secretcurse

What's it like to be sitting across the table from a complete idiot that you know is going to be a shitty employee but knowing that you're going to have to hire them because you need someone and don't have other options? I figure that must've happened a few times at a fast food joint.

Also, watch Gordon Ramsey on the UK Kitchen Nightmares or the show where he is trying to teach novice cooks. He's generally really nice and only gets frustrated when the owners of failing restaurants refuse to believe that their business practices might be the problem.

He's the most visible "asshole chef," but he's only an asshole to professionals that should know better. He's incredibly patient with amateurs that have an interest in cooking.

How did you keep a corporate job while living in a tree?

Well, there are a billion Catholics in the world. Without this guy, there are only 999,999,999. That number is a lot less impressive.

Exactly. His advice to restaurants is always somewhere along these lines:

Take local ingredients that you can buy fresh and cheap.

Cook them simply so your food is consistently good and celebrating your fresh, local ingredients.

Don't have an overly complicated menu and have a wait staff that is competent.

Your restaurant needs to always be very clean and have a reasonably modern decor.

He's made himself incredibly wealthy on those principles. If your restaurant is failing, try the shit that has consistently worked for him.