cooking help?

Doby said:

hi! i have lots of cookboooks 32 but need more help in learning to
cook. someone said that i should take a job at a restaurant to learn
but would i be stuck doing one job - sauces ?

That would be a helluva big step just to learn to cook better. The
work is hard, hot and intense, and the pay is bad. I would doubt you
could be the saucier (if that's the right word for the sauce guy) in a
really good restaurant. That's a job for the accomplished, not the
learner. The sophistication of the sauces is the main reason we
frequent two of our favorite restaurants here in L.A.

If you aren't put off by the conditions, though, you might learn a lot.
You'll develop various skills and learn the kind of discipline that
leads to efficiency. One thing to guard against: the nature of
restaurants requires certain compromises and substitutions in order to
meet the demands of time and volume. Don't make the mistake of
thinking those compromises are improvements over what can be done at
home. Remember intstead that they represent the opportunities for home
cooks to improve on restaurant fare. -aem

aem said:

Doby said:

hi! i have lots of cookboooks 32 but need more help in learning to
cook. someone said that i should take a job at a restaurant to learn
but would i be stuck doing one job - sauces ?

That would be a helluva big step just to learn to cook better. The
work is hard, hot and intense, and the pay is bad. I would doubt you
could be the saucier (if that's the right word for the sauce guy) in a
really good restaurant. That's a job for the accomplished, not the
learner. The sophistication of the sauces is the main reason we
frequent two of our favorite restaurants here in L.A.

If you aren't put off by the conditions, though, you might learn a lot.
You'll develop various skills and learn the kind of discipline that
leads to efficiency. One thing to guard against: the nature of
restaurants requires certain compromises and substitutions in order to
meet the demands of time and volume. Don't make the mistake of
thinking those compromises are improvements over what can be done at
home. Remember intstead that they represent the opportunities for home
cooks to improve on restaurant fare. -aem

For an almost Off Topic addendum, some would argue that the "love" or
energy (of a metaphysical or supernatural sort) a individual puts into
food they are preparing for themselves or others in a home setting can
not really be done in the fast paced world of a busy restaurant.

IMO even the best 4 star Michelin guide, top of the line, gourmet
restaurants can't compare with really good home cooking.

Which is one of the reasons i like the priee fixee (sp?)service of
European restaurants, in many small working class restaurants a good
cook will prepare an exceptionally hugh meal to serve all the clients on
a given day, no menu or choosing what to have prepared but rather a meal
the chef has cooked for that day, take it or leave it, but it allows the
cook to perform in the kitchen more as they would in their own home.

There used to be a restaurant sort of like this in Berkeley, a soup
restaurant, its speciality and main product were fresh soup. Going in
on a monday after noon was always the best as the cook had finished up
making a weeks worth of stock and had just concocted his first few soups
from it (think Sienfield's "soup nazi' only nice & with sit down seating)

Sadly it became so popular that it was bought by an new group of people
who have not kept up the original owners traditions. Its still an
acceptable place to eat but no longer has the special quality it used
to, its just another inexpensive restaurant now.
---
JL

Quoted message said:

For an almost Off Topic addendum, some would argue that the "love" or
energy (of a metaphysical or supernatural sort) a individual puts into
food they are preparing for themselves or others in a home setting can
not really be done in the fast paced world of a busy restaurant.

IMO even the best 4 star Michelin guide, top of the line, gourmet
restaurants can't compare with really good home cooking.

Quoted message said:

JL

I've not had the opportunity to compare -- but I'd give it a go for a while.
:-)

Dee Dee

Joseph Littleshoes said:

For an almost Off Topic addendum, some would argue that the "love" or
energy (of a metaphysical or supernatural sort) a individual puts into
food they are preparing for themselves or others in a home setting can
not really be done in the fast paced world of a busy restaurant.

IMO even the best 4 star Michelin guide, top of the line, gourmet
restaurants can't compare with really good home cooking.

What nonsense. First, the top Michelin award is three stars, second,
the restaurants that receive this do stuff that no home cook could
could even consider. Apples and oranges comparison.

"----- Original Message -----
From: "Joseph Littleshoes" <[email hidden]>
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
Sent: Sunday, April 09, 2006 4:43 PM
Subject: Re: cooking help?

Quoted message said:

<snip>
For an almost Off Topic addendum, some would argue that the "love" or
energy (of a metaphysical or supernatural sort) a individual puts into
food they are preparing for themselves or others in a home setting can
not really be done in the fast paced world of a busy restaurant.

IMO even the best 4 star Michelin guide, top of the line, gourmet
restaurants can't compare with really good home cooking.

Michelin doesn't have 4 stars. They top out at 3. If you had ever eaten
at true 3 star restaurant you could never have expressed this view. I
don't know how you equate a person's capacity to love (or similar
metaphysical malarky) with preparing excellent food. It takes training,
skill, perception, good taste, uncompromising standards and access to the
best possible ingredients. I'm a home cook of what I consider to be better
than average cooking skills and discernment but I could never realistically
produce what I've experienced at some Michelin 2 or 3 star restaurants even
on my best day. Maybe one or two things I could master but the totality?
and on a daily basis? supported only by my *love* or *energy*. What utter
hogwash!

Quoted message said:

Which is one of the reasons i like the priee fixee (sp?)service of
European restaurants, in many small working class restaurants a good
cook will prepare an exceptionally hugh meal to serve all the clients on
a given day, no menu or choosing what to have prepared but rather a meal
the chef has cooked for that day, take it or leave it, but it allows the
cook to perform in the kitchen more as they would in their own home.

How many prix fixe, *inexpensive*, *working class* restaurants have you
actually been to where no choice is offered to the patrons? I mean the mind
boggles and I've spent a lot of time in Europe.

<more snips>

Kate

Kate B said:

How many prix fixe, *inexpensive*, *working class* restaurants have you
actually been to where no choice is offered to the patrons? I mean the mind
boggles and I've spent a lot of time in Europe.
Kate

I am with you and behind you up to here. Loads of trattorie do the no
menu thing. Lunch ticket people get the number of courses their ticket
is worth and the rest of us eat way too much. Sometimes it is great,
and sometimes it isn't. It is never up to any Michelin stars.

"Umbrian" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Kate B said:

How many prix fixe, *inexpensive*, *working class* restaurants have you
actually been to where no choice is offered to the patrons? I mean the

mind

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

boggles and I've spent a lot of time in Europe.
Kate

I am with you and behind you up to here. Loads of trattorie do the no
menu thing. Lunch ticket people get the number of courses their ticket
is worth and the rest of us eat way too much. Sometimes it is great,
and sometimes it isn't. It is never up to any Michelin stars.

No choice at all? I just never encountered much along these lines. I have
had very limited choice but rarely no choice. Live and learn.

Kate

"Kate B" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Umbrian" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Kate B said:

How many prix fixe, *inexpensive*, *working class* restaurants have you
actually been to where no choice is offered to the patrons? I mean the

mind

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

boggles and I've spent a lot of time in Europe.
Kate

I am with you and behind you up to here. Loads of trattorie do the no
menu thing. Lunch ticket people get the number of courses their ticket
is worth and the rest of us eat way too much. Sometimes it is great,
and sometimes it isn't. It is never up to any Michelin stars.

No choice at all? I just never encountered much along these lines. I
have
had very limited choice but rarely no choice. Live and learn.

Kate

I've only had a no choice menu (at least 10 pages) in a nice hotel in
Yugoslavia years ago. Each thing I pointed to, they didn't have. And I
pointed to a lot of things. Then I got to looking around, everyone had the
same thing on their plates.
Dee Dee

Dee Randall said:

Quoted message said:

For an almost Off Topic addendum, some would argue that the "love" or
energy (of a metaphysical or supernatural sort) a individual puts into
food they are preparing for themselves or others in a home setting can
not really be done in the fast paced world of a busy restaurant.

IMO even the best 4 star Michelin guide, top of the line, gourmet
restaurants can't compare with really good home cooking.

Quoted message said:

JL

I've not had the opportunity to compare -- but I'd give it a go for a while.
:-)

Dee Dee

I expressed my self poorly, to my taste a good home cooked meal is
better than the best 'gourmet' foods prepared for a paying clientele.
---
JL