Critic Turned Cook Makes/Doesn't Break Mayo
Critic Turned Cook follows former Seattle Post-Intelligencer food critic Leslie Kelly on her journey away from the keyboard and into the kitchen as she trains at various Tom Douglas restaurants. Take it away, Leslie!
The signature Sea Bar sampler includes a rotating selection, including kimchi-topped Dungeness crab. Photograph courtesy of Tom Douglas restaurants
"Don't break it," one of the cooks at Dahlia Lounge warned as she handed me a pitcher of oil to pour into the Robot Coupe, after she asked me to finish a batch of Russian dressing.
I started to sweat, struggling to keep the stream steady so the yolks wouldn't separate from the oil. "You should be able to hear when it's done," she said.
There are a million details that are second nature to most cooks, but because I was so green, I asked endless (obvious) questions.
"What's it supposed to sound like when it's done?" I wondered.
While there's no such thing as a stupid question, there's really not a great time to ask when everybody in the kitchen is focused on prepping, getting ready for service with the kind of swift efficiency of a ballroom dancer.
Later that shift, after I had successfully made the spicy dressing, I got another emulsion project. The chef asked me to make remoulade for a prawn appetizer to be served at a private party. He gave me creative license to do my own thing, so I pulled a recipe from memory, based on a New Orleans–inspired rendition from a Tom Fitzmorris cookbook I adore. A mayo-based version I beefed up with shallots and capers.
When it came time to serve the prawn cocktail, I gave the server a description of the sauce. After I reeled off the ingredients, she asked: "Can't I just tell them it's tartar sauce?"
OK, if that makes it easier to swallow.
Somebody in that private party later made the strangest special request I've ever heard: "He wants a salad, hold the lettuce." Which, naturally, sparked a saucy discussion about the crazy special requests diners make. Allergies are one thing, but uber-picky people should not bother going out to eat was the general consensus, but far from the company line, which is to accommodate any reasonable request.
I wouldn't change a thing about the food I watched being plated, especially from the Sea Bar. I convinced the sous chef to show me where he ferments his killer kimchi that goes on top of Dungeness crab. I could eat that dish all day long. But I'm certain there have been customers who've asked for the kitchen to hold the kimchi.
What do you think? Is the customer always right? Or does the chef know best?
About the author: Leslie Kelly is a Seattle-based freelance food writer whose work has appeared in the (now defunct) Seattle Post-Intelligencer, The Commercial Appeal in Memphis, and The Spokesman-Review. She's currently working in the kitchens of Tom Douglas restaurants and blogging at Whining & Dining.
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10 Comments:
I'm of the opinion that unless some sort of allergy prevents me from having a part of a dish, leave it as it is and let the chef do his thing. The most I would probably do would be to ask for a salad dressing on the side or request my meat a certain level of done-ness.
pastry262 at 3:20PM on 05/07/09
I can't stand raw tomatoes, so I have no issue asking for them to be left off a sandwich or burger, or something simple like that. But I'd never order something tomato-centric and ask them to hold the tomatoes. Ditto mushrooms (like the flavor, LOATHE the texture) - I'll eat around them. If I can't eat around them, I order something else.
trillian42 at 3:37PM on 05/07/09
Actually, as long as the chef knows his (or her) thing, the salad dressing on the side (dressing a salad can be an art) and the temperature to which meat is cooked are the sorts of things I wish people would stop asking for special consideration on.
If someone has an aversion (allergic or otherwise) to a particular ingredient, let the server know. A substitution/alternative should be offered, if possible. Saying, "Item X looks wonderful, but I can't eat Y. Is there any way that can be accommodated?" should work. Seriously, if I have a weird psychological block against a particular ingredient due to childhood trauma (for example), but a dish with that ingredient looks otherwise perfect, is it weird to ask if it would be possible to have that dish made without that ingredient?
kitchenhacker at 3:40PM on 05/07/09
In my experience/observation, it usually seems to be a control issue combined with a personality that failed to mature at the heart of a truly picky eater. I am well aware that this is only my opinion. However, the way I intepret that business rule is, the customer should be always be made to FEEL like they are right, though they are most often in error, technically. Just bite your tongue and smile, within reason, of course.
PommeDG at 3:46PM on 05/07/09
Lol as an avid reader of www.notalwaysright.com you can guess what camp I'm in :P The chef knows best, with an exception for my love of cheese, in which case I might ask for extra.
Chocolatesa at 4:10PM on 05/07/09
i'm on the fence. i'm generally not a fan of altering anything that would alter the chef's vision for the dish because dressing a salad can certainly make a difference in taste, texture, balance, etc. dressing is indeed an important component that requires thought. as for meat, i have to side with the diner for the mere fact that plenty of people enjoy well done meat without a hint of pink or blood.
mikeismora at 5:02PM on 05/07/09
For me, it depends on the level of restaurant.
If it is a great, expensive restaurant like Eleven (Pittsburgh, PA), I leave nearly everything up to the chef unless the server asks for a meat temperature or something. These are typically my best restauranting experiences, because the chefs know what they are doing and know how to make food taste perfect.
If I'm at TGIFridays or Longhorn steakhouse? I make the decisions according to what I know will taste good and leave me satisfied, because 9 times out of 10, their chefs are not nearly up to par and will make a decision that leaves the meal undesirable.
BrieCS at 10:01AM on 05/08/09
I'll eat everything. I dont care.
seikel at 12:14PM on 05/08/09
I have to say the customer is always right, even if he's an idiot.
Not EVERYONE goes to a restaurant to experience the chef's genius. (personally, i do. i think i have things to learn about food pairings, execution, etc). Plenty of people go just for the atmosphere and to have someone else cook for them/dote on them. In that case, they may not care about the chef's vision, they just want a well-done steak with some salad-hold-the-lettuce on the side. So be it. As long as those people don't become a burden on the restaurant (ordering off menu, for example), making simple substitutions/exclusions shouldnt' be a big deal. The restaurant is, after all, making these dishes to order, so leaving something out is that hard.
Although i do like to go out to eat to see what creations various chefs have come up with, i get a little miffed when chefs get all holier than thou and refuse all special requests. Customers are still paying good money for you to make them food -- its not up to the chef to choose his customers.
And in conclusion, if i went to the restaurant in this column, i would ask for the crab sans-kimchi, because a) i don't like spicy things b) kimchi smells awful, and c) as far as i'm concerned, this is an awful pairing, where the kimchi would completely overwhelm the crab. I'm not saying that the kimchi isn't amazing, but what a complete waste of delicate shellfish...
mh330 at 12:54PM on 05/08/09
Not Always Right.
Was the salad a lettuce based salad or did it have other greens? Why order salad if you don't like lettuce? Maybe you should have sent him a bowl of croutons or something.
wunami at 3:42PM on 05/08/09