6.04.2006

One Flew Out of our Crazy Nest...

As I write, I am both excited and honored to be able to feel at least a wee-bit responsible for his success, as one that I have come to know for the last ten years as Tyler Hefford-Anderson. A chef, a cook, a true culinarian, a friend, a colleague, a student and one that I feel will carry on some of the things I have preached for that duration of time that he spent with me as an apprentice, a cook, then sous chef in our professional kitchen. If ever there was a person in the kitchen that I have really taken "under my wing", he is that person! He knows me like no other. He knows my style, my direction, and what I am looking for and was always looking to replicate that sense of perfection in the food, in the service and in the work. He and I have been through a lot. Many a nights have been spent on the line; working on new dishes, in the kitchen; brewing up new concoctions and making vinegars or preparing charcuterie or just in the office; talking about how the day went and what we were going to be working on tomorrow(not minding the fact that it was already 3am). We would chat, think and contemplate for hours about new flavors, ingredients and ways to combine them for the utmost of intricacies as we strive to reach perfection in our food. The many countless fundraisers together, setting standards only for others to try and follow, the chef's tables where we would play "alter-egos" with our guests and the special wine maker and guest chef dinners that have graced our kitchen over the years, in which he played a huge role. Tyler has reached a point where he needed to fly. Fly out of our crazy nest of the club, out of the comfort zone he was so used to, only to soar to new heights and to achieve a higher level of greatness. The time had come to be his own. To be the creator of new dimensions of thought and flavor within his own creation. So it is with this post that I wish him the best...the experience that he deserves...the limelight he has earned to seek...the challenges and pain that lie ahead, as I had to endure and overcome when I was in his place...the learned and inherent wisdom that comes with time on your own to explore and reflect and all that is great...that undeniable sensation to conquer all and kick ass! I wish him well. He will be greatly missed. But with change comes great opportunity and experience for all. Many more have come before him and many more will pass along after him. What is inspiring, is that we now have another place to eat great food, another to cook along side of and someone to share in the quest of setting and keeping the highest of standards so that others will try and keep up. What happens after this only God knows! Good luck amigo, and thank you for great times! cuisinier

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