Thomas Keller, Please and Thank You.

I really enjoyed this book I just finished, “The Soul of a Chef”, written by Michael Ruhlman.  Pardon the goobers with documentation, can’t find my MLA book.  I work very hard and think about a lot of things, a bigger picture most of the time, and this next paragraph from the book from a conversation between Thomas and Michael really resonated with me.  

”  ” You can tell those people who are naturally in tune with what’s going on, with what they’re doing.  How they treat equipment, how they treat products, how dirty they get during the course of an evening.  All those elements.  Do you really care about everything that’s going on around you, do you really care about everything?  Or just the finished plate?  Because it doesn’t begin with the plate.  It begins when you wake up.  It’s got to be a philosophy.  You have to be determined, determined to do it every day.  If you’re going to have a clean plate, you’ve got to heave a clean oil bottle.”  ”  Thomas Keller to Michael.

I feel the same way.  And while my hours of service on bar or training are not as long as some of these chefs I definitely make an effort to be as efficient as comfortably as possible.  That efficiency includes cleanliness, speed, quality and an ear for mistakes, miscommunications and other possible changes.

I have been wondering what is next for me.  Should I move towards my own shop?  How do I know when I am ready to take on such a huge project?  I still want to go to school, which is getting pushed back till at least next spring because my transcripts got held up.  I want to travel and going to France and London this June will be a good way to test to water for that.  I am interested in food.  I am interested in motherhood.  I am interested in butchering, knitting and working hard.  

I think that it is really important to take care of yourself, your friends and pretty much anyone you meet.  Folks come through for you in really interesting ways when you least expect it.  I think that it is important to keep your intention in mind when you are doing just about everything.  Something that I have found troubling though is how do you maintain an intense focus on your passion, your work while also maintaining personal relationships?  Most of the time I feel very focused when I am with loved ones.  I feel focused when I am work.  I think about work when I am not there.  I think about where I want to go, I day dream and I stress about losing focus on one thing or another because my gaze is so strong elsewhere.  What do you think about that?  

Have to run.  

Can’t wait to visit London and France!

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