Texting While Driving – TWD

I don’t know how many times I’ve caught myself in the past texting while driving, and then realized I had little memory of the past several blocks. I realize this is a complete dangerous and “likely to kill” craziness way to operate a vehicle,  so I support severe penalties to those who do it.   Like a DUI, but call it a TWD.  Texting while driving kills…simple.  I am now trying to not pay attention to my phone at all while driving; however I have not yet gone as far as turning it off or putting it in the trunk.  Soon though I’m sure.

In light of not being aware of what you’re doing, I noticed a “mom” the other day speeding through an elementary school zone while lights were flashing.  She was texting.  My experience in this field told me she had no idea what she was doing.  Because of the school zone, and I’m sure the fact that my son just spent seven years there, I was immediately ticked off.  My protective armour kicked in.  This area, I might add, just experienced the deaths of two crosswalk pedestrians a couple months before.  They were run over by an inattentive driver.  I also just got through, a few days ago, jumping on a friend who got a speeding ticket there.  Hellooo people, wake up.  Children are watching and playing!

Instead of honking, rolling my window down and yelling or even reporting the plates to the police, I decided to tweet.  By the way, I was not driving.  I was a passenger in a vehicle doing the allowed 20 miles per hour.  Well, anyway, I thought I’d ask my network of friends what they thought the penalty for TWD behavior should be.  I have to say, I was shocked at the response.  People were pissed, to say the least.  My only regret was that I listed the license plate.  I didn’t even really mean to, but I guess the 2 letter vanity listing just made it easy.  If one doesn’t want to be noticed, why have vanity plates?

The texting mom just happened to be in my network of friends…oops!  She took it as a personal attack on herself.  Well I can’t take it back.  What’s done is done.  She’s really a very nice woman, really.  She just made a mistake.  I didn’t mean it as a personal attack, but…..  Wait a minute.  What the hell did I do wrong?  TWD – Watchout!

Chef’s Affaire 2009

I am excited to be involved in the 2009 Chef’s Affaire, an event benefitting the Idaho Foodbank.  A great event for a great cause.  It’s amazing to see all the chef’s involved, coming together with their competitive spirit to work for one common goal.  The event is put on and coordinated by Sysco Foods of Idaho.

I am the captain of team 4, which just means I signed up for a little more time commitment.  Our team consists of myself and the awesome Chef Dean Fuller (executive chef at Doubletree Riverside).  We had a ‘walkout’ the day previous to the event from another chef.  I don’t really know what happened, but he sure thought he did.  Oh well, apparently a little too much of the ‘me’ complex.  Sysco Chef Randy King  and my Sysco Representative Clayton Prouty jumped right in to help.  We all got together at my place a couple of days ago, to trim out 180# of SRF’s (gold) Flat Iron, along with SRF Executive Chef Alan Turner.  An evening of sharp knives and wine…can’t get any better than that!  By the way, SRF donated all the meat and Sysco took care of the rest…amazing how Idaho comes together for a cause!

Our dish is the 2nd entree course: KOBE SAN (or Kobe 3 ways)…Snake River Farms Kobe (gold) Flat Iron, grilled then drizzled with rosemary Kobe jus, served with toasted Ballard Farms Halloumi caramelized under rendered Kobe marbeling, finished with chipotle fried onions. 

The evening will be full of fun and flavor, certainly for the 400 attending guests, but also for the many chef’s giving of their time.  We’ll probably end up at some bar (maybe Berryhill’s or Chandler’s), to close out the evening’s excitement of working together on 2000 dishes then pawning ourselves off to the highest bidder in the live auction for our donated culinary packages.  I’m sure these live auction donations will prove worthy of their ‘take’, as they are known to do.  My package is a multi-coursed dinner for 8 that I will cook in my restaurant.  It also includes wine from my personal cellar, and a tour of our kitchens at Berryhill, where one of the guests will be ‘voted’ to spend an evening cooking on the Berryhill night line with me and my talented team of hard knock chefs…oh that’ll be fun!

To all the chef’s (but especially my fave team 4), to Snake River Farms, to Sysco Foods of Idaho….CHEERs!

Who Knows What To Believe?

It’s interesting when people read or hear something, and think they know the truth.  They judge and condemn you, and feel it is their duty to spread the word, so to speak.  I’m pretty darn sure every side of any story can be substantiated with facts.  Consider the beginning of life.  Experts on all sides supply factual yet opposing proof.  So who’s right?  What’s true?  What’s not? 

I’ve been recently condemned for speaking out against buying local products.  People believe I said something that I did not say, because of what they read in a newspaper.  How do they know what I said?  They were not present when I said it (or didn’t say it).  What did I say, and in what context did I say it?  That could be huge in determining what’s true and what’s not, but no-one really knows that except me and the person who wrote it.  What if the writer heard me wrong, or got their facts wrong?  What if I said it wrong or got my facts wrong?  What if it was written right, but read wrong?  Apparently some people just don’t care.  They will believe whatever they want to believe, and I believe that is their right. 

I do think it interesting though, that the very thing I am believed to oppose, I actually am a proponent of.  At my restaurant, I purchase many local products from wine and liquors to seafood, meats and produce. 

By the way, we also have been recycling everything  from oil to glass for over a decade, and we compost.  I am pretty convinced that I and my staff of 30+ local managers, chefs, bartenders, servers, caterers & dishwashers are trying our best to support our local economy and beautiful planet….yet still everyday, we have the opportunity to be better.

Spam: To Grill or Saute?

I am a chef-owner of a successful restaurant.  You’d think I’d know what to do with spam, or at least that I could improvise and figure it out.  Do I add a touch of salt and pepper then throw it on the grill?  Or do I saute it in herb butter with black garlic finished with a squeeze of lemon?  The fact is, I haven’t a clue.  By the way, I’m not talking about that tight fitting cat crap in a can (didn’t mean to offend).  This stuff tastes much worse and costs a whole lot more.  Not even sure there’s enough aromas in the world to cover the stinch.  The spam I am referring to causes death…the death of email marketing.  That’s right. 

Pretty much anymore, one must contract through a separate internet service to market via email.  In fact your own mailers can be deemed spam, even though they are intended for recipients who have previously requested them.  All those bounced back-system administrator-failed to send-blacklisted-junk mail messages you’ve received following your work of art e-mass mailer, are caused by spam and those who protect you against it.  What a pain in the ass this whole mess is.  And that’s pretty much all I have to say about email marketing.  I did mention earlier that I was a chef and had no clue of how to deal with spam.  It’s really just a segway…

Enter FACEBOOK & TWITTER: Simple/to the point/don’t mess around, just say it!  I’ve been on both of these for a while now, though I had never considered them as an alternative to email marketing.  Today I learned otherwise.  Thank you John Pascoe of Stability Networks for introducing me to Craig Burden of Endless Nights & Boise POS.  Craig believes that social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace are replacing the common communication of email.  People are saying more, more quickly, and in 140 characters or less (depending on the site).  People are listening.  People are following.  The more you do, the more do you.  It’s all about people.  These sites are changing the way we communicate, right before our eyes.  A person communicates to another person.  It is personal.  You can’t anymore just put your product out there.  You have to put yourself out there.  People want to interact with people.  In Funny Girl, Barbra Streisand sang that people who need people are the luckiest people in the world.  More and more with these sites, it seems that song is still playing, and that we are all singing along.  Together.  Individually together. 

So when it comes to spam, does it really matter whether you grill it, saute it, or fry it?  I say screw it…in 140 characters or less!

Restaurant Critic…”what’s important?”

A restaurant critic can with a few words, multiply a restaurant’s customer base.  They can also divide and destroy what a restaurant has tried so hard to build.  I believe the best critics are those who have either owned a restaurant or have an understanding and empathy of what it takes  to be a successful restaurauteur.  A knowledge and passion for food is not enough, and can result in a strongly opinionated writer who critiques their foe based upon their own personal likes and dislikes.

When a critic reviews a restaurant, they base that review predominately upon their own dining experiences there.  I have read some reviews in the past that seem more like an advertisement than a critique.  I’ve also read many of late that tend to be more about the reviewer than the reviewee.  I don’t think a writer’s personal preference is pertinent to a review.  A reviewer should not mince words, they should critique; however the words they choose to use in their critique should benefit their readership, and not their own ego.  

I believe that a review should reflect the “level” of expectancy in a restaurant’s performance, based upon 2 things; one being the type of restaurant and its intention, and the other being the demographic area of its location.  The “level” of expectancy in performance of one restaurant should not determine the “level” of expectancy in another.  Likewise one city’s “level” of expectancy does not determine that of another city’s.  Basically, what works in New York,  Chicago and San Francisco, may not work in Boise.  A good critic should review their own experiences with this in mind. 

As a chef and restaurateur, I could design a menu that would rival the best of the best in San Francisco; however since my restaurant is in Boise Idaho, that would not be a wise business decision.  My food might be phenomenal, but if no-one buys it, what’s the point?  A restaurant is a business, make no mistake about it.  It is a tough business.  Only 10% of restaurants survive beyond 2 years, and trust me when I say it takes a whole lot longer than that to get a return on your investment!

When it comes to restaurant reviews, people are less concerned about what someone else thinks, than what they will think themselves.  Will “they” like it?  Should “they” go?  Is it worth ”their” time?  These factors are what I think people want to read about.  These factors are what I think are important.

Just Take it with a Grain of Salt

Everyone wants to be a critic, and everyone wants to be heard.  In America our speech is protected by the First Ammendment.  We can essentially say what we want to say.  There should be some clarity to this right though, when it comes to Restaurant Review and Comment sites on the internet.

Don’t like your steak?  Love your pasta?  Tastes like chicken?  Service too slow?  Music too loud?  Love it?  Hate it?  Whatever you do or don’t like about a restaurant, you can write about.  There is always someone ready and willing to read it.  Restaurant Review and Comment sites on the internet have given the “common man” a voice.  I am not saying these sites are bad.  They serve a purpose.  But one should be clear that those writing are not qualified industry critics, but just ordinary people making comments on their own personal dining experiences.  Those who frequent these sites should take the good and the bad with a grain of salt.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with making comments.  But when those comments can be posted to the internet annoynomously, regardless of fact or proof, and can be made without consideration of professional courtesy or accountability, and certainly with little or no recourse, it can become intensely damaging to a restaurant.  Comments can be made out of spite and completely unrelated to dining.  Someone can post a negative comment just because.  I’ve even seen comments referencing other customers.  Now these negative and damaging comments are not in the majority on these sites, but they do exist.  And once they’re out there, they’re out there.

As a restauratuer and frequent diner, I do not access these sites.  I don’t write on them, and I don’t read them.  Whether comments made are good or bad, they are still authored by those without industry credibility.  I’m not saying they are wrong, and I’m not saying they are right.  These comments just don’t help me personally as a diner, and they most certainly do not help in the successful running of my restaurant.  So what purpose do these sites serve?

Everyone wants to be a critic, and everyone wants to be heard.  Obviously I too am guilty, evident in the writing of this blog.  I say again, just take it with a grain of salt!

Restaurant Competition…it’s a good race.

I am the owner/executive chef of Berryhill & Co., a fine dining restaurant in downtown Boise Idaho.  My restaurant operates within a community of restaurants, of which most owners and chefs I am friends with or at least aquaintences of.  Everyday we compete against each other for the attention of diners.  In this time of economic decline, there are fewer and fewer of those diners, resulting in a more aggressive competition.  But I believe this competition to be good.  Competition keeps us sharp and on our toes.  Competition pushes us farther and makes us faster.   

It is imperitive to support one’s competition.  It would be ignorant of me to expect my guests to dine only at my restaurant each evening.  I want my guests to enjoy their dining experience, whether at Berryhill or somewhere else.  This is why I constantly recommend my competition.  With my guests, I talk about other restaurants, what I like about them and why I recommend them.  I love food, wine, music and ambiance, and I do not feel that my restaurant has the corner on the market.  Don’t get me wrong, I love Berryhill and what we do here, but there are some other restaurants I patronize, and I thoroughly enjoy myself.  When people go out to dine, and enjoy themselves, they will go out again, and again, and again.  I recommend places that I know they will enjoy.  If they enjoyed themselves at Berryhill, they’ll come back.  Why wouldn’t they?

When I advertise and market my restaurant, and the services it provides, the restaurant community is influenced.  When my competitors advertise and market their restaurant, and the services it provides, the restaurant community is influenced. When I succeed, it influences my competitors, and when they succeed, it influences me.  What we do for ourselves, like it or not, benefits others as well.  We may be competitors, but we’re competing together in the same race.  We share the lead, and we share the draft.  We make each other stronger. 

Restaurant competition…it’s a good race.

YOUTH PIANO SHOWCASE at Berryhill & Co.

Every Saturday during lunch service (12 noon-3pm), my restaurant Berryhill & Co., located at 121 North 9th Street in the heart of downtown Boise Idaho, invites young piano protegies to entertain our dining guests.  While this is not considered a “recital”, kids 18 and younger do gain the experience of playing for an audience.  This audience though is dining, and thus the distractions of everyday restaurant life are to be expected (clanking, slurping, talking, laughing, chewing, clapping and going to the restroom).  

These kids are not paid; however they appreciate a free Berryhill lunch, and the giant tip jar that goes from 0 to 20 in just a matter of songs.  The word on the street is a $17-$20 average in tips per player, most of which comes from parents and family members.  Some make more, some make less; however they all have enjoyed their stage time.  But the fun is not just limited to the players.  Parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, and even DWiNK’s (diners with no kids) appreciate the entertaining energies that flow from these performers.

Piano teachers who have brought students to perform in the showcase, are amazed at what this kind of performance has done for their students.  “It’s a real life, real time show”, one said.  “To see my kids get in to this, to see them do so well, to see them have fun and make some money all at the same time is incredible”, another said.  These perfomers rule!  We’ve even seen them “jam” together, playing and singing.  And you never know what’s going to be played.  We’ve had songs by Bach, Beethoven, Harry Connick, Billy Joel, Queen, top 40 tunes and even originals.

The next YOUTH PIANO SHOWCASE is this Saturday, May 30th.  Wendy Wilson brings 15 students to perform.  If you, your child or someone you know has interest in performing in our showcase, please contact Ken Harris at 440-4590 or kjharris1925@yahoo.com. 

For more information, go to http://www.berryhillandco.com/news.