The fourth discipline I learned was the repetition, right? Thomas Keller: We used to think about luxury as choices, right. So we had a gathering at the Per Se in New York where we invited the ambassador from France who came, and I thought of my colleagues of course, Daniel, Jerome, Alain Ducasse was there, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and it was a great celebration. Thomas Keller: One of his favorite things to do was to sit in the parking lot early in the morning when our purveyors would bring their deliveries in. It was my generation that kind of missed that. Today we have executive chefs as well. [17], In 2012 he announced he was at the point of his career when it was time to step away from the kitchen. And it was just one of those magical moments. So in 1980, I planted my first garden. If you didnt properly rinse or stack or sort the silverware or the dishes correctly, and you put them in the dishwasher, a minute-and-a-half later, when the machine opened, they would still be dirty. We are only as good as those who come after us. To be there for a long time, to be impactful for a long time, to have a team that continues to evolve, to have guests that continue to come to your restaurant, to have that relationship with your partners or your suppliers, those are really, really important things for me in a restaurant. What does the American Dream mean to you? I understood it. [1], In April 2009, Keller became engaged to longtime girlfriend and former general manager at the French Laundry, Laura Cunningham. His flagship restaurant, The French Laundry, has been called the best in the world (twice), he's created an empire but maintained his impermeable brand and he's the only American chef to have been simultaneously awarded three Michelin Stars at two different restaurants. Michelin was coming to America and we didnt know what was going to happen. One summer, he was discovered by French-born Master Chef Roland Henin and was tasked to cook staff meals at The Dunes Club. And we thought this location was just like the perfect location. I had committed myself since 1977 to make this my career. Thomas Keller: When my parents were married, my father was typically stationed somewhere else. And theres no choices on the menu, so its a problem for us. So I thought, Well, when I open The French Laundry, well extend hours of operation and well offer choices in each category. I stopped to see him, say hello, see how he was doing. So I stayed in New York for about a year looking for something to do, never really finding anything. This was my first three-star restaurant, and I walked in there thinking that I dont know what I was thinking. Even though I hadnt spent a lot of time with my father growing up, in my early 20s I made a reconnection with him and certainly we rekindled our relationship and he was very supportive, even though he didnt understand what I did. I had much more control over it. In the next few years, Keller would pursue his interest in French cooking, developing close relationships with the cooks and proprietors of French restaurants in his own country while applying for jobs in France. Before we get there, Ruth Reichls article, as important as that was, there was an article prior to that which very few people realize. The following year, Michelin inspectors came to the West Coast and gave The French Laundry three stars as well. How do we respond to that? Had I known everything that I was going to have to do over the course of the next 18 months, I would have given up right away. He enjoyed the teamwork of a restaurant kitchen and resolved to become a professional cook. His grandson is American. Youre American. So I had to go back to Serge because I didnt have any money, and I had to ask Serge to satisfy the tax lien, which my portion of it was considerable. Friends urged him to try his hand on the West Coast, and he accepted an offer to become executive chef of the dining facilities at the Los Angeles hotel Checkers. But there is a lot of work being done certainly in the past 20, 25 years that has helped us as a profession to really have an impact. So I went to talk to Bob and I gave him this whole spiel about The French Laundry and here was my business plan. I spent three summers there: 1980, 81 and 82. My ignorance, as I said earlier, just continued to motivate me, to propel me forward. Thomas Keller: It was my second failure in a restaurant. So at that right moment, in that right period of time, I was able to put my application in and be approved for an SBA loan. We had an extraordinary dinner. One last question. His New York friend Serge Raoul allowed Keller to stay in his Paris apartment. Had they not, I wouldnt be here today. So in reality, from my point of view and the way I interpret this is, it allowed that recipe to be yours and he told you in a narrative how to prepare it. So at that time, cooking wasnt as recognized or as popular as it is today. It took me quite a while to get there. And great restaurants have to be consistent. It was in the era of Chez Panisse, you know. In 2013 we raised to ninth. So we have to our expectations in our kitchen, in our restaurant, in our service. And in his own way he enlightened us in the same way that Alice did in being able to encourage chefs to reconnect to the suppliers that are bringing us those extraordinary ingredients. And they wanted hot dogs and hamburgers. It was a very small kitchen, and it was a beautiful experience because it was what I related to from just returning from France. And hell tell the story that he is part American because he has American blood running through his veins. And I really have to thank those who nominated me: Daniel Boulud, Paul Bocuse, Jerome. And three days later I packed my bag early in the morning and I snuck out the door and caught the train and went to Paris and ended up staying at a friends apartment for almost two years and literally knocking on peoples doors for a job. When he was hired as chef de cuisine at La Reserve, he was the first American to lead one of New Yorks distinguished French restaurants. When I was in South Florida, I was working in a restaurant called the Caf du Parc. And it was really about Marines and their ability to stalk, their ability to be calm, their ability to pounce quickly and seize their prey. Of course there were the schools, some schools in France, but they were mostly focused on consumers, mostly housewives on vacation who wanted to learn how to cook, as Julia Child certainly did when she went to Le Cordon Bleu. I needed to commit myself to doing something I had never done before. We can all cook. So on Thanksgiving day at Bouchon, thats what we do. Of course its such an uncomfortable story for a lot of people that my publisher didnt want to include it in the book and I made her. So there were five of them. Of course, I thought that because of the things that I learned, and because of the ability to execute what I wanted to do, because of my ability to organize a kitchen, I thought that I was invincible. What are we going to do? Kellers 2012 cookbook,Bouchon Bakery, was on The New York Times bestseller list for nearly two months. Raoul and Keller, R-A and K-E-L. In everything that we do, we have to understand that our expectations have to be of the highest. In 1994, Keller closed the deal and set about renovating the facility. Keller remained in New York, consulting, but was completely unsatisfied. I was very impatient, and I wanted to go out and explore. One of the first employees to sign on was a young woman named Laura Cunningham, a Berkeley graduate with some experience in the Napa restaurant scene. So I said, Yes, chef. And so that began the day of our quest to get on the podium. Philip Tessier, who was a young chef, our sous-chef at French Laundry, formed a team and made the challenge. Serge was my only investor (in Rakel) so his life was impacted by the failure of Rakel. Of course, when it tries to jump forward, Im holding a leg. We got on a plane the next day and came back to New York and of course celebrated again. Those things. So we made him barbeque chicken and cooked up some mashed potatoes because thats what he wanted. Thomas Keller: There was a recipe in there, and I cant remember the name of the recipe, but it was a recipe from a very famous restaurant in Italy and it was, I believe, spinach pasta with prosciutto di Parma, parmesan cheese and butter. And rituals are very, very, very important. Just go over there. Recently, Keller started marketing a line of signature white Limoges porcelain dinnerware by Raynaud called Hommage Point (in homage to French chef and restaurateur, Fernand Point) that he helped and a collection of silver hollow ware by Christofle. The sandwich resembles a typical BLT, with the addition of a fried egg. She would spend it seems like days preparing Thanksgiving dinner. Serge Raoul was ready to scale down his expectations and convert to a more casual format, but Keller longed to practice the haute cuisine he had mastered in France and left the business, which closed two years later. And then of course we had foie gras, poached foie gras, warm with turnips spring turnips peas, and a beautiful consomm of duck, rich but at the same time light, right. Per Se, which was designed from scratch and custom-built as part of the overall construction process, was an immediate hit on the New York restaurant scene, with reservations booked months in advance and publications including The New Yorker and The New York Times giving rave reviews. And one thing they said, Its not open enough. They were only open four days. So I could focus on more of the details, and I was able to do that. AllRightsReserved. For him it was about meat and potatoes. And in San Francisco we had Herb Caen. Theyll pick up the food guides. In 1986, he opened his first restaurant in New York City, but the Wall Street crash of that year hit his business hard and he headed west. Thomas Keller: The best restaurants that you were aware of if you picked up a Michelin Guide, if you picked up The New York Times, even New York Magazine or any magazine that was either a travel or food magazine, or had a food section in the newspaper at that time, were always talking about the great restaurants in France and the great chefs. You started to see the little sparks here and there of interest in not just cuisine but in those who produced it. And Michelin first launched in New York City. Not everybody knows it like that. How did you come by that vision? So I set my sights high. Many times the advice was, Well just go. We had The Greenbrier, which had a qualified externship program. Following the failure of the Cobbley Nob, Keller became sous-chef at Caf du Parc in West Palm Beach. Every moments important. Can I send you a copy? Right. I was unsure of my career. They become better than you. Everybody became more frugal during that time, as they do always in times of uneasiness and disruption in our economic climate. He opened the restaurant for more days of the week and gradually evolved a policy of offering two nine-course tasting menus, one vegetable-based, and a second based on animal protein. It was a four-course menu that changed every day. Rakel's refined French cuisine catered to the expensive tastes of Wall Street executives and received a two-star review from The New York Times. So efficiency became important, how you lined up the racks, how you put the plates in the racks, or when was the time to wash the glasses, when was the time to wash the silverware so that nothing so that everything became seamless for everybody. But gardening became part of my life. Thats what he wanted. Best Restaurant in the Americas (French Laundry), Best New Restaurant (Per Se), James Beard Foundation, 2005, Outstanding Restaurant (French Laundry), James Beard Foundation, 2006, Michelin Guide Bay Area, 3 Stars for The French Laundry, 2006 Current, Michelin Guide Bay Area, 1 Star for Bouchon, 2007 Current, Michelin Guide Bay Area, 1 Star for The Surf Club Restaurant, 2022 Current, Gayot Top 40 Restaurants in the US (French Laundry) 2004 2010, Gayot Top 40 Restaurants in the US (Per Se) 2010, Chevalier in the French Legion of Honor, presented by Chef Paul Bocuse on March 29, 2011, in NYC, Lifetime Achievement Award (French Laundry), This page was last edited on 4 March 2023, at 18:37.
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