"Foodlife"

Boil boil toil and trouble…….

So pull the curtain aside on the drama and everyday battles of just completing a day in the kitchen, be it a skirmish with a co-worker, burned sauce because you forgot your timer, falling behind on prep because the dining room never quieted down in the afternoon, that hangover you just can’t shake or tickets rang in wrong so you are lambasting the server that 86’d milk, any number of things can distract you from the focus of your true purpose there much to the dismay of diners and managers.

Like I said, push all that aside and take a good look at the root of what is happening there and the people doing it. you can spot the temps, they show up, do their job, and go home. Just ships passing in the proverbial night and there just to get by. But look at the people who truly revel in the task of food preparation from start to finish, you can see it in the middle of service time. The guys cleaning plate edges and making sure they garnish each one the same, lovingly, like a new parent making sure babies tie is straight for first portraits.  Checking the sear on a piece of pork belly to make sure it has a perfect crust, constantly tasting the soups or sauces while cooking, because the most important thing is flawless execution. These guys, they are beyond the frustration and distraction. They are in a zone reserved for the truly passionate and when jamming through the busy times it is like watching a well-choreographed dance being performed.

I’ve had the pleasure of working with both schools, and being in each class. Never disappointed with anything, the triumph of getting through a massive push successfully short 2 people and working 2 stations, to the tragedy of being outside propped up against the wall just about asleep in the summer sun, so hungover I could hardly think. Then realizing that the not so horrible, but not good at all smell is the 2 gallons of balsamic I put on to reduce before going outside  manifesting through the vent on the roof to remind me I just destroyed precious commodity because my life interrupted my work. To be precise, as I write this I’m not even sure why I left that world anymore because obviously I miss it eh?

It’s almost time to start talking about food now. I’m just about over the buzz of having contact with this culture again and settling in to a comfy place in my mind with it. I have all kinds of stuff in mind, from fermented foods, to just cool preparation techniques that look impossible when it comes out on your plate but really aren’t that bad when done correctly at home. The world of food has an interesting culture, both in the creation of it, and the people who create it. I know I’ve had a couple of ramblings about this here already, but let’s call this the first official installment of “Foodlife” This post can be the "appetizer course"

Most of my stuff will be from the restaurant I’m working at right now. Having background with several of the people I’m working with now, it is a comfortable, easy transition to playing with food as we have spent the time daydreaming, experimenting and executing. Let’s have some fun.

 If so inclined,you have something you want me to see, get in touch at eurotrash.submit@gmail.com and we can chat about what you have. Always on the hunt for cool stuff, I’d love to hear about it.

Till next time, Joe D……

Sorry for the lack of photos in these posts, When things get rolling back there, when it is most opportune to get snaps that really represent what I'm talking about, this is normally my view and I would bet $.32 that the people I work with are pretty damn happy I'm focused on this and not on taking pictures of other people doing their job. The photos will come as I have several installments in mind that require some planning and execution therefore not during service times. Bear with me and thanks. This is all I could muster when I had a minute to think about it haha.