Open a BBQ restaurant, they said. It will be fun, they said
- Thread starter marubozo
- Start date
Tom Sr
Is lookin for wood to cook with.
Next thing you know you'll be on Diners, Drive Inns, and Dives! :shock:
marubozo
is one Smokin' Farker
Reviews like these make all the pain and suffering worth it.
I also had an older lady give me a hug today and thanked me for reminding her of what she grew up eating in Kansas City as a kid.
It doesn't get much better than that. Another long day, another winter storm, but we pulled through and made money even on a slow day. News taping was postponed until tomorrow due to the weather, so it will be interesting to see how that goes.
I also had an older lady give me a hug today and thanked me for reminding her of what she grew up eating in Kansas City as a kid.
It doesn't get much better than that. Another long day, another winter storm, but we pulled through and made money even on a slow day. News taping was postponed until tomorrow due to the weather, so it will be interesting to see how that goes.
landarc
somebody shut me the fark up.
Wonder what corn nuggets are. Deep fried grits?
marubozo
is one Smokin' Farker
I think they are the same thing as corn fritters. Kind of like hush puppies but with corn inside. Never seen them up here though.
Oh, and one more thing I forgot to mention. The injuries are numerous. I've been cooking for years, but never in a fast paced environment like a restaurant. After two weeks of this, I'm in pain. Every single finger on my left hand has a cut. Even got one on my palm. And one probably needs stitches and hurts like a mofo. And don't even mention burns. Both forearms have multiple burns, and my fingertips, forget about it. And then there's the whole knife falling off of the magnetic knife holder and slashing my forearm incident...
cds9333
Full Fledged Farker
Basically, they are fried nuggets of battered creamed corn. I loved them as a kid, but have tried some in the last 5 years and they were quite disappointing. Guess my preferences have changed since then.
DUBBAGA
is One Chatty Farker
Always liked the sweet corn nuggets from Church's Chicken
landarc
somebody shut me the fark up.
AH! You are cooking for a living now. People wonder why chef's get arm tattoos, it's to hide the burn and knife accidents
marubozo
is one Smokin' Farker
Oh, and with the bit of downtime today I finally had a chance to get some more formal pics taken. Still a lot of menu items to go, but it's a start.
Hawg Father of Seoul
is Blowin Smoke!
Always step back from a loose knife. Got (had) the stitches to prove it.
sliding_billy
somebody shut me the fark up.
Nice looking pics.
mikes1212
Full Fledged Farker
After two weeks of this said:
ButtBurner
Babbling Farker
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wow sorry to hear you are getting cut up.
all I can think of is the OSHA training we had a few weeks ago on "Bloodbore Pathogens"
all I can think of is the OSHA training we had a few weeks ago on "Bloodbore Pathogens"
aawa
Babbling Farker
Oh, and with the bit of downtime today I finally had a chance to get some more formal pics taken. Still a lot of menu items to go, but it's a start.
That slice of brisket looks so nice and relaxed on that piece of paper. I can tell it is super tender!
nachos4life
Take a breath!
those pics are outstanding!
cpw
Babbling Farker
Food looks great!
Lake Dogs
Quintessential Chatty Farker
Dang it. NOW I'M HUNGRY!
Awesome lookin' food.
Awesome lookin' food.
marubozo
is one Smokin' Farker
Thanks, guys.
For you local folks, I'll be on WNDU 16's morning show tomorrow (Friday) during their foodie forum segment. It wasn't so much an interview like I thought it would be, but a camera crew came and filmed a bunch of the stuff at the place like platters of food, slicing brisket, pulling pork, etc. I guess they will use that as a backdrop while someone talks about the restaurant and what we do. Either way, free advertising, so I'll take it!
But as of today we've officially got two weeks under our belt. How the time flies. I've learned a lot, the staff has come together, mistakes are becoming almost non-existent, and the customer flow is still steady.
But there is one thing I'm struggling with, and I don't know if my standards are just too high, or if customer expectations are just lower than I thought. When I taste something and it isn't perfect, at least as far as I'm concerned, I don't sell it. Like today, pulled a fresh new brisket out of the holding cabinet and started slicing it for a customer and tasted a piece. Flat was too dry for my liking, so I told the guy I wasn't going to give it to him because I felt it wasn't good enough and subbed his brisket for some ribs and gave him a free dessert. But he insisted he still wanted a sample of the brisket just to get an idea of the flavor. After he tried it he said it wasn't too dry at all and he would have loved to buy a pound to go to take home.
So what the hell do you do? I know it's dry. I'm cooking many briskets a day and it isn't hard to see when one is overcooked a bit. I know it isn't good enough, but the customers like it. If they like it and are willing to pay, is it really that bad, or am I just being too critical and am I throwing money away by resorting to using the meat in chili, beans, etc?
The same thing happened earlier when two customers both wanted chicken. One as a half bird, the other pulled. I filled the order and after sending it tried some of the chicken I was pulling and it was dry (to me). We didn't have any chicken ready at the time to replace it, so I went out there and apologized for the dry chicken and gave them dessert and a few extras, and they both insisted that the chicken was amazing and giving them free stuff was totally unnecessary.
So I don't know. Maybe I'm just overly critical, which is leading to waste. But I just think about it if I sample something and it isn't one of the best things I've put into my mouth, then it isn't good enough to charge people money for. Then again, you look at all the crap people are paying for elsewhere and it's a reminder that this isn't a KCBS competition and it's just regular people looking for good barbecue.
For you local folks, I'll be on WNDU 16's morning show tomorrow (Friday) during their foodie forum segment. It wasn't so much an interview like I thought it would be, but a camera crew came and filmed a bunch of the stuff at the place like platters of food, slicing brisket, pulling pork, etc. I guess they will use that as a backdrop while someone talks about the restaurant and what we do. Either way, free advertising, so I'll take it!
But as of today we've officially got two weeks under our belt. How the time flies. I've learned a lot, the staff has come together, mistakes are becoming almost non-existent, and the customer flow is still steady.
But there is one thing I'm struggling with, and I don't know if my standards are just too high, or if customer expectations are just lower than I thought. When I taste something and it isn't perfect, at least as far as I'm concerned, I don't sell it. Like today, pulled a fresh new brisket out of the holding cabinet and started slicing it for a customer and tasted a piece. Flat was too dry for my liking, so I told the guy I wasn't going to give it to him because I felt it wasn't good enough and subbed his brisket for some ribs and gave him a free dessert. But he insisted he still wanted a sample of the brisket just to get an idea of the flavor. After he tried it he said it wasn't too dry at all and he would have loved to buy a pound to go to take home.
So what the hell do you do? I know it's dry. I'm cooking many briskets a day and it isn't hard to see when one is overcooked a bit. I know it isn't good enough, but the customers like it. If they like it and are willing to pay, is it really that bad, or am I just being too critical and am I throwing money away by resorting to using the meat in chili, beans, etc?
The same thing happened earlier when two customers both wanted chicken. One as a half bird, the other pulled. I filled the order and after sending it tried some of the chicken I was pulling and it was dry (to me). We didn't have any chicken ready at the time to replace it, so I went out there and apologized for the dry chicken and gave them dessert and a few extras, and they both insisted that the chicken was amazing and giving them free stuff was totally unnecessary.
So I don't know. Maybe I'm just overly critical, which is leading to waste. But I just think about it if I sample something and it isn't one of the best things I've put into my mouth, then it isn't good enough to charge people money for. Then again, you look at all the crap people are paying for elsewhere and it's a reminder that this isn't a KCBS competition and it's just regular people looking for good barbecue.
landarc
somebody shut me the fark up.
1) I think many of us are too critical of our cooking, in a sense, that is a lot of why we are here and all get along. We love to cook and eat, and we take pride in that. So, it is possible that you are being a tad over the top.
2) That being said, unless you are doing it all day long, in which case, that is a problem, the reality is you have to be proud of what you are serving. The problem with a lot of places is that the owner loses that sense of pride. The customer is not 'always right'. If you taste something and really know it is not what you can stand to serve, don't serve it. I would tell the customer that you tasted it, and that it is just not to the standard that you can sell it, and that while you would love to sample your brisket to him, that you simply do not want him to taste something less than your best. It is likely that he heard about your brisket, and in that moment, wanted it more than is reasonable. Later, he might decide it is, meh, maybe a little dry...
3) Bottom line it, are you tossing more than you are selling? Are you making enough that the one brisket or one chicken is not a loss proposition? If you can, hold the line on quality. If this is happening more than once every few days, then examine your processes, as that is too much.
2) That being said, unless you are doing it all day long, in which case, that is a problem, the reality is you have to be proud of what you are serving. The problem with a lot of places is that the owner loses that sense of pride. The customer is not 'always right'. If you taste something and really know it is not what you can stand to serve, don't serve it. I would tell the customer that you tasted it, and that it is just not to the standard that you can sell it, and that while you would love to sample your brisket to him, that you simply do not want him to taste something less than your best. It is likely that he heard about your brisket, and in that moment, wanted it more than is reasonable. Later, he might decide it is, meh, maybe a little dry...
3) Bottom line it, are you tossing more than you are selling? Are you making enough that the one brisket or one chicken is not a loss proposition? If you can, hold the line on quality. If this is happening more than once every few days, then examine your processes, as that is too much.
sliding_billy
somebody shut me the fark up.
Looks like that station has a live stream...
http://www.wndu.com/livestream
As for the product, I do think there has to be a slightly different line between what you serve and what you expect for personal consumption. Not to say that you serve inferior product, but understanding that there can be a small variation will come with knowing your customer base. When someone asks for brisket, you can always offer them a small sample of flat and point (from the potentially offensive cut) and ask what they prefer. You don't have to tell them that you are using them as "testers." I would honestly never go back to a place that subbed me ribs for brisket claiming that the brisket wasn't up to standards. That is for me to decide, and if I wanted ribs I would order them. Now if you have enough good brisket to not sell one and enough chili demand to use the "bad" one in chili that is another story.
http://www.wndu.com/livestream
As for the product, I do think there has to be a slightly different line between what you serve and what you expect for personal consumption. Not to say that you serve inferior product, but understanding that there can be a small variation will come with knowing your customer base. When someone asks for brisket, you can always offer them a small sample of flat and point (from the potentially offensive cut) and ask what they prefer. You don't have to tell them that you are using them as "testers." I would honestly never go back to a place that subbed me ribs for brisket claiming that the brisket wasn't up to standards. That is for me to decide, and if I wanted ribs I would order them. Now if you have enough good brisket to not sell one and enough chili demand to use the "bad" one in chili that is another story.
