The return of the Sunday dinner

You up for a Sunday dinner on Friday?

And then you look at me as if I’m crazy, but that’s just cause you haven’t been enlightened to the return of the SUNDAY DINNER DINNer DInner dinner [echo effect, in text]

Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, that’s what the comments section is for (I enjoy that I am writing this as if I have legions of fans that would actual be commenting), Sunday dinners to the best of my knowledge was something that started in 1952, well at least in the 50’s, well at least it felt like something that would have been coined in the 50’s and it was all about the family gathering over a big meal Sunday evening, ignoring all the hustle and bustle of the everyday world and the pressures that come along with it and just enjoying each other’s company and good food. Over time though, people got busy, families spread out farther, time to cook meals was lost.

Perhaps it had something to do with the rise of the television. Perhaps families shifted from the kitchen table to the living room couch. Technology in the kitchen, with the invention of the microwave also contributed with the best example being the combination of the two technologies in the: microwave tv dinner.

And the Sunday dinner faded away. Time spent bonding over food was gone. The idea that time spent cooking was time wasted.

But it doesn’t have to be gone. And nor does it have to be limited to Sundays. When I talk of Sunday dinners, I talk of friends or family taking the time to slow down and just enjoy some good food together. I love to cook and then have the ability to share with some friends where we can just relax, slow down, shoot the shit and feel satisfied, emotionally and physically, that sounds pretty fuckin’ good.

The food doesn’t need to be expensive or complex either. It is something about the experience of a good meal that when the components come together for something that is greater. A dish of shepherd’s pie is tasty when I eat it by myself, but it becomes part of a story, part of an experience when I share it with someone else, it becomes a Sunday dinner. So when I invite you over for a Tuesday Sunday Night Dinner, I’m simple inviting you over to spend sometime with you and that time with you makes the food taste better. So I’m just basically using you to make my food taste better. It’s like an extra bit of seasoning, or a spice called “friendship”.

Excited to be working

Be excited for me. I got a new gig and am so excited for it. So be excited for me, it’s a burger bar. Be excited for me for it is what I need and I’m excited for it, er go, you should be.

After pretty much bombing out on my first gig here in mtl (harsh, but true, but all bridges are still intact), I learned a lot of stuff about myself. Where I can improve and what works best for me. Through combing through online postings and interviews and tryouts, I realized the best place for me to be is the new burger bar opening on crescent.

I see people’s excitement drop as soon as they here this. When people hear that I went from high-end fine French food to burger flipping, I get reactions like I’m over qualified for that place and that it would be a step down for me. That's just wrong.
As things started to sink-in and the more I visited other kitchens during interview times, I realized the burger bar is actually the place I need to be right now for me.

As for the resto itself, it is hyped as a high-end burger joint. There is 4-5 different artisan buns coming in from a local baker and high-end products on the menu (lobster and kobe beef), so I will be handling a lot of good product. And everything will be done from scratch, including the building blocks like stock etc. After getting a look at the menu, I realized that while the burger maybe the lead singer, there are a lot of good dishes that make up a great back up band. I’m excited about the mac ‘n cheese and the twists the chef is putting on them.

The dialogue with the chef was great and i realized that as i was interviewed by other restaurants that just didn't click as well.

Even though it’s still under construction, the kitchen looks nice. There is a back prep area that has a skylight, which is really cool.

It’s on Crescent street which will be a wicked new Montréal experience for me. And it will be busy. There is no doubt about that. And right now, if the biggest thing I need to improve on is my focus and speed on the line, then a busy place doing many covers on a vast menu that is above your regular turn and burn is great for me.

Plus, on the spot, I was offered full time at more money then I had made previously.

So when I tell you I’m flipping burgers, remember: this is a good thing.

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