pigalls

I went to work at Cincinnati State again this morning, arriving at 8:30am and leaving at 1:00pm. During that time, I prepped for the Titanic party being hosted at school on Sunday, working on proteins.

At 1:00, I went down to Pigall’s where I’d spend the rest of the day (and most of the night!). Dinner was family meal at Pigall’s — creamy pasta, Alton Brown’s chicken, carrots, peas, and corn.

Tonight, Wendy & I continued the celebration of her birthday with an absolutely wonderful meal at Jean-Robert at Pigall’s in downtown Cincinnati. I had made reservations with Richard for 8:00, and we arrived a few minutes early, thinking we would have a drink at the bar to relax after our hectic day, but Richard greeted us warmly, wished Wendy a happy birthday, and showed us directly to our table, saying, “You’ve got quite a meal ahead of you; you should get started.”

We were shown to our favorite banquette (#6) in the rear of the restaurant (Wendy seated where Jaques Pepin sat when he visited the restaurant a few years ago) and settled in. After a few moments, we saw Tammy, our favorite server, walking back to us with two glasses of bubbling Andre’ et Mireille Tissot ”Pigall’s Label” Cremant du Jura, N/V.Returning to our table, I found Tammy & Wendy still chatting. As I sat down, Tammy said, “I’m not even going to show you menus. Chef is going to do what he wants with you tonight.” We did not object! Jason, the sommielier, came over with glasses and a bottle. I asked if he would help us keep track of our wines, and he said that he would.

And the meal began… Read the rest of this entry »

After working a full day at UC, I headed down to Jean-Robert at Pigall’s to help prepare a special dinner (the restaurant is usually closed on Mondays) for 60 members of a wine club.

When I arrived around 5:15, the kitchen was in full swing. Jeremy, Rob (who left for class around 6:00), Mike, Richard, Luke, Raymond, and Karen were well into their mise en place and I was immediately put to work plating a duck salad hors d’oeuvre, a one-bite item on the end of silver spoons. Once that was complete, I worked on a tuna salad with melon on toast hors d’oeuvre. There were other hors d’oeuvres, too, including a very tasty sweetbread wonton.

Once hors d’oeuvres were sent, we worked on the rest of the banquet-style multi-course meal and I assisted with plating, cleanup, and fine-dicing shallots (I diced up a LOAD of them). I don’t have a listing of the complete menu to share, but if I can find one, I’ll post it.

I left the kitchen around 10:00, tired and sore, but glad to help.

Dinner? What’s that?

No dinner tonight, as I went from work at UC down to work at Jean-Robert at Pigall’s preparing a special dinner for a bunch of wine people. I nibbled a bit here and there, but no real dinner was consumed.

It’s official. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve worked at Jean-Robert at Pigall’s, but I was there again today, working prep only (arriving at 1:00pm and staying till about 5:30pm). While there, I topped-and-tailed snow peas, sliced shallots, helped with the preparation of the amuse bouche (a ring salad with fennel slaw on the bottom and fish salad on top), prepared seafood ratatoui (with lots of shrimp, scallops, and lobster mixed in with the vegetables) that will eventually be stuffed into zucchini blossoms. I also sliced, seasoned, and baked off toast for the bread service and made a few polenta-stuffed zucchini cakes for Rob. As usual, I worked anywhere I was useful!

I must have been holding my trusty knife incorrectly because I ended up with a nasty blister on my right index finger. I ate a bit of family meal — noodles with boiled chicken, corn, onion, and peas.

I wish I could have stayed through service and beyond tonight not only because I enoy being there, but because it’s Flo’s last night. Flo is a nice young man who is starting culinary school on Tuesday, and has (wisely) chosen to make school his full-time job. I enjoyed working with Flo. He’s a hard worker and well-liked in the kitchen at Pigall’s, so I would imagine his send-off after service will be quite …messy… and fun (well, fun for the rest of the gang; maybe not so much for Flo!). Best of luck with culinary school, Flo!

Reflecting a bit on Flo’s transition, I was there before he arrived and have been there during his entire employment at Pigall’s. It’s interesting to think that I’m becoming an ‘old-timer’ at the restaurant!

I arrived at Pigall’s at 1:15, and worked prep, doing a variety of tasks like picking Arugula, slicing cucumbers, peeling onions, assembling garnishes, helping prepare the amuse bouche, and a few other things. I couldn’t stay long today because this evening was HAPPY MOUTH, so I headed to Lebanon around 4:30. Details of HAPPY MOUTH are in this article.