20.2022 Edition

Hey Reader,

You might’ve heard the mini-episode that Chris Spear shared recently when he asked his community: What does it mean to be a chef?

I took some time to record a response for him, and I wanted to share it in written form here, in case it helps one of you get a different perspective 👇

In my mind, being a chef means that you work with food in in a professional capacity. I think the words chef and food are, in some way, tied together in some foundational sense. For this argument, let’s keep them together.

And that sweeping “generalization” has gotten me into trouble in the past, because you get those folks that comment, “Okay Justin, so if I work at McDonald’s, I can call myself a chef?”

And so I’ve "updated" my way to look at this, and I’m sharing it here with you, and for all the Chefs without Restaurants podcast listeners for the first time.

Chase Jarvis has this great quote where he says: “If you want to become the noun, you need to do the verb.” So we cook.

Cooking is the verb. If you do that verb a lot, even in a professional capacity, you cook. You could be called a cook.

However there’s another industry where this overlaps, and it’s with writing. If you wanna become a writer, you need to write. But what happens when you want to get a book deal, or start public speaking, or consult for companies? You start calling yourself an author.

There are blog authors, book authors, research paper authors. They have an esteem to them because they hope to leverage that title to reach for greater opportunities. But it comes with a sense of responsibility. Same verb, different noun.

And so to bring it back to us, that’s what I believe it means to be a chef. To continue to do the verb that is cooking, but to layer responsibility on top of it.

A responsibility to your team, to your audience, to your purveyors, to your guests, and to yourself. A responsibility that that McDonald’s employee might not have any use for or desire to shoulder.

And that’s okay.

Because a lot of my original thesis holds up here. If you want clients that will pay you 2-3x your current rates...they want a chef.

If you want to apply for that leadership position at that restaurant group...they don’t wanna hear that you think that you’re “just a cook”.

If you’ve got goals to get a TV or Cookbook deal...the people producing those shows wanna give that spot to (and want to work with) a chef.

And it’s on us to be responsible stewards of that title, and continue to make it possible for more folks to be excited about taking on that responsibility.

What do you folks think? Shoot me a reply to this email, I read every single one.

Highlights from the week to share 💥

How I Got My Job: Becoming a TikTok Star After Being a Line Cook - Pandemic forced restaurants to close their doors. Like many other restaurant workers, Chef Brandon Skier found himself out of work. He used to work as a line cook in Los Angeles and had zero "tech" skills, but a decade of restaurant experience. To pass time during COVID, he created an account on TikTok and started posting cooking videos.

“Hey, I’m a cook. If I started posting food videos, would anybody be interested in watching?” - this was his first viral video, which got over a million views in a day.

Brandon’s account @sad_papi took off, and now nearly two years later he has over 1.9 million followers, partnered with brands like Hedley & Bennett, East Fork, and Made In, and does social media full time.

In this interview, Brandon talks about working as a cook, changing career fields, getting into the culinary industry, and the turning point that led him to be a full-time content creator.

A Fast, Frugal Track to a Cook’s Career? Community College - Culinary schools at community colleges have doubled their enrollment rate and many community colleges have added or expanded their culinary programs.

One of the students at Northern Essex says: “If you want a really fancy culinary school, then sure, but if you want something quick, I would recommend this.”

However, internships or vast networks are things community colleges can’t provide. Jeffrey Gardner also mentioned, "A lot of what they were taught would have been fine for ’90s hotel banquets.”

Here’s an interesting quote from the article: Culinary Institute of America prepares students “a little better for a global market,” he said, “we are preparing them for a local market.”

Rene Redzepi will narrate the series titled “Omnivore" - The food-themed docu-series will look at the world through the lens of food and explore how food shapes us. Each episode will take viewers around the world and explore a new ingredient that has built societies, shaped spirituality, and altered human history.

A statement by Apple TV said: "“Omnivore” explores the beauty, complexity and interconnectivity of human culture and the natural world through the way we manipulate, celebrate and consume its best resources – the ones we eat."

ICYMI

Modern Korean Chef's Counter | Atomix in NYC - It's been years in the making, but we finally made it to Atomix in New York City. This secondary project from husband and wife team Junghyun and Ellia Park is distinctly and thoughtfully Korean, combining stunning design aesthetics, tireless product sourcing, and warm collaboration, ultimately earning the team here 2 Michelin stars and No. 43 on the World's 50 Best List.

Interview with Tim Mussig, CEO of JB Prince - Tim's journey, summed up in a single line, reads: "From Customer Service to CEO". Expect to learn about using lists to lead, why understanding your customers' problems is a competitive advantage, and how a new piece of equipment will revolutionize food production 👀

Justin's on TikTok

Surprise Throwback

Paratha with Crab and Fresh Herbs - #DOD Ep. 10 - Speaking of the Danish sensation, I unknowingly did my own spin on a snack from Noma - fresh Dungeness crab, a paratha I made myself, and a ton of really fresh herbs. What'd you think?

To Peep 👀

Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro - ChefSteps announced that they are launching a new addition to the Joule family: the Joule Oven Air Fryer Pro.

Noma is coming to Brooklyn - From May 16th to 20th one of the worlds most-decorated restaurants will be hosting a five-day pop-up at 26 Bridge Street in Dumbo. There are only 50 slots available for a nine-course dinner, which will cost 700$ each, including the wine pairing. Members of Global Dining Access by Resy will have exclusive access to reservations. Check out more here.

Quote I'm Pondering 💭

"You should learn from the mistakes of others because you can’t live long enough to make them all yourself" - This quote is actually so good, it’s been attributed to a wild number of people over the years.

Thanks for reading,

👊Justin