The Mind of a Chef

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Chef Doom said:
So Son, I have two questions for you, assuming the experience wasn't too painful.

1. How attractive was this girlfriend you left behind for this "wonderful" opportunity?

2. Did you get back with her after the situation blew up?

Keep in mind your answers will forever alter my opinion and respect for you. :eyebrow:
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all my women are hot
stayed in New york and got an executive chef job the next day. Tried the long distance thing for awhile, it didn't work out and she is one of my closests friend now. No harm, no foul.lol
 
If I'm dating her, she's hot. doesn't matter what she looks like. some of the most beautiful women I have ever met are some of the ugliest people I have ever met and it's an instant turn off. Some of the sexiest women I have met have not been the most beautiful. It depend on my mood.lol
 
sachem allison said:
some of the most beautiful women I have ever met are some of the ugliest people I have ever met and it's an instant turn off. Some of the sexiest women I have met have not been the most beautiful. lol[/QUOTE

+1
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sachem allison said:
. David says, "about that, My buddy just got into town and he was who I wanted originally for the position so, I gave it to him." " I won't be needing you, sorry." I say, "What the f..., David, I just gave up everything in my life for this opportunity, I'm on the plane right now!" David says. " what can I say, you shoulda got it in writing."
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WOW! It's a good thing he said that to you while you were still a few thousand miles away over the phone. I can sure imagine going to jail for beating him on the spot if he had waited till I got there and said that to my face.

While I wouldn't have necessarily guessed him for this kind of behavior I am not surprised by it either after watching him on TV a bit. That last line really fits.

My PBS station has just started the first season of "Mind" on a new run here. I have set the DVR and seen the first 2 episodes. I am enjoying it for sure.
 
sachem allison said:
If I'm dating her, she's hot. doesn't matter what she looks like. some of the most beautiful women I have ever met are some of the ugliest people I have ever met and it's an instant turn off. Some of the sexiest women I have met have not been the most beautiful. It depend on my mood.lol
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Great text!
 
Hahaha, what a way to dodge my question I should probe for more body measurements and dimensions, but I will let it go.

And I have to disagree with anyone here. I have no problem taking the most attractive woman to all of the functions I go to know matter how ugly she is on the inside, so long as she doesn't speak to anyone. I definitely don't believe in convincing myself that an ugly girl I'm dating is pretty just so I can stomach the situation. I'm pretty upfront. If I'm not dating a woman for her looks, then it's because she is easy.
 
Chef Doom said:
Hahaha, what a way to dodge my question I should probe for more body measurements and dimensions, but I will let it go.

And I have to disagree with anyone here. I have no problem taking the most attractive woman to all of the functions I go to know matter how ugly she is on the inside, so long as she doesn't speak to anyone. I definitely don't believe in convincing myself that an ugly girl I'm dating is pretty just so I can stomach the situation. I'm pretty upfront. If I'm not dating a woman for her looks, then it's because she is easy.
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I said, she was hot. I wasn't joking or evading, she really is hot.lol You gotta be young, and I mean that with no disrespect. I used to only think with my ..... too. Things change and perspectives do to.
do who you can as long as you can and have as much fun doing it as possible.
 
A buddy of mine worked for Chang back when Momofuku was first getting attention. Said he was a pompous prick, and would show up in the middle of service, stoned/drunk, walk on the line push people off their stations and start making food, completely screw up the flow and ruin the expediter's ticket picks, then saunter off and let everyone pick up the pieces...

It was probably a good thing that you didn't end up there Son...
 
sachem allison said:
I said, she was hot. I wasn't joking or evading, she really is hot.lol
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I see, my apologies. At least you were able to turn a bad situation into a positive one.


brainsausage said:
A buddy of mine worked for Chang back when Momofuku was first getting attention. Said he was a pompous prick, and would show up in the middle of service, stoned/drunk, walk on the line push people off their stations and start making food, completely screw up the flow and ruin the expediter's ticket picks, then saunter off and let everyone pick up the pieces...

It was probably a good thing that you didn't end up there Son...
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Although I partly agree with you at the end, lets be honest. If I can't be a pompous prick, what is the point of owning my own business, or in this case restaurant. And it has nothing to do with any principles or character with regards to how a business owner treats his or her employees, so leave that out of it. I'm talking about the very right to be how evil or nice you wish to be because YOU own it.

It's like Dave Chappelle said regarding the Monica Lewinsky Scandal...and I'm paraphrasing, "If I can't get some **** every now and then in the oval office, then I don't want to be president".
 
Not to sound like a jerk Doom, but have you ever owned a business, or been in a situation where you make the calls?

I am part owner of a bicycle shop around here, it's five of us that own it, and have 4 employees. If anyone of us acts that way towards one of our guys, he would have every right to walk. So what if I have the right to get trashed in the middle of the day, and come into the shop and start wrenching, screwing up the workflow. It is my right, as I own part of the company, but is it fair to my guys who count on me to set an example of how to treat the customers, investors, employees, other owners, reputation of our shop (very much like restaurants, bike shops are very customer loyal.)

No it's not right. My guys look up to me as a boss and a mentor. It's my duty to give them an example that's worth following. It makes for a better business, employees, and product/service.

This is even more so true when you are not in the shop/kitchen everyday. I have a full time baking job, only in the shop on Sundays and Monday mornings, besides the random stop in. Chang is not in the kitchen every day, he's at the other places, on tv, travel, what have you. When he does show up, he should show respect to the people giving him his reputation. If I was in his kitchen, had him walk in drunk or f'd up during shift because he can't wait till after like the rest of us, I'd say FU, finish my shift, clean up, and walk.


Whew... Sorry about that guys, and Doom, I mean no offense and apologize for calling you out, and acting like a jerk. There are just some things that get to me, and expecting respect when non is shown is one of those things. Lead by example. It's why some chefs are mentors to the crew, and others are the pain in the ass they make fun of at the bar after shift.
 
No problems Jmadams13, and no, I have never owned a business. Was about to start one, but never went through with it. Although I did work for a guy who although was great to hang out with, was a jerk as a business owner. As in he would go play golf at his favorite country club the day before checks were sent out, thus causing checks to bounce when you cashed them. Now as far as being wrong, it most definitely was, but at the same time he was in his rights to handle and budget his company as he see fits. Sure I was upset at the time, but I learned a valuable lesson from the experience. Although I don't talk about the specifics a lot, I do half way reference it in light joking. Anytime someone asks me how my current job is doing, my response is always "They pay me on time. No complaints here".

People who work for Chang have a right to complain, but being right, and having the right to do something are different. My theory is that an employee who complains about their treatment on the job isn't getting paid enough. In fact, I would say what Chang does is worse than others because from what I read, what he does is random, so the unpredictability would obviously suck. It was funny when I was still watching Hell's Kitchen before I cut myself off from cable, where the contestants would complain about Ramsey's treatment towards them. DID YOU NOT WATCH SEASON 1 THROUGH WHATEVER?????
 
And no, you didn't sound like a jerk at all. I don't have a weak stomach, so I never fire back at person for having attitude or passion in their speech. Gotta stand firmly behind what you believe in. I just dislike it when people try to twist or alter something I said into a meaning that didn't fit the words I chose. Not that you did, just for future reference.
 
In a slightly different direction, I understand members not wanting to go to a restaurant that has wronged one of our members here. I can understand that, but for the most part I can't say that a person behaving badly is going to keep me from their restaurant unless it reflects in the overall quality of their food -- unless they went all Michael Vick on us and started dog fights. I assume that in most restaurants I eat there are chefs, sous chefs, pastry chefs etc who are douche bags. Just as your bank manager might be a dick head, and your dentist might beat his wife.

Just throwing that out there.

k.
 
My "chef" (I say that loosely, as to me, the statue as chef is more than a title, it's earned) is a douche. And I go there daily, lol.
 
i know how you feel jmadams13

i can never call myself a chef, but as i am a cook? i am proud to call myself that.
 
I've been a chef, and a cook, and a baker. One thing that really bothers me is when I hear cooks call themselves chef. Chef is a position of authority, not only meaning you cook. My "chef" is chef in title only. He doesn't act like one, can't run his crew (luckily I don't answer to him, I'm my own boss) and can't handle the stress. He fell into the position when the old chef (a real one) moved on, but instantly started calling himself chef to everyone. Call me an ass, but I don't call him chef, and won't until he earns it. In his case, that probably won't happen.


This actually does relate to the original topic. I saw a authors at google interview with Chang the other day, after reading this thread, and he did have that attitude he didn't have to really work anymore. As a comparison, the complete opposite of Keller. I've known cooks that have worked with him, and said if he was in town, he would be right there in the kitchen, guiding, mentoring, and helping out. Even went into the dish room to help when it got busy. To me, that's the sign of a real chef.
 
Jmadams13, empty out your inbox. I'm trying to send u some PIF info.
 
mr drinky said:
In a slightly different direction, I understand members not wanting to go to a restaurant that has wronged one of our members here. I can understand that, but for the most part I can't say that a person behaving badly is going to keep me from their restaurant unless it reflects in the overall quality of their food -- unless they went all Michael Vick on us and started dog fights. I assume that in most restaurants I eat there are chefs, sous chefs, pastry chefs etc who are douche bags. Just as your bank manager might be a dick head, and your dentist might beat his wife.

Just throwing that out there.

k.
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That's why I said, go to his restaurant and eat his food.
My issue is personal not professional.
 
on the issue of food being "his". didnt chang just popularize a bunch of stuff that was around already? i could be way off base here, but every now and again even in his momofuku book he will admit hes just ripping off something some noodle shop was already doing down the street. i look at chang and i see a guy who just built a sucessful name brand, and the intrigue behind his "bad boy" image partially fueled his sucess. that being said, i really do like his cookbook.
 
After watching four or so episodes, I must say that I really like the format, but -- having said that -- I am also a bit less impressed with David Chang. Half the time he looks stoned, drunk, or both. And in most of the episodes there is invariably one shot of him with a vacant look on his face where -- how should I say this -- he looks borderline learning disabled.

He also tends to make broad statements that are kind of stupid IMO. He hates beets because of the '90s beet salad cliche. Then as Chef Daniel Patterson makes an interesting beet dish -- Chang flies in with his wisdom and offers this: "So, you are taking beets to a level." It sounded so stupid that I rewound it for my wife.

Oh yeah, he also hates turkey because -- admittedly -- 90% of Americans mess it up, and he also hates chicken soup. I can understand having a negative gut reaction against these dishes that define American food mediocrity, but making pronouncements that imply you have given up an an ingredient or style of food seems somewhat silly.

I guess I find the other chefs on the program more interesting: Patterson, Sean Brock, Wylie Dufresne to name a few. Of course, in the Kentucky episode he was drunk, and I thought that was pretty funny at times. The egg episode was cool too I thought.

k.
 
This subject is almost too complex for me to comment on. I've composed three posts and deleted each one of them before saying "I give up".
 
labor of love said:
on the issue of food being "his". didnt chang just popularize a bunch of stuff that was around already? i could be way off base here, but every now and again even in his momofuku book he will admit hes just ripping off something some noodle shop was already doing down the street. i look at chang and i see a guy who just built a sucessful name brand, and the intrigue behind his "bad boy" image partially fueled his sucess. that being said, i really do like his cookbook.
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I like the cookbook a lot as well, but aboslutely do not come to the same conclusion you just did. In the book he lists where inspiration comes from, or what he ripped off. But much of the book is about innovation and how things came to be. Much more of the book is like that, than "steamed buns are good with meat..duh".
 
Jmadams13 said:
I've been a chef, and a cook, and a baker. One thing that really bothers me is when I hear cooks call themselves chef. Chef is a position of authority, not only meaning you cook. My "chef" is chef in title only. He doesn't act like one, can't run his crew (luckily I don't answer to him, I'm my own boss) and can't handle the stress. He fell into the position when the old chef (a real one) moved on, but instantly started calling himself chef to everyone. Call me an ass, but I don't call him chef, and won't until he earns it. In his case, that probably won't happen.


This actually does relate to the original topic. I saw a authors at google interview with Chang the other day, after reading this thread, and he did have that attitude he didn't have to really work anymore. As a comparison, the complete opposite of Keller. I've known cooks that have worked with him, and said if he was in town, he would be right there in the kitchen, guiding, mentoring, and helping out. Even went into the dish room to help when it got busy. To me, that's the sign of a real chef.
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I so agree with all of this post! One of my new guys calls me chef- has me in his phone as chef, for pete's sake- and it just makes me uncomfortable. I'm a cook, a kitchen manager, a guy who's not so long removed from being just another hourly line cook, and I strongly believe that if I'm not working harder than the guys I manage, I'm not doing my job and deserve no respect from them. If that means coming in for two hours on my day off so one guy on a double can take a break or washing dishes or closing solo so someone can go to his son's birthday party, well hell yeah I'm all about it. And it comes back around, always has:)
 
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