You might say, what a mess. In my town we say, Que clase' crical!

Que clase' crical

  So, the last weekend my wife told me that I had to clean the spice cabinet. Right after she saw this mess, her words where, you are not buying another hot sauce or spice bottle ever again. Yeah like that's going to happen. Hot sauces are a part of my life, seriously having a bottle of hot sauce in my kitchen is like having my pennis in my pants.  For those of you who cook, you know that having your spices and condiments is part of you cooking identity. Lets face it, sometimes  a little bit of salt and pepper wont do the job.

Ps
Hey guys sorry that I haven't been around in the past weeks, but college is taking a lot of time out my hands, but pretty soon ill be back with more tips and new adventures, till then , go out and try something new.

Back in the saddle again

What's up guys.
 So we are back from our well deserved vacations, and I have so much to tell you guys.
 In the last few weeks we have had some awesome food. From Zucchini Blossoms stuffed with cod to raw conk salad. We have seen good service and really bad service, but over all really good experiences. With that said, let's move on to the good stuff. New restaurants have opened in the area, classes have started and the cooking nights are starting to get old. What could you do in those nights that you simply don't want to cook, but you have too. Here are a few tips that might help you out.

1. Try setting a menu per night.
     Get recipes and develop a full meal, and remember try to do something easy.
2. Try using similar recipes .
    By using similar recipes you avoid having to buy tons of ingredients.
3. Recycle.
    OK I'm not saying that you have to eat the same food every night, but with the same ingredients
     you can do different things. ej with cooked pasta you can do Asian noodles, spaghetti, soup, etc.
4. Pre-package your proteins. (Ziplock that Bitch)
    Divide your proteins in separated packages, when you get your proteins from the store or market, cut 
    the proteins and marinade them, this will keep them more fresh than usual and ready to defrost under
    water in an instant. ( don't remove from packaging while under running water)

I hope that this few tips will help you in your daily venture of cooking every night.

Cheers.

To green or not to green, is it local the question?

Whats up guys !!

So, lately everybody is talking about being sustainable, being green, buying local, and ok that is good but let me tell you i think is a bunch of bull⩈✘✰☮.  Some of you that say ( oh i have so much passion for the food, cooking is my life ) bla bla bla . Listen if you own a restaurant, you are in it to make money, because if you wouldn't  want to make money you'll still be working as a line cook in a chilis or something. I get that buying local is good, not just for you, but for the local business as well, but sometimes buying local can get to be expensive  for a restaurant and the cost of that will affect your business, the food cost goes up then your prices go up and no one will want to go to your restaurant because is expensive. Instead, why not try cooking with some feeling. Sometimes you see all this Tv shows that show you all the food that other country's cook, and sometimes you see that, the ways they cook and the ingredients they use are not the best, but still the food is pretty darn good. What im trying to say is that in order to cook good food you dont have to have the finest ingredients, you just have to care about the food. If you don't believe me just ask Eva from the blog ( Freir un huevo ) and she will  tell you the truth, she is not a trained chef, and she can cook better than most of the people that I know.

So with that said. Don't believe all you see on tv and buy the ingredients that you want, just have fun and your food will taste good, trust me.

Oh, Jumping lasagna cowboy. Why oh why?

Last week I got some terrible news. One of my favorite restaurants is closing it's doors. What am I going to do now? Portobello one of the best restaurants in Westchester county, is taking a small pieces of my heart with them. Oh why,oh why. Very sad We say farewell to the Portobello Cafe and we The family of Confession of an unemployed bartender and N.Y. Restaurant Solutions wish good luck to Luis and Francine in their new adventure. Please take care my friends.

An the fucked up thing is, It's a Fucking Chili's.

By know you might know that I have high standards when it comes to service. For me the food is just, not enough, there has to be a harmony between food and service. That is was keeps the people coming again and again. Here is my point. Last night, my family and I went to eat after doing some shopping, and the options where a little bit small. We had on one side, Wendy's, and on the other side we had Chili’s.
Because of my in laws diet we decided to go to Chili’s. The problem was, that we had have really bad experiences in this particular Chili’s, the food is as regular as a standardized recipe could get. The service in this Chili’s was so bad, every time we went there they gave us a 5$ discount coupon for the next visit, and no kidding my wife has like 4 coupons in her purse from last year.

So any way, we went to Chili’s and OMG for the first time, the hostess greeted us with a happy face, when we got seated, not one, but two waitresses came to the table and told us that, they, as a team, where going to be serving our table. The appetizers came out really fast, the refills where there every time the glasses where empty. The entrees came out hot and quickly, over all the service and the food were pretty decent.
Who would have believed that? I after eating in fine dinning restaurants, so many bar and dives, I would get a service that would make Marcos Mercado look like 15 year old girl. An the fucked up thing is, it's a fucking Chili’s.

I felt like a prostitute.

  I'm not saying that I was a prostitute (I wish), just that I felt like one, every time I changed restaurants and had to start over again and again. Getting to know new people; well not really, in my town every service employee knows each other. Let me clarify; is not that I got fired on any of my jobs, is that I don't take crap from people that manage a restaurant because they have a B.S. in management and had never worked in a restaurant. Working in all those restaurants and bars taught me how to work and do work the right way. That is what a want to show all the people that work and want to work in a restaurant.

Working in a restaurant is tons of fun. You have the crazy waitresses, the really crazy cooks and chefs, that sell drugs to the employees. The cool doorman, the not so talented barback,the valet parking attendant that thinks he is the mayor of the town, the really hot bartender (that's me), and finally your customers, the most important aspect of working in a restaurant.  I have many storys about bars and restaurants, so stay tunned and you will know a few, well the PG 13 ones at least.

Till then, go out and try something new

The dont's and dont's of the restaurant.

Whats up guys.

By know you should know that I love working behind the bar. If you started to work in a bar or restaurant here are a few more tips that might help your career in the service industry.

1. Always greet your customer.

2. If you are going to get high, do it before or after your shift, not while in your shift.

3. Never touch your customers. NEVER!!

4. If you dont know something, ask for help, you will look better asking for help than laying and saying that     you know how to do it.

5. Never serve garnishes from the floor, no matter the customer.

6. Always know the daily special.

7. When in doubt do as Tosh would do.

8. And last but not least, never, ever party with your co-workers.

More tips to come, so stay tuned, until then, go out  and try something new.

For all you wannabe Wangstas.

An ode to Eva and her Blog

  Everyday, I see people that say, they are the best. Oh, I can cook, I can manage a restaurant, I can fly, BLA,BLA,BLA. Listen, first, if you want to work in the industry, you have to try everything there is to try.  My college Classmates don't know what is to try new food. They think that food is just pizza and burgers. Do you know how many types of food there are in the world? The Cuisines of the world are very complex and very delicious too, so why not try other food? And you call your selves the future of the service industry.

 A small anecdote:
 A few months ago I had a class presentation about the food of my  home town. When I asked my class mate if they would try a plate called mollejas ( Gizzards ) , everybody said, I'm not going to eat that, that is nasty, some of them even told me that , how could I eat that. I told them, with green bananas and onions of course. As I got the 86 with the Gizzards I decided to cook something that is more awesome than the Gizzards, I decided to cook Conch, for those of you that don't know what Conch is. Conch is a sea snail that is eaten in the Caribbean and South America. Is very tasty as well as a good source of protein. You can make it raw, in ceviche, you can make Conch salad, Conch stew, and many other tasty plates. So that is what i did, I made the most awesome Conch salad the east cost has ever seen( I'm being modest ) just New York, and when I did my presentation one of my classmates said, that she wasn't going to eat that because she hated the look of it.  I ask her that if she was going to work in a restaurant, how she was going to sell the food if she didn't know what was the taste, the flavor, the texture, and do you want to know what was her answer. This was like a kick in the balls, she said that she wasn't going to work in a restaurant that served that type of food. What an ignorant.

Anecdote Finished.

  OK don't get me wrong, there are foods that are simply not eatable and just nasty, but people, you have to try it in order to know if is good or bad.

  Thank you Eva (http://freirunhuevo.blogspot.com) for opening this can of worms, and having the guts to tell everybody first, that they suck, big time.

 With that said, go out and try something new tonight. It doesn't have to be something out of the ordinary, but something posible, or if you have the COJONES go out and eat something imposible, you'll never know, you might like it, and make the possimpable come true. Thank's Barney Stinson

If you want, I can help.

Here's the dilio guys!

  I don't have a problem if you want to work in a bar or restaurant. Is the other way around. I woud like that more and more people could feel what I feel when I work in a restaurant, the fun that I have when I get behind the bar and do my drinks. Yes there are a lot of hours of work, you have to work with people that have no business working there, but trust me is the most fun you'll have in a job ever. Guaranteed.
  My problem is with your boss, supervisor, Head waiter, Head bartenders, Maitre'D, and everybody that is above you in a restaurant. This are the people that are supposed to train you, the people that are supposed to help you understand what you're doing, so, here are a few tips you will need in order to make a good impression on your customers, and yes your bosses too.

1. If you are working at the bar. ( Bar tending )
 Learn where everything is. Go to your shift 10 min early, check where the juices are, check if you have drink garnishes, check if you have silverware for the people eating at the bar, check if you have ice in your ice bin, check if you have napkins in your napkins dispenser as well as straws and drink stirrers  in your dispensers. Check your glassware, make sure that the glassware isn't chipped off make sure that is clean, no dust no lipstick, check that your bar stock is full, that way you won't run out of liqueur on a rush, and never wait for the barbacks to do all this for you, because it won't get done.

2. If you are working the tables (Waiting tables)
 Do pretty much the same, check where everything is, don't be afraid of your customers, but be respectful. Remember these are your customers; they are paying for your job. Never, I said NEVER give a customer another customers check, this looks sketchy. When a customer is asking you about a plate of food know what to say, so learn the menu, know the ingredients, if you have tried a menu item and you didn't like it, don't say it to the customer, this looks really bad, so never badmouth the food that your chef has put out for the customer.

3. Have fun, but be respectful.
 Is important that you have fun in your work, but remember that we are serving customers and some of them are there to have a good time, but they are there to have a good time with themselves not with you. Give your customers space to talk to interact.

4. Always  be on the look out.
 As a server, bartender, you should be aware of the entire restaurant. You should know your regular customers from the people that walk in for the first time. Always be aware of the people intoxicated, try to avoid problems between customers. Count the amount of drinks your customers consume, remember you might be liable for any accidents outside the establishment.

I know that this is a lot to take, but trust me this will help you.
More tips to come latter, so stay tuned.

Are you charging me extra for the lipstick?

 Todays post is dedicated to the restaurant owners and their managers.

 Over the weekend I went to the pub  to have a few beers as usual, and my regular bartender had the day off. What a shame this guy really know how to treat a customer, and most of all, he knows how bad is my OCD is as far as clean glassware goes. As the new bartender came to introduce herself, I said to my self ( self, here we go again!). By know if you have read my last 2 post you should know that I'm a little crazy with the service I get, and I get crazier if it involves ALCOHOL. In most bars the employees don't really clean the glassware as well as they should. Lipstick, lip-balm, dirty fingerprints, dust from dirty rags, and other dirty residues from God knows what, is served every day with your favorite pint or drink.

  So, getting back to the story. The bartender comes she introduces herself, and ask us for our drink orders. I ask for a beer and my wife asks for a whiskey on the rocks. I tell her that if she can please pour my beer in a plastic cup, she says, we dont serve on plastic cups. I said, listen is not that I don't want a glasscup is that I don't trust how you clean the glass, so, can I please have a plastic cup instead. I told her that my regular bartender does it for me, and this is the punchline, she said to me, your bartender is off today, and you get what I serve you.

 I take crap from my wife, I take crap from my professors in college, I might take some crap from my family, but I won't take crap from somebody that doesn't know what they are doing. I have worked in restaurants and bars for the last 12 years,  and by far this has been the worst bartender I have encountered.

 The moral of the story is.
Please keep and eye on your employees, and stop hiring people to work in your bars, just because they know how to pop open a Heineken Keg and know how to mix a Cuba Libre. There is more to working in a restaurant, and when you and and the people you hire understand that, you will see that your business will do better, and your customers will thank you for that.

Words of wisdom
Work in a bar or restaurant, because you love working in a bar or restaurant.

No sneeze in my plate please.

 I swear that bad service follows me like bad smell. I went to eat breakfast with my wife today at our local Panera Bread store, and as we where waiting for our food, I saw the line cook serving our plates, and let me tell you, our plates looked good. I couldn't believe that today everything was going pretty well. Almost no line, the cashier was in a good mood, and they had soup before 10 am.  I said to my self, ( self, today is going to be a good day ), and just like that, the day went to hell. The server went to get the plates and all of a sudden he turns around and sneezes, AAAAACCCCCHHHHHUUUUUU, and as all the saliva and snot escaped between his fingers, the only thing I could think of was, he's going to get the plate without washing his hands. Just like that he turned around and tried to grab the plates.  As I sprinted my 300 lb. body towards the counter, knock down 2 kids and an old lady, in order to prevent the server from grabbing our plates. When I got to the counter he told me, don't worry sir I'll take your plates to your table, the only words that I could say to him where, Dude go wash your hand, I'll take the plates. On my way back to table I had a flash back, a few months ago in this same Panera I saw a busperson drinking from a soda cup, and you would say what is the problem with that? The problem was that the cup that she was drinking from, was a cup that she grabbed from a table she was bussing.

 I don't want to sound like that guy from the u tube videos but, please is up to us the customers, to tell the management about the horrors their employees are doing.

I said it once, and I'll say it again. Please train your employees, and your business will do better. I'm not trying to be an ass and talk smack about your places but, I need to say it.

Whats up with service this days?

  It seems that every time I go to a restaurant the service gets worst and worst.  With restaurants opening from left to right, restaurant owners have to realized that the only thing that could make a diference between every other restaurant is the service. You have servers taking drinks to the tables in their hands. Waiters with their fingers stuck inside the food plates, and many other monstrosities that would make Anthony Bourdain and Chef Besh cry. The problem is that any kid that needs a job aplies to work in a restaurant, and this is wrong. The service industry needs to realize that not everybody is suited to work serving people. When people pay to eat in a restaurant they expect to be treated with respect and dignity, even if that is in a fastfood.

The moto of this Story is, don't work in a restaurant if you don't have the talent. And for all those restaurant owners, stop hiring any joe that comes to your restaurant without any experience and training.