Week 2 at Ferrandi

Well, I would love to write about how well school is going or how I am having the most amazing time of my life, but I can not tell a lie!  The classes are actually great, the instructor pushes us which I love, and my classmates are fun for the most part.  I am just stuck in a perpetual state of SUCK!  I have been knocked off my high horse and now I can't get back on.  I don't know what to do to get out of this rut.  Hopefully I can get it all together within a month and start performing like a champion.

The weekly pastry classes are abysmal.  I understand that pastries is important to have in my repertoire, but most cooks will understand why I want to stay as far away from it as possible.  My tart dough never behaves the day I want it to!  We made apple tarts the first class, followed by puff pastry in the 2nd class.  I wasn't a fan of the apple tart.  I feel like the apple tart I make at home tasted better.  The puff pastry and fruit on the other hand was pretty good.  I may attempt to make puff pastry on my own personal time, but it is so time consuming!


I have been here about a month now and my French speaking skills are still very basic.  I try to communicate in French as much as possible with my chef and 2 other students, who are more fluent.  Our stages will be determined by our class performance and ability to speak French, therefore is it essential that I become as fluent as possible within the next 4 months.

Tarte au Pomme (apple tart)

Consommé de Boeuf (beef consommé)

Soupe L'oignon  (French onion soup)

Vichyssoise (potato and leek soup)

Fruit on puff pastry.

Week 1 at Ferrandi

Week 1 is now in the books and it has been an eventful week.  We are currently learning how to make soups and stocks.  I managed to slice open my finger on the first day of cooking, which was extremely embarrassing.  I was also the last person to turn in my soup dish, which was too salty for my chef (what can I say, I have an American palate).  We also had a field trip to Rungis, the world's largest wholesale food market.  Besides the annoyance of having to wake up at 3am to get ready to go there, it was a pretty interesting field trip.  They have many buildings that cater to specific meats, produce, and even flowers. 

At Rungis

 

  

Our 2nd day of cooking went a lot smoother.  My group finished their soupe au pistou well ahead of time.  Once again I was the last to present my dish.  Had it not been over salted, I would have finished 20 minutes sooner than I did.  I let it be known to the chef and everyone else that my goal is to secure a stage at L'Astrance.  At the moment things are not looking so good, but I refuse to give up.  I will get better.  On the bright side, my knife skills are fairly good.

Potage Cultivateur

I am enjoying classes for the most part.  Ferrandi classes run about 40 hours a week which is kind of annoying, but I can live with it.  I like my chef.  He is pretty fun to learn under and I try to communicate with him as much as possible, whether it be tasting his prepared dish (which no one does but me), or asking his advice to improve my dish. 

The Anglo cuisine class was split up into 2 groups and I am proud to say that I am a member of Group B.  I feel that my group is very strong and experienced.  On the other hand, I feel that we are segregated into cliques.  I can only hope that things will get better, but there no be no effort on my part.  I need to remained focused on my goal.  I am not here to create a harmonious atmosphere in the kitchen.  I am here to do my best and be the best.  I am thankful for the friends that I have made and they are great, but the others who are more exclusive, I will not waste time on. 

Week 2 is beginning and I have set high expectations for myself.  No more over salting and do not finish last!  Let's see how it goes.

I hate my white clogs

Reflections

It has been a week since I have arrived in Paris.  Looking back, it seems that time has flown by.  My memories of home and the restaurant are now distant.  The void created in my heart after leaving the restaurant has now been filled.  I guess it is true that time heals all wounds.  I still think about the old crew from time to time.  It helps me get through the days with a smile.

Adjusting to life in France has been a little difficult for me.  I have a weak grasp of the language and as soon as a shop keeper knows I am American, they will start speaking in English.  This hinders any possibility of learning the language.  I usually respond in French to see if they will attempt to revert back from English, but nope!  English 100% of the way.  How frustrating.

I went to visit my school last week and I ended up getting lost.  The metro system for the most part is fairly simple to navigate, unless you are me (I've been sheltered).  I lost myself in the tunnels trying to figure out where my line switch was.  I also got trapped in a train because I didn't know how to get out of it.  There are some trains that have doors which do not open automatically.  You must either press a button or lift a lever to open the door.  Needless to say, once I figured everything out and emerged up into the city, I found myself lost again.  I was walking around for about 40 minutes trying to find my apartment which is 3 minutes away from the metro station. . .it was such a tortuous experience.  I stayed in my room for a few days after that.

I spoke with Chef about my experiences and he told me to "Get of your ass" and "Go get lost."  I took his advice this past weekend.  I was walking home after a party, by myself! at night! and I felt a little hungry so I took a turn down a street I had never been to.  I found a kebab place, ordered dinner, and found my way back home.  It made me feel a little more confident about the unknown, but I will not be going back down that street again.  The kebab sucked and the frites were soggy!

All in all, Paris is the most beautiful place I have ever seen.  The architecture is bewitching.  It makes NYC and Chicago look a little pedestrian in my opinion.  Even the million dollar mansions back at home, can not compare to Paris.  Unfortunately, I am not a fan of city life.  Paris is too crowded and noisy for my taste.  Had I found a school in say, Bretagne or Provence, I think I would have a much better time.  I have not visited any of the famous landmarks since I arrived, but I did go to Versailles with my roommates.  I saw the tip of the Eiffel Tower and I passed by Notre Dame from a distance.  Actually I take that back, I Did see the Centre Pompidou.

Notre Dame

Château de Versailles

School commences next Monday.  I can't wait to begin.

The Eagle Has Landed

HUZZAH!  I have survived my voyage across the Atlantic and the English Channel.  This was my first experience flying at night, and I must say, I much prefer it over day time flying.  The lights of civilization below me reminded me of a galaxy.  Little yellow dots coalescing into one giant system.  It was quite the sight to behold.

I am living with 2 other students (a Brazilian and a Brit) as well as my host mother.  I think I have the smallest room because I am the last to arrive, but it is spacious enough for me.  My view isn't as great because I am in the back of the apartment.  I will patiently wait until my roommates move out, so that I may move into their rooms and have a street view!

My Brazilian roommate gave me a brief tour of our surrounding neighborhood this morning.  The buildings resemble the ones in the movie Inception.  

Based on my observations, Paris is somewhat dirty.  The streets are littered with cigarette butts, random plastic bottles and paper cups.  Just don't look down and admire the beautiful architecture around you!  The Parisians dress fashionably well and the women are pretty, seriously I can't stop staring haha.  Unfortunately everyone here tends to keep to themselves.  There is no eye contact so it is difficult to initiate a conversation with someone on the street.  Believe me I have tried, or perhaps I am really ugly and no one wants to look at me :(  so much for macking on French girls eh?
The taxi drivers drive like maniacs, but having ridden in one I understand why.  The faster these guys drive, the faster the pay counter rolls.  I don't know the exact rules, but it seems that drivers have the right of way in Paris.  If your crosswalk is flashing stop, you better run across as fast as you can, or you wait.  As soon as the stoplight turns green, the drivers will floor it.

I have a boulangerie (bakery) about 2 to 3 doors down from me.  They sell fresh baguettes, big macarons, an assortment of quiches, pain au chocolate (chocolate croissants), and a few other things.  I can't wait to try a pain au chocolate tomorrow morning!  I have a grocery store about a block and a half away.  I bought some boudin noir (blood sausage) and I can't wait to try it for the first time.  There are multiple bistros around me as well as a 'farmers market' that sets up across the street from me.

I will attempt to ride the metro tomorrow and visit my school.  I know I am going to get lost, I just hope I can find my way back home with my limited French speaking skills.

The Stagiaire Retires.

Guess who got the lobster killing job again?  Lobsters are actually reincarnated cooks, who once, like me, were forced to kill them in such a horrific manner.  At the end of my life, I will be destined to be reborn as a lobster, and another naive cook will be ripping me apart while I am alive.  What a horrible fate.  Well, since this is an unavoidable fact, I should start racking up on my kill count to make my afterlife suffering worth it.  I managed to burn myself while roasting the lobster heads for stock.  How is that for karma huh? Hooray for losing my burn virginity.  I will wear this battle scar with pride!

Saturday was a busy evening and I was on pastry the whole night.  I have no recollection of the events that transpired on this evening.  I don't know why.

Sunday, my last day at the restaurant didn't go as I had planned.  We were light on reservations so I thought I would get the chance to cook on the line one last time.  To feel the rush of dinner service, to get chewed out by Chef for not plating a dish to perfection, to have the other cooks mess with me because I am THAT gullible.  These were my expectations.  Instead, I was stuck in the back kitchen all day, prepping for a James Beard event.  Were we nominated for a James Beard award?  Did we actually win a James Beard award?  I am unsure about the exact details, but It was non-stop prep from the moment I entered the restaurant.  Once again I had to battle it out with my old nemesis, the Jerusalem Artichoke.  Seriously, why does this damn thing exist?  It sucked, but I banged it out and made The Punisher happy, and that is all that matters!

(The Punisher has been there with me from the beginning.  I don't mention him because I really don't know how to incorporate him into my weekly posts.  He has taught me a lot, like Mr. Hasselhoff, but in another aspect of the culinary world.  Because of him, I now know how to work in a clean manner at all times.  He also shows me short cuts to help me work more efficiently, and he corrects my poor techniques.  He reminds me a lot of Chef.  If you ask him a stupid question or do something incorrectly, he will educate you in a scolding manner.  He can sometimes come off rather "A-Hole-ish," but he means well.  Another stagiare once told me that he seemed "very serious."  I couldn't help but laugh.  You have to understand the man behind the killer exterior.  He really is a good and fun friend.)

I find it quite peculiar that my final evening at the restaurant would end the same way it began.  I was able to make a brief appearance on the pastry line, and then I spent the final moments of my evening hanging out with the very same cooks who opened up to me on my first day: Babyface, Ms. Ornitier, and the Pirate.  Ms. Stars was on vacation, so the evening wasn't 'picture perfect.'  Nonetheless, I will always remember the great times I had.

After service, we all went to the bar and hung out for a little bit.  It would be my last time seeing Chef and most of the other cooks.  There was an after party at Ms. Ornitier's which was, let's say 'interesting.'  The night ended with me and the Pirate sharing an air mattress which was less awkward then I thought it would be, until he started poking me. . .haha just kidding.  Damn ass pirate!  I hope you're reading this!  <3

I spent today (Monday) hanging out with The Pirate and Ms. Ornitier.  It was a good time for me, but deep down I was dreading the final goodbye.  I am reminded of the lobsters that I destroyed the other week.  Their feeble attempts to avoid the inevitable is parallel to my attempts to avoid, well the inevitable goodbye.  After lunch, we parted ways with The Pirate and the realization hit me hard.  Things were ending.  I went back to Ms. Ornitier's apartment where she and I had a nice chat before my departure.  She gave me a lot of insight and advice on the cooking industry, listened to my thoughts on everything, blah blah blah, *insert sob story*  I will miss her very much.  She has been fun and great ever since day 1.  

I guess this is my last update from the United States.  I will be flying to Paris next Sunday to begin my adventures as a culinary student.  I am saddened by the fact that I will be leaving all my friends behind, more importantly my fellow cooks.  Perhaps I will make 1 last visit to hang out with Ms. Stars, since I missed her this weekend and maybe we can hang out with Ms. Ornitier and the Pirate, "ARRRRRRRRRRRRR MATIE."  Punisher? everyone again?

1 More Week to Go

I just finished week 10 of my stage and I am now on my final week.  I wish this week would just drag on as long as possible.  I really do not want to go to the restaurant this weekend.  I can't believe I am saying this, but I don't want it to end.  Maybe I am getting 'cold feet' about leaving.  I am thinking back to my experience in the restaurant, and at the moment I can't think of any negative thoughts (well except for those damn Jerusalem Artichokes,  I hate those damn things with such fury!), perhaps I am blinded by emotions.  The thought of potentially never again seeing my fellow cooks has me feeling melancholy. 

I tried to savor every single moment possible this past weekend.  I knew my time was coming to an end so I tried to show up to work with a positive and cheerful attitude.  I spent most of Saturday killing lobsters and then breaking them down.  It was a weird feeling killing those lobsters.  It was as if the lobsters knew their impending doom.  As soon as I would grab one, it would struggle furiously in a futile effort.  I had to drape my towel over the lobster so I didn't see myself tearing the poor thing in half, and then breaking off its claws.  I felt kind of bad at first, but after a few lobsters in, I was a one-man slaughterhouse.  I would still get freaked out from time to time, whenever the lobster would "kick." 

During dinner service I worked with Ms. KP/ZD on pastry.  I haven't worked with her in a few weeks, so it was good to be back on pastry.  I always feel like we're the A-Team when I work with her, because it is only the 2 of us on the pastry line.  KP/ZD does most of the work though, she's more of a 1-man army and I'm the water boy.  We were getting slammed at one point in the evening, so she had me plate most of the components for one of the desserts.  She told me to take the plates to the back and that she "trusted" me to plate them.  I recall thinking that she must be insane for putting so much faith into me.  I didn't know how to plate the dish HAHA! but I did watch Ms. Stars plate it an hour or so beforehand.  I tried to re-create the dish to the best of my recollection.  I was expecting to get yelled at, but she didn't scold me! High Five!

On Sunday, I had to the opportunity to work with Mr. Hasselhoff again.  This was a special night for me because Hasselhoff would be moving to a new restaurant after this evening.  He has been a great friend and teacher to me.  There is no need to reiterate all the praise and appreciation I have for this chef.  I just want to express my deepest gratitude for everything.

I spent the evening cooking the pasta dish Hasselhoff taught me last weekend.  It was an amazing experience.  I pretty much had full control of the dish, from execution to plating.  I did get some assistance during crunch time though.  It is hard to describe the pressure of the dinner rush to someone who hasn't been on the line.  Orders come in slowly and then all of a sudden you have a monsoon in your hands.  Here is a scenario:

The chef yells out "Order 1 fish," you toss the fish into your pan leisurely, as if you have all the time in the world.  "Order 2 fish," now things are starting to pick up, but 3 fish isn't a problem to you.  You're the champ right? "Order 5 fish," Whoa, now its crunch time! you toss your fish into the pan, but before they even hit the oil, Chef yells out "ORDER 7 FISH."  Your adrenaline starts pumping, you're getting nervous.  You have 14 orders of fish in the span of 5 minutes, the stove is cluttered with pans and there is no room for yours.  Your fish needs to be done and timed to perfection so that you and the grill man down the line, can plate your dishes simultaneously and send it out to the customer.  Oh, by the way, orders are still coming in and stacking up. You DO NOT fall behind.  That option is not even permissible.  Fall behind?  Go kill yourself!

At the end of the rush, when you have survived the onslaught, a feeling comes over you.  You feel like, like you're the ne plus ultra of anything and everything.  You're more than the king of the world.  The gravity of how God-like you are makes universes orbit you.  Ok maybe that not amazing, but you do feel extremely superior.

Line Cook Wanted.

I am lagging behind on my blog updates.  This post will be for week 9, but I am about to enter the 10th week of my stage.  I have been extremely busy/lazy/tired.  My visa still has not been approved because Ferrandi still needs to give me a letter in regards to my internship.  I am pretty upset with Ferrandi at the moment.  I sent one of their representatives an email about obtaining the letter, and they said they would get it to me ASAP.  I waited for a week and did not get a response, then one day I receive an email from the representative stating that she will be on holiday break until January 7.  ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!?!  That is 1 week before my flight leaves for Paris.  I am afraid I might not even make my flight now, because I don't know how long it will take the consulate to approve my visa.  Way to drop the ball Ferrandi.

In other news, I am saddened by the fact that my days with my French tutor are coming to an end.  She is one of the best teachers I've ever had, if not the best!  Looking back, I guess that I have progressed very well in 4 months time, but I will still be slaughtered by the French.  I can't speak fast enough or with correct grammar, and I damn sure can't comprehend quick enough.  I hope the French are understanding when I ask them to repeat the same question 20 times!

The stage is going okay.  The prep work is still strenuous, but dinner service remains fun.  This past weekend I got to cook on the line.  YES! you read correctly, I GOT TO COOK ON THE LINE!!!!!! At first I was watching Mr. Pirate, but he told me to jump in.  I started off just heating up his Purées, then I moved onto searing some lamb, followed by plating his beef dish.  It was a pretty cool experience.  Chef yelled at me for not plating one of the plates to perfection.  It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be.  If anything, I learned a new way to have better hand control when plating.  At one point, the Pirate and I were moving in harmony, like fine clock work.  Mr. Pirate would turn around to plate and I would automatically grab his pan and continue his cooking, while multi-tasking and continuing to cook whatever was in my pan.  I felt like such a badass until I started bumping into him and ruining our machine-like flow.

I also got to work with Mr. Hasselhoff.  At first I helped him plate his pasta dish, but soon after he had me cooking it.  Then I was responsible for cooking and plating the dish by myself!  well, Hasselhoff did help me when I was falling behind.  Once again Chef was there to sternly educate me when I screwed up, but hey! I didn't get kicked off the line so that is always good.  I learn a lot from Hasselhoff.  When he was showing me how to cook the pasta dish he went into great detail about why it is cooked a certain way, signs to look out for if something might go wrong, and how to adjust it to remedy an impending disaster.  What a great mentor.

I wonder if I will get a chance to work with The Punisher this coming weekend.  I fear his fish station the most!