The Team...

We hear it all too often...the team this and the team that. But does everyone place the same importance and truthful meaning in every ounce of the word? Perhaps. For me, it is every bit of the truth. The team that I play on at the club is a great one, barring none! They have my back and I theirs. They are great people.

It is only with the frame of teamwork that we have embedded in our brigade that allows us to accomplish what we do.

Do we have problems and issues? Sure. Do we have some of the similar frustrations that some of the other finest establishments encounter...absolutely. Do we sometimes miss that proverbial mark of perfection only because of our weakest link...I would be lying if I said no. Our team simply plays on a field that is really just a slightly different shade of green, and there is always another side of the fence with some of the same.

All in all however, it is a great place to be and it inspires me daily to come in and cook together, or help to run the operation as a whole and in sync collective driving force, all passionate about food and driven towards a common goal.

There are good times. There are tiresome times. There are times of focus and sincerity and times of contemplation of what could be.

Players on the team move on, and join other teams, sometimes for the better, sometimes not. Our sous chefs and chef de parties are totally some of the key players, who for most, have been with me for some time and know what my focus and drive is and what I am trying to achieve in our quest for great cooking.

They enable me to get there. There are players who have stayed a long and great while, while others have joined only to move along or get dropped off.

There is no harm in it or ill feelings toward them, it simply was not the right fit. Whether we are cooking on the line, or working on projects together, trying hard to find that next fix of a dish or concept or scrubbing down the kitchen, there always is the ever-present happiness between the brigade. They work well together.

It is an honor and extremely satisfying to experience as a chef.

I have worked in many kitchens that have a plethora of hostility and anger towards each other. Places that purposely aggravate each other or another shift, or where the cooks find humor in burning the waitstaff with morbidly hot plates. Places that can not seem to get along to save their souls. An environment that breeds vulgarity and uses tactics that intimidate others into doing what they are supposed to, rather than inspiring them, developing their passion and mentoring them.

A kitchen where sometimes at first glance, good food and cooking seem to be the farthest thing from their minds. How can one truly cook great food and focus on ingredients and be passionate about cooking if this is present? I have not a damn clue. When I was younger I fell into it, just like any other young cuisinier, and at times felt like this was the norm.

As I grew older and wiser(well a little bit anyway) I knew but of one thing...that when the time was right, when I was charged with the runnings of a kitchen, I would do it differently. It is unnecessary. It only gets in the way of things that are good.

Sure, there are times when one has to be stern and even borderline abrasive and definitely assertive, but only to make sure the point is made and that the message gets across. Looking at our team and how we work together, is a testament to that philosophy, and one that I will stand by for the rest of my days. This post is really about the team, about them, both past and present and the great things that they do for me and the club. They are truly wonderful. Keep cooking team!