Friday, May 16, 2014

Kitchen Confidential Part 2

Chef Bourdain is moving up in the world...but maybe through nefarious ways.  Comment on the following.

1.  How did Chef manage to staff his new kitchen at Pino's restaurant?  Do you think he went about it fairly?
2.  What are some of the reasons that Chef may have gotten canned at a few jobs, and what reasons does he feel are fair for firing one of his kitchen staff?
3.  On a positive note:  how was Chef won over by Italian cuisine?

7 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. 1. Chef, ohh boy! well what can we say the chef's actions in my opinion or validated yet a tad brash. I believe in his mind the chef believe that the only way he would have complete hold of his kitchen was if he was strict and made his fellow chefs fear him.

    2. One reason that makes me think of why he may have been canned at a few jobs is because he is very opinionated Chef strikes me as a man who will not take anything less then perfection and maybe in a kitchen with such a man could cause one to blow up and become red with anger. What I have learned in our cooking class is that cooking is a team activity that requires you to trust in your fellow cook to prepare the meal to perfection as you would. Chef at this point is what we would call a non-team player.

    3.The chef was won over by how fresh the ingredients were, he saw how the Italians used simple ingredients that were around them and mastered and perfected their dishes. the fast, simple dishes won him over.

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  3. 1. Chef Bourdain managed his staff in the manner that he had to in order to keep his head on his shoulders. By his account, I think he did what was necessary to keep his staff in line in the cutthroat restaurant business. He was dealing with all sorts of underhanded, conniving chefs and he dealt with them accordingly while keeping the restaurant up to scratch with their menu.

    2. Chef Bourdain strikes me as a reckless individual who has a long history of unfavorable actions. He was a thief, an addict, and he isn't afraid to tell people what he thinks of them. I think if he saw any bits of himself in any of the chefs around him, he might become skeptical of whether he should keep them on his staff at all.

    3. He was enthralled by the simplicity of a few quality ingredients that were put together in a special way to make one hell of a dish. I think the biggest shocker for him was the freshness of the ingredients and the way the kitchen operated. When he described the kitchen and how the food was made to order, and that the walk-ins were empty, I got a sense that it was amazing to him.

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  4. 1. Wow, what can I say to be honest. Chef Bourdain, managed his staff in a certain way that he needed to. He needed to go all out and keep sure that his staff was on the right path. I believe he went about it fairly, because if your in a business and your the owner, you have to show who is the boss. So if they get out of line or not doing what their suppose to do, you should be their to command.
    2. There are many reasons why Chef has been canned from many jobs. For instance a person like him who wants nothing less then perfection can cause a huge disturbance in the kitchen. Chef is such an angry person and when he yells at a person it makes them probably have that feeling to stop cooking. No one likes to get yelled at, when somebody gets yelled that, most of the time it causes more mess ups. Chef's reasons for firing a staff fairly is if it isn't someone like him. I think he would want somebody who only looks for perfection and has that same anger.
    3. Chef was won over by Italian cuisine, by the ingredients of the food. He learned how the freshness of the food makes a difference. He also learned that fresh food can be used to make simple, easy but yet delicious cuisine.

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  5. 1. In the situation of not wanting to become a decapitated ruin, I think what Bourdain did was very fair. When you are doing a job that requires an ensemble, you want to have a group that you trust to have your back, and if that stems from stealing employees from other places then let the necessary thievery begin.
    2. There are a plethora of reasons why he got pink slipped from several jobs. The most ironic (given the story so far) is drugs. He has done every plausible controlled substance that an educated human being could think of off the bat, yet there are some places that embraced this behavior and there are some that berated it. Bourdain holds his employees up to normal standards that constitute being reliable in any job, such as being on time (let alone being there at all) and respect towards your peers (as in not literally killing them).
    3. Despite all the debacles that the chef has experienced in this book so far, Bourdain is a very anal human being. It wasn't just the freshness and and simple exquisiteness of the ingredients with which the Italian cuisine was made, it was the organization and perfect understanding of the structure with which Italian cuisine should be made.

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  6. 1. In my opinion chef Bourdain was not in the wrong when he hired new cooks for the new restaurant. Although some other places would be short handed for a few days, if they had taken better care of there cooks they may have been more loyal to them as many cooks are to Anthony.
    2. I believe that chef Bourdain got fired from a lot of jobs because he was just looking for the biggest pay check. To chef it didn't matter that the restaurant was about to crash and burn as long as the pay was good.
    3. Although i can't remember a time when chef hired a completely inept cook, i can guarantee that it is one thing that would get you fired. Since he takes after Bigfoot in his leadership skills i would assume that timeliness is a huge factor. Also since a kitchen team has to be just that, a team, i would imagine that people who aren't quite fitting in would have to be let go as they can begin to harm overall production.

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  7. 1. Chef Bourdain manages his staff well. When it's obvious that there is a problem with his staff he gets rid of it. The people in his staff eventually knew what was going to work and what wasn't with Chef Bourdain leading them. I think it was fair. He did things in a way that the staff was able to see it coming. If he had to get rid of someone it was because they weren't doing they're job correctly or at all.

    2. The Chef has had a long history of actions that were not helping him. The drugs he did and sold may be a reason why he's gotten canned at a few jobs. Also he doesn't seem to care what people have to say about him. His bosses knew that. Reasons he feels are fair for firing kitchen staff include doing and selling drugs in the restaurant, selling guns, not coming to work on time, and not doing a job correctly.

    3. Chef Bourdain was won over by Italian Cuisine because of its simplicity and emphasis on using fresh ingredients. He also liked how fast the dishes could be made. It helped when there were a lot of customers.

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