The soul of a chef.
I am currently reading a book entitled, The Soul of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman. It’s a great book that examines what it really takes to be a great chef. In the book review from Amazon.com they write, “The thread connecting these three tales, (CIA’s certified master chef exam, Michael Symon and Thomas Keller) together is Ruhlman’s quest for culinary perfection: Does it exist? Is it possible? How is it even measurable?” I have really enjoyed reading it, agreeing and disagreeing with it, but mostly learning from it.
Today I was so very fortunate to have coffee with Pastry Chef Yasmin Lozada-Hissom from Olivéa and Duo Restaurant. She was recently nominated for a James Beard award, so I was so excited to meet her and listen to all she had to say. We met at a tiny hole in the wall coffee shop that oozed with character. For about an hour I listened to her talk about her journey to becoming who she is today from that small bakery in Peru to working in New York City to now working in Denver. Her stories were fun and inspirational, exciting and amazing. She talked about the people she worked with, how she started in New York City, the hours she put in, the hard work and just everything culinary. She is such a down to earth person and I am so glad I had the opportunity to meet her. As we talked about life and pastries she gave me some very good advice. Produce nothing less than perfection every single time because the customers will know you didn’t give it your all and they will talk. After being in the kitchen for most of her life, she still loves what she does, gets inspired in the strangest of places which was so very comforting to hear. She then started picking my brain about food, desserts and life in general. Where was I going, what did I want to do, where did I come from, the usual 20 questions. As we were leaving she gave me a huge hug and said, “Adam, you have a great passion for desserts and life. Now go out there and be fearless, you are going to succeed.” Thank you Yasmin. I will try my all to be fearless in my quest towards perfection.
