"chef" news and stories

Chef Paul Prudhomme was setting up his tent at the Zurich Classic (golf) in New Orleans when he felt something on his arm and thought he was stung by a bee.

When he opened his shirt sleeve, a .22 calibre bullet fell to the ground!

Fortunately for Chef Prudhomme, the bullet was apparently not aimed at him, but had simply fallen, probably shot from somewhere within a mile-and-a-half radius of the golf course.The chef's shirt was torn and his skin was cut, but he was back to cooking within five minutes.

So he wasn't shot at, but I still like to think that chefs, given what they do in their tiny restaurant kitchens, are invincible.

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The LA Times ran a piece yesterday on blogs becoming a new tool in many chefs' arsenals, and how they're entering a blogosphere that used to be reserved for us commonfolk. The difference, according to the author? Primarily, style and choice of content: commonfolk tend to "natter about what they fed their boyfriends last night, and fuzzily photograph their latest batch of heart-shaped cookies" while REAL chefs tell the stories behind the food, taking more time to detail the food's inspiration and its history.

I beg to differ. I'm biased, yes, but I think our Slashfood Flickr group is a perfect example of primarily amateur photographers and chefs taking outstanding photos of food, ones just as good as any in a cookbook. And I think people read food blogs to take in the "nattering" about day-to-day life and how it fits in with what fix and eat. And chef's blogs can be personal, too - they don't all fit neatly into one (bread) box, as this author seems to imply.

The article details several chef blogs that have been making waves, and how the chefs are using their platforms to make a statement. For some chefs, like Alison Barshak, a blog is a way to show off and advertise your new restaurant under the guise of giving viewers a tutorial on opening up an eatery. For others, like Michael Laiskonis, blogs are a chance to describe eloquently, albeit verbosely, how they got the inspiration and found the ingredients for their extravagant meals.

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The question is, does the Sexy Chef Costume really work for a Slashfoodie on Halloween?

You see, Halloween is about dressing up in ways in which, under normal, everyday circumstances, you would not. For a lot of people, that means dressing up as some storybook character like Alice in Wonderland, and in many cases, it means dressing up (or down, as the case may be) in some "normal" outfit that has been modified to reveal some secret fantasy, like a Naughty [you-name-it-they-make-it-in-a-naughty-version].

Still, even though we are all truly Iron Chefs in our own personal Kitchen Stadiums, the Sexy Chef is a great little costume -- and by "little," I really do mean little -- costume for those of us who want to wield a balloon whisk and whip you into stiff peaks.

The Sexy Chef Halloween Costume is availabel from Amazon for $47.95.

Admit it. At some point in your foodish life, even if for a fleeting moment, you dreamt of opening a restaurant. Or perhaps a cute little cafe. Maybe it was to become a star chef. For us, Slashfoodies, a dream job is in food, right?

Snap out of it. You have bills to pay, screaming kids demanding your attention, and you still have eleven things on your to-do list that you were supposed to do yesterday.

And work in a job as a chef? Please. What you really need is a vacation.

Well, now you can do both. Vocation Vacations is a combination of a dream vacation with your dream job. They've put together lists of "vacations" all over the world that incorporate a few days of "work" in a dream job, and have a whole slew of food-related dream vocation vacations: brew master, baker, star chef. Personally, I'd love to be "restaurant critic" and fly all over the globe, eating in a different delicious restaurant every night.

But that one's not available.

Most of us will never get to eat a meal at the White House, joining up with heads of state from all over the world, as well as governors and other high-powered politicians, at one of the most famous dinner tables in the country. Curious about what the food was like, the Associated Press asked chefs, food professionals and foodies to take a look at some of White House's recent menus to see what makes the table - and whether it represents the country well.

With the exception of Tim Zagat (of the Zagat guides), who felt that the menus were "kind of strange", the reviewers praised the dishes prepared by executive chef Cristeta Comerford and her staff, designed with the help of first lady Laura Bush and social secretary Lea Berman. They used mostly American ingredients, with nods to the specific countries represented by guests. Chicken wasn't prominently featured, although Kobe Beef, Maryland blue crab, shrimp and lamb were chosen repeatedly, and every main was accompanied by lots of fresh, seasonal vegetables. The wine selections were also good, with lots of boutique wines that were clearly identified on dinner menus.

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