Needing To Go Back...

I don't know what took me so long. Maybe I was scared? Maybe I wasn't sure if what I had was a fluke? A one time thing? That it was something so special, I shouldn't even try to recreate it.

What am I talking about? I'm talking about cooking. In a restaurant kitchen.

Although I often think about those days (and long nights) that I had been staging at Postrio, I didn't realize that it had almost been 18 months since I'd worked there. Many of you have read on this blog about my adventures in the kitchen. The trials and errors. The ups and the downs. The rushes. The highs.

I'd been thinking a lot about cooking again recently. And thanks to a friend, I even had the chance to enroll in some classes through the local culinary school. It took about an hour for me to realize. I needed to learn on the job. Not in the classroom. I'd been lucky enough to have spent time in a restaurant kitchen before, and this wasn't going to cut it anymore. I'm not looking to make a career change here, so the classroom stuff? While it was great fundamentals, I missed the adrenaline rush of the kitchen. I missed the energy. The team work. I missed working with, and learning from, serious cooks. It kicked me into high gear.

Now? Now, I'm searching. For a restaurant that will let me come and work. That will welcome the free help, that will be patient with me. Who has cooks that want to, and are able to, teach someone. I'm looking for a kitchen that recognizes that I have something to give. And that I will be dedicated to their kitchen. And continue to give my time, for as long as I'm learning. And having fun.