant that has been in the press recently. The evening was thought provoking in the extreme. The food at dinner was good, tasty but not what we were expecting from the hype.  Dessert was intriguing and contained a few great elements, but again was not at the level we were anticipating. I think one of the reasons for that may be youth.

Food, especially in major metropolitan areas, has become vastly more competitive in the last ten years. The press is constantly looking for th next big things. Trends come and go in a flash and Chefs and Pastry Chefs are ever younger and more eclectic and experimental in their approach to food. There's nothing wrong with that. It's how food evolves over time. What has changed is how quickly these young chefs move up the ladder and into the spotlight. Although their food may be fresh and exciting in many ways, it is often unfinished. The maturity that comes with years in the kitchen has not evolved yet. So while the food may be very good, it is still just a whisper of what it may become given a bit of TLC and time to germinate.

Admittedly as a young cook I would have regarded the previous statement as blasphemy. When we are just starting out we all want to be in the spotlight and in charge as quickly as possible. Alex and I were no exceptions to that particular rule. My views have altered over the years, I know that the food coming out of our kitchen today is worlds away from what we offered when we were first starting out. I know that it's more important for me to love my food first, than it is for anyone else to love it more. I know that amazing food can be created within boundaries that will make it easy to recreate and reproduce. I know that creativity is not a substitute for flavor. I know that you have to balance the unusual with the comfortable so that people will be more receptive to your offerings. I know that everybody gives lip service to flavor, in reality a lot of the food in restaurants just doesn't taste good. I know that if I spend 15 hours a day, seven days a week in the kitchen for an indefinite period of time that the food suffers, no matter what I may tell myself to get through. I know that not everyone will enjoy every dish that I create and that's permissible as long as I do love each one. I know that sometimes you have to compromise and that as long as you hold on to the spirit of what you do, compromise can sometimes transform things for the better. I know that any cook worth their salt knows when they send something sub-standard through the kitchen doors although they may not admit it. I know that any great cook who works for me will eventually need a place of their own. I know that my tastes will change and something that I find transcendent today may never move me again. The same is true for all of  my diners. 

Dinner and dessert last Saturday reminded me of all of these things. Both were presented by two talented young chefs with room to grow. Dessert perhaps more so, because when I looked at the carefully constructed plates I was struck by the amount of work that went into them. There were hours of research and prep needed to create the  fantasies that were set before me. I wanted to savor every bite and understand what was behind it. It was simply too much, too many elements, a myriad of interconnected ideas, too reminiscent of others that came before. I wished I could fast forward five years or even just two. I wanted to see what the creations would become.  And in both cases the spark was there. There was ability and creativity, and the knowledge that one day this Chef could be amazing. I don't think young cooks need to spend more time working for other chefs, per se.  I just think they need more time in their own kitchens to sharpen and to clarify their voices. To learn to edit their own ideas. That's when we'll find out who they really are and what they are truly capable of.

"And" & "But"

Call it luck or call it serendipity. I'm feeling very special today. It's not because of any one thing, in fact it's because of many small things that seem to be falling into place. Alex and I are feeling quite charmed and I mean to savor the emotion for as long as it lasts.  We saved a bit of money and that allows us that magical element of flexibility. In this case that means that we have time to explore our options and figure out which leaps of faith will suit us the best. We're not out on the street or wondering how to pay for food or for rent. We're doing a bit of free lance work, enough to know that we truly enjoy it and feel blessed to have opportunities coming our way. We're also considering some job options because while we're not strapped for cash it is dwindling.  We're also not convinced that we have enough money yet to open our own place. A few short term opportunities have presented themselves and we are considering them carefully. Because we can and because they can teach us a lot and remind us what it's like to be in a busy kitchen with staff and diners and all of the things we've missed most this last few years. No decisions or commitments have been made and there is lots of temptation to see what can be done in the short term. We know that not everyone has the options that we have and so we are thankful each day that we can do what we love and share it with like-minded individuals across the globe.

During the cruise we went to a series of lectures by Solutions in Mind. Although we missed the last talk in the series due to our own commitments, we enjoyed Steven's discussions about how the way that you phrase your ideas can actually influence their outcome. One of his suggestions was to stop using the word "but", one of my personal shortcomings, and substitute the word "and" and see what happens. "But" is definitely a negative and his point was that it cancels out whatever came before it in your train of thought while the word "and" links the two ideas together. I rather liked that image of linking ideas.  It is after all, the basic precept on which most partnerships are based. 

In cooking, I've often found that too much is simply too much. The idea of using the word "and " while creating recipes can seem overwhelming or just plain silly to someone who appreciates simplicity in dining. Although when you think about it, even the most basic recipes probably have more ingredients than you realize. For example, cacio e pepe, pasta with butter and cheese, involves the pasta itself, butter, water, salt, pepper, and freshly grated cheese. That's six ingredients for a seemingly uncomplicated dish. Often people are overwhelmed when viewing the ingredient list in recipes and to avoid the appearance of  difficulty, many writers leave basic ingredients like salt, pepper and water off of the list. They are still integral components of the finished composition but are deemed so obvious and basic that they need no mention at all.

We have always focused on the appearance of simplicity in our dishes. Although readers know of the layers of technique that may go into building a dish, to look at a photograph or a plate in a restaurant our dishes are meant to seem simple and approachable. The beauty of this site is that people who are interested in the background work can find details but those who are not can skip to the ideas that interest them the most. Everything we create has to taste good and then we build upwards from there.  In our basic thought progression the idea of "and" is actually how we develop each dish. Can we add this flavor and this richness and this texture and this acid? We add as many elements as we think we need to in order to balance a dish and then we whittle them down to their hearts. Admittedly we can be ruthless editors when it comes to the finished process.  The creative spiral always begins with the word "and".  And each addition adds something essential to each progression throughout our day, whether it lingers in the finished product or simply leads to the progression of something else that remains.

*In editing this post I removed three separate "buts" and this with a conscious effort to leave them out...

Inspired by Pumpernickel

There's something very satisfying about coming home at the end of a trip. If you've had a great time and you're happy to be headed back home at the end of it, then you know that it was the right length and the right place.  If you've had a really great trip, as we did, you come inspired to create new things and to dive right back into the action.

As you can see from the previous posts, we jumped back into the kitchen as soon as we could. Arrived home late on Friday and went to Fairway on Saturday afternoon.  We promptly proceeded to spend an embarrassing amount of money there. We hit the store around 4pm, a cardinal sin on the weekend, and it was a zoo. Definitely worth the effort though, as we amassed a wide array of products including the amazing pumpernickel bread that was the base of those gnocchi and ice cream recipes that we posted over the last few days.

Pumpernickel bagels were a staple from my childhood. I never ate them but someone else must have loved them because they were always in the sack of bagels on Sunday morning. I don't remember if the pumpernickel lover was Mom or Uncle Steve or both of them, but that was the most exposure I had to pumpernickel or black bread over the years. Countless Russian tales are woven around black bread and caviar or smoked salmon and I believe the late MFK Fisher wrote an essay on consuming oysters with pumpernickel. Occasionally at catered events we would see it under toppings as hors d'oeuvre. Still, no one I knew ever seemed to actually eat the stuff on purpose. So when Alex threw out the idea of cooking with pumpernickel I was intrigued. I didn't really remember seeing him ever eat pumpernickel either.

The loaves we got from Fairway were amazing. Unfortunately I don't remember who made them, perhaps it was the Fairway label because there is no sticker on the bag. They had a soft pillowy interior and a crisp crackling crust. The bread was pre-sliced making it easy to nick a piece or two or three as time went by. It had a great tangy flavor with nutty undertones and in your face flavors of aromatic rye. The taste sensation lingered on the palate, challenging us both to think of new combinations and textures to frame it's unique characteristics. The ice cream came first, then the gnocchi, and we're working out a cavatelli dough as well. The pumpernickel would make an intriguing stuffing for game meats with dried fruits and dark beer or a savory bread pudding with fat mushrooms and Madeira. Used as an element in black forest cake, the rye flavor in partnership with dark chocolate, stewed cherries and softly whipped cream would be a mysterious twist on the original.  Or you could layer the crumbs between sheets of filo and wrap it around a fat chunk of oozing soft cheese, like Brie de Meaux, and saute it quickly in clarified butter so that the crispy coating wraps around a cheese that is melting at the edges but still cool and creamy at the heart.   

This what we do, we toss around whatever ideas come into our heads when we discuss a new inspiration. Our lists spin out endlessly during the course of a conversation. We choose the ideas we like best and puzzle out the best way to bring them to fruition. Some days it's an ingredient, some days a dish or a flavor that catches our imagination and sends it soaring through countless kitchens we have known or dreamed of or stumbled upon. We don't shoot down anything, no matter how outlandish it seems at first, unless we both agree it won't work.  Then we edit down to actual dishes.  That's our system for working out new ideas. What do you do in your kitchens?

Dining Out

As many of our readers know, I grew up in Queens. I lived with my Mom and my Aunt. I went to high school in Manhattan with a 40-75 minute commute, depending on delays, by subway. Basically nobody in our house got home in the evenings until 5pm and often times much later.  We ate a lot of take-out and went out to restaurants on a regular basis. Given our schedules it was faster and easier than visiting the supermarket and then coming home and cooking dinner. The few weeknight meals that we actually cooked at home were usually broiled steak or chops with salad, or pasta with rock lobster sauce from a can. I used to love that Rock Lobster sauce. All of the ingredients were easily and quickly put together. These meals were usually made on nights when someone needed to go to the supermarket to pick up pet food. Making a special trip to the market for cooking ingredients only happened on the weekends when someone actually had time to spend in the kitchen.

At that time, our household was not the norm. It was the beginning of the age of divorced parents and many of my friends still had stay at home moms who cooked dinner every night.  In elementary school in Forest Hills, a packed lunch from home was more common than my deli bag or Blimpie sandwich. Most kids thought that their Moms were great cooks and meals out were mostly weekend events or special occasions. The prevailing wisdom seemed to be that if the food at home was good, then there was no reason to go out for your meals. By high school though, we all picked up bagels, coffee, and egg sandwiches at the deli for breakfast, had the lunch special at the Chinese restaurant or a dog from the cart or burgers at the diner for lunch, and then hung out at the local pizza place after school. Dining out had already become a way of socializing, ingrained in our young psyches. 

Fast forward to recent times and eating out has become commonplace nationwide. The city life of constantly visiting restaurants, picking up take-out on the way home or ordering in delivery food has become the norm. Old school dinner parties have faded with the younger generations. Everyone tends to meet in bars and restaurants to interact. Entire industries have developed around fast food and there are countless places emulating old school "comfort food". Comfort food is being defined as the food we used to get at home, the food that no one had time cook anymore. We used to go to restaurant to celebrate a special occasion or to get the kind of food that we couldn't make at home. Now people go to restaurants simply to be fed.

The result of this increased pool of diners eating out is the proliferation of mediocre restaurants. Because so few people can or want to cook at home, restaurants are able to get by on menu descriptions and the idea of good food. Commercials and advertisements depict happy families and savory looking pastas at the Olive Garden , strong fishermen and delectable seafood at Red Lobster, and young hipsters and aging frat boys chowing down on gooey pizzas at Pizza Hut. Clearly the advertisers have never set foot into any of these chains or they would know that the food and the patrons look and feel vastly different in the real world. But the continued success of these kinds of establishments makes it clear that it's not necessarily about reality. These places are selling an ideal. Even those of us who pride ourselves on visiting the independent restaurants are often sacrificing taste for that "Cheers feeling" of being known at a neighborhood joint where the food is usually pretty good, there are signature dishes that you order most of the time, and the owner or host knows you by name.   It's often only at places where the service is cold or you're just passing through for special occasion that the food is greeted with a critical eye. At our favorite places, the occasional (or daily) culinary flops and missteps pass largely ignored because you're in your comfort zone. Almost anything is forgiven and good enough is still a better deal than employing the effort entailed in cooking for yourself at home.

On the bright side, the rapidly increasing number of surprisingly expensive and dreary restaurants has actually led to an increase in the number of people cooking at home. The social aspects of the blogosphere has also led to renewed interest in home cooking. Faced with the option of spending  $20-$40+/per person in a mid-level restaurant for dinner, many people would rather spend $8.00 on the occasional great sandwich or decent Chinese takeout and buy better ingredients to cook with at home. There are few restaurants that present better food than the average home cook. What they do offer is the camaraderie of others and table service. The lure of having someone else cook and clean up is a siren call to each of us at one time or another.

We professional cooks tend to be the first ones suckered in. On our days off we want to go out to eat. We want to experience other people's food, be exposed to new ideas, and we want to not wash any dishes.  We may think we want to cook our own food on a day off, but the caveat is that there must be someone to cook for (preferably someone who will appreciate our efforts). Otherwise we usually convince ourselves that it would be more beneficial for our education to go out to eat. We have to stay abreast of the trends and see what other cooks are doing. Besides, a line cook is usually exhausted by the time their day off rolls around. Their job is physical and stressful and they need to recharge. What better way to do that then to let someone else do the cooking?

Since our goal is usually to see and taste as much as possible, our bills tend to be on the more expensive side, even at seemingly casual restaurants. There have been a few restaurants where we felt the money was well spent. I never mind paying for quality. But as prices creep inexorably higher that feeling of contentment is much harder to experience. These days the price to satisfaction ratio is hardly ever in our favor.

What I find baffling about this is the amazing number of truly passionate cooks that I've encountered over the years. People love what they do, are fascinated by food and are inspired to create great things.   So why aren't there more great restaurants? We know there are plenty of diners out there who want great food. The popularity of websites like eGullet and Mouthfuls, the Food Network and the ever-increasing number of food blogs prove that the demand exists. Who will be able to step up and fill that demand?

My prediction is that the proliferation of small restaurants is the beginning of the new wave rising up to fill the demand. You will see them increasing in number and becoming better restaurants in general and more individual expressions of their creators overall. Smaller restaurants allow for more creativity because there are fewer investors, smaller staffs and less seats to fill. Rents are less expensive, utilities and overhead are also proportional to size and the combination of these factors allow the proprietors the flexibility to express unique styles of food and service and to take risks in a way that is not possible in a larger place. The younger generations coming of age right now are more entrepreneurial than in the past. They are looking for ways to work for themselves and tend to value quality of life over career aspirations. It's an interesting shift and one that I agree with whole-heartedly. I think that we should be able to create wonderful, exciting restaurants and still be able too ensure an enjoyable quality of life for ourselves and for our staff. The days when aspiring line cooks stoically worked 15 hours a day, six days a week, for a pittance are coming to an end. It's the dawn of a new era and we need to make some serious changes to bring our industry into modern times. We can start small and dream large.

Crossroads

The restaurant business is not for the faint of heart. Once you've taken your first job, whether it be in the front or back of the house, you quickly discover whether or not the business is for you. There are many different restaurants out there, each with it's own style of management and personality type but certain things are constants. The hours are long, the pay is not great in the back of the house, the atmosphere is somewhat like high school due to the long hours of enforced intimacy, there is constant drama and you must have nerves of steel. Except for the pay scale, these principles pretty much apply to all positions in all restaurants from the dishwasher to the General Manager. Very few endeavors require more work and stress than a restaurant opening. Unfortunately, once the doors are open, the stress levels out but it doesn't really decrease. Ever. The idea of a restaurant that runs itself is laughable and totally unrealistic. But those of us in the business must love a challenge. There's no other explanation for why we do the things that we do.

Our current challenge is to decide on our next course of action. We're torn between two options, putting together the money to buy a 40-60 seat restaurant somewhere outside the city with or without rooms, or put together the money to lease a small place in the city (most likely in Queens or Brooklyn) a la Gabrielle Hamilton, open on a shoestring and see what we can do basically on our own resources. They are both tempting options and we are still debating the pros and cons of these different directions.  Although frankly, we're starting to lean toward the lease option and retaining the majority of control with minimal debt. Either project will require investors and loans but the scale of the project will determine how quickly we can make our money back and pay everyone off. You make less money with fewer seats but it also requires less money to get the doors open.

The properties that we've looked at recently have shown us the great range of what's available withing a given price point. We've looked at places in the Berkshires and upstate NY in a price range of $600,000-$895,000. Everything requires a certain amount of work to bring it up to our standards. It's amazing how few places take the trouble to clean their kitchens (and other areas) before showing them to prospective buyers. They could hire an outside contractor to clean the place for a couple hundred dollars and it would probably increase the perceived value of the property by thousands of dollars.  The places we  saw would require  anything from $20,000 to $100,000 to get them up to our standards and get the doors open. This is on top of the asking price, which does not include any miscellaneous fees for lawyers, certificate transfers, inspections, etc. You would also have to factor in the time it takes to make the upgrades and process the sale. All in all, buying a property means the soonest we could have our doors open would be three to six months after we found the right property and that is a very generous estimate.

On the other hand, if we found a leased property in the city we have the advantage of being able to negotiate a build-out. Generally there is a grace period for renovations before the tenant starts paying rent.  If you can find a landlord willing to do the build-out and add the cost to the lease  then you get a bit of a cushion in which to get the doors open. Even if we need to pay for the renovations ourselves, since we would be dealing with a much smaller space and we have friends in the area who can help us out with some of the finishing work, theoretically it would still be less expensive than refurbishing a much larger space in the country. It's all just a theory at this point.

So, now we're going to use the next couple of weeks before the cruise to start pounding the pavement in the city and see what's available. This way we'll have a firm foundation of information on which to make a decision. I don't think we'll come to any firm conclusions before the cruise. Actually that time away from the situation may be what we need to help clarify how we want to proceed. We know that the type of food we do will be well-received in New York. It's just that neither of us had any great desire to relocate here permanently. I won't go into the laundry list of reasons of why that is here, suffice it to say that although we love New York, it's  not where we intended to make our next home. Circumstances have a way of surprising us and sometimes you just have to go with it.

Sometimes we ponder whether or not we want to open up a new restaurant at all. I'm sure it's just a lingering hangover from our experiences in Colorado. But there are days when we wonder if we're insane to keep doing this. I mean we're definitely insane, all professional cooks are a little bit nutty, but insane enough to keep banging our heads against a wall? Then our love of cooking and food resurfaces and we carry on. After all what we would do without a kitchen from which to entertain people?

On the bright side, we've almost finished revamping and unpacking the kitchen here in Queens. We've got dishes and ingredients and equipment. Now all we need are people to cook for. We'll be available to cater dinners in the New York area beginning February 21. Anyone interested can email us for rates and information through this site. It won't be inexpensive but it will be worth the experience. We may even have a couple of dinner parties of our own here at the house. We are also going to put together  couple of dinners with Shola in Philly for when we get back from the cruise. That will be fun. We can't wait to get into his kitchen and see where the magic happens.

Tomorrow we start combing  Craigslist in earnest and looking at rentals. If anyone knows of anything they think we might find interesting, please drop us a line.  We'll be in the kitchen  tomorrow and Thursday working with cheese so we'll get some new dishes up in the next day or two. Thanks for your patience in waiting for those. I can't tell you how good it feels to finally have a kitchen again!

Thoughts on Thai

I've been thinking a lot about Thai flavors today. This is partially because we had dinner at a Thai restaurant last night. It was a lot of fun. We chose a casual restaurant because the priority was the company, not the food. The meal was better than expected with a generous smattering of heat and spice, contrasting textures, fresh herbs and many layered flavors. Oddly when we arrived home last night Iron Chef America was on featuring Ian Chalmerkittichai.  It was quite interesting to see his Thai-inspired dishes and the juxtaposition of flavors. Then this afternoon I was cooking some broccoli rabe and searching the pantry for some heat, which would normally found in the form of crushed red pepper.  Unfortunately this was sadly absent from our kitchen as we still need to restock the pantry. The solution was a Thai garlic and chili sauce that we had received for Christmas. It's flavors were sweet, spicy, savory and piquant.  I seared my sliced onions, added the sauce to the hot pan to bring out it's flavors, then added the broccoli rabe and steamed it to a pleasant tender bite. The flavor pairing was surprisingly harmonious with the aromatic sugary, peppery, and garlicky characteristics of the Thai sauce creating a perfect counterpoint to the slightly bitter vegetable.

Thai food is not a cuisine that either of has explored in depth. I love the layered flavors, the fresh herbs, the spiciness and the crunchiness that you find in that cuisine. Growing up there was a plethora of Japanese and Chinese restaurants that we frequented but Thai and Vietnamese restaurants were scarce. The first Vietnamese restaurant I ever visited was actually in Boulder, Colorado. My roommate at the time was from Texas and she loved Vietnamese food. So when she found a restaurant nearby, she dragged me there immediately to try the food. It quickly became a favorite for an off-campus splurge. We were addicted to the Vietnamese spring rolls. These were served piping hot and crispy with cold rice noodles, lettuce leaves and a sweet dipping sauce. We wrapped the warm spring rolls in the cold lettuce leaves with the toothsome rice noodles and happily dipped and crunched our way through countless meals.

The first Thai food I ever ate was in high school a a small restaurant on Queens Boulevard. It was memorable mostly for the intense spiciness of the dishes and the plethora of mint and cilantro, neither of which I had developed a taste for at that tender age. We tried it once or twice more, I liked the glss noodles with minced pork and then it faded quietly from our consciousness. We visited one or two other neighborhood restaurants that popped up over the years but I couldn't help feeling as though there was something missing. The food was good but there didn't seem to be much to differentiate it from Chinese food than an inherent sweetness and the presence of lemon grass.  I knew there had to be more to Thai food than what we were tasting but I had no idea where to find it.

Kittichai had actually been recommended to us last year but we went to Sripraphai instead. We wanted to try some great authentic Thai food (and we did, I can't vouch for it's authenticity but it was delicious) but neither of us was ready to commit to a high end Thai restaurant. There were simply too many other places on our list to visit. This is interesting to me because for the most part, the only truly high end Asian restaurants that we go to are Japanese. When I was younger I visited Shun Lee near Lincoln Center a few times, more for the experience than the food. The restaurant was beautiful and formal and the food was very good. The dish I remember most was a rack of lamb because it was not something I ever expected to eat in a Chinese restaurant. But I was never convinced that food was better than what you could find in some of the more relaxed places in Chinatown.  This felt especially true because in spite of the lavish surroundings, Shun Lee had many of my favorites from the local Chinese places that delivered to our home.

I'm thinking that this year, in spite of a much tightened budget, we may have to take the plunge and visit Kittichai to see what the fuss is about. Sripraphai was fabulous but I'd like to move up to the next level. Thai food is definitely something that we need to explore further. The beauty of cooking is that there is always something new to pique our curiosity and stretch the brain a bit.  I didn't expect dinner last night to send me down a new path of culinary exploration but here we are. Which just goes to show you that it doesn't have to best restaurant or the most expensive one to offer new inspirations.  It just has to offer you a new perspective to explore.

 

New Year's Eve

There's nothing quite like the smell of bacon cooking to get the creative juices flowing. I just got off the phone with Jeff, the host for this evenings festivities. He's excited and so are we. It's an evening of heavy hors d'oeuvre, wine and a signature cocktail...yet to be decided. We're going to do this in the spirit of dim sum, so the servers will be passing small bites, small bowls and small dishes of food, so that we can show off a greater variety of our food and so that bellies will be happily content. As always we're still working out the menu today but there's no doubt that it will be edible.

Bright and early tomorrow morning, actually it will still be dark but we'll be bright eyed, we'll hit the road. Since we're not going for a limited visit we plan to take our time driving. No marathon thirty-six hour haul this year. We're going to enjoy the trip as much as possible with two dogs and a cat in the back seat.

The last week has been a good one for us. We've been laughing more, which is always a good thing. We're remembering all of the things that we enjoyed in our time out here. Those are things we'll take with us when we leave tomorrow. We're making plans for the new year and we're excited about finding a physical home for Ideas in Food and a venue to do the things we love best.  The goals are to enjoy each day just a bit more than the one before, to learn something new each day (an oldie but still apropos), and to appreciate each other and respect the partnership that got us here. It's a short list but an effective one.

We have to get back to work, creating a New Year's Eve to remember. We're planning on a great party and a joyous new year.  We wish the very same for all of you, whether you're working like us or simply celebrating the holiday. Cheers everyone!

Morbier

Morbier cheese with persimmon puree, ground olives and lemon-honey chanterelle mushrooms.

Merry Christmas

Almost four years ago, when we arrived in Pagosa, there was a herd of wild elk camped out in our backyard. The other night they returned for a farewell performance. Alex was on the road and when I woke up in the morning I thought that I could hear a baby crying. When I peeked out the window, there was the herd, spread out all around the house. They had bedded down in the field and were digging through the snow for the alfalfa that lay beneath it's powdery layers. They slept within a few feet of the house and oddly, there wasn't a bull in sight. Just many, many cows and their sweet and vocal children enjoying a brief vacation in our yard. They were already on the move when I slipped outside to photograph them. I kept our very excited dogs within until they were gone. It was beautiful and awe-inspiring and I'm sorry that Alex missed it. His road this week has been long and challenging. We chose a Budget truck because when we moved out here U-Haul was somewhat lacking in customer service. I'll just say that Budget makes U-Haul look like nirvana and leave it at that. Thankfully he'll be in New York soon, surrounded by loved ones as we hope all of you are on this holiday weekend. Merry Christmas to all who celebrate the holiday, and Happy Sunday to everyone else. Our very best wishes to you all on this lovely December evening.

Ghosts

Some days there just isn't anything to write about. We've got just two hunters staying with us now and in keeping with the new regime,the food is simple and tasty and not particularly challenging. We've been told that from now on we're to cook and schedule the wait staff and that's it. Of course if we actually stuck to the letter of that law there would be issues because...well, for various reasons we can't discuss why here. You never know who may be reading this.  Dan and Ed and many others noted that the last few weeks at a job are often spent feeling like a ghost. That's a good analogy for what's happening to us. Changes have occured quickly over the last few days and still somehow we're still doing all of things we normally do, with even less credit and recognition than we normally get (and absolutely no authority). We're out of the loop and slightly appalled by what's happening around us, but still hoping for the best. I've probably said too much already so I'll stop here. We had a few small successes in the kitchen today but neither of us feels particularly inspired. Thankfully tomorrow is a new day and we're looking forward to making it a little bit better than today, even if we are just ghosts in the machine.

Running in Place

That's what it feels like we're doing these days, running in place, just as fast as we can. We made  conscious decision this weekend to slow down and take breath. We're in a difficult situation. We'd like nothing more than to be done here and move back East to get on with our lives. On the other hand, we've been asked to finish out the year and train our replacements.  Severance has not been officially settled and family members (on both sides) are leaning on us to walk out the door. Thought being that under the circumstances, if they're not willing to put a severance package in writing we're nuts to keep doing what we're doing. It's a tempting idea, but not who we are. It's hard to explain our situation to other people. It's not about letting ourselves get taken advantage of, it's about doing what we think is right. Idealistic perhaps but we've put four years of blood, sweat and tears into this place, regardless of how others feel about it. Any anger we may be feeling is directed at individuals, not at the property itself. Frankly we're trying to move past the anger because it's more baggage than we need. The people left on our staff have been so wonderful and so supportive this past few weeks. We couldn't possibly leave them in the lurch. This whole experience has been unpleasant enough. If we walk out now it would negate everything good that we've done here. It would turn us into people we don't want to be. Collateral damage should always be kept to a minimum. So, we'll carry on training and cooking and collecting a paycheck here until January. Business is business and anyone who lets themselves believe that friendship counts more than business in a business relationship is just fooling themselves. We always knew that to be true.  In the long run we were disappointed and angry, but not surprised by what happened. That realization could be the saddest part of this whole episode.

So we're looking at properties on-line and trying to figure out our next move. We're trying not to make bad decisions just because we're in hurry-up mode and it's not easy. We did find some properties that show some real possibilities but it's hard to know for sure when we can't visit them ourselves. Once we settle on a couple of solid prospects we need to finish the business plans and put the money together to make it happen. Finding investors is one of those things that no one really tells you how to do.  There are countless how-to business books out there but none of them seems to be particularly helpful in the fund raising arena. We know that we'll need to take on investors, but there are so many pitfalls involved that it can be a little mind-boggling. We get calls every day asking how the search is going and we say--it's going. It's wonderful that people care about our situation but sometimes the constant questions simply ratchets up the pressure. Since we both work better under pressure, I can't really complain about that. If there's anyone out there with some practical advice we'd love to hear from you. Sometimes a different point of view is all you need to put things in perspective.

Speaking of which, we'd like to take a moment to thank all of our contributors to the Culinary Conversations. Shola and Ed were especially gracious about our editorial comments and we loved reading everyone's different perspectives on life in the kitchen. We are going to put this feature on a brief hiatus until after the holidays but we look forward to coming back with new conversations in January.  Feel free to email us if you're interested in contributing.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, you can tell by Alex's post that it's been a challenging holiday morning. Alice's Restaurant can usually pull him out of his holiday funk. But it's after noon and things are looking up. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone reading this, whether you celebrate the holiday or not. We're thankful for all of the people who make our lives more meaningful and more entertaining, our family and friends, all of our beasties, modern technology, planes, trains, automobiles, BOOKS!, the Internet, good food, fine wine and all of you who are reading this post. Thanks for stopping by and we'll be back with more ideas tomorrow.

The Editing Process

For the last couple of weeks we've been trying to finish editing an essay that will be included in book about food and philosophy. Having never worked with professional editors before it was an enlightening experience.  Fritz and Dave were incredibly patient with us, especially under the circumstances. They kept sending the essay back because it was too colloquial and focused too much on descriptions of food. We were somewhat distracted by our personal circumstances and did not follow their instructions as well as we could have. I didn't listen well and that was my downfall.

The problem was that this is an academically minded tome. I am not necessarily an academically toned writer. So I re-wrote the essay a couple of times and each time there was definite improvement. There's something to be said for multiple drafts. They finally accepted the essay yesterday and I breathed a sigh of relief. Less than hour later I got an email. The publisher had strenuous objections to the style of writing and was not going to include it in the anthology. All of the other essays had been approved and they wanted to get the book to press. Fritz convinced the publisher to give me this weekend to give it one last shot.

It was a rude awakening to say the least. I've always considered myself a writer, it's something that I've done instinctively and usually received praise for. I was one of those kids who always turned in the first draft of all my papers and still got an A.  I had countless journals that I either wrote in compulsively or ignored for months at a time. I'm one of those closet writers, who always wanted to do it professionally but never actually tried to do so or risked failure.  So there I stood, my culinary life having recently been turned upside down and to add insult to injury, now I was being told that my writing was not up to par. I was not a happy camper. So I went back and re-read all of the initial critiques and re-wrote the essay.  It was the best thing that could have happened to me.

This time I followed the directions scrupulously. I sent a rough draft to Fritz to make sure I was on the right track. When he approved the direction I had taken, I continued writing. The essay was approved this morning and sent off with a haste that made me think that if I had taken the weekend we might not have made the cut. It's not perfect.  I was hoping to polish it a bit more, but it is a hundred times better than the first draft we wrote.

Part of the problem was that we really didn't know what we were writing about in the first place. Philosophy can be a tricky thing.  But I learned a lot about myself through this process and it helped us define our food in a way that we hadn't before.  Part of the problem was that I just didn't pay close enough attention to what I was being told.  That's the part that really ticked me off. I hate being stupid. Especially at a time when I need to have my game on. We made it in the book by the skin of our teeth. Even though they probably won't read this, I have to thank Fritz and Dave for believing that we could make it happen. Thank you!!! That's what made the difference. If they had given up on us we wouldn't be in the book. It's a timely reminder that it's not always about what you can do.  Sometimes it's just about who believes you can do it, or at least thinks that you deserve the chance to try.

Irony Again

Irony is giving your notice,
three months later being asked to stay on for another year,
struggling hard with the decision to stay and rearranging our lives accordingly,
then four months later being asked to leave,
because we were only staying on for another year anyway.

Breaking the Cycle

It's been a stressful week here in the mountains and it's not over yet. We've been victims of the ripple effect, where one person gets upset, then takes it out on the person next to them, and the effects ripple through the entire organization. Obviously this effect is much stronger when the first person is in a senior position. When you've got one senior person pissing off another one ( and I don't mean me and Alex pissing off each other, although that does happen) things can really get interesting. People are not necessarily walking on eggshells, but everyone's a bit tense and that makes it easy for misunderstandings to occur. Unfortunately, your first thought when someone lashes out at you is not that you are simply collateral damage. The usual reaction is "What the hell???" and then you get mad and graciously share that with the next person to come along. It's like the movie Pay it Forward only what we've been paying forward is bad karma. So, today we're all wearing our thickest skins, smiling until our cheeks ache, and attempting to break the cycle. Stress is not going to be the boss of us.

We're almost down to a skeleton crew. We lost another housekeeper today which means that by next week we'll down to one part timer and one administrative assistant who helps clean rooms in a pinch. That should make the holidays interesting. Truthfully we were planning to fire the housekeeper who quit today. Let's just say that her work ethic is so poor one would almost say that she doesn't have one. The only reason we kept her around was because her sister, who has been our full time housekeeper for the last two years, gave her notice. She's getting married and moving to Denver. So now we're down to less than one but I can't be sorry about that. Everything happens for a reason and since the holidays are slow around here it may still work out for the best. Besides, I'm not afraid of a little soap and water. If need be I can clean almost as well as I can cook.

At the moment we have no guests next week. I should be sorry about that but we can really use the break.  Practically everyone who's left on the staff has asked for time off so that they escape Pagosa for a while.  I'm probably going to let them although it will leave us in a pinch if we get last minute bookings. I understand how they're feeling and I know they'll do a much better job for us if they get the break they need. Thank goodness the W.'s are visiting again this week. They're a pleasure to cook for and pleasure to have staying with us. Things like that motivates us and help balance out all the rest. Everyone may not appreciate what we do, but the ones who do make it all worthwhile. Just remembering that, I feel better already.

Motivation

The two major obstacles that we face daily are apathy and complacency, both in ourselves and in others.  Both characteristics are defined by a lack of motivation, although the reasons behind the resulting paucity of energy and efficiency are very different. It's tough enough to battle your own demons but when you manage others you need to find that special can of spinach which works for each of your employees as well.

Complacent people think that they're safe, untouchable and indispensable. These people are usually in for a rude awakening. They tend to slack off and start delegating to everyone around them. They talk a lot. They quit following the rules because they believe themselves above the fray. Complacency is the pride before the fall. No one is irreplaceable and change can and invariably will happen when you least expect it. The flip side of those who think they're untouchable are the ones who actually are. I'm talking about the short timers. People who may have once been the stars on your stage but in the final moments before their curtain call simply stop performing. Their minds have moved on well before their physical bodies and there's no point in jump starting their batteries because the gas is already gone.

Then there is apathy, complacency's fraternal twin. Apathy to me is a total lack of motivation. It can happen for a variety of different reasons but the end result is the same, a shortage of energy and enthusiasm and a total inability to perform well or at all. It happens to each of us at one point or another. Those who can't re-ignite their pilot lights often end up in a serious funk. The trick is not to let apathy take root in your psyche and to dig out those small invasive weeds as soon as you realize they exist.

On the bright side, watching someone take back control of their life and start making positive changes can be awe-inspiring. I know a woman who did that recently. The fact that I couldn't gauge how many of her circumstances were real and how many were loosely woven fabrications did not detract from the image of a woman making hard decisions and getting stronger with each passing day. It reminded me that there are some things worth fighting for and self respect is definitely one of them. 

These days we're definitely fighting a bit of apathy. It's tough sometimes to deal with all of the leaky faucets and shattered bidet handles, dirty boots and broken manglers, endless special requests and passive-aggressive behavior, and then walk into the kitchen and create a beautiful meal.  Frustration, whether it is with guests or employees or owners, does not make for good seasoning. We're actually getting better at not taking things personally, although there are days when I can't help but wonder why we want our own place. Then I realize that if I actually make all of the decisions that I take responsibility for, I'll be in a much more comfortable position.  The toughest part of our days usually involves upholding standards or procedures that we don't agree with. This is the price we pay in exchange for a regular paycheck and that is true of any situation where you work for someone else. This realization is the key to igniting my motivation. Because in order to gain my freedom I have to make great things happen right now, in the kitchen and beyond the swinging door. Now I just have to figure out how to motivate everyone else..

Autumn Gut Check

Working through a season is the way I would imagine running a marathon would feel. Not that I've ever run one, it's not one of my best sports.  But I know that it takes stamina and endurance. The marathoner has to pace him or herself to get through the entire course. There are times when you feel exhausted and it becomes a huge effort to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Then you get a second or third or fourth wind and it gets easier and enjoyable to continue moving on. You can take a breath to enjoy the scenery or appreciate what a finely tuned machine you've become. Sometimes there are obstacles to leap over or or sidestep or collateral damage from the stumbling of others near by. The rest stations are never placed exactly where they are needed, but close enough so that you can still reach them on that last burning breath. There are difficult stretches and then there places that are long smooth and almost relaxing.

We're in one of those easier stretches this week. There are no guests here at the moment and we've had a few days off (or as close as we ever get to off). This slow time has been a mixed blessing because it allowed us to relax a bit. Relaxation can work against us because that's when we realize how tired we actually are. Usually one of gets sick or borderline sick as soon as we have some time off. Thank goodness our immune systems are strong enough to hold out until we can afford to take a little time to recoup. It's time to take a breath and evaluate where we're standing. It's time to break out of a few ruts and breathe some new life into our kitchen and our writing. To that end we're working on a series of guest blogs from people who we think have something interesting and important to say about food.  We believe that occasionally a fresh perspective will do all of us a bit of good.

We're stretching our wings a bit this fall, consciously looking backwards and sideways and upside down in addition to straight ahead. During the height of the season we focus on moving forward day by day.  Now we can afford to take a breath and see what's all around us.  Seasonality tends to return us to past cycles. Here in Colorado this means revisiting previous flavor combinations and ingredients inspired by the damp, chilly winds, the return of the migrating wildlife, red and gold leaves drifting across the muddy pathways in the woods, the smell of woodsmoke and the sound of gunshots punctuating the late afternoons and early mornings. This year we're going to try and share our kitchen with old favorites and new inspirations brought to life. A reader comment made me think about the way we treat food for hunters. Sometimes I do equate simple tastes with unsophisticated palates.  Other times I like to use the idea of simple tastes to reinvigorate a sophisticated or jaded palate. But I need to be more conscious of how I'm doing both of those things and more importantly why.  It's definitely something to ponder as we create new dishes to pair with the changing seasons and new arrivals.

As for the bagels and cream cheese, yesterday they were lost in the delivery zone. It was a terrible thing, mostly because Alex had been anticipating their arrival all day long. Federal Express guarantees the sender 3pm delivery. What that translates to in Pagosa is usually delivery by 6pm. At 7pm there was nothing but rain and darkness on our doorstep.  Russ and Daughters was closed and we had no tracking number to follow up on. The moment where he finally gave up hope was a gloomy one.  But we rallied, inspecting the refrigerator and whipping up a riff on pasta puttanesca bastardized with sausage, jalapeno, and little pillows of melting mozzarella cheese. Life's too short for small disappointments to become large ones. The rain spattered down and we ate well and drank good red wine and thoroughly enjoyed our evening at home. The smoked salmon and bagels? They're just something else to look forward to tonight.

The Tale, the Taste and the Backstory

So, how much information is too much?  It's a serious question.  These days as we prepare food and serve the guests in our dining room, the question is how much do the guests actually want to know about the food?  Let me give you an example.  We had three separate parties come for that long tasting menu we did the other evening.  Actually we had two parties who had requested a tasting and one who happened to be staying with us that evening, with no idea about the food we do.  Now here is where it gets interesting.  One of our guests was truly into food, arriving early to spend time in the kitchen with us.  That particular diner wanted to know all of the details about what we were doing and how we make it happen.  The other  culinary guests were following a trail, searching for the out of the way places that might have great food in the South Western states, a path which led them to our doorstep.  The third visitor was there to check out the property and did not know anything at all about the food.  We showed him the menu and offerd him as few or as many of the courses as he wished. Our solo diner encouraged him to try the entire menu, but he demurred. After looking things over, his response was that he would have a salad, an appetizer, an entree and a dessert.  Within those boundaries, he would put himself in our hands.  Then he went off to relax in the guest house, put his feet up and catch up on life.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen we continued to prepare for the evenings menu.  The guest who was there to learn about our food watched as we began trimming sheets of cuttlefish and portioning fish for dinner.  As he watched Alex trimming the large sheets of cuttlefish that we would be frying later in the evening,  he asked the diner what he thought about the size of the sheets we were preparing for dinner. Due to their small size, normally there is no way to create a large square of cuttlefish like the ones we were prepping for service that evening.  It actually had not crossed his mind that the size was unusual.  He wasn't thinking about the fact that they were the largest sheets of cuttlefish that he had ever seen. He was wondering how they would taste when we finished them. He was pondering how we would present them that evening and how they would taste when they were crispy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside.  It's not always necessay for people to be aware of all of the subleties that go into the preparation of a dish. It's simply necessary for them to enjoy the finished product, in this case a luscious and delicate sheet of beer battered cuttlefish served with liquid chorizo, Thai basil and a thin yuzu disc.

Again, we return to the diner who was not expecting the food to be anything other than simple Southwestern fare.  For his menu we began the evening with our frozen vinegar martini and then shared the wild char roe and grilled potato ice cream.  After these first two dishes, the wary diner just nodded and said he might be able to eat a bit more before the entree.  He was letting us pitch. He did not eat all of the courses, although he ate a few more than he had originally intended.  What he did do was relax and enjoy the meal. He did not have the back story on the ingredients or on the chefs.  All he had was the atmosphere in the dining room and what we set before him.  That was more than enough to complete the experience.

The other two parties went the distance and by evening's end they were talking and comparing notes of meals past, present and future.  They had eaten at a lot of the same reataurants at different times.  It was intersesting to hear the comparisions. The couple, as far as we know, was there for the food, the ambiance, and the meal.  We had been reccommended to them as worth the trip. So they had come to dine and we were glad they had done so.

We had three separate parties enjoying the same menu with three different levels of expectation and three different experiences.  None of them had actually tasted our food before.  They had varying degrees of exposure to what we do  and who we are.  In the end they all had an enjoyable evening. The next morning they joined us for breakfast. We served fresh fruit, scones and one of the house specialties, Eggs Alex. The thread that tied these two meals together? Flavor. We are a flavor driven kitchen whether we are preparing an intricate tasting menu or a country breakfast. Sometimes the pairings may seem odd or outlandish but for us it all comes down to how things taste. Food has to taste good or there's no point to what we do. That's why it doesn't matter if we cook for foodies or cowboys, because if they're willing to open themselves to what we do, we know we'll win them over in the end. It's all about flavor.

A Mistake is Just an Unrealized Success

It is essential to take advantage of opportunities.  Many of our breakthroughs in the kitchen have come from mistakes.  In making mistakes we are able to look at food, ingredients and life from an unexpected angle.  It is from these new angles that we see what was previously obscured.  Thus I reiterate the fact that a mistake is just an unrealized success.  Take advantage of failure, you will be surprised at the outcome.

My Empty Thoughts Sure Fill Me Up

Everyday we come to work and the last thing on our agenda is cooking.  Pretty funny huh?

The tank has run dry today.  I will roast another chicken for dinner and serve some broccoli and cheese soup to start.  Why?  Because that is what our guests want.  Well, it is the perceived needs of some of our guests which translates to what all people want. 

It could be that we have not gotten out of here for now over six weeks.  It could be that we have been told that our five our ribs served with black and white beans is to gourmet.  It could be those damn Versace plates and the ornate dining room.   It could be that we have been told that a hunter's menu would be great as we serve burgers at the bar in front of a football game.  It could be that the fit is just not right.  We get the job done with a smile on our face and an empty inside.

I realize I am griping.  I need to gripe now and again. 

You see, we are practicing.  Every day gets us closer and in some way shapes our outlook and approach to food and life.  I really enjoy roast chicken (the one mentioned above), brined in soy sauce and maple syrup.  It tastes great.  Mashed potatoes are equally appealing with their great aroma and an even better taste.  We used to make them with butter and creme fraiche, you know fancy.   Yesterday I revisited butter and buttermilk mashed potatoes.  They were better. 

The constant rehearsal is tiresome.  I become consumed in the mundane and the inherent pressures of trying to be everything to everyone.  Guess what, it's just not possible.  And yet it is asked of us everyday.  Just keep trying.  Yeah, that is the answer.  It is an answer, just one that does not sit so well with me right now.  In trying to be everything to everybody we are actually spinning wheels just to watch them turn.  You know why most country clubs are mediocre.  Because they are run by the guests where the club must be everything to everybody.  Places, restaurants, experiences that are truly unique and special are not for everybody.  They are something truly grand to a finite number of people.

OK, here is the real kicker.  It is just not that hard.  What?  Well in this case I am referring to food, but I could mean life or just crossing the street.  It takes time and attention to detail, but at the end of the day it is really just a bunch of simple things done in sequence to create, make or be part of something great.

Enjoying the Silence

This morning was blessedly quiet and peaceful. I love being the first to arrive in the morning.  I make my way through the kitchen flipping switches and brewing coffee, unlock the front doors and head up to the office to go over yesterday's checklists, to do lists, and any correspondence that arrived during the wee small hours of the morning. On a good day, none of the guests are up when I arrive or they're all out hunting, as they were today. This gives me a bit of space to start my day and organize my thoughts. When I finish up in the office I head down to the kitchen to make lattes for myself and Alex, unless there's a huge pile of stuff in the office, in which case he has usually arrived by the time I make it downstairs and the coffee is waiting for me.

Normally the phone will start ringing around 7am, which 9am in New York. East Coasters are oblivious to the time difference. If no one's there at 7am to field their calls they are slightly outraged, as though we should all be working the same hours regardless of time zones. Also our employees call early, especially when they're calling to say something has come up and they will be late or absent.  In these instances they tend to call as early as possible in the hopes of avoiding a real person at the other end of the phone line.

Frankly I'm not a phone person. The years when I spent hours talking on the phone are long past and at home I can sit right beside a ringing phone and completely ignore it. This drives Alex insane. He is incapable of ignoring the phone and almost as ineffective at extricating himself from long, involved conversations with guests. He's a chatty creature and seems unaware of the passage of time when he's involved in a verbal exchange. This is where my ever so slightly anti-social tendencies come in handy, because I can get things done while he's yapping, I mean conversing, with our guests. At work I'm not allowed to ignore the phone and it's amazing how often it rings when it's in my possession.  This morning though it was silent, no one was calling in sick or late, no one calling with frantic deadlines, reprimands, sales pitches, endless questions or anything at all.

By eight the silence was getting to Alex and he picked up the phone to make a call, only to discover that the lines were dead. We checked a few different rooms and came to the conclusion that none of the phones were working. Then we radioed the barn and thankfully discovered that their phone line was fine. Paul made a few calls for us and someone should be out to check on the phone system around noon. Which in Pagosa time means anytime after twelve and before six. The circuit board for the phone system is probably fried, it seems to happen about every 6-9 months. Fortunately our guests are still out in the field.  Phones are important to the hotel and I hope to get them restored soon.  For the moment though, I for one am enjoying the silence.

**Update:
Our phone guy was almost exactly on time. I love that. Unfortunately the power box for our phone system is toast.  We're still under warranty which is good, but because Pagosa does not get Saturday deliveries of any kind, the replacement will not be here until Monday. So we've bypassed the system and hooked up a few individual outside lines. There's no voice mail or transferring calls but at least people can get through to the office and the kitchen. It should make for an interesting weekend...

Irony Is...

Irony is that people who eat bacon and eggs for breakfast, burgers for lunch and steaks for dinner, complain that the food we make, which has maybe half the fat and calories of their normal diet, is too rich.

Irony is that hunters for whom we have made cheeseburgers and roast chicken with biscuits for dinner because they didn't want the "fancy food"  everyone else is eating now want a separate hunter's menu.

Irony is having the guests leave their muddy boots outside and then having employees track mud and dirt through the premises.

Irony is a housekeeper who was SO excited to get a full time job and two months later has yet to finish an entire scheduled week.

Irony is the fact that men are still horrified when women carry their bags upstairs...even when we're in better shape than they are.

Irony is guests who chase you home at the end of the evening because they feel bad about the hours you're working.

Irony is the incredibly large number of people who don't eat pork but do eat bacon.

Irony is the housekeeper who left early because the mangler didn't work when in fact she had not turned it on.

Irony is men who don't eat pork loin and then ask for ham sandwiches instead. What is it with people and pigs?

Irony is people who enjoy the food so much that they clean their plates and then complain that it's our fault that they're putting on weight.

Irony is that most spanish-english dictionaries give you Castillian pronunciations and definitions when most spanish spoken in this country is Mexican.

Irony is people who pay for three night stays but arrive expecting a fourth night at no extra cost because they've already paid for their plane tickets and cannot leave.

Irony is that I am still entertained by all of these happenings...a sense of humor is key in the service industry.

Choosing Organic...or Not.

Last week a gentleman in the dining room sent back the ketchup. Many may assume that he sent it back because it was loaded with high fructose corn syrup or genetically modified fruit. Those people would be wrong. He sent it back because it was organic. Organic Heinz ketchup to be sure, but still organic. He didn't want that organic ketchup on his food, no siree. It was an interesting moment. Because sometimes we forget that there are two sides to this story. For each of us that wants to make better choices and take small steps towards a more sustainable food chain and healthier planet, there's someone else who doesn't. They don't see anything wrong with the status quo. They can have a variety of reasons for their choices, but the fact remains. They don't want organic ketchup, grass fed beef, free range chickens. They don't want those things anywhere near their plates, they don't want to talk about it, they just want to eat and be left alone. That's their choice and we have to respect that. Agreeing to disagree is after all the backbone of the American way. We can't knock the very freedom that our country is founded on. My first impulse was to go out to the dining room and explain why we offered organic ketchup.  But, it was clear that he wasn't interested and that to do so would be perceived as aggressive and inflammatory.  So I let it go.  We all have to make our own choices. Once we give up the mutual respect that allows us to do so, we open the door to ugly places and impossible situations. So, although I may not always applaud your choices, I will always try to respect your right to choose.

Stuck on Supposed To

Time can catch up with you.  We have had a truly great week with a ton of new dishes, ideas, concepts and revelations.  Today I hit a wall.  We have not had a day off since mid August and that may have something to do with the appearance of the wall.  Anyway, I am spinning my tires in the mud, postponing writing we are supposed to do and recipes we are supposed to write.  I am quite tired of the supposed to.  Think about it, many of our most interesting (at least in my mind) ideas have come when we did what we were not supposed to do.  I am not promoting reckless and unsound actions.  Rather I am talking about doing it differently.  Time to do something different, let's see what happens.

Tuesday

It's Tuesday but it feels like a Monday. The days all run together when you don't actually ever get one off. We made some great things today, savory, beautiful, delicious food. But all I can think about is Nick's Pizza, in the nieghborhood where I grew up. It was a late addition, well after my high school years, which were happily spent at A&J's.  On this particular Tuesday evening I would kill for a large pizza, half red, half white with prosciutto and fresh garlic, washed down by a Brooklyn Lager and followed by an untraditional but incredibly luscious and toothsome cannoli. All of which would be cooked by someone other than me. Oh well, something to look forward to in January. If you happen to be in NYC, stop by Nick's and have a pizza for me.

Not So Constructive Criticism or Spam?

We received a somewhat unsettling e-mail this morning. It purported to be from a well-known chef in Vancouver, although the return address was a hotmail account. We are currently in the process of trying to verify whether or not the e-mail actually came from the chef in question or whether someone was just trying to take potshots from a position of anonymity. Here's what they had to say, spelling and grammar copied exactly:

My name is ******* ******, I am a chef from Vancouver, B.C., Canada. I was
looking around on the internet the other day and came across your website.
At first glance I thought your presentations were nice, but, then as I
continued to read and look at your "ideas" i realised that every plate has
something smoked or pickled.

I am disturbed by your combinations if flavours and use of ingredients that
seem to go nowhere. Are you purposely trying to confuse people and their
palates or is this just a big joke. I think my 4 year old son could probably
design a better menu with proper flavor and ingredient combinations.

Do you go into the fridge with a blindfold on and grab things off the shelf
and make something up or do you just not turn the light on and grab
ingredients. I am very sorry to sound so harsh, but, if you check out my
restaurant you will understand fine food. It is *******, you can find it on
the internet.....take notes.

I think you have talent in cooking, just work on the flavors. 15 different
flavors in one dish is far too much, I mean seriously, have you looked at
your website? Try reading some of your so called "ideas" and tell me they
sound good?

What do you think? Either way the answer is somewhat disturbing. If it is the chef, condescending doesn't quite cover it and why bother to send us anything at all? If it isn't the chef, that means someone out there is impersonating someone else and using their name to do send questionable emails to other people. Accountability is quickly disappearing in the cyber world and that just is not a good thing.

 

Ideas are Free

Let's talk for a moment about ideas. There are two camps of readers of this site, those who think we're crazy to give away all of these recipes, techniques and ideas for free and those who think we don't give them enough information to do every little thing that we "show and tell" here. Our basic premise is that ideas are free. Hence a website called Ideas in Food where we freely share what we do in our kitchen. We do explain recipes and techniques for most of what you read about/see pictured here. I must admit that it can be frustrating when people continuously ask how to do something when we've clearly posted the technique here on the site but we also understand that the nature of the blog is that things can be hard to find. Yes, eventually we plan to finish the several cookbooks that we have drafted in our files and publish them. We hope at that time our readers will willingly shell out the money to pay for actual books. But this site is our digital notebooks and we are learning along with you as we experiment with new things in the kitchen. Our dialouge with readers has been a valuable learning tool which has helped us develop many of the ideas pictured on these pages.

The interesting thing about recipes and techniques is that even with clear guidelines, two people will inevitably produce different results. That's one of the reasons why we don't mind sharing. Every Chef/cook will add their own twist to a recipe, they can't help themselves. It's like a fingerprint of sorts and their interpretation may be as good as or better than ours, but it will never be exactly the same. So we don't worry about people copying or stealing ideas because we know that inevitably what they produce will be different from what we come up with.

Another reason why we are happy to share is that other people have been very generous with us. Chefs fall into two camps, those who share and those who don't. I'll never forget the day I asked a Chef I was working for how to make a dish that wasn't from my station only to be told "you don't need to know that".  It was a startling moment. Why didn't I need to know that? Wasn't I there to learn? Didn't I have the right to know how to make things in this kitchen where I was working extremely long days for very little money? On the other hand, in more recent times there have been Chefs, like Wylie, Shola , and Sean, who have been unstintingly generous with ideas, ingredients and information. It's people like that who remind us how important it is to share. As young cooks it could be very difficult to find the information that we were searching for. The advent of the Internet has been a boon for those who thirst for knowledge, but still, someone has to put the information out there for the next generation of cooks to get their hands on.

Truthfully, we don't put every single recipe and technique on here. We tell you how to make most of what we cook. Frankly the reasons why certain techniques get left off are usually quite simple. Either we aren't completely happy with the way something came out and the technique is a work in progress or we (usually me) didn't write down what went into a particular recipe. I just can't seem to get into the habit of weighing, measuring and recording. Alex has become quite disciplined about the process of recording recipes and techniques but I cannot say the same for myself. I'm getting better but sometimes by the time I go to write something down I've forgotten what went into it. He does his best to remind (nag) me to write things down but when things get busy I revert to my old habits. Unfortunately in those instances, none of us actually end up with the recipes in question. So, if you've asked us to post information and  it hasn't appeared one of those explanations usually applies.

Labor Day 2006

Labor Day weekend is drawing to a close and I'm enjoying a brief respite from the craziness that has surrounded us all weekend. Don't get me wrong, craziness can be a good thing. I would almost always rather be busy than be twiddling my thumbs, wondering what to do next.

We have been very lucky in that even the guests who arrived cranky and with a chips on their shoulders about prices, fanciness and decor, left contented and smiling, wooed by good food, service and smiling faces. Most of our current wait staff is extremely personable and so even if there are small snafus in the dining room, they are able to carry them off with aplomb or at least a dose of good humor that does much to smooth away the rough edges. I firmly believe that hiring front of the house staff (actually any staff at all if I'm honest) is more about personality than experience. We bunted on one hire because we were desperate for a body and now we're paying the price. She is a lovely woman, sweet and well meaning, but not good in situations where there is more than one table in the room.  Since the goal is never to have just one table occupied in the dining room, this can create some challenging situations.  We had a new trainee come in last week and although she is doing well, in the process of her training she managed to undo some of the training of the original wait person. When the server in question saw the trainee doing something that did not follow our standard procedures, in this case removing the chargers from the table after dessert and before coffee, instead of correcting the trainee and explaining the right order of service which is to serve coffee on the charger and then clear everything away when the guests are finished, she decided to follow the lead of the trainee because it made sense to her at the time. I only discovered this last night when I realized she was clearing the chargers before coffee was served during dinner service. When I questioned her (nicely, I swear) about why she was suddenly clearing the chargers early, she gave me the preceding explanation. She admitted that she knew it was a departure from the way that everyone else was doing things but she thought it would give people more room to enjoy their coffee. When I gently pointed out that if she served the coffee on the charger people would have plenty of room, she smiled and said that made perfect sense. So apparently she went back to her partially cleared table and explained that coffee goes on top of the charger, not beside it to the guests. She happily informed me afterwards that the rest of the guests at the table appreciated her explanation and moved their coffee cups to their chargers at her suggestion. I was struck dumb for a moment, which was a good thing, and then took a deep breath and let it go. There was really nothing to be said. Everyone was happy and now she understands the correct procedure. But I must admit that my blood pressure soared for brief instances several different times last night.

On a lighter note, we seem to be coming out of cooking rut. The food has been coming together nicely and we've been quite happy with the way that our dishes have been coming together. The last few menus have been a lot of fun and I'm finally working with a butterscotch pudding recipe that I like. Our version is not quite ready yet, I still think it's a bit too sweet and intense, but once we get the kinks worked out we'll post the recipe here. I will mention this, the secret ingredient is Macallan, because what is butterscotch pudding without a healthy dose of real Scotch to pull things together? We've been revisiting old favorites, like the MouCo ColoRouge, filet mignon, mussels, brisket, mashed potato cakes, and white cabbage. It is hunting season after all. We've put together a cinnamon mascarpone sorbet that just screams cannolis. Unfortunately we haven't figured out what to serve it with yet but I'm sure you'll be seeing it soon. The technique for vacuum sealing fruit and vegetables is all consuming, recently there seems to be nothing that Alex won't put in the FoodSaver to "cook". Some days there are more things in our pantry than there are dishes to serve in the dining room. Abundance, especially an abundance of ideas, can be a very good thing.

Choosing Your Words

I do not hunt.  Yet, I depend on hunting or a version there of to provide the vast supply of ingredients we use in the kitchen.  When I thought of hunting, at least until about ten minutes ago, the words shooting and killing were at the forefront of my mind.  Odd really, or is that just what I think of when I consider serving meat, game, fowl and even fish?  I was given the gut check when I made the off comment that shooting and killing could not coexist with refinement, elegance and exquisite dining.  The fact of the matter is a true hunter embodies all those qualities of which I had not previously seen.  Secondly, without shooting and killing, what the heck are we going to serve?  It is inappropriate to assume what the actions of others will be.

What is my point?  Choose your words like your ingredients.  Then see how it all tastes.

BYOB?

Lots of people bring their own alcohol on vacation. From bottles of wine to a favorite spirit for the cocktail hour, we've seen a myriad array of drinks wander through our doors. When we went on the cruise we brought some choice bottles of wine with us. They had a corkage policy for the restaurant but we mostly sipped the wine on our balcony, preferring to order from the wine list at dinner. On the ship it wasn't unusual to see people entering the dining room with a bottle tucked into the crook of their elbow, whether it was a favorite white Zinfandel or an expensive bottle of Bordeaux.  Corkage is not an issue that has come up here very often, and we  have settled on a charge of $15.00 for those who wish to bring in a bottle of their own.  As wine drinkers, we enjoy the pomp and circumstance that goes with a special bottle and we totally understand the occasional desire to bring your own.

Recently we were faced with an entirely new situation. We had guests staying with us who brought in a cooler full of beverages.  We thought nothing of it, assuming the beverages were meant to be consumed in their rooms or on the balconies.  We can understand not wanting to pay the up-charge on in-room beverages. But we were slightly disconcerted when they came down for meals carrying their bottles of Budweiser to be consumed in the restaurant. Since they were the only guests on the premises, we chose to let it go.  Still, we were not entirely sure of how to handle the protocol on this one. We've heard a lot of talk about people bringing their own wine to restaurants, but has anyone dealt with people who bring their own beer or spirits?  I'm pretty certain that it's illegal to bring in spirits, but beer? We're still puzzling over how to word a policy and what exactly it should be for these kinds of situations.  If I know anything, I know that if it happened once it will happen again. So what do you think? Is it snobbery to allow people to bring in wine and not beer? If you do let people bring in their own beer, do you charge them for it or just suck it up?