NEVER

I hate Blogger. Blah. I have returned to my Typepad blog, with a few new posts already made. Sorry!

Sometimes I just want to smack certain people across the head, and this latest idiocy involving NY's Pearl Oyster Bar's Rebecca Charles and her former sous chef Ed McFarland and "intellectual property"--a.k.a. the menu--has my palm craving a good impact tingle. Someone so foolish as to sue over place settings and Caesar dressing is plain annoying, but even more foolish is the fact McFarland considered copying his ex-boss like that. He has some nerve. But still, I think every restaurant owner should be wary of employees replicating their methods.

F*** him, too.

Um, Mr. Man, swearing is part of every industry. In every profession profanity is prominent, whether it be muttered under one's breath or said out right. The latter does nothing for either party--the instigator and the recipient--and in fact it could worsen any given situation. In such a heated (so to speak) environment as a kitchen, I find it especially crucial to keep one's temper. And people like Gordon Ramsay, whose gotten a lot of recent press for filial negligence and profanity, who throw around four-letter words like prepositions really in effect get less respect than those who prefer to handle a situation maturely. In Ruhlman's Soul of a Chef Thomas Keller admitted to having quite a temper in the French Laundry's earlier days, and later came to realize it got him nowhere. It just made both parties angrier. He has come to control his rage and keep it in check, and the restaurant runs much more smoothly. Still, Ramsay is sticking to his belief that profanity is "essential" in this industry.

Venus vs. Mars

I don't believe that men are better chefs than women, nor do I believe women override men. Women do, however, tend to serve up fare that's distinctly more comforting, more soul-satisfying than men, who, as it states in this great article, like to show off a little (or a lot) more, i.e. Grant Achatz and Ferran Adria. Not to say that this is all bad; we need insane restaurants. There are exceptions to the rule, of course: more robust women that pack a wallop, and men with a slightly more feminine touch. And I think that these more, how shall I say, delicate men make food as satisfying as a grandmother's, plus a bit of artfulness. Bradley Ogden and Dennis Leary come to mind, and even I prefer to prepare more humble cuisine. "Mama Food."

Estupido.

I'm not so sure I'm keen on working with someone who could make Gordon Ramsay cry. I mean, that's scary. But Brit chef Marco Pierre White's done it before, and apparently Ramsay isn't the only one Chef White has been alienating--the volatile chef's Spanish-born wife, Mati, has filed for divorce (though something tells me it's more that they're too similar rather than too different). In agreement with Top Chef host and Craft-sman Tom Colicchio, I say that people who yell tyrannically at their employees don't deserve to be in a position of management. Or for that matter, in a workplace at all. If you're so inclined, read the extensive report on White's third failed marriage.


Although I am all too glad we lack that sort of un-professionalism in island kitchens, another thing we lack is gastronomically exciting events, like the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Colorado. In Hawaii we hear about the same chefs over and over, and really, despite the unrivaled talent some of them may possess, their names can become stale over time. I want to see Thomas Keller and Mario Batali and Jean-Georges Vongerichten! The 5,000 attendants at this year's Classic got to...someday I hope to be one of those numbers.

Some Recognition!

*NOTE: This blogpost originally appeared June 21, 2007 on kccfoodie.typepad.com

If people don't order dessert after a meal, I think it's the restaurant's fault for not having better options. At places where we're offered mud pie, ice cream, and sorbet, my family opts to skip the sweets. However, take us to a place where desserts obviously shine, like Alan Wong's, or Cafe Laufer, and we pounce.

The creative minds behind such saccharine delights are rightfully tiring of being just an afterthought. I was excited to see yesterday's NYTimes "Dining Out" front page article feature pastry chefs venturing out with incredible ideas of their own. A lover and amateur maker of the sweet arts myself I empathize and readily support these New Yorkers, however outlandish their dreams may be.

BOOfala!

*NOTE: This blogpost originally appeared June 13, 2007 on kccfoodie.typepad.com

Since starting my twice-weekly "stage" at Sabrina's Restaurant on Wai'alae, I have been spoiled with an abundance of insanely delicious Italian products, of course one of which is mozzarella di bufala, or buffalo milk mozzarella. Eaten on its own with a sprinkling of cracked pepper and a drizzle of extra-virgin, it's a creamy delight, but layer it between vine-ripened tomatoes and fragrant basil, and you have Cloud 9.

The San Francisco Chronicle has been doing a marvelous "Taster's Choice" column, where a group of notable culinarians and chefs form a panel and do blind tastings of certain products. This week the victim is none other than buffalo mozzarella, and I prod you to seek out this product at R.Field or even Y.Hata. Or keep this list for another couple of years to go searching in Whole Foods!

Good Grief.

*NOTE: This blogpost originally appeared June 6, 2007 on kccfoodie.typepad.com

$22 for a Cornish game hen? $26 for seared 'ahi salad? This is what I have been subjected to in my ongoing search for accessible creative cuisine here on 'Oahu. What we have so far is a sprinkling of places like Grand Cafe and Nico's that certainly offer a relief for our wallets, but hardly much else is out there. Fine-dining is easily found, despite the lack of excellence in most of it. I don't mind the occasional hamburger steak, but more often I crave the simple but creatively concocted kind of food available in the rest of America. Where can you find a cute little place for good espresso and a flaky pain au chocolat in the morning? How about a croque monsieur or roasted eggplant panino at lunch? Or a delicious stump of baked goat cheese atop fresh locally grown lettuces for less than $10? Or bold but beautifully crafted works of pastry, like ones found at SF's Citizen Cake? Granted, kudos go out to Stage and Cassis for offering something refreshingly new, but despite that the culinary scene remains nearly stagnant. And I think part of the problem is locals are afraid of change. It's the Asian mentality of "Why change what's already good?", and we've got ourselves in a bloody rut, and I'm sure I'm not the only one sick of it. How do we know we can't make what we have BETTER? Come on, people.