Friday, February 20, 2009

#38 - 20 February 2009 - "The Need to Feed"

Great dining experience! Cool menu, wicked wines (California selections - I'll send those along in the future), a gracious and wonderful host, and fun dinner guests.

I started cooking yesterday at 10:00 a.m. (after shopping for 1 1/2 hours...) and finished serving the last course (#6) at 11:00 p.m. Cleaned and washed dishes until 12:30 and then stayed up (to get back on my work/sleep schedule) until 1:30-ish. Just finished the final clean-up (the stove, the oven, the kitchen island, etc...) and need to get ready for my stage.

Now, a lot of effort goes into a private home-dinner event for clients. I've successfully cooked hundreds of events over the course of my life and the most satisfying one's are the dinners where the food shines and my guests have the opportunity to sit and talk in a comfortable home with their chef about the food and wine. It gives the diners an opportunity to say thanks and have a discourse about the meal they are digesting. I love that interplay between chef and grateful guest.

My "Need to Feed" stems from showing off my abilities and love for the "soul" of a great cuisine. We, as chefs, affect people viscerally, soulfully and spiritually. A part of me is in everything. The theatre of the event is part of my personal joy. Yes, there is ego involved. I'm very confident in my abilities and I strive to make my clients and guests absolutely satisfied.

If you are a culinarian or an avid food lover - I pose the question, again. What is your "Need to Feed"...? You know where to find me. Peace.

~R