In The Heat Of The Night

I learned TWO things while working in a restaurant kitchen: First, you need about two solid days to prepare a decent suckling pig. Second, it’s hard work, with grueling hours. You couldn’t pay me enough to do it for a living. But for three nights it doesn’t take much arm-twisting to get me into an apron and in front of a blazing grill. Open kitchens let you watch the flames and the fanfare from your table. You might see sauté pans jiggling above the stove, foot-long pasta dangling from tongs, and the head chef creating such a scene you wonder who’s getting fired next. Still, you can’t fully grasp the life of a kitchen unless you’re part of it. Then you discover that some chefs unwind before the dinner rush with a game of Frisbee in the parking lot. Or that another one winces when someone orders a burger for dinner. Or that some chefs verge on tears on a bad night, when customers complain and dishes get sent back to the kitchen. I discovered this, and much more, while visiting the kitchens of three top New Jersey restaurants. Two brave chefs even put me to work. more