Chef Gui & Son

As an artisan, there is a time in life when you realize that your child is ready to participe in your activities, to share your passion and work with you.

My son Julian is only 5, and I thought that I had a few years ahead of me to reach that point. But the recent “dinner in the organic garden” precipitated things. The casual atmosphere of the 90-guest sit down dinner, the farm-to-fork concept, and the pleasant camaraderie among the other chefs pushed me to evaluate the possibility of taking Julian with me.

He has always been interested in cooking. Sometimes, he “cooks” with me and has been eager to come with me to work and “help”.

So I took him that Sunday at the farm with a little anxiety. I’d packed comic books and dvds in case he got bored or start complaining about one thing or the other. A shift of 9 hours, for a kid that age, was pretty risky to undertake.

To my pleasant surprise, astonished admiration and paternal pride, Julian not only didn’t complain or whine at any time, but he had a blast.
He followed me around from the line to the prep area, from the grill to the smoker, from the tables to the garden.

He interacted with the 5 other chefs present that night, took photos of the guests, chefs, servers, me, his feet, and other items that seemed to appeal to five-year olds.
When it was time to plate, he stood on the line and plated 90 entrees. His job was to put the rosemary on the tip of the pork. He was part of the team. The other chef treated him as such. He was quiet, focused, and hard-working.

He also spent some time creating, mixing flavors. He’d pick up items in the garden, come back to the kitchen, and cut and put together a “dish” that he made me try. He had a lot of fun and is ready for more. And so am I.

Here are a few pictures of the him at work: