We can all make fun of the French as frog munchers or surrender monkeys. Yeah, they smoke too much and need to learn how to use a pooper-scooper. But in August, you eat your words. The entire country goes on holiday. Many restaurants have signs that they will be closed until September. Even the branch of Pierre Herme on Vaugirard is closed.
Our chefs are no exception. (The school is obviously still open in August, so the have rotated their summer vacations since June.) This week marked the last week we would have Bean as he and his family will be traveling for the month of August. This means no Bean for our final exam. No Bean for our graduation ceremony. No smiling face in demo or guiding us in practical…needless to say, we were all very sad to see him go.
Everyone has had a great teacher. That person that really wants you to learn, is rooting for you to do well and isn't just showing up to collect a paycheck. Bean is that for us. As a Chef, he loves exposing us to exotic spices and ingredients, never lets us forget about wine pairings (he is from Burgundy, after all), expects us to walk out with a pressed, clean white uniform after a long day in the kitchen and simply to do our best. Everyone's favorite.
If we have learned nothing else from this man, we have learned how to be an effective leader. "Chef" translates to "chief," after all. He and his wife ran a restaurant before he sold it to teach at LCB. He often talks to us about how to run a brigade. There is the type of chef that is constantly yelling at his staff, always keeping them on edge and afraid. Bean said he worked for chefs like this early in his career, and hated every minute of it. He would always say that it is not necessary to have that kind of atmosphere. Your brigade will respect you if you work hard and lead by example.
That came through everyday in how he treated us. He has high standards and always inspired me to do my best work. To be clean, precise and thoughtful. I wanted to do well not because I was afraid he would yell or embarrass me, but because I didn't want to disappoint him. He was never bothered by a question. Took his time to explain to if something in my dish was lacking, where I could improve and reminds you there's always tomorrow.
There will be a tiny void in the final weeks of school without our Chef Bean. On the flipside, we were lucky to have him as a teacher and as a mentor. This year, he will be competing for the title of Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF). This is the highest achievement for a French chef and it's only awarded once a year. The winners wear red, white and blue stripes on the collar of their chef's coat to denote the honor for the rest of their life. Kind of like how "Academy Award winning actor" precedes an actor's name forever after winning an Oscar, so too with the MOF title. It's a very big deal. I wish him the very best and hope the next time I see him he will be sporting the stripes!
Bonne vacance and merci, Chef.
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| Chef and our Superior Cuisine group after our last demo together. |
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