photo courtesy International NYT
The idea that I would voluntarily invoke the words of William Shakespeare in any writing exercise, either back when I was studying him in high school or nowadays, here, and not only once, but now twice, seems highly improbable to me. But, alas, I have. The first time, on October 16, 2013, I referenced him in relation to that day’s political tomfoolery…… Today, I’m more within the realm of the normal subject matter here:
Every once in awhile, I get fixated on a few choice phrases from Shakespeare. They, like some music and other idioms, come floating into my head when certain situations present themselves in my life. It’s like those phrases that haunt or cheer you unexpectedly during your day – you know, like the ones your Mother used to say all the time.
Question of the day: What do the Roca Brothers and William Shakespeare have in common? To me, they both can teach us a lot about success or failure in the food business.
I confess, I hated Shakespeare when I was forced to read it as a kid. And, I continue to marvel to this very day, at the people who love/loved it and could understand each play intuitively. For me, I had to drag myself through the spark notes, line by tormenting line, to try to pass the test in English…….. But, wasn’t he just the most amazing “coiner” of poignant phraseology and, in them, capturing the most fundamental of rules for life? And, how ironic is it that his immortal words would come floating back to me at this late stage, some 40 or so years after I first read them?
Despite my previous disdain and otherwise complete bombing of certain high school English tests, these two passages came into crystal clear view for me after I paged through today’s Dining Section of the New York Times:
“To be, or not to be- that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,” courtesy William Shakespeare in Hamlet
“The better part of valor is
discretion, in the which better part I have sav’d my life.” courtesy William Shakespeare in Henry IV
Gone too far – these are three little words that sum up, at least for my mind, the place you never want to get to in the food business.
A few weeks ago I wrote about the Roca brothers from Girona, Spain. Their restaurant, El Celler is currently #2 in the world – at least according to the ranking of Restaurant Magazine. And, therefore, obviously, they can teach us a lot about success in the food business. In the article I read in the International New York Times while I was enjoying a quiet breakfast for one in the atrium of my hotel in Paris, I attached myself immediately and more deeply to a philosophy that ranks among my top reasons for staying out of the commercial food business.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/16/dining/away-from-home-but-not-the-kitchen.html
Of course, my number one reason is my age and the inherent flaccid passion for 3am beginnings to a 7 day work week. Perhaps number two is a knowing that one cannot control quality beyond a certain level, key in the Roca Brothers’ philosophy, followed by I’m too slow, a control freak and I’d rather maintain my foot-loose and fancy-free status at age 60. Of paramount importance is that I only want to bake/make what I want to make and not what others would want me to make. So, that pretty much sums it up. Not that most of this matters in terms of the point here, but these are all good reasons for not going too far, at least for myself. And, anyway, I am happier now with a super-combo-approach to learning, exploring À pied, experimenting in my own little kitchen, dreaming up recipes, taking photos and musing at this point in my life. I feel comfortable with my choice to not go too far, even though I still often dream about it……..
But, how does one do a good job at this? How does one know where to draw the line between being good, if not great at what you do, and not crossing over into oblivion-territory?
I’ve already been through the Dining Section of today’s New York Times, a step I look forward to every Wednesday morning. Las Vegas, couscous, skirt steak, corn, cherries, ice pops are among the topics to muse. But, then I stumbled onto the review of Giada DeLaurentis’ restaurant in Las Vegas by Pete Wells. I was disappointed to read of how this rolled out – but, I confess, not really surprised. I think it is sad that Giada, a Cordon-Bleu-trained chef with tons of family-based experience, and who is a talented cook, has now been branded in this not so positive a way. It probably seems like I am picking on her, but I am not – many, many have gone before her in this regard. And, I do think it is unfortunate that this review was published in the New York Times. She is just the latest celeb chef to make this boo-boo. But, why? And how?
It’s hard to believe just how many and how often talented food people go too far. Time and time again we see chefs that can’t help but cross over the line to somewhere where they shouldn’t have gone. And perhaps this is where my sensibility comes into clearer focus. For me food is an art and, as it passes through the prism into the realm of a business it is forced to go through some potentially very dangerous genetic changes. Navigating through these is a mine field riddled with the most fickle of trickeries. Granted, I am no expert in this regard and I do not speak from personal experience. I sit on the sidelines and study and ponder. That’s safe, maybe even cowardly……
Letting someone else take the reins of your cooking statement is perhaps the toughest thing to do in the food business. Knowing where to draw the line so as to keep your brand (and I hate to use that word for it reminds me sadly of the Kardashians) protected, is key, isn’t it? This is why I love the sensibility of the Roca brothers, who, somehow, know instinctively, that they can’t and/or don’t want to expand past where they can feel the comfort level – that oh-so-fleeting, but oh-so-critical spot from where one should not, well, jump.
Food is a tricky business. And, the changes in the world of food, among them the explosion of the celeb-chef phenomenon, make the world of navigation in it terribly difficult. This is true in all businesses, not just food, of course. But, the food business is so extremely unforgiving. How many of us can honestly say that after having one bad meal, they have returned to a restaurant and given them a second chance?
Well, I am for sure no expert in gauging risk, in the food business, or anywhere, actually. But, as a general principle in the food business, I’d like to state that I am a proponent of that ubiquitous phraseology and philosophy that is summed up by, no other than William S, re-coined as “discretion is the better part of valor”. And, perhaps this is where, when you awake in the middle of the night in a sweat or terror, you should know to take seriously the warning “don’t go there”. This is where the people who surround and advise you are the most critical asset in the food business. This, to me, is why family is so common in the food business. People trust their families to keep them straight, to tell them the truth, no matter how brutal, keep their thinking rational, because the vested interest is placed with someone who truly loves you and whose interests are not more closely aligned with a percentage of the cut. Again, I am not picking on Giada. She just happened to appear on the page today and struck the cord, unfortunately too clearly.
Well anyway, you get the point of my little story. I guess I am more of a proponent of playing it safe in the food business – to keep your eye on the image of quality first and foremost, to not dive into shallow waters, to not be tempted by the marginal dollar, to know when your model is stable, well-formed and best suited to your life and talent, to know how and when to not place your stake with the shady or the seedy, to play in your own backyard and not to wander too far off the beaten path.
Of course, these are all the obvious pitfalls of human nature in every facet of our lives. I can hear my Mom talking to me…… Be wise and wonderful………. And so, today, I respect the Roca Brothers’ virtues and Shakespeare, all the more………
from the Intl NYT article:
The brothers say they’ll reopen El Celler in September, and intend to stay in their working-class suburb of Girona, even though they have received lucrative offers to open Roca restaurants in places like Las Vegas, Beijing and Qatar.
“It helps keep our feet on the ground,” Joan said. “We know that even if this success disappears, we will still continue to be able to enjoy the things that we’ve always enjoyed.” Ah yes.
And herein perhaps the pinnacle of words to live by in the food biz:
“Fortune brings in some boats that are not steer’d.” courtesy William Shakespeare in Cymbeline
(Note: I would have used “to thy own self be true” but that implies that one knows oneself clearly.)
That Shakespeare, he was one great guy!