#25 - 06 February 2009 - Kitchen & other pictures...

Wine casks, above, at CIA Greystone in St. Helena, California














More wine casks @ CIA...














Sauce organization in reach-in @ TFL... Note the labels.














Everything has a "kit"...














Organization. Mise en place. Neat.














And finally - chocolate confections, "Mignardise"....

~R

#24 - 05 February 2009 - Notes #2

Un-edited notes (#2) from the kitchen @ The French Laundry…

1. Mirepoix usage: carrots, leeks and onions.
2. Mushroom stock infused with truffle peelings and steeped overnight.
3. For the Mushroom stock:
450 g coarsely chopped button mushrooms
135 g coarsely chopped carrots
90 g coarsely chopped leeks (white and light green only)
125 g coarsely chopped onions
6 g Flat-leaved parsley sprigs
60 g Canola oil
1.5 g Curry powder
1 ea. Bay leaf
1 lag. Thyme sprig
3.75 L Water

1. Finely grind separately, or pulse in a food processor (scraping down the sides of the bowl), the mushrooms, carrots, leeks, onions and parsley.
2. Heat the oil in a stockpot.
3. Add the vegetables, parsley and curry powder. Sweat for two minutes.
4. Add bay leaf, thyme and 2 L of the water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes.
5. Strain through a chinois, pressing down the solids.
6. Return the vegetables to the stockpot. Set the stock aside.
7. Add the 1.75 L water to the pot. Return to a simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes. Strain.
8. Combine the two batches of stock in a pot and return to a boil. Reduce to 650 ml.
9. Strain and cool over an ice bath.
10. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze in small batches.

4. Stations in TFL kitchen:
Canape
Fish
Meat
Vegetable
Cheese
Pastry
Baking (product is produced at Bouchon Bakery and delivered fresh daily)
Prep
Dish
The Pass
5. Egg shells, tapped with topper. With a sharp paring knife remove the egg tops. Separate egg yolks and egg whites, cryovac @ 93%. Soak egg shells in hot water with vinegar for
10 minutes. Peel out the interior egg shell lining and store the egg shell upside down in their containers.
6. Gastrique – 1 L Red Wine Vinegar and 500 g Sugar
7. Vegetables medley – Mini individual florets of Romanesco, Cauliflower and broccoli.
8. Smoked cippolini onions - “under glass”
9. Nicoise sauce – Rinse nicoise olives of brine. Blanch. Oven-dry or dehydrate and puree until absolutely smooth, no texture.
10. Fruit & vegetable coins – “tournee”.
11. Corned Beef Tongue.
12. Confit of Beef Heart shaved thin.
13. Black trumpet mushrooms – Washed in successive batches of clean water 3X. Squeeze lightly and spread on linen towel on a rack suspended over sheet pan. Air dry. Store in perforated lexans.
14. Brioche toast – Toasted on line under radiate broiler for guests.
15. Whole baby octopus sous vide for 2 ½ hrs. @ 76.9 degree C. Olive oil & salt. Let sit for one hour. Cryovac in juices and set over ice. Store.
16. Petite Sale - Braised slab bacon @ 74 degrees C for 12 hours.
17. Hazelnut gelee – 700 g hazelnuts puree with 1 L water and tighten with gelatin.
18. Sturgeon - “Confit a la minute” with thermal circulator.
19. Lobster blanching: Uncooked shelled lobster. Sealed with beurre monte sauce. Butter poach @ 59.5 degrees C (139.1 degrees F). 15 minutes (could hold it for another 10 minutes).
20. Seasoned duck breast wrapped with blanched napa cabbage or chard. Wrap in plastic to make a roulade. Poach 6 minutes.
21. Sole Veronique – with brioche and sultana raisins.
22. Milk-soaked chicken breast – Bring milk to a boil, take it off the stove. Drop chicken breast into milk. Cover. Place pot in a food warmer.
23. Sous Vide applications – Pressure, temperature and time. Must have a solid understanding of cooking techniques and methodology. Sous vide is just another tool to be chosen and used wisely. Food storage is neat (no mess), efficient and compact, cooking, vegetable and fruit color retention, slowed oxidization and food texturing (compressing). Portion wrapped foie gras for longer shelf life.
24. Sous vide custards – control variables, ideal consistency and custard is pasteurized.
25. Barigoule – Artichoke hearts cooked in stock and olive oil (@ 85.0 degrees C.) with aromatics and herbs.
26. Consistency & precision: execution from the ritual of repetition.

27. Taken from press reports on the 2009 Bocuse d’Or - French Laundry Sous Chef Timothy Hollingsworth placed 6th place out of 25 international contestants @ 2009 Bocuse d’Or. USA was one of twenty-four teams from around the world; each presenting one fish and beef dish, in elaborate platters and individually plated portions.
Competition medals were awarded to Norway for first, Sweden for second, France for third. Denmark ranked fourth, followed by Switzerland ranking fifth.
"I am thrilled to have been able to represent the United States at the Bocuse d'Or," said Timothy Hollingsworth. "It has been a truly amazing experience on the ground in Lyon. All that I've learned working with Team USA has been invaluable, with so many people having contributed to the achievements our country has made here. Competing amongst these great chefs today has been truly an honor."
Bocuse d'Or USA was created as a non-profit organization, to recruit, train and support the American team. Chefs Daniel Boulud, Thomas Keller, Jerome Bocuse and several other leading chefs developed the organization.
"We are truly proud of our two talented chefs," said Daniel Boulud, Chairman, Bocuse d'Or USA. "The strides we have made are a significant accomplishment for the American culinary industry, as well as an amazing personal achievement for Timothy and Adina."
Hollingsworth's menu presented in Lyon included Olive Oil Poached Loin of Norwegian Cod and Roasted Aberdeen Angus Beef Rib-Eye.
Timothy Hollingsworth and Adina Guest won the honor to represent Team USA at the Bocuse d'Or USA in October 2008. Hollingsworth competed against seven chef teams from around the nation in the two-day competition, held before a panel of judges including Michel Bouit, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Traci des Jardin.
Hollingsworth was awarded a three-month paid sabbatical to train at a specially constructed training center in Yountville, California, mentored by Team USA Coach and Master Chef Roland Henin.

28. Sous Vide Beef Tendons – for stocks
29. Risotto with sous vide oxtails.
30. Bananas are frozen, cut or balled and sous vide with sherbet ingredients, sealed and cooked.
31. Compressed food – ham and mackerel. Chicken thighs and chicken farce.
32. Musquee de provence melon (not muscat de provence as in an earlier note).
33. TFL 1999 - $95.00. TFM 2009 - $240.00.
34. Foie gras with brioche toast, poached pear, fig and truffle.
35. Marinate 500 g foie gras with 9 g of salt, 1 g sugar and 1g white pepper. 24 hours. Poach. Let sit for one day.
36. Foie terrine: marinate foie scraps. Roll in cheesecloth. Poach 90 sec. push through tamis. Pipe into terrine. Glacage.
37. The importance of staff meal…
38. Blanching – 1 C. kosher salt to 1 gallon water.
39. Fish – “Cradle it like a child…”
40. Rue – not often used in kitchen. Blueish-gray shrub. Floral with nutty undertones.
41. Wedge-cut Anjou or asian pears.
42. Degustation de pommes.
43. Jasmine rice sherbet.

Have agreat day!

~R

#23 - 04 February 2009 - "Ten Years later..."

I've just spent my "weekend" at Bodega Bay - the fog-drenched sun over the Pacific, the hard-pan beach giving way to soft sand and wind-blown grasses, the clamoring of sea gulls taunting the land-dwellers as they skate along air currents high above the surf... Oh, and golf. You see, there has to be golf to make this experience truly real for me. I'm so weak....

Moving on.

The recipe for the success of The French Laundry was born from a life of dedication, foibles, gratitude, skyrocketing success and humility. Thomas Keller was born the year that the greatest of the French chefs, Fernand Point, died. 1955. From these lives has come the "Pursuit of Perfection". It is a process of "Inspiration - Consistency – Precision of Execution – Repetition - Ritual". Not a direct quote but a summation of what I have read, observed and felt while spending time in this incredible environment. The sense of dedication is overwhelming and, although I've thought this to be a little trite, life-altering.

Yes, indeed this is the experience of a lifetime (as Donna from Loveland stated). It won't be enough. There is so much more. I would still like to spend time with Heston Blumenthal at The Fat Duck in England (one of the other stages that I was accepted in to) - as well with Jacques Pepin and Andre Soltner and M. Point himself! Perhaps in another etheral kitchen where the gas will always be "on" and they'll be a never-ending supply of foie gras, Chateau Haut-Brion and spaghetti & meatballs...

In reality this is a lifetime of experiences in two months…everything is so familiar to what I've tried to accomplish in my kitchens - yet at TFL it is so detailed and just...perfect. In fact, just attempting to live up to the expectations is daunting, nervous, frustrating and in a daily quest of perfection - exhausting. What I spend my time thinking and pondering on, is how best to utilize this opportunity. What causes this place to be so good? I do have the answer to that. It is a declaration and a blueprint of success that I'll implement everywhere I land. In my plans for 12Seasons, at Assignments Restaurant, at Team Buildings, with the students and faculty at The Art Institute and with my clients at The French Manner… More on that in another blog.

In 1999 TFL Cookbook appeared on shelves and shook up my culinary world. I was introduced to it by Brad Watson, a chef associate. Now, ten years in the making I see great differences from TFL of '99 versus the observations I've made in '09. When I visited TFL on 29 September 1999 the same Chef’s Tasting menu (which I still have and revere its existance) was listed at $95.00 per person, with services included. It is, in 2009, two and one-half times more expensive (at $240.00 per person) with services included, of course. So, what is the difference? Appearances matter. The food is much more polished, refined and exacting. There has been a decade-long journey; "Inspiration - Consistency – Precision of Execution – Repetition - Ritual". The difference between pictures of particular items in the cookbook of 1999 to the real plated menu items in 2009 is astounding. It is as if the food has grown up and become more regal, having ascended to a throne of culinary magnificat! The eggshells are much more precise. The brunoise is more perfect than ever (an on-going effort for this apprentice). The pluches of herbs are perfect. The introduction of Sous Vide technology has changed the color landscape of dishes to impart a palette of uncanny brillance. You have to see it in person to appreciate the clarity of spectrums...

Finally, for this entry, I share with you the wisdom of "P.S." who has opened the doors to the home I am staying at and just this evening imparted a direct-hit on the magnitude of this "life-changing" experience. It was said, "It’s like a baseball wanna-be wishing they could be on the field at Yankee Stadium, or a violinist to be in the orchestra with Leonard Bernstein at the Lincoln Center or an actor living their dream on stage with the cast of The Phantom of the Opera….that’s what it is like to be at TFL. It’s about being there, the place of your dreams, its the top of the heap. You’ve aspired to be with one of your heroes – and you made it there". Thanks P.S. - I am indebted to you...

This experience has thusly reiterated and reinforced everything I have believed to be true about our business, myself - and certainly what I knew about TFL. Seeing the food production, the culinary concepts and strategic processes in action has created a different set of professional emotions that I was not expecting. One still has to move fast, yet work slowly. Having to produce at that level can be, and often is, daunting. I’ve seen the difference in the product of 2009 and the photographs of the food in 1999. TFL has grown up and become much more fine and sophisticated. Isn't that our goal, as cooks, in life as well...? Peace.

~R

#22 - 03 February 2009 - Kitchen Images

Thomas Keller quote.














Veal stock & Remouillage.














Brass stars over the Bonnet stoves.














12-hours Sous Vide slab bacon @ 68.8 degrees C.














The Sense of Urgency sign...














Copper...














Copper...



















The Pastry Station














Pastry Mise en Place














3 Michelin Stars














Jars of spices














Jars of Spices, Salt & Peppercorns














The large sign over the entranceway into the wine storage, silver storage and then into the lower level dining area. It reads, in full, as the definition of finesse; "Refinement and delicacy of performance, execution or artisanship".














More copper














Food photographs are in the plan...patience... Peace.

~R

#21 - 02 February 2009 - "The Blue Apron"

“The Blue Apron”.

In America, like the Red Sox "B" on a ball cap or the Nike "Swoosh" or now the omnipotent “Terrible Towel” of Steeler-Nation, “The Blue Apron” of The French Laundry is a symbol. The symbol is a study in humility. An underlying river of opportunity for those who are good enough and humble enough to don it and to continually exercise the teachings and perfection of Thomas Keller. All cooks and chefs wear “The Blue Apron” during their work day while prepping and doing the detail work necessary for the tasting menu service. Chef and Sous Chef will, during service, wear traditional white chef bistro aprons – leaving behind their status as learners and becoming the teachers and driving forces of the cuisine.

Cooks at TFL are students first and students always. “Raimundo”, a contributing blogger to this cook’s diary wrote that, “in Zen, the secret of the arts is to always be a beginner”. This was fully evident over the course of the past few days in the kitchen of TFL. Executive Sous Chef Devin Knell made continual forays into what “the standards of TFL are and how important that is to the fabric of what TFL is and what TFL represents”. To me, it was literally spine-tingling narrative (of course I wrote it down, only after looking to the extern, “Neils”, standing next to me who immediately said – “blog it”).

“The Blue Apron” is about standards.

From a letter from Thomas A. Keller to the stagier program participants - "We are a group of individuals committed to the common goal of creating fond memories for our guests and ourselves, elevatings the standards and expectations of the restaurant industry and developing a secure and ideal work environment. To acheive those goals we must all work at them tirelessly, fearlessly and with TFL values deeply imbued in our core". Maintaining the parameters of the standards that have been set by those who have come before you and teaching those standards to those that come after you is what I see at every turn in this kitchen. One must be patient enough to teach and humble enough to learn. Work clean. Work efficiently. Work smart. Concentrate. Own the moment. Stay attentive. At TFL, the staff polices the staff in all elements of food storage, production, personal appearance and culinary theology. One must continually be a student of the culinary arts and at the same time produce incredibly good cuisine while passing those techniques and methods along to other cooks. Now, just saying that an establishment, or any business for that matter, has standards does not proclaim the depth of practicing it’s mantra as I see at 6640 Washington Street in Yountville. The kitchen, dining, wine and office staffs - from its inception by the Chef/Patron (as homage to time-honored practices in Europe) - have bought into the concept of what TFL standards are, and what they will eventually mean to the guest.

“The Blue Apron” is all about the guest.

This is all for the guests of TFL. The effort, the passion, the physical aches and pains (o.k., that one was about me…six Ibuprofen a day, still) and the quest towards “the pursuit of perfection” is all meant to give the guest an experience. Look beyond the silver service ware, the beautiful plates and the small food portions within an extended tasting menu and one could see the effort put forth by as many as 24 cooks and chefs in the kitchen during a work day. Details matter. The Blue Apron is indeed a symbol to be earned, appreciated and worn with pride – only if its wearer buys in to the standards.

For students and professionals alike, the mythical “Blue Apron” could be manifested in your own standards. The toque. The bistro apron. The necktie. The Red Sox “B”. Whatever it may be that is your identifying feature as a practitioner of your art – respect it, maintain HIGH standards and hire the best employees who will buy in to the expectations of your vision. May “The Blue Apron” be with you, always... Peace.

~R

#20 - 01 February 2009 - My Notes

So, I've finally compiled my notes of the last two weeks and they appear here in an unedited form. I'll be writing my future blogs from these tidbits and morsels. They make sense to me... Major work on pictures and content by Tuesday as I am off all day. So, I'll be sitting in the California sun composing my novel about "My Time in Napa". Peace

~R

P.S.
My heart goes out to all the friends, loved ones and people that John "Louisville Jesus" Breaux touched, and brought a sense of peace, to. May he be remembered and his life lived not in vain.

1. “The Need To Feed” topics:
· TFL is not just a fine restaurant – it is a business that stretches the realm of teamwork and standards. It is a model for business and a training ground for life. Write about The French Laundry as a model for business.
· Empowering people. Enabling people. The pursuit of excellence.
· The French Laundry standard from Chef Devon.. “What makes a good cook? Adapting to your food by noting touch & feel and the condition of the product. That is what helps to develop your skills.”
· Standards. It is Thomas Keller. But the torch is passed every day. The recipe for success: Standards, Teaching, Speed, “The Sense of Urgency”, Critique, Training, Praise, Pushing the Envelope, Well-oiled machine, the employee “buy-in”…
· It looks like small food and multiple courses in the tasting – but it is really the level of care directed towards everything that the guest sees, tastes, touches and smells…
· Professional appearance at all times.
· The Brigade. Chef Patron to Commis and then to stagier.
· Communication. Sharing knowledge. The staff keeping the staff on point.
· Hire intelligent people.
· Check the ego at the door…
· Recuperation
· The Blue Apron
· This One’s for John
· Clean with Enthusiasm
· Own the moment
· Sense of Urgency
2. Food ideas:
· VitPris – For marmalades (dextrose, gelifant, pectin, acidifant, acide citrique)
· Sous Vide Slab Bacon for 12 hours @ 74.0 degrees C.
· Pear or Asian Pear Supremes – Wedges cut into pears exactly the same.
· Kampachi Tuna – Trimmed and squared off in long bricks. Sliced to order at the pass.
· Spinach – Pick and clean (no stem) baby spinach. Add (by weight) 15% Canola Oil and 1% Kosher Salt. Mix well and then cryovac until firmly compressed and dark green. Reserve until needed.
· Calotte
· Confit Potato/Turnip/Carrot Coins – Coins cut from ¼” vegetable discs and pared. Cooked in duck fat (potatoes) or Clarified butter (other).
· Tomato Compote – Quenelles as component on plate.
· Tomato Marmalade – Hache and cook with with VitaPris, sugar and water. Cook to marmalade.
· Pain Perdue with Cheese Course
· Lobster Tails served whole, poached and finished in Sous Vide Beurre Monte @ 59.5 degrees C.
· Cippolini Onions – Peeled, first layer only, cryovac.
· Egg Shells – Cambro of ½ HOT water and 1” white vinegar for soaking shells (for 10 minutes) to remove egg lining.
· Pearl Onions – Soak in hot water, peeled, even sized, cryovac.
· Foie Gras – Deveined and pass through tamis, load in terrine and glacage with duck fat or sun choke puree with gelatin.
· Andante Dairy
· Diane St. Clair Butter
· Keith Martin lamb
· Black Trumpet Mushrooms, washed three times and squeezed dry, dry on towels over rack suspended by deli containers.
· Brunoise – Turnips and carrots poached to count of 5, add green leeks and shock. Dry on towels on rack. Deli container with c-fold towel.
· Pluches of: Mizuna, Wild Arugula, Watercress, Frisee
· Brunoise of: Tarragon, Cornichons
· Truffles: Brush/wash, pick for dirt, peel (retain trimmings) poach, and cryovac.
· Peeled Grapes and Apple Brunoise – 1 deli of ½ simple syrup and ½ water and 3g Ascorbic Acid.
· Red Pepper Juice
· Red Beet Juice
· Parisienne: Muscat de Provence melon, apples, carrots, etc.
· Crones
· Truffle Coins
· Garlic confit – blanch garlic 5 times. Then poach in clarified butter until really soft
· Potato Chips with Chives – Baked between sheet pan and silpats. Trimmed as necessary. Other option is to produce herbed disc chips.
· Pommes Maxim – Slice yellow potatoes and cut into rounds. 10 rounds per Pommes Maxim. Blanch rounds and shock. Drain and dry on towels. Add minimal cornstarch and clarified butter. Assemble maxims and rub with clarified butter. Sauté to order with kosher salt and white pepper.
· Butter Rounds – 36 g each, formed in cheesecloth as ovals and hardened in ice water. Served room temperature with bread.
· Poularde brine – 1500g kosher salt to 15 L water. 13 breasts for 2 hours.
· Foie Gras Terrine
· Salmon Tuile Paper Cornets – Triangle napkin folded in half around cornet mold. Retain the paper very taught. Roll left side tight on mold. Roll right side over left. Fold down wings and use tuile rack to hold.
· Parsnip Agnolotti – individual self-sealed pastas.
· Petite Rabbit Loin with frenched bones
· TFL Garden and Green House utilizing seeds and “farm to table” concept.
· Beurre Monte kept in immersion circulator @ 59.5 degrees C.
· Fried Corn Balls – Corn milk (or corn flour) with Asiago and gelatin, loaded into 1/3 pans and chilled. Scoop with parisienne, coat with nutted milk batter and ground panko. Fry to order.
· Ice Cream and Sorbet Quenelles – Temper frozen product, utilize hot water bath for magic spoon and warm quenelle by rubbing in palm of hand.
· Wagyu Fat – Place ground fat in rondeau and cover cold fat with water. Render until impurities coagulate and strain. Chill.
· Date Balls – Hot water on dates for one minute. Peel. Split and remove seeds. Remove white pith. Weigh out 0.6 g in strips. Roll into balls and store in light oil.
· Profiteroles – Filled with pastry Cream, topped with caramel and rolled in ground candy violets.
· Sun choke Tourne – Mini-pared sun chokes in almond milk, dredged in ground panko with herbs and pan-fried.
· Mignardise – Served on Silver trays @ TFL. Serve on white platter @ Ai along with pots de crème of Truffles - with the check…
3. Organizational ideas:
· Deli containers - Used for mise en place, washed and re-used.
· C-Fold paper towels – For passing food during service and for filling deli containers.
· Blue Painter’s Tape – For all labeling, in black marker.
· Scissors – Cutting tape.
· Tape – Taped to wall, written on and then cut (straight lines).
4. Kitchen:
· All work station spots utilize parchment paper down to control mess and stay organized.
· Shaved Iberico ham (cryovac) served over Agnolotti
· Lots of little timers used all around the kitchen – “precision cooking”.
· Rolls of wet cloth for wiping plates at the pass.
· Classic sauce pans with lids and handle..!
· The stoves and ovens are “Bonnet”.
· Well-designed kitchen spaces with self-contained work stations.
· The Pass – Use wooden butcher block.
· Service areas – Linen taped to benches by FOH.
· Mimi hand-held burr mixer @ The Pass.
· Trivets on linen @ The Pass to protect the linen.
· Call out “dish” or “dry store”…
· Air dry to cool plates.
· Food kits of cambros with tops and labeled – for all food products.
· Food is hand-carried to tables.
· Wicker baskets for citrus, garlic and onion to air…
· Detail all equipment on weekly schedule.
· Daily cleaning jobs A.M. and P.M.
· Prep lists from evening meeting with chef and staff – orders placed in P.M. for next day. Prep lists posted for chefs de partie and commis.
· Potatoes kept open to the air in baskets/bins with holes in them.
· Chef’s equipment stored in dry storage and/or locked in janitor’s room and/or locked in cages.
Equipment - Juicer
Molecular kit
White Service Ware
Pullman bread pans
Griddle
All equipment from storage
· Cleaning solutions – Windex for Stainless steel, yellow cleaning solution for walls, and hot soapy water with 3M pad for top of stainless benches (then BUFF).
· Soak Immersion Circulator in soap solution and clean with pads…
· Magic spoons at all stations with tasting spoons as well…
· ½ sheets with paper c-folds for passing food to The Pass.
· Finish foods at The Pass with nice pepper mill and Fleur de Sel.
· Last thing at night should be sharpening knives, icing fish and other product and cryovacing product.
· Chef’s meeting with snacks produced by chef de parties…
5. Recipes:
· Vegetable Stock
Mirepoix
Mushrooms
Tomato
Garlic
Turnips
Steep and strain.
· Pasta
2 whole Eggs
20 ea. Egg yolks
1 K Double O Flour
1/3 C. Milk
2 T. Olive Oil
· Gnocchi
Russet potatoes, pierced, cooked covered with salt. Split potatoes and scoop out pulp. Rice onto wooden board. Add egg and flour until just incorporated. Roll on rack and poached until just set.
· Tomato Compote
5500 g Canned San Marzano Tomatoes
250 g Red Onion
475 g Shallot
1 L Cabernet Sauvignon Wine Vinegar
500 g Sugar
1 deli Tomato Water (plus more as needed for cooking)
Pinch Kosher salt
Clean tomatoes under running water; no seeds, skin or stem. Drain and reserve tomato water. Hache red onion and shallot. Cook with tomato water until no bite. Add sugar until dissolved. Add RWV. Cook down until a sec. Add tomatoes and pinch of salt, cook a sec. Cool completely. Hache until absolutely smooth. Pack in deli containers.
6. Other food ideas/concepts:
· Casa Botin, Spain – Suckling Pig (7#, 1 month), Baby Eels in Hot Garlic Oil, Serrano ham “of the sierra” considered to be a lesser ham, Iberico (Patanagra – raised on Acorns and Hazelnuts) starts @ $80.00/#.
· Sausages – Braised in Red Wine and stock reduction

#19 - 31 January 2009 - "That'll do Pig."

Tomorrow is a picture taking day at The French Laundry, so I'll have some shots for y'all... In the meantime enjoy my friend!

~R