I Got the Almighty Tongue - Chapter 49



Only Noblemtl

New Sous Chef (Revised)

dripping

“Come in.”

I received a call from Romeo on the first day of the holiday and visited his office.

The job of head chef is one that has nothing to do with words like holidays.

Employees’ vacation pay needs to be paid immediately, and food costs and employment-related tasks that need to be paid before Christmas need to be taken care of. In addition, there is a long list of tasks that need to be done during the holidays, such as menu development and remodeling work.

“You’re calling me during the holidays. Where’s your conscience?”

“You’ll soon become like me anyway, so you shouldn’t criticize too hastily.”

“Haha. Maybe so.”

“Will you accept the MasterChef judges’ proposal?”

Romeo looks at me and asks.

“Yes, I think so.”

“Have you ever had a meeting?”

“No, I haven’t done it yet. I just made an appointment.”

The production company was in LA, so I didn’t have time to go. News studios are mostly located in New York, but entertainment channels and production companies are often based in LA.

“I also received an offer and I know the general details. Of course, I declined.

The Master Chef auditions are said to take place over a total of four months.”

I didn’t know Romeo would get an offer. But unless you’re the owner chef, you can’t just throw away your restaurant and go on a show.

“It’s taking longer than I thought.”

“That’s the problem. If you join there, you won’t be able to work at the restaurant.”

Romeo looks straight at me and says.

“I guess so. I can’t leave the kitchen empty for months.”

“The timing isn’t bad. I think it’s time for you to become independent, Jehee.”

Romeo says dryly, as if it were no big deal.

“Suddenly like this?”

“How long do you think the average tenure of a sous chef at a Michelin-star restaurant is? Two years is a lot.

“You can’t be a sous chef for too long. You get used to avoiding responsibility.”

Romeo looks at me with complicated eyes.

“How do I do the handover?”

“Let’s start after the vacation. I’m sorry I couldn’t give you enough time.”

“Thank you for your consideration. I have learned so much.”

“No. I have learned a lot from you. You contributed a lot to the fact that I received three stars. Now, cook whatever you want at the restaurant that bears your name.”

“Romeo, I’ve learned so much over the years. Thank you so much.”

I expressed my sincere gratitude.

“You don’t have to be so polite. I’m not going to ignore you. Your successor will come from Italy.”

“Who is it?”

Italian sounds interesting. I think there will be a lot of difficulties in handing over the management if someone comes who can’t even speak English.

“There’s a guy named Federico. He’s been sending me his resume for the past two years saying he wants to come here. He’s a young guy with quite a reputation in Italy.”

“I don’t think you need to worry about your skills. You won’t have any problems with the kitchen staff, right? I’m a little worried about Jason and Nicole.”

Especially Jason, I wonder if he thought it was his turn when I left? But Romeo seemed to think differently.

He seems to be affectionate, but in this respect, he has a sharp personality. He can never gain Romeo’s approval through any other means than his ability.

“That’s his job, too. If he can’t do it, he’ll have to leave.”

I think the new sous chef will have a hard time. Someone in the kitchen will have to support him.

“We will carry out the handover properly until the end.”

“Okay. Just go out there.”

“But Romeo?”

“why?”

“Am I your disciple?”

Ever since my conversation with Rachel, I’ve been wondering. Am I his disciple?

“Of course. He is my only disciple.”

He pats my shoulder and smiles happily.

I have studied under Romeo for a long time since 2004. Without him, I wouldn’t be where I am today. He is the best chef and teacher I know.

Instead of shaking hands, I bowed deeply to him.

* * *

The meeting with Fox TV was able to be held right in New York because they were visiting here on business. They kept contacting me and actively made appointments, even though they were busy.

When I went to the meeting place, the PD and writer in charge of the program were there. They said they were from the studio that Fox TV outsourced the work to.

“Hello, this is PD Paul.”

A middle-aged man with a bald head greets me with a smile.

“Nice to meet you. I am Shin Je-hee.”

He looks like a nice guy. While he was waiting for me, he came out early and piled up some documents and files, and he was checking something.

“First of all, thank you for making space for us. We thought we might be rejected, but we are glad that you expressed your intention to participate.”

“I am the one who is grateful. It is a good opportunity for me as well.”

“Yes, this will be a great opportunity for everyone. You can look forward to it.”

He boasts with a confident expression. His confidence is justified, as the program is actually successful.

“Have the other judges been decided besides me?”

As I entered, one of the judges was removed. I wonder who it will be.

“There are a few people we are currently in contact with. First of all, Chef Gordon Ramsay is confirmed. Gordon Ramsay has been with us since the planning stage of this program. We checked his intentions before the BBC purchased the rights.”

“First of all, topicality is no problem. Gordon Ramsay is a superstar in the chef world.”

“We want judges with different concepts. What we want from Ramsay is feedback on his attitude as a chef, his fundamentals, and his collaboration as a team.

Chef Shin Je-hee can give participants and viewers greater confidence than anyone else in tasting and evaluating.”

He takes a sip of water and then continues talking.

“We need someone to evaluate the business side of things, and we’re looking to hire someone from among the restaurateurs. Joe Bastianich is a strong candidate.”

It looks like Graham Elliott is out. He participated as a Michelin starred chef, so our positions overlap somewhat.

“Okay. What’s the schedule for the audition?”

“We will start filming in three months. We will travel around the country and have preliminary rounds. This process will be broadcast on television only very briefly.

Since there will be tens of thousands of participants, we will pre-screen any participants who are below standard.

You only need to judge participants above a certain level.

“This process takes about two months.”

“It takes quite a while.”

It’s a pretty tough schedule, with just two months for the preliminaries.

“The United States is a big country. And we will select 30 people and start full-scale filming. It is expected to take a total of 8 weeks.

“The judges, like the contestants, will have to live in a semi-collegiate manner. The judges will also have to talk to each other a lot. Team chemistry is important.”

“Is there any issue with my eligibility? I am not the head chef, and I am certainly not the owner chef.”

This was a concern for me. If I appeared in the media and caused another controversy, it would only build a negative image.

“Oh! Come on. Don’t say that. Who can judge taste better than Jehee? The viewers and the contestants will all agree. The main reason we want to work with Jehee is to ensure objectivity in the judging.”

“I’m glad you say that. Is there anything I need to prepare before we start?”

“First, we’ll give you a schedule. Think about the lines you want to use on the show in advance and practice them. It would be a good idea to meet Ramsey and Joe separately.

“But aren’t you working at a Michelin 3-star restaurant now?”

He looks at me with a worried expression. He seems to be worried that the appearance will not work out.

“The head chef told me to go independent. I plan to start my own restaurant after I finish this audition.”

“Okay, then, take this document. It’s a brief description of the program. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. And there will be meetings from time to time. You should attend those meetings.”

“Yes, thank you.”

I shook his hand and exchanged business cards. I’ll see you next time in LA.

I have some time left, so I went to my own building in Manhattan. Once filming for Master Chef begins, it will be difficult to go to Korea for a while. I think it would be a good idea to start a restaurant in New York first.

The Michelin Guide has not yet been introduced to Korea. It would be beneficial in many ways to first receive a star in New York while there are still a few years left.

The most expensive area in Manhattan is, of course, the area around Central Park, followed by the Garment District, home to Times Square and the Empire State Building, and Midtown-South.

The rest of the area is pretty similar, except for Harlem in the north, but Greenwich Village in southern Manhattan, where my building is located, is a commercial district with low, pretty buildings densely packed together. It’s not a bad place to open a restaurant, as there are many cafes and pretty restaurants that are mainly frequented by young people.

During the subprime crisis, I was lucky enough to buy a building for half price, but even in this suburban area, the prices are beyond imagination. The rent is also quite expensive, but I got an unusually low rent from my tenants. I added a permanent eviction clause because I thought this might happen.

I contacted a real estate agent to discuss the eviction issue and was told that I could vacate without any problems.

There are many things to consider when opening a new restaurant.

The most important thing is what kind of concept restaurant you want to open. Of course, I plan to open an Italian fine dining restaurant, but I can’t start with a high-end restaurant right away.

My name is still too light for customers to be willing to pay $300 or more for a meal.

First, it is important to increase the name value by receiving one star. When listed in the Michelin Guide, the price of food is generally raised by 30% and the quality of the meal is improved. After that, if you receive another star, the price is raised by another 30%. Of course, the quality of the ingredients also increases as much as the price.

In this way, as quality and price increase, the customer base also changes.

I thought about the concept of the restaurant I wanted. There are so many modern concept restaurants in New York. Many chefs have sophisticated restaurants that use modern art.

I think it would be good to decorate a restaurant with a traditional concept using old-fashioned wood. I want to hang a nice chandelier on the ceiling and use very dark wood to create a heavy atmosphere.

If you could recreate the atmosphere of an early 20th century American or European restaurant and serve great food there, it would be a memory they won’t forget.

In particular, since the street is pretty here, it would be nice to put an outdoor table on the first floor to create a nice picture.

I need to find an architectural firm. I want one that can understand my rough concept perfectly and implement it according to the image I have in mind.

The restaurant in Korea is also only half a year away from completion. It will have to sit empty for a while after completion, but it won’t be for very long.

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