Last Day at the Star

This last Saturday was my last day at L*. Even though I am looking forward to moving home next week, it was still a bit sad to leave the kitchen that night. Through the ups and downs of life on the line, I grew strangely attached that group of guys (and gals) in the past 6.5 months. The thing about working in a kitchen is, you spend the better part of your days in a confined space with the same 8 people day after day, week after week. You come to depend on each other rather quickly. Through it all you become much like a family. A completely dysfunctional family. No matter how busy you are, you have to be able and willing to drop what you are doing to bail someone out of the weeds. And no matter how far in the weeds you get, someone will be there to pull you out of it. And when Dad comes home you better have your homework done, a clean station and sharp knives. As in any family, nicknames are given, traditions and lessons are passed down, stories of 'how things used to be' are told, the littlest brother gets picked on relentlessly,  and tempers can rise. But at the end of the day (or service) you know everyone is going to kick back and grab a drink before heading home.

While communication can a weakness in some families, the opposite is true in the kitchen. If there is one thing we can (and must) do well is communicate. At any moment through the day I can tell you where either of my station partners are and what they are doing (although, sometimes I'd rather not know). We try to use as few words as possible to convey the most information. Whole sentences are often whittled down to single words.  The most commonly spoken words in the kitchen are: behind, hot and open. "Behind" means, "hey, I'm walking behind you, so don't make any sudden movements." "Hot" means, "Hey, I'm walking with something so hot it will burn the flesh right off your body so, don't make any sudden movements." And "open" means, "Get out of the way now, I need to open this oven/cooler". In an atmosphere where things come down to the second, the pleasantries are deemed a waste of time and thrown out the window. On occasion even words take too much time. Stephen once slide a squeeze bottle toward me, looked at me, then the bottle, then the jug of oil on top of the line.

This over communication is necessary for a kitchens success, but at times can get a little annoying. Yes, I know I have to keep agitating the potatoes running under cold water. I knew that when I walked into this kitchen, and have been told by three different people today to remember to swish around the potatoes whenever I walk by them. And yes, I know I have 2 minutes to put up these plates because 30 seconds ago you told me I had 3 minutes. But, understanding that it is better to be over informed than under, I just keep my snarky comments to myself. Every once in a while, usually after the fifth time someone says 'behind' in 20 seconds, I find my self unable to control it any longer and a "Please, keep my posted of your where-abouts at all times" will escape my mouth.

On my last day, I listened as these single words were firmly stated throughout the kitchen and plans for service where discussed. In the back ground the hood fans whirled, saute pans were dropped into hotel pans, and knives chopped away on cutting boards. The topic of conversation is always the coming service and idle chat is reserved for the after work drink. I was pretty nervous when I saw the reservations for the night were already pushing 150. I hadn't worked in a week and the usual Saturday night team was incomplete. I wanted to go out on a good note and Chef Dunn's words echoed in my mind, 'As a chef, you are only as good as your last plate'. I certainly felt the pressure for a perfect service.

Amazingly, service went smooth. Almost too smooth. I kept waiting and anticipating some sort of mini disaster. But it never came. At the end of the night, I sighed a sigh of relief. No disasters. Whew.

To all of you that I worked with at L*, I will miss spending every weekend with you. Working in the kitchen is a unique experience and I'm glad I got to share it with you. If you ever find yourself on the other side of the lake, hit me up!

I am thankful for all amazing opportunities I was given this summer at L* and I look forward to returning to Madison often.

Some family pics!