Are You Having Fun? Plus, A New "Restaurant Game" and Gifting to Restaurant Staff
6.2022 Edition
What's up Reader?
I want to talk more about experimentation this week.
Instead of sharing an experiment for the week, I'm going a bit meta to talk about a concept I heard this week that was too good not to share 👇
On a recent interview, Cal Newport described a finding he came across during his “Digital Minimalism” experiment.
He found that people who try to quit scrolling social media “cold turkey” or adopt cheap tactics like “turning their phone greyscale” in an attempt to brute-force their way into a habit fail at a miserable rate.
The successful ones are the folks that decided: I have this semi-related secondary goal that I have for myself, and I’m going to use technology to help me progress towards that goal.
The example he gives is the artist who says: “I’m going to build my brand as an artist. So to get inspired, I’ll follow 10 artists that I respect, and slowly look through their feed for 1 hour every Friday night with a glass of wine. And that’s the ONLY time I use Instagram. The rest of the time, I have to make stuff.”
This runs in parallel to another quip I read a few months back: the one who is having fun, usually prevails.
The question, for you, this week might be: how can I align something in my life that I find “hard to stick to” with a deeper intrinsic goal that you have for yourself?
Brute-force can be incredibly effective...but we’re only human 😉
Highlights from the week to share 💥
To Read 📚
How To Book a Table at Alchemist - Tips for Snagging Hard Reservations - Because of its food, spectacular setting and interactive performances, Chef Rasmus Munk’s Alchemist is one of the hottest restaurants in the world and a tough table to snag. Friends of the show, Anders and Kaitlin explain in detail how to book a table at this two Michelin-starred restaurant (don't worry, this is just as valuable even if you aren't in Scandinavia!)
Restaurants are playing in a new game - The restaurant game has changed because of customer obsession. As a result, online food delivery plays much bigger role in this game than ever before. For restaurant owners, it is important to figure out how to make delivery work for their businesses. George Jacobs talks about this new game, its principles, and how to play it right.
To Binge 📺
Coffee Explained - James Hoffmann has been working in coffee since 2003. He won the World Barista Championship in 2007 and is one of the most followed people in caffeine. James created this playlist explaining all things coffee, and I gave him a shoutout on Twitter this week because he has a great tip for avoiding static when grinding coffee beans in a burr grinder: spritz them with water first.
The Dry Pasta Series - Alex French Guy started a new series fully dedicated to pasta-making and all the steps that are involved in making dry pasta at home...it really makes me want to buy an extruder 👀
To Peep 👀
Having Two Separate Promotion Tracks Within a Company - Tiago digs into a fascinating concept here. If this existed for chefs, I'd still be working the line, because it's my favorite job I've ever had. Effectively, he shares one path for Individual Contributors & another for People Managers, with equivalent pay, benefits, & seniority at each level, allowing ppl to advance w/out becoming managers. Is anyone building something like this that comes to mind in food? I'd love to speak with them on the podcast!
What does it mean to be a Chef? - Friend of the show, Chris Spear, asked me this question last week and I did the first ever public expansion on my “Cook vs Chef” idea - what do you think?
January 21st 2022
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ICYMI
The Unspoken Rules of Gifting to Restaurant Staff - Don't forget to respond with your favorite things to receive from guests if you work in the industry!! Happy to be back with you to answer the most popular question I get when I post a new This Place Called video here on the channel. So if you're about to head to a restaurant and you need shopping recommendations, scroll down, check that out, Thanks for treating the staff, I hope you enjoy your meal!
Quote I'm Pondering 🤔
Thanks for reading,
👊Justin
Surprise Throwback: Raan Jay Fai in Bangkok - How Was It? - This week’s surprise throwback is a video from the “This Place Called” playlist. This place comes with tons of hype from some Chef's Table fame, focus on Thai ingredients, controversial prices, above-average levels of stellar seafood, and the single, constantly blaring wok burner that the goggled up chef uses, catapulted Jay Fai into being the first Michelin starred street food stall when the guide launched in Bangkok in 2018.
