Charlie Trotter Quotes
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In a time when it is common for chefs to simply reproduce the innovations of others, the few who speak for themselves through their food become the skilled artists of their time.
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You can't be afraid to not have everything figured out. There's too much pressure on young people today to have it all figured out when they're in college.
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If you want the meaning of families and life and religion and philosophy rolled into one package, all you need to read is 'The Brothers Karamazov.'
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Sometimes I think I should have chosen a line of work where it was just me alone in the room, with the sun coming in, and God, insofar as he or she exists, smiling down upon me. Then I would have never been accused of being a tyrant, other than towards myself.
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All four elements were happening in equal measure - the cuisine, the wine, the service, and the overall ambience. It taught me that dining could happen at a spiritual level.
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I believe in focusing on details.
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It's a challenge to demonstrate that you can prepare some really interesting food with humble ingredients.
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To me, searching for perfection isn't anywhere near as interesting as trying to find your own voice.
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Ultimately, I want to prepare food that will be recognized equally in Tokyo, London, and Paris. I am after that universality, that transcendence.
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When I graduated I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I didn't want a conventional career.
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The most successful food, I think, is food that both appeals to the super-sophisticated diner or foodie and to the lay diner at the same time.
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My plan is to work on a master's in philosophy.
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I have always considered desserts to be of equal importance to the savory food.
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I timed my previous wife's pregnancy to the moment to have my son born on Bob Dylan's 50th birthday. There is no bigger Bob Dylan fan than me. You don't just time the day and impregnate your wife to get your kid to be born on Bob Dylan's 50th birthday.
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The body cannot produce enzymes in perfect combinations to metabolize your foods as completely as the food enzymes created by nature do. This results in partially digested fats, proteins, and starches that can clog your body's intestinal tract and arteries.
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At home, a man is entitled to raise his voice maybe once a year, if something really gets under his skin. At work, it's different. I raise my voice all the time. Not out of malice, but to get things right. It's never personal.
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Excellence is about fighting and pursuing something diligently, with a strict and determined approach to doing it right. It's okay if there are flaws in the process - it makes it more interesting.
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I'm really not that comfortable with people. I mean, I love individuals, but I'm not very social.
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There has been no great surprise, no sudden revelation. I knew pretty much what I was getting into. What I've learned is that a restaurant can be as much of an art as you want it to be, but it has to be a successful business first.
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I wasn't using college as a stepping stone to law school or some other career. I just wanted a liberal-arts education.
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I took the obligatory economics classes in school, but I've long been a fan of the Milton Friedman philosophy and its libertarian bent: One must be free to do what one wants to do, as long as you don't harm another. This is the seminal treatise on free-market economics.
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You've got to give away what you love.
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A jazz musician can improvise based on his knowledge of music. He understands how things go together. For a chef, once you have that basis, that's when cuisine is truly exciting.
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I don't ever want to lose that mind-set where you've got to be able to realize different ideas-slash-fantasies-slash-possibilities in your life.