One thing I have noticed about being a chef is that we create quite a bit of buzz. Everyone wants to talk to me once they find out that I am a chef. This is because I represent a universal source of happiness…..food. People just love talking about food and apparently cocktails. This was beautifully demonstrated on December 21 of last year, when I had knee surgery.
My surgeon came by to chat and let me know that I would be given something for pain, I responded ” really, I would love a shot of good Bourbon” He looked up from what he was scribbling and said ” oh so you like whiskey do you, do you like Manhattan’s”? ” do I like them???? well that’s my signature cocktail”! At that moment he put down his papers and proceeded to tell me a 10-minute story of how his uncle made the best Manhattans and proceeded to explain the technique to me!
The next thing I knew, the entire surgical team was huddled around my little cubical talking cocktails! This conversation continued into the surgical suite where I had opted to stay awake for the procedure. The entire time my knee was being repaired, we talked about food. Being 4 days before Christmas, lots of questions were asked about holiday foods, particularly on the subject of dry brine VS wet, this went on for an hour with everyone sharing their brine recipes and techniques.
The PA to my immediate right bent over and whispered in my ear, “are you familiar with the restaurant Alinia”? of course I said! He then proceeded to whip out his phone and show me photos of his dinner there which he told me almost bankrupted him, but he said it was so worth it!
Think about it, food is the great connector and the great comforter. The number one thing food-centric folks like to talk about are family recipies, how mom made this, or grandma made that, it’s like when we talk about our memories around food, we go right back to that place of when we first tasted that wonderful dish. I will always remember how my students would come to a class at my studio and share so many wonderful stories about their families recipes. They would walk in as 8 strangers and leave as friends, exchanging numbers and emails. That is the connector aspect of food. A group of folks in a kitchen together cooking, sharing and eating. Doesn’t get much better than that. Food connects us.
Comfort, well who can’t use more of that these days? People die, we eat, people get married, we eat, we’re sad we eat, we’re happy we eat. Just about any time we need comfort or to feel a sense of goodness, we eat. I remember as a kid the lady who lived across the street from us would always bring a pot of fresh coffee to a house where someone died. Whenever we saw Jenny, we knew death was in our midst. My grandmother would always make her famous sponge cake and bring that to the bereaved house. In the South where I lived for many years, it was casseroles, fattening, gooey, starchy casseroles. In the Northeast where I was raised and currently reside, it’s trays of cold cuts and vats of baked ziti. Food comforts us.
Food is non-confrontational, nonpolitical, non-judgemental, and doesn’t care what color or nationality you are. Food is for everyone and everyone has memories that are steeped in food. The number one thing food-centric folks like to talk about our family recipes, how mom made this, or grandma made that, it’s like when we talk about our memories around food, we go right back to that place of when we first tasted that wonderful dish. It seems like every time I am with friends or family, we always end up talking about food and reminiscing about food. Food is love, it’s security, its memories that we piece together in our minds, one bite at a time.