Culinary Cues

MAY 16, 2022

There is a level of non-verbal communication that defies explanation – communication that keeps everyone in sync, seemingly knowing what every person in the team is doing or is about to do so that work flowed with precision and grace. He typically liked to be at work an hour or so before his shift began just to get into a rhythm.

Café 345

Café Front of House Point of Sale Back of House 345

Culinary Cues

DECEMBER 28, 2021

You earned this title through years of hard work, loads of unique experiences, trials and tribulations moving through positions from commis to prep, line cook to sous chef, and now having arrived at the helm. There is something very special about working in a professional kitchen, something that is hard to explain unless you are there.

Kitchen Safety 423

Kitchen Safety Front of House Fine Dining Seasonal Menu 423

Culinary Cues

SEPTEMBER 8, 2020

Unlike other line positions where there is a time allowance for preparation, pacing of courses, and the detail work that equates to a meticulously aligned plate presentation – the breakfast cook must be efficient and fast. Mise en place has never been more important! When the order is placed the cooking is almost instantaneous. .

Back of House 518

Back of House Dine-in Restaurant Law Ordering 518

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 15, 2024

Good morning, Jake (my very adept breakfast cook who has been jumping and jiving on the line since well before 6), how are you doing? Through my morning work, the banter continues as I try to immerse myself in the tasks at hand and avoid jumping into the soup kettle of puns and innuendo. Okay, the football lingo has begun.

Front of House 248

Front of House Food Order Back of House Café 248

Culinary Cues

JULY 23, 2022

Over the years we have met at conferences, workshops, trade shows, a stop in for dinner at a restaurant where they worked, or during the pandemic – on zoom. If you have worked together in a kitchen, there is a special understanding. I had a call out of the blue from a former culinary student and co-worker at a four-diamond restaurant.

Employee Relations 373

Employee Relations Workshop Events Social Media 373

Culinary Cues

MAY 28, 2022

Preparing for school or work, welcoming friends, and relatives, solving challenges, celebrating the end of the day, and listening to those reflections on life that everyone needs to share – this is the role of the kitchen and the family table. In both cases, there is a high level of stress in restaurant work. Bob Ehrlich.

Front of House 319

Front of House Back of House Employee Relations Small Business 319

Culinary Cues

NOVEMBER 17, 2020

There is a long history of how kitchens and restaurants are structured. Although executed at different levels – this structure is something that all those whom work in restaurants can depend and lean on. Regardless of the restaurant type – this is a standard structure that anyone working in the business can expect and adapt to.

Seasonal Menu 517

Seasonal Menu Back of House Customer Service Front of House 517

Culinary Cues

OCTOBER 20, 2021

As a teacher, chef, cook, and initially – dishwasher, I have been witness to those with incredible natural talent, many extraordinarily intelligent individuals, and far more “Rudi” type individuals who compensated with plain old hard work and dedication. Don’t think for a minute that how to mop is an innate process – you must be taught.

Front of House 421

Front of House Uniforms Back of House Kitchen Safety 421

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 18, 2023

The reasons are usually easy to define after-the-fact: improper planning, not paying attention, stepping away from your standards, poor mise en place, lack of teamwork, or just the opposite for those experiences that result in mission accomplished or inspiration. Everything works as it should. This is how we learn.

Back of House 379

Back of House Front of House Education Café 379

Culinary Cues

APRIL 8, 2020

Am I destined to work in the same career or do I have any real skill sets that can open other doors?” First – we (all of us who have made the restaurant business our life calling) hope that you will bring your skills, passion, and commitment back to the food business and will work diligently to help make us better.

Communication 468

Communication Food Supply Customer Service Small Business 468

Culinary Cues

DECEMBER 8, 2020

Working, sore muscles sweat, aching feet – this is what gave him a sense of purpose. Alex, I really like your work ethic, the fact that I can always count on you to be here and work your hardest is incredibly valuable to me and the team. I just don’t think that you are working to the level of your ability.

Kitchen Safety 445

Kitchen Safety Take-out Training Food Safety 445

Culinary Cues

JULY 23, 2020

I have long been a fan of her style and passion for expressive cooking, but it is these three words that solidified, in my mind, how a chef should run his or her kitchen: Strength, Grace, and Dignity. How the chef approaches these instances has everything to do with whether or not there will be a change in attitude as a result.

Leadership 410

Leadership Definition Employee Relations Training 410

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 29, 2022

It always upsets me to run into a cook with a bleak attitude towards working in a kitchen. When the house is operated in the way it should, the way it was meant to be; when the property is committed to doing things right, when the standards are high and the expectations even higher, then a serious cook can find a home to celebrate.

Uniforms 427

Uniforms Café Training Operations 427

Culinary Cues

DECEMBER 3, 2022

I shout while frantically rubbing my calf trying to work out that Charlie horse pain. My focus will soon be on whether staff members show up as scheduled, will deliveries be on time and what will they short me today, how many reservations on the book, and moving through the day – one plate at a time. How’s it shaking, Julio.”

Back of House 337

Back of House Hotels Front of House Book 337

Culinary Cues

FEBRUARY 25, 2021

Full disclosure – I have drifted from these beliefs at times and have generally regretted doing so. [] RESPECT: All people are different – they bring their own set of baggage to work and to life. Respect for the place where you work, those who own and operate the business and the physical property for which you are responsible is paramount.

2021 396

2021 Point of Sale Reference Take-out 396

Culinary Cues

NOVEMBER 25, 2019

Typically, it starts off that way – old enough to work, they’re hiring, no experience required – it’s a job. I say: “If you don’t know how to cook, I’m sure you have at least one friend who knows how to cook. What is important is that at the end of the week there is some cash in your pocket, albeit – not very much.

Fine Dining 389

Fine Dining Food Order Uniforms Back of House 389

Culinary Cues

JUNE 11, 2021

It is critical that we understand what we say and how we say it can make all the difference in how those around us feel, respond, and grow. To be a leader is to learn how to control those words and those stories – to work at keeping those filters in place and give emotions a chance to settle down before we speak.

Coaching 441

Coaching Leadership Café Pricing 441

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 28, 2020

Physical work is stressful and gratifying at the same time. Sweat and aching muscles is uncomfortable, yet somehow a sign of work worth doing. Building beautiful, flavorful, aroma filled, satisfying dishes for people every night is a result of this hard work, this sweat, and these aching muscles. Stephen King. Grantland Rice.

Take-out 381

Take-out Ordering Reference POS 381

Culinary Cues

APRIL 4, 2020

We never really understand how much we depend on our routines until we are forced to break them. The answer lies in how we respond to involuntary change. The answer lies in how we respond to involuntary change. Are routines beneficial? Is there value in breaking those routines?

Leadership 355

Leadership Retail Training Take-out 355

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 12, 2021

Counts were tallied throughout the night and the chef/expeditor would keep everyone apprised as to how many guests had been served and how many registered guests remained. What was most impressive to me was the work leading up to service. Our industry recently lost a giant of the professional kitchen.

Seasonal Menu 470

Seasonal Menu 2005 Hotels Customer Service 470

Culinary Cues

NOVEMBER 8, 2019

Stress is the spice that makes it all work. Cooks are loosening up – the cadence of work is accented by the staccato of clicking tongs, and the banter of “ordering” and “yes chef”. Jake – how long on that medium well veal chop (ugh)?” Every serious cook lives by the rules of Murphy’s Law: if something can go wrong – it will.

Fine Dining 361

Fine Dining Dine-in Restaurant Law Take-out 361

Culinary Cues

JULY 6, 2020

The second principle for cooks is to always honor the dynamics of work environments. Professional cooks know how important personal tools are to anyone who stands in front of a range. Hard to argue with him – isn’t it? Strange – maybe rules are important, or, maybe they aren’t rules at all. This means that everyone is in it together.

Kitchen Safety 519

Kitchen Safety Uniforms Presentation Café 519

Culinary Cues

MAY 19, 2022

There weren’t enough o’s in smooth to describe how seamless the operation was. The 8:30 crowd, although smaller would take the restaurant up to closing time around 11:00 as the kitchen team gradually began clean-up and making notes for tomorrow’s mise en place. THANKS, from the entire crew, the crew that owes a lot to your work.”.

Seating 374

Seating Dine-in Seasonal Menu Leadership 374

Culinary Cues

JULY 12, 2020

It is an uneasy feeling that was pronounced as those cooks who were already at work – looked cautiously at their teammate, nodded, and turned their heads back to the work in front of them. They say we’re back. The kitchen lights are back on, deliveries arrive, the battery of ranges is fired up, and cooks (some of us) are welcomed back.

Front of House 403

Front of House Back of House Dine-in Food Truck 403

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 23, 2020

So, how does a cook or chef set the stage for “in the zone” experiences? These great musicians were able to float into the zone and release more than music; they were facilitators of a musical experience. These athletes were able to switch on their relationship with the zone, at will. Have you been there? Have you been there?

Seasonal Menu 334

Seasonal Menu Communication Sports Events 334

7 Shifts

NOVEMBER 12, 2020

The purpose of the onboarding process is to teach new hires how to do their jobs successfully, and to catch them up on the company's culture and procedures. Give them an overview of what they will learn and do during onboarding, and how long the process will take. Then, explain how you display these values at work.

FOH 307

FOH BOH Food Safety Customer Service 307

Culinary Cues

JANUARY 3, 2020

They have likely worked at nearly every busy restaurant in the area and are known to all. Ironically, they are usually there when they need to be, prepped and ready, and consistent in their work – so, we gladly hire them (whomever they might really be). Ah…the kitchen pirate. MYSTERIOUS UNKNOWNS. CULINARY CAREERISTS. DEPENDABLE LONERS.

Uniforms 393

Uniforms Presentation Hiring Book 393

Culinary Cues

DECEMBER 4, 2020

From the perspective of the chef who reigns in charge of the restaurant where Joe works – this young line cook is an ideal employee. After work – Joe can’t wait to trot to the closest bar where his alter-personality kicks in after the second drink. It’s 1:20 and Joe hasn’t shown up for work yet. Today, something is different.

Customer Service 435

Customer Service Café Take-out Education 435

Culinary Cues

MARCH 4, 2020

We are very fortunate – once we step away from the difficult nature of kitchen work and the demands that seem too often to be excessive, to work where we work, do what we do, and have the chance to interact with some damn interesting people. This is the core of what makes kitchen work so interesting and dynamic.

Employee Relations 307

Employee Relations Hotels Take-out Restaurant Law 307

Culinary Cues

SEPTEMBER 4, 2020

. They say that hindsight is 2020 – that being so, there is plenty for us to reflect on and determine how we might have done things differently. It is always more than “how you play the game” – every person ultimately wants to win at whatever they attempt. The fact is, we can’t go back, but we can look forward.

2020 303

2020 Back of House Front of House Food Order 303

Modern Restaurant Management

APRIL 20, 2020

In March, social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic came into effect and restaurants en masse were forced to close in order to stop the spread of the virus. Today, some relief is in sight, as the CARES Act has passed, and now professionals are working with clients to plan for the future.

Front of House 208

Front of House Back of House Reservations Seating 208

Culinary Cues

OCTOBER 16, 2019

We cook, we create, we work till we can’t work any more, we put a smile on customer’s faces and fill their stomachs, we inspire some and make others wonder which swamp we rose from – we are cooks and as such, we are different. A great deal has changed over the past ten years or so, yet many of these conditions remain.

Uniforms 322

Uniforms Equipment Small Business Customer Experience 322

Modern Restaurant Management

AUGUST 4, 2022

You never know what can happen when working in a restaurant kitchen. It was definitely high-stress at first but we worked together as a team to communicate. Back in the early 2000’s I worked at a restaurant where the head chef smoked through service. This perfectly demonstrates how the industry operated back then.

Back of House 186

Back of House Front of House Communication FOH 186

Culinary Cues

OCTOBER 8, 2019

The final plate that is presented in the “pass” to an expeditor is a culmination of the work of many proud practitioners of various crafts associated with food. There are two kinds of pride, both good and bad. ‘Good pride’ represents our dignity and self-respect. Pride runs through the organization of every professional kitchen.

Food Supply 191

Food Supply Presentation Inventory Seasonal Menu 191

Culinary Cues

OCTOBER 2, 2019

That driving drum phrasing on Steve Miller Band albums like Fly Like and Eagle, and the brush work on Van Morrison’s Moondance – was from Gary Mallaber who toured with these groups, and others for a time, but made a career as a studio – sit in. Now think about the role of these studio talents and apply the concept to successful restaurants.

Point of Sale 252

Point of Sale Fine Dining Influencer Seasonal Menu 252

Culinary Cues

AUGUST 24, 2020

Yes, there must be a significant effort placed on immediate survival (we don’t know how long “immediate” will last), but even more importantly – we must think, study, inquire, assess, innovate, and strategize on what “restaurants” will become in 6 months, a year, or longer. real change takes place.

Point of Sale 252

Point of Sale Social Media Customer Service Reservations 252

Next Restaurants

JULY 16, 2021

There’s no telling what angle works best for food. Sometimes, a flat lay or overhead shot might work to show off your entire spread, while some dishes deserve a close-up to emphasize its different layers and colors. Take photos of your mise en place (without revealing too much!) Capture Your Food in All of Its Stages.

Food 167

Food Social Media White Paper Sourcing 167