Time to dance
Oct. 25th, 2009 12:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alystenIt has been a cranky couple of weeks, starting right about KWAR. A variety of external things out of my control, internal things in my control, and a bunch of directions demanding 100% of my concentration at the same time. And finally, I think my brain has finally come to a reconciliation with it's self. The Bhakail Yule feast has been a pull in multiple directions at the same time. And thanks to several different conversations with people who are wiser and more experienced with "this is how things are done", I feel more at peace than I have in a while. I needed to understand what I hope to get out of doing a feast for the SCA.
I want to dance.
On the first day of culinary school, they told us " a good kitchen dances". I wouldn't learn what the chefs meant until a few months later when I went to work in my first kitchen. And they were right, on a good day, the kitchen danced. That is not to say there isn't chaos and noise, but the kitchen moves as a single entity. From the prep guys weaving in and out of the main line to the food moving from cook top to dish to the plates leaving to the final destination in the dining room, the crew moves as one. One piece in the mechanics slows down, and the entire flow grinds to a halt. I spent 5 years working the kitchen dance. Some days it was glorious, and others overwhelming. I do miss it... but not enough to go back to it for pay.
Since joining the SCA I have wanted to run a feast. I felt that the kitchen could be a place where I could experience the same camaraderie, passion for food, and rush of a job well done as I had in the restaurant. But as with most things, I am learning, the idea in my head is not the way it is actually done.
A major misconception is everyone working in a restaurant is a "professional". This couldn't be further from the truth. A lot of prep people and minor station (salad/pantry/limited menu) are immigrants with limited English skills with little or no restaurant experience (a lot of restaurants have a low per hour capita they have to maintain, American workers simpley cost too much- they are reserved for 'difficult' positions like grill and saute.). Most SCAdians know how to read and for the most part speak English pretty well. This makes recipe recreation easier. If you can follow directions, you can follow a recipe. Just like in the restaurant, SCAdians come in all skill levels, and you use people where they fit.
One major difference however, is the commercial kitchen is not a democracy. Menus, schedules, prep lists are maintained by chef and sous. People rotate through tasks so that everyone gets a share of the "shit" tasks, like cutting veggies and portioning meat. Everyone does prep for everything. Common prepped items are then available across the whole kitchen. Once the prep is over, then the dishes are assembled based upon the crew assignments. And if everything is ready to go, the kitchen dances its way through dinner. While not a democracy, it isn't a totalitarian state either. The chef must rely on the sous and main line. There is a huge degree of trust installed in each member of the team to do their job. Hot food hot, cold food cold, tasty and delicious. There is still fun and conversation and chaos and food (always about the food) and teamwork.
The SCA has many advantages over a commercial kitchen. But that doesn't mean that there aren't lessons we can learn from the commercial kitchen and use to our advantage. I am not one to break from tradition, unless tradition doesn't allow for growth or new ideas. I want to work with people who have vision and passion and an interest in food. I want people to work side by side with me as we slug through the shit work and then create magic at the end. I want to make the kitchen a place where you want to hang out and do stuff, not because it's a chore, but because its where the "cool kids" come to play. I trust those in my kitchen to get what they need done, when it needs to be done, with out me managing them. I want those in my kitchen trust me to lead, even if it isn't 100% "the way we do things". There is no glory working in a kitchen. It is hard, and oftentimes dirty. But that should never stop us from having a blast in the process.
This is my "vision" for the kitchen. People suggested I might want to share that.
I am passionate about food. You cannot learn it from a book. It cannot be taught through mechanics. It is something that comes from deep inside. Its hard to explain, but makes the difference between cooking good food and cooking great food. I cook because I love that look on people's faces when they take that first bite of food. Its the look of "OMG this doesn't suck". Its reactionary, involuntary. Words cannot adequately describe the look of pure delight that comes across your face when something tickles the palette. When the table only has leftovers because you make a conscious choice to save some for later, that is the reward. It could be salt crusted fish or grilled cheese. When the kitchen smells like home and goodness and comfort, you have done a good thing.
It is time to dance. Come join me.
I want to dance.
On the first day of culinary school, they told us " a good kitchen dances". I wouldn't learn what the chefs meant until a few months later when I went to work in my first kitchen. And they were right, on a good day, the kitchen danced. That is not to say there isn't chaos and noise, but the kitchen moves as a single entity. From the prep guys weaving in and out of the main line to the food moving from cook top to dish to the plates leaving to the final destination in the dining room, the crew moves as one. One piece in the mechanics slows down, and the entire flow grinds to a halt. I spent 5 years working the kitchen dance. Some days it was glorious, and others overwhelming. I do miss it... but not enough to go back to it for pay.
Since joining the SCA I have wanted to run a feast. I felt that the kitchen could be a place where I could experience the same camaraderie, passion for food, and rush of a job well done as I had in the restaurant. But as with most things, I am learning, the idea in my head is not the way it is actually done.
A major misconception is everyone working in a restaurant is a "professional". This couldn't be further from the truth. A lot of prep people and minor station (salad/pantry/limited menu) are immigrants with limited English skills with little or no restaurant experience (a lot of restaurants have a low per hour capita they have to maintain, American workers simpley cost too much- they are reserved for 'difficult' positions like grill and saute.). Most SCAdians know how to read and for the most part speak English pretty well. This makes recipe recreation easier. If you can follow directions, you can follow a recipe. Just like in the restaurant, SCAdians come in all skill levels, and you use people where they fit.
One major difference however, is the commercial kitchen is not a democracy. Menus, schedules, prep lists are maintained by chef and sous. People rotate through tasks so that everyone gets a share of the "shit" tasks, like cutting veggies and portioning meat. Everyone does prep for everything. Common prepped items are then available across the whole kitchen. Once the prep is over, then the dishes are assembled based upon the crew assignments. And if everything is ready to go, the kitchen dances its way through dinner. While not a democracy, it isn't a totalitarian state either. The chef must rely on the sous and main line. There is a huge degree of trust installed in each member of the team to do their job. Hot food hot, cold food cold, tasty and delicious. There is still fun and conversation and chaos and food (always about the food) and teamwork.
The SCA has many advantages over a commercial kitchen. But that doesn't mean that there aren't lessons we can learn from the commercial kitchen and use to our advantage. I am not one to break from tradition, unless tradition doesn't allow for growth or new ideas. I want to work with people who have vision and passion and an interest in food. I want people to work side by side with me as we slug through the shit work and then create magic at the end. I want to make the kitchen a place where you want to hang out and do stuff, not because it's a chore, but because its where the "cool kids" come to play. I trust those in my kitchen to get what they need done, when it needs to be done, with out me managing them. I want those in my kitchen trust me to lead, even if it isn't 100% "the way we do things". There is no glory working in a kitchen. It is hard, and oftentimes dirty. But that should never stop us from having a blast in the process.
This is my "vision" for the kitchen. People suggested I might want to share that.
I am passionate about food. You cannot learn it from a book. It cannot be taught through mechanics. It is something that comes from deep inside. Its hard to explain, but makes the difference between cooking good food and cooking great food. I cook because I love that look on people's faces when they take that first bite of food. Its the look of "OMG this doesn't suck". Its reactionary, involuntary. Words cannot adequately describe the look of pure delight that comes across your face when something tickles the palette. When the table only has leftovers because you make a conscious choice to save some for later, that is the reward. It could be salt crusted fish or grilled cheese. When the kitchen smells like home and goodness and comfort, you have done a good thing.
It is time to dance. Come join me.
