Customer Reviews

The Soul of a Chef: The Journey Toward Perfection

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

this new hardcover, written by michael ruhlman is excellent. the first section in particular is truly gripping(esp. if you are a food nut like i am!) the almost blow by blow account of a group of chefs trying to pass a series of incredibly arduous tests (a ten day herculean nightmare)in order obtain the title of master chef from the Culinary Institute of America makes the Iron chef challenge look like a stroll though the park! one of the main themes of the book is the quest for

perfection in cooking and it's intriguing to say the least. it is like night and day, comparing the book to kitchen confidential by anthony bourdain where it focuses mostly on the dirt and the dysfunction that goes on. needless to say both capture many different truths about the restaurant industry. another exciting section is the fascinating behind the scenes of The French Laundry, a highly acclaimed restaurant and how the chef's personal philosophy affected the running of the restaurant.there is also a well written account of a dinner with john mariani, one of america's preeminent food writers. the author's journalistic objectivity has served the book very well especially in a field that is filled with hype.

`The Soul of a Chef' is the second of Michael Ruhlman's journalistic explorations into the world of culinary life in America. The book contains three long essays that chronicle parts of the careers of three different chefs at three different levels of achievement. Thus, the journey toward perfection is more the journey of the author than it is a journey by a single chef.

The first essay is a telling of the events in one examination for the title of `Certified Master Chef'. The certification is carried out and bestowed by the Culinary Institute of America, often characterized as the Harvard of American cooking schools. The examination runs for more than a week when, on each day, the candidate must complete a particular task. The candidate knows the object of each task at least a day in advance, so they may at least mentally prepare for their challenge. Almost all tasks are taken from the pages of classic French cuisine, some lifted almost directly from the pages of Escoffier's books on the subject. Out of about a dozen qualifiers competing at each session, held once every six months, usually only two or three candidates pass the test and are awarded the title. The author participates in the competition under the ruse of being an inspector from a fictional qualifying organization that is verifying that the tests are worthy of an imaginary certification. In that way, the author can observe and interview all the candidates without arousing suspicion or apprehension in the candidates. Thus, this book picks up the narrative on American culinary careers at very much the same place the author left off at the end of his first culinary investigation `The Making of a Chef'. Most candidates have been chefs for a few years and are looking to add to their credentials and marketability, especially those who work as consultants to food service organizations. In many ways, this chapter is the most interesting, as it holds your interest to see if the featured candidates in the narrative will achieve their certification.

The second essay had a much weaker hold on my interest, although the quality of the writing was equal to that in the first essay. The essay title, `Lola' is the name of a major Cleveland restaurant whose owner and head chef is Michael Symon, a CIA graduate, who may be familiar to some of you as one of the co-hosts on the Food Network show `Melting Pot' where he and Wayne Harley Brachman explore eastern European cuisines. In addition to this distinction, Symon has been recognized as a `Food and Wine' best new chef, so he really does not need the kind of recognition one achieves by earning the Certified Master Chef award. Symon's position in the middle essay is a sign of his rank above the CIA Master Chef candidates and below the very top of the American culinary scene represented by the chef in the last essay. The most interesting episode in the tale of Symon and `Lola' is in the story of a visit by John Mariani, a major American restaurant critic where it seems as if just about everything goes wrong. The moral of this story to me is its demonstration of how difficult it is to maintain 100% food quality in a very good restaurant. There is a very good reason why the executive chef stands at the expediter's table and checks on outgoing dishes. The connection between the second and third essays is the fact that Symon and his new wife go to Napa Valley to dine at the French Laundry restaurant for their honeymoon.

The third essay takes us to the very top of the American culinary hierarchy of achievement. It deals with the career of Thomas Keller, the owner and executive chef of The French Laundry. He has been recognized as the best chef in California, followed by recognition as best chef in the country by the James Beard awards. His quest for perfection is legendary. It is no coincidence that Ruhlman is the co-author of Heller's `The French Laundry Cookbook' as I am sure this essay was done at the same time as he was working on the cookbook. Keller's reputation is well known among foodies, so I won't dwell on it here. I will only recommend this essay, plus a chapter in Tony Bourdain's `A Cooks Tour' as excellent profiles of this very important American chef.

For knowledgeable foodies, this book is a pure delight. Just knowing how to make pasta Puttanesca enhances one's enjoyment of the story in the second essay. For non-foodies, the book will appeal as well or better than other famous journalistic essays such as Tracy Kidder's `Soul of a New Machine'. The book contains some recipes.

Highly recommended reading.

Although I love to cook, for some reason I never got around to reading The Making of a Chef when it first came out. However, I realized that one third of Soul of a Chef was devoted to Thomas Keller and The French Laundry, so I ordered it. To my suprise, I could not put it down. The book is wonderful because the subject matter is interesting, and the writing is excellent. Mr. Ruhlman is a writer who became a cook, not a cook who became a writer. While I was reading the book, I laughed out loud, I did high fives in the air, I muttered, and when I was done, I wanted to hang out with the author. I can't say I've had that reaction to a book before. If the subject matter interests you at all, you won't be sorry you got this book while it is still a hardback. Then if you haven't read The Making of a Chef, it will be your next purchase! If you enjoy this book half as much as I did, it will still be five stars. They wouldn't let me give it 10. The Soul of a Chef and The French Laundry Cookbook together would make a fabulous gift.

In this book, Michael takes us into the kitchens of the CIA once again. He shows us some of the best chefs in the country, as they labor under the enormous stress of taking the CIA's 'Certified Master Chef' exams.

He then travels to two of America's finest restaurants and explores the character of the Chefs who created them. Along the way, we meet some other colorful characters and some very delightful-sounding food.

That's it in a nutshell. The reason I love this book is because it shows the heart and intensity of what I can only call the 'love of food' and the 'striving for excellence' that both of these Chefs possess. The discussion of their ingenuity in creating new dishes is very interesting as well, but it is the sheer PASSION for cooking that Michael communicates to us that kept my eyeballs glued to the pages.

I have now read both of Michael's books on this subject: The Making of a Chef and The Soul of a Chef. I finished them both in about two weeks and my understanding of the world of cooking, not to mention my faith in the human race (how could you not love a species that is capable of such positive, again, passion??), has simply been...transformed.

Thank you, Michael.

In his prior book, "The Making of a Chef", Michael Ruhlman wrote about what its like to attend the Culinary Institute of America and go through a rigorous chef training program. In "The Soul of a Chef", Ruhlman writes about the next step - being a professional chef and reaching for that always elusive standard of excellence. If you enjoyed TMOAC (a good book) and learning about the CIA, you'll enjoy TSOAC even more.

TSOAC is three stories. In the first, Ruhlman sits in and observes seven chefs, and one in particular, as they attempt to pass the ten-day Certified Master Chef examination, a rigorous test with a low passage rate. In the second, Ruhlman tells the story of Lola, a restaurant in his home town of Cleveland, and of Michael Symon, Lola's owner/chef and a rising star in his profession. And in the third, Ruhlman tells the story of Thomas Keller, the head chef of the French Laundry in Napa Valley, which some critics have declared to be the finest restaurant in America.

For the home cook who occasionally fantasizes about being a professional chef, TSOAC will be both stimulating and sobering. Being a chef may be interesting, but its not easy; in fact its damn hard work. The anxiety level created by the Master Chef Exam, the pressure Symon goes through to perform for reviewers and the demand for absolute perfection that Keller imposes on himself are all highly intense experiences - perhaps even to the point of being self-destructive.

Ruhlman is not only an observer, he is also participant in a sort of George Plimpton-like manner. In writing TMOAC, Ruhlman attended CIA classes as a student for a year. Between TMOAC and TSOAC, he worked as a cook for a period of time at a Cleveland restaurant. He knows many of the examiners in the Master Chef exam from his school days at the CIA. He helped out a little in Lola's kitchen. And while he did not cook at the French Laundry, he did spend part of his time there helping Keller write a cookbook. One gets the feeling that Ruhlman may be suffering from an identity crises - "Am I a writer about cooks, or a cook who also writes?", but for the most part his perspective is helpful. There is some enjoyment in hearing Ruhlman describe with some level of experience what its like for a restaurant to hit a rush on a big night, even if he is only a "paper chef".

Towards the end of his story about Lola (Part Two of TSOAC), Ruhlman is having dinner with a group of people that includes a restaurant critic of national repute. Ruhlman asks him whether he ever worries that being a food critic is in the end a shallow and self-indulgent way to spend one's life. The critic responds that he has thought about that and goes on to explain how a cookbook helped unite Italy by creating a common language and suggests that if a single cookbook can have such an impact, then the topic may not be so trite after all. Writing about cooking in America right now involves a subject of potential importance. There is lots of talk about a current culinary revolution, but no one has yet clearly defined exactly what that means. Ruhlman is helping us do that.

In the end, TSOAC is not just a book about a cooking exam and two cooks, its about what cooking and restaurants have become in America. Its a subject that is slowly becoming an important part of America's cultural fabric and, as with any such subject, it needs its commentators. Ruhlman is fulfilling an important role. We can only hope he will not conclude that the topic is too unimportant for further study.

The writer satisfyingly answered three "questions" through his professional-level abilities in observing, inquiring, reporting.

(1) What's it like to take the most demanding chef's exam in the country--and what does this show about perfection (even if such is not always either necessary nor attainable)? I saw how the CIA's CMC exam is a week of making good chefs stumble, rush, reconsider, improvise, balance a dozen variables, and try to clear the hurdles of preparing complex menus in limited time--both error-free and excellence-freighted. See for yourself.

(2) What's running a top-ranked restaurant like? Lola's in Cleveland demands near-impossible coordinating by its chef, one of the recent "ten best new" chefs nationwide. To orchestrate new menus--overbookings--airconditioning and other failures--mistakes when a famous food critic visits--staff training and rapport.....it's all depicted here. Read it for yourself and see if maybe the grueling daily routine of the "prep cook" alone makes you glad (as it did me) that each day, I cook only for two or more, not complexly for 250.

(3) What is culinary genius? The chef of California's French Laundry seeks and touches perfection, in combining then curating ingredients. No, Ruhlman doesn't define Chef Keller's rationale--but see for yourself how he shows the magic close-up anyhow.

I am no food-writing expert. And so perhaps other books do as well or better in depicting high-quality chef activity. But I am fascinated by food specifically, and also by "excellence-in-quality" generally. And so I found the book well worth my time. Ruhlman is a sometime cook--but I think, from his work here, is now becoming a truly all-time, professional, nonfiction writer.

Ruhlman does a fantastic job of exploring the development and nature of three chefs. This book is particularly intriguing if you have read "Kitchen Confidential." It shows the more civilized side of professional chefs. The tension of the Certified Master Chef exam in Section 1 is intense. In Section 2, Ruhlman does a superb job of detailing the visit of a well known food critic to a new restaurant. The third and last section is a well-balanced look at the Tom Keller's French Laundry in Yountville. Througout, Ruhlman uses his CIA training to give vivid descriptions of menus and preparations.

I lived with this book from cover to cover - not able to leave it for long. What insight I got in the 'behind the scenes' lives of chefs! I can't wait now to visit The French Laundry - and taste some of the wonders I read about. I found Michael Ruhlman to be a really terrific food writer - and insight into what it takes to be a really fine chef. I've now started his first book. I look forward to more of his writings.

Ruhlman's first book, Making of Chef, was a terrific, in-depth account of his time as a journalist/student at the Culinary Inst. of America. For people with some appreciation for the tradition and craft of cooking, it's full of "So that's how" moments and conveys the so-different challenges of being a professional chef. It's also personal and dramatic. Just a pleasure to read.

This book is the uneven sequel. The book is in three parts. 1) An account of one's year's Certfied Master Chef exam/cook-off at the CIA; 2) the story of Michael Symon and his highly successful Cleveland restaurant, Lola; 3) likewise Thomas Keller and his Yountville, CA phenom The French Laundry. Part 1 is a gripping and fitting follow-on to the first book. He follows the contestants through their week of mystery-ingredient cook-offs, portraying their triumphs and failures through moment by moment. After a while, you can predict when that consome is going to break, too. Part 2 covers interesting ground in portraying the day-to-day workings of a successful restaurant. But Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain's story of NYC's Les Halles, is more insightful and Bourdain's dark, wry voice can't be beat. In Part 3 Ruhlman faithfully details Keller's obsession with craft. It's a love note to Keller and the restaurant that in the end didn't quite hold my interest. Hard to push aside thoughts that it would help sell the cookbook the two wrote together.

If you liked "Making", you'll enjoy part 1 enough not to regret having bought the book. Otherwise, unless you're a habitue of Lola or French Laundry, I'd pass.

Those of you who were on the mailing list (sorry, it wasn't email back then) in 1998 saw Mr. Ruhlman get an A for his 2nd book, "The Making of a Chef," which was about his taking the first semester at the Culinary Institute of America and learning to cook there.

This book follows up strongly. It's probably a stronger effort than the first, but still only rates an A (sorry, we hold out that Plus for special books like "World's End" and "All the Pretty Horses"). In this effort, Mr. Ruhlman isn't part of the subject so there isn't as much being impressed with himself as there was last time.

This covers three sections: the first follows 7 chefs attempting to become American Certified Master Chefs. So far only 53 of the 180 chefs who have taken the test have passed. Only 1 of these 7 will do so. The story ends up following Brian Polcyn of Milford, MI (his restaurant Five Lakes Grill gets rave reviews regularly in this area). He isn't the one who passes which makes his story even more interesting. The test lasts 10 days, at about 16 hours per day; you get tired reading about it. It's a fair look at whether or not the test is necessary, if it accomplishes anything, why the chefs go through it, etc.

Section II follows the Lola Bistro in Cleveland, OH. The restauranteur there is named Michael and he attended and graduated from the CIA. However, he doesn't truly act like a graduate from there. His restaurant is a fun place to go, mainly stemming from his attitude (he cannot remember a day that the happy didn't outweigh the bad in his entire life). You see how restaurants do not need to follow the CIA formula to the tee to be successful and good.

Section III takes us to Napa Valley and Thomas Keller's The French Laundry. This is taken to be the best restaurant in America and possibly the world. It is interesting to see how Mr. Keller's career developed as he didn't have any formal food training. The place sounds incredible if you like small, gourmet ideas and lots of them. The typical meal includes 5 courses, pre-determined by the Chef.

All in all, another great look at the food/restaurant/chef industry by Michael Ruhlman. If you have any interest in the above, or like to watch Emeril Lagasse from time to time, you will enjoy this one.