Perks of Dating a Chef

#perksofdatingachef

I really like this photograph.  

Whether it's a great photograph is another story. So, I guess I really like the idea of this photo.

  It kindof goes against a lot of things in a kitchen, so that might be another reason why I like it, too.

  Just looking at it, even if you're not familiar with restaurant culture, the glass seems out of place. It's something delicate against all this stainless steel. It's placement makes it seem almost like a forgotten glass- a 'lone solider' or one of those drinks that was specifically placed by a guest to hide it from the waitstaff with full intensions of returning for it and then not.  

It was literately the last photo I took out of a series of photos in different scenarios and backgrounds. I was in the process of cleaning everything up and was walking back through the dish pit to go and dump it when I looked over and saw the glass through a metro rack and thought that it was such a great angle. Now, I'm not sure if this is common knowledge, but in a lot of higher end kitchens there is absolutely no drinking. First, off there's no time, but it also a big no-no, a fireable offense. Only in special circumstances is this allowed, typically when celebrating something- a quick "cheers!" of sparkling wine- such as a holiday, a birthday, someone's last day, or maybe when receiving a reward. Other times, 'kitchen beers' or after service drinks are distributed after a particularly grueling service. This usually comes in the form of something really cheap, usually in a can, and never in glass.

  It might be obvious, but glass is breakable, it's transparent, and  when it breaks it goes everywhere. There's no guarantee where it goes, so if there's anything 'open' such as food or an ice well close by, it all gets to be throw away. Whether it's something inexpensive and small or something that took a prep cook eight hours to make. It all goes in the trash. It's not worth taking the chance and harming a guest or employee. It's a big deal.

  Kitchens are such fast paced environments. Stress levels are high, and all sorts of people are bouncing in and out, back and forth, rubbing shoulders and backs and just about everything else to get by one and other. It's like carrying around a dainty, little hand-grenade full of shrapnel.

  That being said, do people drink out of glasses in the kitchen? Yes. It will normally happen near the end of the night during breakdown when everything's being put away. The pace has slowed, everyone is realizing how tired they are, and no one is moving faster than they have to.

  In the photo the glass is placed on the edge of a prep table just opposite the pass along the main walkway from the kitchen to the dining room. It's the highest traffic area in the restaurant.

  Less than an hour ago there was a cutting board and a knife there covered with vegetable scraps, line cooks were jumping back and forth, and waitstaff were running food in and out of the kitchen. Less than an hour ago there would have been no place to put the glass. It would have been the worst place to set it down. Now after service, it seems the best place for it. @PerksofDatingAChef

https://ediblesarasota.ediblecommunities.com/shop/bistro-sarasota-art-museum

Food Meets Fashion

Typically, when you find food on your velvet shoes it’s accompanied by the splatter of sauce and a groan of agony. This time that’s not the case.

These handmade slippers come from a collaboration between the Del Toro shoemakers and designers Osanna Madina Visconti to highlight their Italian heritage for the Milan Fashion Week. Each shoe features a Bronze Pasta: Farfella, Fusilli, or Penne (Not Shown).

A much needed drink after a long day. A day of yelling orders, calling hands, and wiping plates. A day of running back from the pass and forth to the line.