# pet peeves for cooks



## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

a few of mine:

going to someone's house and randomly having to cook. the knives are always dull and rest of the equipment is substandard.

when people ask "what is your specialty?"

people that think that television personalities are the greatest chefs ever.


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## chefross (May 5, 2010)

I love my job........If it weren't for those dang customers, everything would be just great!!!


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

Cooks who lick their fingers after every task. Eww.


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

TV cooks and cookbooks that use the phrase, "available in every store."


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## petalsandcoco (Aug 25, 2009)

Showing up for work on Monday morning only to find my work station has been changed or something moved. It is more than a pet peeve for me.......

Looking into the pantry only to see that the product I am looking for has been used and emptied and no one bought another or left a note telling me there is none left. (weekend shift)

People asking me , " Do you  like to cook ?"

Getting ready to plate and someone walks into the kitchen and wants to talk.


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## gunnar (Apr 3, 2008)

When I get asked for something that isn't on the menu or even have ingredients for in the restaurant.

Servers that don't know the menu....especially after a month of work.


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## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

a couple more:

When i turn around at my station and find that someone has snatched my dry towel {and usually leaving a dirty wet one}, tongs or spatula

messy, unorganized cooks. their range is covered with spills. more mise en place on the cutting board and the floor than the cold well.

people who use all of somethinglive oil, cream, corn starch etc. and put the empty container back on the shelf.


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## culinuthiast (May 4, 2010)

you guys sound like my mom!


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## jacklarcc (May 5, 2010)

I have to agree with halmstad.........

people who feel TV personaliites are the best chef's ever--


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## Guest (May 27, 2010)

People destroying their knives on a steel... thinking they are cool because they can do it fast and make a lot of noise.

Watching cooks on TV drip sweat and drop hair into food because they don't wear hats... health inspectors would definitely write you up for that.

Watching Emeril for years on TV and thinking he is the greatest, only to find out his food is crap...


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

People who think you know everything.

People who think you know nothing.


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## gypsy2727 (Mar 9, 2010)

Pet Peeve of a Chef?

                                 No one truly  gets this industry unless your in it! ...after over 30 years...including the time working for my parents restaurant it is in my blood for life.

We are a different breed , that is in no way explainable  unless you are living the same dream as I am. Don't ask me to come over for dinner and then say " Would you serve this in your restaurant? ....and don't ask me if I would like to help in the kitchen or my opinion on anything over the meal ...I just love it when someone else cooks .Even if it is a grilled cheese sandwich

I do have my own down time too!


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## prairiechef (May 22, 2010)

Just two...

customers

and servers.


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## skatz85 (Mar 3, 2010)

people using my station and not cleaning the mess they made, servers coming around to my station to look for food and in my way. coming to the dessert station and finding and empty bag of whip or empty bottles of sauces, just dont see why they cant refill it or  just have it washed.


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## chefboyarg (Oct 28, 2008)

halmstad said:


> a few of mine:
> 
> going to someone's house and randomly having to cook. the knives are always dull and rest of the equipment is substandard.
> 
> when people ask "what is your specialty?"


I effing HATE both of these. Good equipment totally makes the difference and unfortunately most people don't have decent knives.

Anyways I am going to add a couple of my own:

1. People not respecting the craft -- par example there is a waiter/cook at a place I work at who claims he is going to put "sous chef" on his resume because he has been watching the Food Network for years and works in the kitchen a few shifts a week. He was absolutely floored when I properly rolled an omelette and gussied up one of the dessert presentations. Jesus I'm getting fired up just thinking of it.

2. Fellow cooks who are talking to you as they're walking away/not facing you then get pissed you didn't hear them. Either speak up, look in my direction or don't get angry I had to ask for a repeat. I don't have microphones planted in the walls.

That's all.


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## koi29 (May 14, 2010)

>Had domestic Kobe Beef as a special one weekend.

>Burgers for lunch, filet for dinner.

>First burger order is well-done.

>First filet is well-done and butterflied.

Also, people ordering a medium burger or steak, and sending it back because "it still has some pink in it."


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## prairiechef (May 22, 2010)

Koi... yup.

"I'd like it medium rare, please... but no blood".

"I'd like it well done, but juicy"

Customers that have no clue what they're ordering drive me nuts.


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## amazingrace (Jul 28, 2006)

A few years ago (pre-retirement), I was waitressing in a very nice restaurant that had "Steak House" in the name. It ticked everyone off when customers whined because the menu didn't have more vegetarian offerings (there were at least 3 veggie plates, plus the cooks did try to be accomodating). Like ... hello..._its a steak house_... why did you even come in here??? Grrrr...


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

_I'd like it well done, but juicy"_

Well, waddayaknow, PrairieChef. Seems like you've served my brother.

The boy insists on having his steaks cooked to the shoe leather stage, then douses them in ketchup because they're so dry.


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## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

i always say at work that the restaurant industry would be a much more fun place to work if it wasn't for those pesky servers and guests.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

amazingrace said:


> It ticked everyone off when customers whined because the menu didn't have more vegetarian offerings


Well, were the vegetarians you served fresh or previously frozen? It makes a difference, you know.

mjb.


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## amazingrace (Jul 28, 2006)

Har d har har har


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## jmama (May 31, 2010)

In my kitchen my pet peeves are the dogs under my feet...

someone putting my knives and cookware in the dishwasher..

oh don't forget metal in my nonstick cookware...it makes me cringe and strangle them at the same time!!!


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## hungrystudent (Jan 1, 2010)

Just a home cook here.

People touching my knives.

People wanting to chat with me while I'm cooking a meal for 8 people and then getting offended because I'm not paying attention to them.

Employees at grocery stores telling me that poor product is "Just as good" as what I'm looking for.  Applies most especially to "produce specialists" trying to sell blemished food.

People salting the food before they even taste it.

People touching my knives.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

A number of years ago my wife "did me a favor" and scrubbed out my favorite cast iron skillet with lots of hot soapy water.  It took a while to get the seasoning back.  Now no matter how gross and skanky the cast iron looks after I cook a meal she lets it sit until I clean it up.

mjb.


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## dc sunshine (Feb 26, 2007)

At home cook here too - its a different kind of peeves for me than in a  pro kitchen, but similar I guess.

-People putting used cups & plates etc on my clean boards

-Knives going into the dishwasher, then whinging when I have to re-sharpen them because of the noise it makes

-Someone clearing out the dishwasher, then stuff ends up in all the wrong place, and I gotta spend ages hunting something down...grrrr

-Telliing people dinner will be ready in 10 mins, so please finish off what you are doing - and waiting 20 mins after having to nag - I don't make a nice dinner so it can go cold and spoil.  Me not hungry by then

-Texting or answering the phone during dinner - arggh

-Someone promising to do the dishes, then in the morning - hey - guess what?  They're where I rinsed and stacked them still

-Empty beer/wine/soft drink bottles left cluttering up my bench space

-Bags of bread left unsealed

.....I could continue, but it's making me angry thinking about it lol


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## jmama (May 31, 2010)

Oh I so forgot the whole dinner will be ready in 10...Oh I feel your pain especially when your making nice seafood that doesn't taste good cold/img/vbsmilies/smilies/mad.gif


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## maryb (Mar 21, 2008)

Going to friends/relatives and getting stuck cooking.


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## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

Catering the family Thanksgiving and everyone at first was all for it and was ready to pay thier share of the bill.. to have only six out of twenty people pay us and hear complaints about the food at Christmas..  I really didn't care about the cash.. I did it to help out, but the complaints were a bit much.. hmm.. you got  a FREE  meal and did not lift a finger to do dishes but come Christmas you have issues?  It was only one person who complained but they were rather gossipy about it and that really irked me.  You can't please everyone and what matters most to me is that my mother in law enjoyed the meal I made and she appreciated not having to do all of the work.


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## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

Pet peeve at work.. the  "last minute larry's" who turn up five minutes before closing and expect full serice.. ack!!


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## kcz (Dec 14, 2006)

Cooking for a family of picky eaters...

Brother and sister who between the two of them won't eat most seafood, anything "spicy" (by which they mean seasoned), anything with visible green herbs, any greens except iceberg lettuce.

Brother will only eat meat on the charred side of well-done, sister only eats meat nearly raw.  Both will only eat poultry so overcooked that it's crumbling into sawdust-like consistency.

Vegetarian friend who won't eat anything containing garlic or onions.

Other vegetarian friend who won't eat pasta or anything with nuts.

Friend's wife who goes into anaphylactic shock if she's in the same room as a mushroom of any species.

Blah, blah, blah.

Thank God that at my last dinner party we had a power failure and had to eat by flashlight so they couldn't see what they were eating.


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

Home cook here...

I don't mind people wandering into the kitchen, but I don't want them hovering so close I can't pull my elbow back without knocking the contents of someone's glass on the floor. My mother has this extra-bizarre horrible thing where she hovers and then mops up little spills on the rangetop --- WHILE IT'S ON. I mean, like I'm tossing a blazing-hot skillet over high heat and here she is poking her fingers almost into the flame with this disgusting little wet rag because there's a little dab of sauce on the pristine white. Weird weird weird. I now routinely drive these people away: just toss the pan while lifting the handle so you get that big gout of flame -- I know, you're not supposed to do that, bad form -- but it freaks people out and they flee.

I gave up cooking at other people's houses without bringing my knives or resigning myself to it. That also gets rid of hoverers, actually. Sure, I'll be happy to cook, here's this 11" chef's knife sharpened to a razor edge... hello? hello? where'd everyone go?

One thing I really, really hate is when someone asks me to come and cook, and we arrange stuff in advance, and they don't pay attention. My mother and mother-in-law are the worst offenders on this one. They'll basically buy all the stuff, and I come and cook it, right? But I show up and where I said I would need a stick or so of butter, it turns out all they've got is 2Tb in the little dish, covered with jelly and crumbs from toast. Or they thought they had black pepper, but I guess they're out, sorry. My personal fave on this one was when my plan included some rather intricate potstickers, and I must have asked my mother about five times if she had a nonstick pan (the buggers aren't called potstickers for nothing), and she'd always say yes. When I got there, it turned out that by "nonstick" she meant "Calphalon." Eh? "Nothing sticks to it." Errr.... you don't make omelets very often, I gather....

I also deeply hate certain kinds of tools. What moron invented nylon spatulas that bend so easily you can't lift a single portion of fish fillet? Who invented kitchen tongs made out of that stuff that's only slightly stronger than aluminum foil, so you try to turn something and the things just crush in your hands?

Last but not least, I want the people who set certain standards about home rangetops and countertops and stuff to be killed. OK? Look, you've got four burners, in a rectangle. If I put a pan on one burner, and a pot on the burner behind it, they both need to fit, OK? I'm not talking about gigantic crazy things, I'm talking about perfectly ordinary pots and pans. And this is not so old, either: my mother's stove from the 60s has more than enough space for quite big pans back to back, but all the normal decent stoves today don't. Who thought of this?

Oh yeah, one more. I can't stand people who want meat well-done, don't eat fish or seafood at all, and avoid all green vegetables. One of these things I can live with, but all of them together makes me furious. People like that also always turn out to be unwilling to try things: "I couldn't eat rabbit, that's like the Easter Bunny"; "lamb? eeeew, it's a baaaaby"; "duck? oh, I don't think I'd like that." So what do you eat, anyway? Just meat -- always "steak tips" for these people, I find, preferably incinerated on a grill by some half-drunk macho man -- and then baked or grilled chicken, hamburgers, over-sauced and over-boiled pastas, and lots and lots of junk like canned salsa. I wouldn't mind so much if these people would just say, "I don't really care about food, I just eat what I'm used to." But no, these people always get into discussions about how the food at this place was _so_ good --- read, large portions, everything deep-fried, free CheezWiz liquid glop on top, lots of stuff labeled "loaded," and really big drinks.

Bleah. Now I'm all irked. Thanks a bunch.


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

You know, rereading that little rant, I sorta forgot one thing. Am I the only person who hates this whole grill macho thing? What the heck is it with these guys, who can barely make toast in a toaster, that they drop thousands on some gigantic outdoor cremation device and a bunch of overpriced stupid useless tools, drink 8 beers, and think they're grill masters? And they have these theories. You know: "well, you have to get a good char on the outside, see, and that keeps the juice inside." Well, um, sorta, I mean no, but you're not totally out to lunch, but honestly you don't need to do this to a 1" cube of beef tenderloin, it's just going to burn to a lump of coal. And they spend all this money on "rubs" and then mix them together, preferably with some really cheap liquor, to make a "special flavor marinade." You must have seen these dudes over this past weekend, Memorial Day For Animals Who Gave Their Lives To Be Turned Into Charcoal By Drunken Idiots. By the time they eat anything, they're half-blitzed anyway and can't taste it, so they don't even know.

I still remember the time I tried to explain about resting meat to a neighbor who's a Grill Warrior. He said it wasn't true, swore up and down. OK, I said, and grabbed two thick steaks. Grilled 'em both good and hot, then said watch this and put one under a bowl, right next to the grill where it was passably hot, and cut the other one immediately. What happens? You know perfectly well: the immediately-cut meat was raw in the center and dry-gray around the outside. After 10 minutes' resting, I cut the other, and it was beautifully pink throughout. What about that, I said? Answer: (a) you didn't cook them the same, see, because this part of the grill is hotter than that one, and (b) you didn't cook them right, because the first one should have been gray all the way through, that's how you know it's done, and otherwise you die of e coli, and (c) I don't like meat pink, that's disgusting, what do you do, drink blood like a vampire?

Gah!!!!! Grills!!!!!


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## gunnar (Apr 3, 2008)

ChrisLehrer said:


> (c) I don't like meat pink, that's disgusting, what do you do, drink blood like a vampire?
> Gah!!!!! Grills!!!!!


Yes, I do. Didn't I mention I am a real cook? What do you think I mean when I mention Long Pig? *insert vampire smiley w/ chef hat here*

p.s. I mean Brahm Stoker's or Anne Rice's or a variation of, not those sparkly, Emo, crappy vampires upset for being rejected from Teen Magazine.


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## kcz (Dec 14, 2006)

Oh, so you've also cooked for my family???


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

Gunnar said:


> Yes, I do. Didn't I mention I am a real cook? What do you think I mean when I mention Long Pig? *insert vampire smiley w/ chef hat here*
> 
> p.s. I mean Brahm Stoker's or Anne Rice's or a variation of, not those sparkly, Emo, crappy vampires upset for being rejected from Teen Magazine.


Mmmm, long pig...



KCZ said:


> Oh, so you've also cooked for my family???


/img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

_Am I the only person who hates this whole grill macho thing? _

Not hardly, Chris.

I used to have a boss who's father wouldn't even attend a back-yard cook out. If dragooned into it, he'd take his food into the house. His contention:

"For a hundred thousand years we've fought our way out of the caves to become civilized, with flush toilets, and high-tech stoves. Then we buy a place in the suburbs, and the first thing we do is cook in the backyard. Doesn't make sense, and I ain't gonna do it."


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## petalsandcoco (Aug 25, 2009)

KYH,

That just reminded me of this old story : (getting away from pet peeves- I know, could not resist)

In a quiet Mexican fishing village, an American who was on vacation saw a local fisherman unloading his catch. He decided to approach him.

The American asked the fisherman, “Why are you finishing your day so early?”

The Mexican replied “Oh Senor, I have caught enough to feed my family and a little extra to sell for today. It is now time to go for lunch with my family and have a siesta. In the afternoon, I can play with my kids. In the evening, I will go to the cantina, drink a little tequila and play the guitar.”


The business professor was horrified at the fisherman's lack of motivation to succeed. He answered, “If you stay out at sea until late afternoon, you will easily catch twice as much fish. You can sell the extra, save up the money and in six months, maybe nine, you will be able to buy a bigger and better boat, and hire some crew. Then you will be able to buy a second fishing boat and hire another crew.”

He continued, “In another year or two, you will have the capital to buy a second fishing boat and hire another crew. If you follow this business plan, in six or seven years, you will be the proud owner of a large fishing fleet.”

“Just imagine that! Then you can move your head office to Mexico city, or even to L.A. After only three or four years in LA, you float your company on the stockmarket giving yourself, as CEO, a generous salary package with substantial share options. In a few more years , listen to this : you initiate a company share buy-back scheme, which will make you a multi-millionaire! Guaranteed!”

The American got very excited at the prospect himself. He said, “I definitely know these things. I'm a well known professor at the US Business School.”

The Mexican fisherman listened intently at what the animated American had to say. When the professor had finished, the Mexican asked him, “But, Senor Professor, what can a person do after getting millions of dollars?”

Now, the American professor hadn’t thought that far. He was taken aback by the question.

So he quickly figured out an answer “Amigo! With all that dough, you can retire. Yeah! Retire for life! You can buy a little villa with a picturesque fishing village like this one, and purchase a small boat for going fishing in the morning, You can have lunch with your wife every day, and a siesta in the afternoon, with nothing to worry you. In the afternoon, you can spend quality time with your kids, and after dinner in the evening, play guitar with your friends in the cantina, drinking tequila. Yeah, with all the money, my friend, you can retire and take it easy.”

Puzzled with the American's suggestion, the Mexican fisherman replied, “but, Senor Professor, I do that already!”


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## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

ooooooooooohhhhh........

people opening bread by tearing open the bags instead if using the twisty. that's a good one and really pisses me off.

coming in after my two days off and seeing that no one has been keeping up on rotating and icing the fish. i work the fish station and do it every night.

people touching my knives is another good one. drives me crazy. or people forgeting their knives and asking if i have one they can borrow.

co-workers who do nothing but complain about not getting enough hours. they are always willing to show up that half hour early(unknown to chef), but are always in a rush to get out right at closing. the beer will still be cold when you get home, trust me.

last one for tonight....

the sous makes specials and at the end of the night puts everything away in the cooler. the next night he makes something different and never uses the previous prep for something else and wonders why there are never enough containers and why the cooler is so cluttered.


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## joshua47 (Apr 24, 2010)

Oh man, that one bugs me. And then when I do nag, they're like "But I'm finished up fill-in-the-blank in this game!" I don't give a damn! I told you in advance so you could be off the computer, or have your page bookmarked, or have whatever other task set aside by the time dinner's ready! Arg. Roommates.



> Originally Posted by *DC Sunshine*
> 
> -Telliing people dinner will be ready in 10 mins, so please finish off what you are doing - and waiting 20 mins after having to nag - I don't make a nice dinner so it can go cold and spoil. Me not hungry by then


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## gunnar (Apr 3, 2008)

Joshua47 said:


> Oh man, that one bugs me. And then when I do nag, they're like "But I'm finished up fill-in-the-blank in this game!" I don't give a damn! I told you in advance so you could be off the computer, or have your page bookmarked, or have whatever other task set aside by the time dinner's ready! Arg. Roommates.


Heh, plate it and leave it in the kitchen and go sit and eat. My wife pulls that from time to time..finishing a phone call, blogging or just trying for one more row of knitting before I get done with dinner. Then it's all "where's my plate?". its in the microwave, you may need to reheat it.


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## joshua47 (Apr 24, 2010)

I just might have to start doing that.



Gunnar said:


> Heh, plate it and leave it in the kitchen and go sit and eat. My wife pulls that from time to time..finishing a phone call, blogging or just trying for one more row of knitting before I get done with dinner. Then it's all "where's my plate?". its in the microwave, you may need to reheat it.


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## dc sunshine (Feb 26, 2007)

Jmama said:


> Oh I so forgot the whole dinner will be ready in 10...Oh I feel your pain especially when your making nice seafood that doesn't taste good cold/img/vbsmilies/smilies/mad.gif


Yeah its great fun innit? My theory with seafood is get them to the table first with some thing nice to drink and some fresh bread and butter to keep 'em busy and them talking - then go start the seafood.

The getting them to the table is the hardest thing, I know I know....

Petals,

I love the tale you related. Thank you for the post.


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

Oooh, you just hit one heck of a nerve. I HATE that.

A couple years ago I got drafted to cook this complicated fancy holiday meal for my parents, my wife and kids, and my brother's family. (Better that I do it than mom, though: jeepers, some of what she's served, following along with Gourmet magazine or whatever....) So I'm going guns blazing, trying to work clean, and I see that in about 15 minutes it's going to be dinner-time. Perfect timing: it'll be up at 6:00, precisely as requested (mom cares about these things). I take a brief break and go into the living room and say it'll be dinner in 15.

Ten minutes later, I remind them, dinner in 5.

Finish plating, put it all out good and hot, and nobody has moved a muscle. Oh, dinner's ready? Oh, well, I guess it's time to start getting organized, washing hands, encouraging kids to finish with their toys for the moment....

I seriously considered sitting down and eating right then and there, but it would not have gone over well.


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## henrypilarski (Jun 4, 2010)

My biggest pet peeve is when people think that adding massive amounts of salt makes something "taste better",

the same goes with tons of sugar and cream in gourmet freshly ground coffee or espresso drinks.

Also my room-mate who cannot cook at all and only drinks soda and eats chips, pizza rolls, frozen burritos and other preservative loaded low quality foods and then every time I cook he is standing over my shoulder expecting to get a helping.

I understand I could help him acquire a taste for better foods, however I know he is not interested in cooking himself and I'm not his wife!


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

To be honest, the last few years I have been getting unpeeved, so to speak.  My wife and I have been married twentymumble years.  Usually during that time we've gone to her family's places for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It used to be turkey way overdone and dried out, instant potatoes, canned veggies, gravy from a packet - you get the idea.  Mark, shut up, smile and act like you enjoy it.

It has been a long process but they have come around.  I do the basic menu planning and most of the cooking.  I'll put in requests for various fresh produce and seasonings and such, it will be there when we fly in.  A couple of years ago I requested fresh rosemary sprigs.  Her older sister found some that were so fresh they were still growing - packaged with roots in a clump of dirt.  I was impressed.

I'd like to be able to throw a couple of my knives and such into my carry on luggage, but that ain't gonna happen.  The kitchens in Phoenix and Orange County are not equipped as I would like.  Maybe I'll mail a box of tools to precede us, it would be nice to have a decent blade to work with once there.

mjb.


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## jeffthechef (Jun 22, 2010)

KYHeirloomer said:


> _I'd like it well done, but juicy"_
> 
> Well, waddayaknow, PrairieChef. Seems like you've served my brother.
> 
> The boy insists on having his steaks cooked to the shoe leather stage, then douses them in ketchup because they're so dry.


ahahahaha i had a good laugh at this. Your brother doesn't really no food at all then i'm guessing after reading this?


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## crazycorey (Jun 24, 2010)

When people eat some of my mac salad and leave the rest on the counter for hours to get  all dry and discolored. 

People using the same tongs to throw a raw chicken breast on the grill and then take a cooked one off the grill.

When people ask for help and don't tell me what they need me to do.

Servers constantly asking if their order is up. Look in the window.

It;s after closing time and I'm still getting orders.

Cooks forget  to empty the grease trap and make the dishwasher clean  their mess.

When product  isn't rotated or stored correctly .

When everyone accuses me of being high whenever I make a mistake.


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## patrick (Feb 16, 2010)

I invited work friends to my place for dinner after telling them that I know how to cook.  I made a rosemary pork tenderloin, rolled fresh spaghetti, and prepared a red sauce from scratch.  I waited to complete the dishes until I got the call that they were 10 minutes from my place.  When I did, I dropped the pasta, fired the sauce, and finished the pork.  Those ten minutes were an adrenaline fueled frenzy and when they were done I waited...

...for 45 minutes. 

They showed up with a supermarket-bought cake and a 12-pack of Pepsi.  They dined on gummy, old pasta, a sauce that was past its prime, and a pork loin that had to be microwaved(!) because it had "rested" for so long and was cold and dry.

They left my house giving me qualified compliments about the good features of certain aspects of the meal.  The salad (which their timing couldn't screw up) got universal and enthusiastic praise despite being the easiest, least time-consuming thing I did all night.

---

In my life I have completely butchered the preparation of food more times than I care to remember.  But never have I ever felt the immense frustration I experienced that night, when the people I was feeding ruined their own meal but didn't know better.


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## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

People who use the old "well, i've been in this business for X number of years"

NOBODY CARES!

especially when it's someone who is young and claims to have been in "the business" for a number of years that would probably have them working at the age of 10. I would swear that some of these people think that because their mother was a chef while pregnant that they've been working since before they were born.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Patrick said:


> Those ten minutes were an adrenaline fueled frenzy and when they were done I waited......
> ...for 45 minutes....


That's why I NEVER count on arrivals in xxx minutes, when I see the "whites of their eyes" that's when I "fire"the meal.


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## eastshores (Oct 23, 2008)

> When everyone accuses me of being high whenever I make a mistake.


Were you high when you made a mistake?? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


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## dc sunshine (Feb 26, 2007)

Patrick - I know how that feels too well. Not a pro cook here, but in the past I've had many a meal wasted (past its best but still served to the uncaring sod). Makes for not a very enjoyable evening. But they are to blame - not you.



PeteMcCracken said:


> That's why I NEVER count on arrivals in xxx minutes, when I see the "whites of their eyes" that's when I "fire"the meal.


lol Pete - good quote. I have come to live by that rule too- prep is all done. But don't fire it until they're settled down with a drink and their coats are on the rack. Especially with oriental meals or anything quick cooked.

Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes.


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## eastshores (Oct 23, 2008)

"Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes."

That's a good one too, but it does cross into the trying to be a chef vs. trying to entertain. You cannot do both. I am happy to have friends that also love food prep/cooking.. so we start together.. and make the most of it. If it takes 2 or 3 hours to get to the table.. I have a very understanding and appreciative group to share that with... because they were there the whole time!

Patrick... perhaps new friends are in order?


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

Not putting items back in same place where they belong

Eating with hands behind the line

Not wrapping things properly

A messy sloppy station 

Coming in high or strung out on drugs or booze(your gone)

Not caring about what you do

Constantly showing up late


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## crazycorey (Jun 24, 2010)

eastshores said:


> Were you high when you made a mistake?? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smile.gif


Which time?/img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif

Seriously I don't even try to cook high anymore. I did it a couple times a while back I have to admit, but I learned the hard way that it slows me down way too much and throws off my timing and communication.


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## Guest (Jun 27, 2010)

Line cooks who were hired after you telling you how to do the freakin obvious.

Other cooks who are standing talking to you when there is a ton of prep to be done.

People who cook from a box or a bag and think it is as good as fresh from scratch because they have no idea how to make it from scratch.


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## Guest (Jun 27, 2010)

-late people

-no shows

-the managers that won't fire them


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## socaljuls (Jun 27, 2010)

Lets see... As a line cook/sous chef/kitchen manager/exec chef/prep cook in a bar/restaurant in southern california

1) I cant stand to see others on the line with a mess.... work cleaner/neater/efficiently please k thanx...

2) People who take wayyyyyyyyy to much time to prep something that only sells about 10 a night (busy night) while they prep almost a hundred... for 1+ hour... just to keep themselves busy while is slow (not rush hour)

3) Servers constantly asking for a condiment or dressing while I am in the weeds...... They store ranch and ketchup on ice in the smallest container they can find... How about they grab a LARGER container...fill it with ice.. and keep all cold dressings/sauces! maybe the ribeye wont overcook while you let it sit for 2 extra minutes while i grab you your freaking extra bleu cheese dressing....

**\When they are not serving they are just standing there talking about girls/sports/drugs? Common.. put some effort it.. help us out in the back of the house by doing 5 minutes filling up a couple squeeze bottles much valuable time during a rush hour...

4) I leave the line for a couple minutes and come out to find 3-4 tickets still attached to the machine...WHY couldnt the other cooks who are not doing anything, standing around, waiting for a ticket on their station, throw some wings or calamari in the fryer???  The worst is that the other cooks do not even tell me there are tickets there.. So I look at the ticket time.. 15 minutes passed already.. and its not even fired yet... Common amigos...

5) Other cooks who dont taste their food or watch garlic burn as they ignore the range, then put that dog food inedible BS on a plate like they dont care..

6) Professional cooks with no knowledge of proper sanitation procedures

7) No call, no shows...

8) Deep cleaning; then taking two days off work on slow nights (wed and thurs) to come back in on friday to see everythings ruined.. and by ruined I mean... exactly the opposite of everything I worked my ass off to clean/fix/organize in the first place..

9) When managers dont notify me of parties that were not on the reservation list then yell at me for not having everything they want to eat... a little prior preperation prevents a piss poor performance.. thanks

10) Managers cutting my cooks so when we get swamped there are only 2 of us to do what a team of 5 struggles to do efficiently.. Money is the root of all evil..

11) Cooks who do not do any extra work other than what they "think" they are paid to do.. They never do the things that I do.. Clean the fryers, put away orders... They never help others when they have no tickets, yet the appetizer guy is in the weeds... just keep standing and watching him struggle while you gaze or eat your food.... wow this never ceases to amaze me... good work amigo..

12) Cooks run out of an item, dont tell me or write on the board, then when that ticket comes in for it, we dont have any more fettucini...

13) people who return steaks when the take a 1/8 inch cut of the edge of the medium rare steak and see its too done for their liking..then i cut it right down the middle and oh yea baby,... perfect medium rare..

14) Repeating myself.


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## chef tomain (Nov 17, 2008)

When a restaurant advertises Philly Steaks Subs and use under par hoagie rolls, meat other than ribeye, and does no used melted yellow cheese. Geno's or Pats? How hard is it to keep it real.


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## bluedogz (Oct 11, 2006)

PrairieChef said:


> Customers that have no clue what they're ordering drive me nuts.


Isn't that the job of good server? I'm not a chef but I am a financial advisor, and client routinely ask for "something conservative that grows" which is impossible to do legitimately- so I need to educate them to give them the right thing.


> Quote:Heh, plate it and leave it in the kitchen and go sit and eat. My wife pulls that from time to time..finishing a phone call, blogging or just trying for one more row of knitting before I get done with dinner. Then it's all "where's my plate?". its in the microwave, you may need to reheat it.


I'll have to write that down... must be a generational thing. If I had told my mom "Yeah, I'll get there in a minute" it would've meant instant death.


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## phillipo (Jul 5, 2010)

As a hands-on ,hard working Head chef-i can sooooooooooooo relate to sooooooo many of the listed pet peeves!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and most are funny cos it means theres others out there whom are as anal as i am about things lolololo /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## phillipo (Jul 5, 2010)

Ohhhhhhhhh soooooooooo true!!! I find this an ongoing battle day after day that no amount of ranting and yelling seems to fix-n ive got at times between 5-10 cooks n chefs under my watch-damn lazy unorganised slobs at times-the cat cant be away or the mice will play!



halmstad said:


> a couple more:
> 
> When i turn around at my station and find that someone has snatched my dry towel {and usually leaving a dirty wet one}, tongs or spatula
> 
> ...


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## gypsy2727 (Mar 9, 2010)

bluedogz said:


> Isn't that the job of good server? I'm not a chef but I am a financial advisor, and client routinely ask for "something conservative that grows" which is impossible to do legitimately- so I need to educate them to give them the right thing.
> 
> I'll have to write that down... must be a generational thing. If I had told my mom "Yeah, I'll get there in a minute" it would've meant instant death.


LOL yes it is the job of the server and the chef to educate the customers

One instance comes to mind when I had Oyster Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto on special one night and I couldn't't believe hardly anyone was ordering it.The last time I had it on it was flying out the door. When I asked whats up they said most customers didn't like the idea of Oysters in their Risotto!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was my fault not educate these newbies .....we live and learn

About coming to dinner late ...I had two brothers and two sisters ...plus mom and dad . If you were not there when the food hit the table ...well good luck finding some scraps. I make it a point to still be at the table promptly ...some things

never change. And it's good manners


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## phillipo (Jul 5, 2010)

YES! As the head Honcho ive had so many sleepless nights-stressed /img/vbsmilies/smilies/mad.gif about late, boozed n drugged "apprentice cooks" /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smoking.gif who think its fine to rock up 30 minutes to 2.5 hours late and swear they'rve not done nor are effected by drugs /img/vbsmilies/smilies/bounce.gif or booze /img/vbsmilies/smilies/drinkbeer.gif yet all the signs are soooooooooooooo clear-the eyes /img/vbsmilies/smilies/eek.gif,the hyper activity /img/vbsmilies/smilies/rollsmile.gif,the dizzyness, /img/vbsmilies/smilies/crazy.gif the hot n cold sweats /img/vbsmilies/smilies/blushing.gif the ignoring/ doing opposite /img/vbsmilies/smilies/thumb.gif of your specific in your face instructions ,the violence,the mood swings,the answers back ,the mistakes,the wrong ingredients in pastas .etc............been there n lived that! (Nooo! -as the employer/boss sily)

I had one who said "dont mess up my effing section"-when i tipped out the mouldy chesse on his bench in his station-he just cauldnt see that the whole place was MY section! (Quote " Do your effing job and tell me to trim the cheese!" -he had 12 months exerience.did i need to tell him common sense?.) He latter declarred "you stopped giving a x#x# * 3 months ago-in relation to not having time to teach him new things-i was short staffed,doing 80+ hours per week x 7 days-but it was all about him-hes 19 and thankfully has gone before i killed him! (tho we cauld have used the publicity) DAMN!!!!! now im angry again! -Wheres ma damn Homeopathic stress relief spray!!!! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR / ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR/img/vbsmilies/smilies/laser.gif/img/vbsmilies/smilies/mullet.gif Know what-i even bought him a present when he left-a T-shirt with a rolling pin on it -saying "THIS-IS HOW I ROLL!!


Ed Buchanan said:


> Not putting items back in same place where they belong
> 
> Eating with hands behind the line
> 
> ...


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Needing to say things to other people more than twice.  Other people telling me things more than twice.

As Sartre observed, h*ll is other people,

BDL


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

on the siders! everything on the side,cuz they don't want the sauces to touch their food...it must just drive them nuts to think about what actually happens in their stomachs, with everything touching!... subbing sauces meant for a specific dish...ex: we have a grilled rib eye topped with roasted onions and balsamic redux...then we have a grilled beef filet with a cranberry port sauce and melted gorgonzola on top...cranberry port sauce doesn't really seem to fit the rib eye, but they want both sauces and toppings, which really doesn't seem to fit...i spend alot of time and energy matching foods, and i feel its not snobbery on my part..its my design. would you go buy a dress because you liked it so much, then start ripping the sleeves off? do they have a right to complain if they don't like it?... making specials and having guests try to deconstruct it(again,on the siders!) if i have a habanaro glazed organic salmon with a bluberry mint relish..i want everything to be tasted together...not glaze on the side, relish on the side, no seaweed in the yakisoba noodles etc..... waitstaff that giggle and talk about the most inane things(boyfriends, getting drunk etc.) in the kitchen while i'm trying to plate..... waitstaff in general..especially when they start to complain about how they're not going to make any money that night..and thats at the begining of a shift...how do they know who's going to walk in? how many covers we'll do. they seem to do less work and jabber more when its slow, instead of perhaps picking up a rag and actually cleaning something...i get pissed just thinking bout how lazy some can be...they don't last long with me, but everyone you spend your time training only to realize they are not going to get any better or change, still takes it out of you, little by little, chunk by chunk..and over the years it adds up....been thinking of opening a mobile food truck, just so i don't have to deal with employees anymore....aah, it feels good to vent! good day all...

joey

biggest pet peeve ever!!!....customers who love, love, loved everything..then double tipped cuz they were tipsy, then call  the next day and want their tip back...you would think they would just chalk it up, but they don't...we actually 'blacklist' those people...you'd be surprised to know how often it happens though....


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

_would you go buy a dress because you liked it so much, then start ripping the sleeves off? _

Hey, kiddo, good to see you posting again. What have you been up to?

You're analogy, I think, is almost on the button. The difference is, if you bought a dress, took it home, and ripped the sleeves off, that's your business. But what they're doing is asking you, as the dress designer, to rip the sleeves off. And that's just insulting.


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

a few more peeves...large parties who do not cancel their reservations, so you have a table set up for them and is now sitting empty all night when you had people waitlisted...they also get 'blacklisted"... god, i love that little book..i don't mind demanding customers cuz that what the restaurant biz isall about, but leave the rude at home, please and don't be rude or insulting to my waitstaff...even though i complain about them, we are all in the 'hood'.i did tell a very difficult  rude customer one extremely busy night to 'enjoy the view' on his way out, cuz it would be the last time he  ever saw it...know that wasn't very savvy on my part, but it sure felt good! that's why they keep me in the back i guess....i agree with what all of you say about sloppy lazy cooks, about having to repeat everything, and about high or drunk employees...i love to have a few cocktails as much as the next cook, but i atleast wait til after service...ky...about the dress..its like ripping the sleeves off and pinning them to the bottom or the neckline!...go figure...thanks for remembering me, and asking..i've been working my little tail feathers off..business is off to one incredible start this season...as for this past winter..all i did was shovel!!!! hope you wintered well...know i've been out of the chef forum loop, but am planning a comeback...ciao

joey


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## cyberdoc (Nov 1, 2009)

teamfat said:


> To be honest, the last few years I have been getting unpeeved, so to speak. My wife and I have been married twentymumble years. Usually during that time we've gone to her family's places for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It used to be turkey way overdone and dried out, instant potatoes, canned veggies, gravy from a packet - you get the idea. Mark, shut up, smile and act like you enjoy it.
> 
> It has been a long process but they have come around. I do the basic menu planning and most of the cooking. I'll put in requests for various fresh produce and seasonings and such, it will be there when we fly in. A couple of years ago I requested fresh rosemary sprigs. Her older sister found some that were so fresh they were still growing - packaged with roots in a clump of dirt. I was impressed.
> 
> ...


My solution to the knife issue, was to buy my sister a pair of decent chef's knives. Now when I go their and we cook together, we both have a decent knife.


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## cyberdoc (Nov 1, 2009)

Chef Tomain said:


> When a restaurant advertises Philly Steaks Subs and use under par hoagie rolls, meat other than ribeye, and does no used melted yellow cheese. Geno's or Pats? How hard is it to keep it real.


What I would give for a place around here that could do an honest to goodness Philly cheesestake.


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## cyberdoc (Nov 1, 2009)

durangojo said:


> on the siders! everything on the side,cuz they don't want the sauces to touch their food...it must just drive them nuts to think about what actually happens in their stomachs, with everything touching!... subbing sauces meant for a specific dish...ex: we have a grilled rib eye topped with roasted onions and balsamic redux...then we have a grilled beef filet with a cranberry port sauce and melted gorgonzola on top...cranberry port sauce doesn't really seem to fit the rib eye, but they want both sauces and toppings, which really doesn't seem to fit...i spend alot of time and energy matching foods, and i feel its not snobbery on my part..its my design. would you go buy a dress because you liked it so much, then start ripping the sleeves off? do they have a right to complain if they don't like it?... making specials and having guests try to deconstruct it(again,on the siders!) if i have a habanaro glazed organic salmon with a bluberry mint relish..i want everything to be tasted together...not glaze on the side, relish on the side, no seaweed in the yakisoba noodles etc..... waitstaff that giggle and talk about the most inane things(boyfriends, getting drunk etc.) in the kitchen while i'm trying to plate..... waitstaff in general..especially when they start to complain about how they're not going to make any money that night..and thats at the begining of a shift...how do they know who's going to walk in? how many covers we'll do. they seem to do less work and jabber more when its slow, instead of perhaps picking up a rag and actually cleaning something...i get pissed just thinking bout how lazy some can be...they don't last long with me, but everyone you spend your time training only to realize they are not going to get any better or change, still takes it out of you, little by little, chunk by chunk..and over the years it adds up....been thinking of opening a mobile food truck, just so i don't have to deal with employees anymore....aah, it feels good to vent! good day all...
> 
> joey
> 
> biggest pet peeve ever!!!....customers who love, love, loved everything..then double tipped cuz they were tipsy, then call the next day and want their tip back...you would think they would just chalk it up, but they don't...we actually 'blacklist' those people...you'd be surprised to know how often it happens though....


Now that's Chuzpah. Calling the next day to try to get your tip back. I'm gobsmacked.


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

_Now that's Chuzpah. Calling the next day to try to get your tip back. I'm gobsmacked._

But it happens. Boy does it happen.

Friend of mine's son worked a high end restaurant with an automatic 18% gratuity for large parties, which they were made aware of up front. They are told when the reservations are made, and again by the servers.

This group of 12 comes in; private room, David and another server assigned just to them. They loved the food, and made a big deal of how the service went far beyond above and beyond---to the tune they left an additional 200 bucks.

Next day this guy calls, claims they didn't realize there was an automatic 18%, and demanded the additional tip back.

To add insult to injury, the manager expected that the servers would return it, because it would make the customers happy.

I guess so. For starters, if we give them the benefit of the doubt, that $200 worked out at something like 11%, split among two servers who'd devoted their entire shift to those clowns. So much for above and beyond. And, of course, the manager didn't want to hear about the piece they'd shared with the support staff. Weren't no way the dishwashers and busboys etc. would even consider it---not that I blame them.

I told David if that was how this guy defined "manage," I'd have been out of there the next day. And he could, of course, whistle Dixie before he's see that tip returned.


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## Guest (Jul 6, 2010)

People who show up to a pasta and pizza place and complain that there isn't any gluten free options or are not happy with the substitutions/changes we can make to a regular non gluten free dish in order to make it a gluten free one.


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## Guest (Jul 6, 2010)

After having this happen to me way to many times, I just got in the habit of putting my knife roll in my car every time I went over to someone's house.



halmstad said:


> a few of mine:
> 
> going to someone's house and randomly having to cook. the knives are always dull and rest of the equipment is substandard.
> 
> ...


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## Guest (Jul 6, 2010)

cooks who think they are better cooks just because they have worked in the industry longer then someone else


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## prairiechef (May 22, 2010)

Pet peeve?

The fact that every single guest that has a complaint starts if off with;

"I used to work in the industry"

or

"My brother/dad/sister/dog/dominatrix/et al is a chef/ restaurant manager/"

My single biggest pet peeve?

Fucking hotel guests... the menu is never "right"... if I go higher end, I get 6000 complaints that they just want a clubhouse. If I offer a clubhouse, I get 6000 complaints that the menu is too low end. If I offer both, I get 6000 complaints that "they just wanted a nice dinner, and the dude next to them is wearing a t-shirt and noshing a burger." Plus, they all want breakfast/lunch/dinner for free because their room was too hot/cold/dark or roomlike for their personal preference, or the front desk agent refused to remove "hot tranny XXXholes" from their room charges. Hotel guests suck.


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## beecher (Jun 9, 2010)

Eric Ongtooguk said:


> i'm not gonna let somebody serve raw chicken out of our kitchen.


Thank you, Eric.


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## cookpiper (Jul 6, 2010)

kuan said:


> People who think you know everything.
> 
> People who think you know nothing.


I second to that.

He who knows doesn't speak.. He who speaks doesn't know..  - Jackie Chan


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## kathyteal (Mar 11, 2010)

My pet peeve is a second year or even a first year culinary student who tries to act like one of the TV chefs.

My pet peeve is a chef that thinks they are too good to try and teach someone who is as passionate about food as them but hasn't had the opportunities that they have. We all have to start somewhere. Wouldn't it be better to be a mentor to someone instead of a butt to someone.

My pet peeve people that think are are better than everyone else


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## phillipo (Jul 5, 2010)

*Haahahaha- well put,we've all seen them-"Gods gift to the kitchen" lol (both student and qualified)-arrogance just IRKS me!!!*

*Once saw a first year challenge a veteran chef to a pasta cook off-just cos he thought he was top stuff! oh dear.*

*I am a strong believer in mentoring-we need good people for the next generation-why take knowledge (and organs) to the grave-what a waste! Though-one must SHOW they WANT to learn-interest is paramount for me-if i dont see it-then i wont bother-it takes two to tango right.........*


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## lisacap (Jul 8, 2010)

I can't stand it when the hostess shows up after the customers arrive! I am a chef and should not be seating people while I have food on the grill!

_______________

_*Bringing back great food to the family table, inspired by *__*Lisa Caponigri*_


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## philosophos (Jun 22, 2010)

As a home cook:

1. Walking into the kitchen to see my Wusthoff chef's knife being used like a spatula for stir frying by my to-be mother in law. Ya... scrape that burnt mess off with the tip. Bang my knife on the edge of the pan to get that gunk off. What? No, not the flat of the knife, make sure you slam the thing down edge-on.

2. Vague opinions about my cooking (positive or negative). Even if the person I'm cooking for someone who has a miserable pallet, or I bombed completely, I still want details.

3. Dogs under foot. I can't count the number of dogs that I've given a nasty push out of the way using my foot (the temptation to punt is severe). Watch years of training fly away the moment you've got 30lbs of turducken in your hands.


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

gordon ramsey and other 'entitled' chefs...maybe gordon was a talented young chef back in the day of marco pierre white ,but he grew into a meanspirited entitled, tunnelvisioned, money grubbing old grump, who is not helping or supporting our already tenous, fickle industry... we need to nuture our future chefs, not insult them into the grease mats...why on earth would you want a job that humiliates and destroys young talent like that..tough love? boot camp cooking makes tough chefs? superiority? entitlement? money? all of the above?...and all that yelling, oh my! even a good kitchen is hard enough on a good day...he needs to come down a rung or two, in my book, or actually, getting knocked off the ladder completely would be my preference

joey


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## philosophos (Jun 22, 2010)

I've been trained in other things with nasty people who yell and get in your face about things. I'd go home with entire square feet of my body covered in bruises, bloody, my ears ringing for a week after, etc. You know, it was hell, but I learned a ton. I was focused, dedicated, and motivated. Competing and performing on demand seemed like a breeze compared to practice. I thank my brutal trainers for that, and I don't buy into the concept that self-esteem is a great thing.

At the same time, I realize that this approach breaks some people. If you're going to run a high pressure business though, shouldn't pressure increase your drive to achieve? I know my best performance has been under the highest levels of stress.

Of course I'm not trying to contradict you here to be nasty; just offering another perspective.


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## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

durangojo said:


> gordon ramsey and other 'entitled' chefs...maybe gordon was a talented young chef back in the day of marco pierre white ,but he grew into a meanspirited entitled, tunnelvisioned, money grubbing old grump, who is not helping or supporting our already tenous, fickle industry... we need to nuture our future chefs, not insult them into the grease mats...why on earth would you want a job that humiliates and destroys young talent like that..tough love? boot camp cooking makes tough chefs? superiority? entitlement? money? all of the above?...and all that yelling, oh my! even a good kitchen is hard enough on a good day...he needs to come down a rung or two, in my book, or actually, getting knocked off the ladder completely would be my preference
> 
> joey


His performance on Hell's Kitchen is over the top and I'm sure (well I'd like to hope anyway) that some of it is acting for ratings. He does have to feed the customers and when the chefs eff up it does screw up service but to insult them they way he does I never could. I have no problems asking a cook "why is this not done/" when I know I called it and they heard me but I would never run them to the ground verbally like he does. If I tried that I think I would be slapped with a workplace harassment suit so fast my head would be spinning. I've been watching HK this season and I have never seen so much undercooked meat go up in my life.. I think the chefs must be afraid of him or something.. if it was me and he was riding me about the chicken I would tell him straight up when it would be ready instead of what those bumblers do.. they say "coming now chef" and serve raw chicken.. wtf is that??

Ok rant over.. sorry about that..


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## jkeilson (Jun 30, 2010)

People who show up right before closing.

Prep being done wrong and nobody noticing until service.

Dishwashers using knives to scrape cutting boards (or worse still, I once caught one using a knife to scrape sauce spills off a burner).


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

_People who show up right before closing._

I hear this sort of thing fairly often, but have never understood it.

The sign out front says hours --> 10 PM. Doesn't say, "last seating at 9:30." So if I show up at ten to ten, what's the big deal. I should get the same food quality and service as if I'd been there at 8.


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## philosophos (Jun 22, 2010)

KYH, as a late night diner I have to say that I appreciate signs that expressly outline last seating or kitchen hours. Leaving ambiguous signs that don't differentiate is a real annoyance.


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

My very point. If a sign indicates you are open for business until a certain hour, then it shouldn't matter how close to that time I show up.

Just because it's close to closing time, and the servers and cooks are anxious to clean up an go home, is no reason a customer has to suffer. If, as in the case above, you don't want to serve after 9:30 then that should be spelled out in the operating hours. If not, I have every right to expect good food and good service.

Realistically, of course, I know that they'll take it out on me, one way or another. But that's just one more reason why people believe you can't get decent service in restaurants anymore.


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## gypsy2727 (Mar 9, 2010)

Philosophos said:


> I've been trained in other things with nasty people who yell and get in your face about things. I'd go home with entire square feet of my body covered in bruises, bloody, my ears ringing for a week after, etc. You know, it was hell, but I learned a ton. I was focused, dedicated, and motivated. Competing and performing on demand seemed like a breeze compared to practice. I thank my brutal trainers for that, and I don't buy into the concept that self-esteem is a great thing.
> 
> At the same time, I realize that this approach breaks some people. If you're going to run a high pressure business though, shouldn't pressure increase your drive to achieve? I know my best performance has been under the highest levels of stress.
> 
> Of course I'm not trying to contradict you here to be nasty; just offering another perspective.


I agree to a certain point......

I had pots and pans thrown at me .....called every name in the book..even thrown off the line into the dish pit for a week!

I sucked it up! I was told "those looks arn't going to get you everywhere!" It was a very hard to be in the kitchen 25 years ago as a woman. But it did toughen me up oh boy did it!

And now.....I think it softened me to be a better chef and work with my employees....cheer them on for their accomplishments...not criticize so much...because I remember what it is like to be there and how I felt.

Maybe my Chefs when I was apprenticing did it for a reason ....make my skin a little thicker...I still wonder


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

[h3]gordon ramsey aside, the school of 'hard knocks', that gives most of us the 'right stuff' to deal with cooking life on a daily basis, is quite a different animal than constantly being physically, mentally and verbally abused in a kitchen..(isn't that reserved for families?). betcha didn't ask many questions and did just what was required for fear of mental flogging, and belittling. you know the germans have a training programs for dogs that is so intense that the dogs pee while they wait for their commands. they get physically ill if they fail. they learn the commands and do the exercises, but, come on, does that sound like a well adjusted dog to you?...same with people. kitchen life is a long life(hopefully) and we need to strive for a better balance...i'm not talking group hugs here- just more communication and compassion....put the fun back in functional...okay, biggest, biggest pet peeve(besides a dishwasher using my chef knife to break down boxes, which i almost had to be hospitalized for and had to count to at least 1000),#1 kitchen peeve is opening Both doors of a double door cooler or freezer at the same time...bending so low their arse is 12 degrees to the sun and just looking, looking, looking! what happened to asking? who's paying the electric bill? i just see dollar bills with wings attached, flying out the now open doors! i contend you can't possibly see whats in both sides, or behind the front containers at the same time nor can your brain process things that fast...maybe the fun is to be found in the dysfunctional! go figure!...geez, and all this before coffee!...good day all[/h3]
joey


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## cyberdoc (Nov 1, 2009)

amazingrace said:


> A few years ago (pre-retirement), I was waitressing in a very nice restaurant that had "Steak House" in the name. It ticked everyone off when customers whined because the menu didn't have more vegetarian offerings (there were at least 3 veggie plates, plus the cooks did try to be accomodating). Like ... hello..._its a steak house_... why did you even come in here??? Grrrr...


Yeah, Iguess their first should have been that it was a steak house. You don't go to a vegan restaurant and order a porterhouse do you?. ;-)


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## cyberdoc (Nov 1, 2009)

ChrisLehrer said:


> You know, rereading that little rant, I sorta forgot one thing. Am I the only person who hates this whole grill macho thing? What the heck is it with these guys, who can barely make toast in a toaster, that they drop thousands on some gigantic outdoor cremation device and a bunch of overpriced stupid useless tools, drink 8 beers, and think they're grill masters? And they have these theories. You know: "well, you have to get a good char on the outside, see, and that keeps the juice inside." Well, um, sorta, I mean no, but you're not totally out to lunch, but honestly you don't need to do this to a 1" cube of beef tenderloin, it's just going to burn to a lump of coal. And they spend all this money on "rubs" and then mix them together, preferably with some really cheap liquor, to make a "special flavor marinade." You must have seen these dudes over this past weekend, Memorial Day For Animals Who Gave Their Lives To Be Turned Into Charcoal By Drunken Idiots. By the time they eat anything, they're half-blitzed anyway and can't taste it, so they don't even know.
> 
> I still remember the time I tried to explain about resting meat to a neighbor who's a Grill Warrior. He said it wasn't true, swore up and down. OK, I said, and grabbed two thick steaks. Grilled 'em both good and hot, then said watch this and put one under a bowl, right next to the grill where it was passably hot, and cut the other one immediately. What happens? You know perfectly well: the immediately-cut meat was raw in the center and dry-gray around the outside. After 10 minutes' resting, I cut the other, and it was beautifully pink throughout. What about that, I said? Answer: (a) you didn't cook them the same, see, because this part of the grill is hotter than that one, and (b) you didn't cook them right, because the first one should have been gray all the way through, that's how you know it's done, and otherwise you die of e coli, and (c) I don't like meat pink, that's disgusting, what do you do, drink blood like a vampire?
> 
> Gah!!!!! Grills!!!!!


For me I wouldn't say it's so much a grill macho thing. I have an offset smoker that I frquently use. It's hard to beat a slowly smoked Boston Butt, or brisket. I do like the "Memorial Day For Animals Who Gave Their Lives To Be Turned Into Charcoal By Drunken Idiots." remark though.


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## sonidelight (Jul 14, 2010)

My pet peeves? Wow, there are so many, where should I start?

~When someone eats all the leftovers, but leaves the container in the fridge with just a spoonful of food left in it, just to avoid having to wash the container.

~When someone spills something, anything, in the fridge and doesn't wipe it up.

~When someone refuses to reseal the packages of cold cuts, cheeses, veggies, and they dry out because of being left open.....they're in ziploc bags for a reason!!

~When people make a sandwich and leave the knife or spoon in the mayo jar, or just leave the jar wide open on the counter overnight. This has happened one too many times in my house, and not by a kid!

~When someone eats anything and just gets up from the table without at least putting their plate in the sink.

~When someone drops food on the floor and doesn't have the common sense to pick it up & throw it away.

Do you see where I'm going here? Y'all are gonna read about me in the newspapers one of these days. (c:


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## phillipo (Jul 5, 2010)

AWSOME!!-SSSSooooooooooooooo true!!! I salute you!



durangojo said:


> on the siders! everything on the side,cuz they don't want the sauces to touch their food...it must just drive them nuts to think about what actually happens in their stomachs, with everything touching!... subbing sauces meant for a specific dish...ex: we have a grilled rib eye topped with roasted onions and balsamic redux...then we have a grilled beef filet with a cranberry port sauce and melted gorgonzola on top...cranberry port sauce doesn't really seem to fit the rib eye, but they want both sauces and toppings, which really doesn't seem to fit...i spend alot of time and energy matching foods, and i feel its not snobbery on my part..its my design. would you go buy a dress because you liked it so much, then start ripping the sleeves off? do they have a right to complain if they don't like it?... making specials and having guests try to deconstruct it(again,on the siders!) if i have a habanaro glazed organic salmon with a bluberry mint relish..i want everything to be tasted together...not glaze on the side, relish on the side, no seaweed in the yakisoba noodles etc..... waitstaff that giggle and talk about the most inane things(boyfriends, getting drunk etc.) in the kitchen while i'm trying to plate..... waitstaff in general..especially when they start to complain about how they're not going to make any money that night..and thats at the begining of a shift...how do they know who's going to walk in? how many covers we'll do. they seem to do less work and jabber more when its slow, instead of perhaps picking up a rag and actually cleaning something...i get pissed just thinking bout how lazy some can be...they don't last long with me, but everyone you spend your time training only to realize they are not going to get any better or change, still takes it out of you, little by little, chunk by chunk..and over the years it adds up....been thinking of opening a mobile food truck, just so i don't have to deal with employees anymore....aah, it feels good to vent! good day all...
> 
> joey
> 
> biggest pet peeve ever!!!....customers who love, love, loved everything..then double tipped cuz they were tipsy, then call the next day and want their tip back...you would think they would just chalk it up, but they don't...we actually 'blacklist' those people...you'd be surprised to know how often it happens though....


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

Wimpy stoves, dull knives.


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## bazza (Apr 2, 2007)

Waitstaff walking into your kitchen when you are in the middle of doing a thousand things and calling out their ticket. Especially when there is a table of twelve having two courses and they expect you to listen to every word AAARRRGGGHHHH


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

No no, I'm not talking about someone like you who's actually serious about using a grill or smoker or whatever. Don't you know the guys I mean? The ones who would never, ever cook anything at home except in the microwave, but somehow are Grill Masters who spend a fortune on fancy equipment and then incinerate the meat? Seems like half my male neighbors are like this. Their wives put up with it because at least that way they have a few evenings when they don't have to cook.



cyberdoc said:


> For me I wouldn't say it's so much a grill macho thing. I have an offset smoker that I frquently use. It's hard to beat a slowly smoked Boston Butt, or brisket. I do like the "Memorial Day For Animals Who Gave Their Lives To Be Turned Into Charcoal By Drunken Idiots." remark though.


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

Oh, here's another peeve of mine: expert authentic knowledge that is total raving BS.

For example, my neighbors who honestly believe that if you don't cook a hot dog -- I'm not talking anything unusual, just basic Oscar Meyer weenies -- until it is black, and prick it all over to let all the juice out, and cook it for at least 10-15 minutes, then you will die. Really they do. This is because raw meat will kill you. First, no it won't. Second, those hot dogs are fully cooked. Hello?

At the other end of the economic scale, I have honestly gotten white-knuckled sitting near someone at a sushi bar who's expatiating on authenticity and who clearly hasn't the remotest idea what he's talking about. I particularly felt like belting the guy who went on a long rant about how his date really needed to understand the freshness of the fish, and how you could tell that this particular fish had been caught the same day where another had been caught the day before. She must have been ready to stab him as well, but in my case there was the undeniable fact that the fish in question, like most fish in American sushi restaurants, was previously frozen.


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## chrislehrer (Oct 9, 2008)

Potholders: Is it just me, or do those mitten things not work? At home I’ve almost completely shifted over to using bar towels, but at my mother’s house, or anyone else’s where I might be cooking, I invariably end up picking up a hot pot using a potholder and burning my hand right through. Honestly, this is a device that has only one use in the world. Can’t it work?


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## durangojo (Jul 30, 2007)

Bazza said:


> Waitstaff walking into your kitchen when you are in the middle of doing a thousand things and calling out their ticket. Especially when there is a table of twelve having two courses and they expect you to listen to every word AAARRRGGGHHHH


ditto that!!...other biggie pet waitstaff peeve..... waitstaff or dishwashers who eat off customers plate when they come back to the kitchen to get scraped...truly, just plain gross!!! its like putting your tongue down a perfect strangers' throat to me....only worse....

joey


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## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

durangojo said:


> ditto that!!...other biggie pet waitstaff peeve..... waitstaff or dishwashers who eat off customers plate when they come back to the kitchen to get scraped...truly, just plain gross!!! its like putting your tongue down a perfect strangers' throat to me....only worse....
> 
> joey


OK that is just disgusting!

I have a good one today. We had this "interesting" looking pair ( I suspected they were high) turn up five minutes to three and dammit the sign says we are open till three so we had to serve the buggers. They bitched at the server when the cost of a "western sandwich" was $10 and she told them that normally it is served open faced (it is a three egger) omelette with homefries and a side of fruit but we can use the toast that was inculded in the order to make it a sandwich. They ordered that and a grilled cheese with potatoes. They also ordered orange juice and our OJ is expensive. I sent out the order and both plates came back. FML...apparently they wanted white bread (we serve everything on whole wheat unless specified) so I did the remake. Then the woman came into the pass and flipped out on the server and said our "home fries" were not fries at all and they should be french fries and since I was in the pass she turned to me and said.. here is the Chef, can you take this up with her?.... I explained to her that our home fries are not what one would come across at a cafeteria or a diner but acutally are true home fries, pan fried potatoes with a semi crisp skin and a smooth middle. I do not have a deep fryer or the capacity to deep fry on my small rangetop so if she'd prefer I'd be happy to give her a fruit or veg salad in place of them and she was still bitching. Finally the owner stepped in and said... excuse me Chef but let me take care of this... and then to the customer he said... the Chef has been here since 630 this morning and we closed 15 minutes ago and she is still willing to accomodate you so you need to order right now and not give her any more difficulty... they accepted what I gave them and then I finished cleaning the kitchen. I was doing my final walkover of the kitchen when the owner whispered to me to come over. Apparently the one who made so much fuss puked all over the washroom and she hadn't eaten one bite of her sandwich. She did clean it up or at least said she did.. the FOH loos are not my concern but that is stil gross. She paid her bill though .... I think she was trying to get a freebie and when she said she puked the owner said... I am sorry but it was not what you ate that caused it as our food is very safely stored and I can show you our log books... then she put her head down and left.

We called the police as they did leave in a car and we gave the police thier lisence number. Better safe than sorry.


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## wonderingnomad (May 1, 2017)

Disorganization. Poor time management, lack of communication. Bad timing. Ie firing to early, constant recalls, not hitting par levels on busy nights, cooks who can't take some shit without buckling. Culinary students.


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## jvkolich (May 2, 2017)

Cooks/Chef's that lie about their experience and prior workplaces, and their work reflects just how little they know about the basics.

One line that always gets me, when asking where their cooking background comes from with the response being " A traditional French restaurant" -


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