November 19, 2010
David Hayden
Allergies, Foodies, Managers, Servers
Alleric reactions, alternatives, Anaphylaxic, Anaphylaxis, chef, cooks, dining, eating out, FAAN. Egg, Facts, fish, Food Allergies, Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, information, kitchen, label, menu, milk, peanut, responsible, Restaurant Owners, restaurants, Servers, shellfish, soy, substitutions, training, tree nut, wheat
None of these are a good way to end a meal.
I have one hard and fast rule when it comes to waiting tables. No one dies on my watch. I have had several guests leave the restaurant in an ambulance, but none of them have died. It is a simple thing, but it helps me sleep better at night. I may not be changing the world with this rule, but I cannot imagine the guilt of breaking it.
This is why I am particularly careful about food allergies. Knowledge of food allergies is the most basic tool a server has to prevent guests from facing life-threatening reactions in their restaurants. This is too often treated lightly. I once heard a surgeon say that the only minor surgery is the one someone else is having. The same can be said of food allergies. While it may not seem important to every guest, the difference between a peanut and a tree nut can be the difference between an enjoyable meal and a trip to the emergency room for some of your guests.
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November 17, 2010
David Hayden
Foodies, Kansas City, Managers, Servers
apprentice chef, become a chef, becoming a chef, chef, chef school, CIA, cooking school, Culinary Arts, Culinary Institute of America, culinary school, easy, foster, hard, how to become a, nicolette, pastry chef, pay, profit, Salary, sous chef, training
Chef Nicolette at her CIA graduation
A few years ago I had the opportunity to work with a very talented and passionate pantry cook named Nicolette. She left not long after I started to attend culinary school. I advised against it. She has since graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and become an accomplished pastry chef. I asked her to answer a few questions about school and what she gained from the experience as what I hope is a prelude to future posts.
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November 8, 2010
David Hayden
A Little Humor, Foodies, Servers
150, 150th, autograph, Bitchy waiter, carbon footprint, celebrity, chef, chicago tribune, CHOW magazine, Cloris leachman, CNN eatocracy, cooks drive you crazy, cork, daily beast, do you do that at home, fake corks, helena echlin, horror, Michelle Bernstein, Patrick Spencer, polite, ReHarvest, Restaurant, screw top, shortage, starting a new job, stories, sustainable, taint, twist off
I love recycling pictures
Saturday night we had a notable guest at the restaurant. I say notable guest rather than celebrity out of fear that many of my readers would only know her from Dancing with the Stars or Raising Hope. The older folks out there would then facepalm remembering all of the great work she did in our childhood and before we were born. A server, apparently not at all familiar with the etiquette in this situation, told their tables she was there. Which lead to another server practically having to tackle a pair of guests on their way to disturb her. In etiquette situations like this, I always look to Helena Echlin over at CHOW Magazine for the right answer. She is the Dear Abby of restaurant etiquette in my mind and addresses this topic very well on her blog. She has answered any number of restaurant etiquette questions and I agree with her on most all of them.
Read the full post at Tips For Improving Your Tips
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Tips on improving your Tips 