Very Busy Day In The Restaurant

Today we were expecting eighty-one diners, probably the most I have ever done. The thing that was different about tonight was that is wasn't mostly groups of two, it was a group of ten, nine, eleven, eight, seven, three, three, four, two, two, six, or something like that (not in that order). I had gotten a lot of prep done yesterday to prepare for today, but figured more backup wouldn’t hurt, and could always lay over into Sunday (busy again) and Monday and Tuesday (when I suspected I would be off again).

I got in bright and early and got my two major jobs done and out of the way while the kitchen was still fairly quiet – another big batch of chocolate mousse and a batch of white chocolate mint and lime ganache. While making those (it took me longer as the juice press is still missing – I even asked the head chef this time and he couldn’t find it either) I also made quadruple batches of lime confit and lime foam. Then I moved on to passionfruit jelly and passionfruit emulsion for back up. I baked and trayed up the petit fours. As I was doing this (actually, right when I was finished) the pastry cook came up and told me I had cut them too small. The other day he told me they were way too big, so I scaled them down. Now he says they are TOO small. I asked him to show me the correct size. He said the other day he told me to cut them small because he hadn’t made more and didn’t want me to run out. Today he said I could cut the marshmallows really big since I had a whole new tray of them. No, that’s not how it works, kitchens strive for consistency. Same size every time. Not bigger or smaller depending on how lazy you are. Just like I don’t use a little lime foam instead of a lot because you didn’t make more.  I weighed out the bread recipes. I scooped out fifty sorbets. I baked some goat’s cheese tortes. I ensured I had things prepped for the wedding tasting tomorrow. I made the delice caramel. I stole some crêpe scraps from the starter cook (whoops, not a prep job!).

You know there are a lot of diners in when you prep this many petit fours.....we don't even have any trays bigger than this. It JUST fits them all.

I had finished stuff for the day, my bread was rising and almost ready to bake, and I was moving on to making milk chocolate biscuits and getting the fruit platters for the spa ready for tomorrow (as one was added for 10:00a.m. and I wouldn’t be in yet at that time) when the pastry cook came in and said, “Oh shit. How much bread did you make? That won’t be enough. We count on two per head. I’ve told you this before. I can’t keep an eye on everything you are doing.” No, you told me full three full batches unless forty diners or less, then half batches are suffice. And the two times I ate there I only ever got offered one bread roll. With six other courses, who needs two? So he made me whip up another batch even though they wouldn’t have time to rise, I was in the middle of three jobs, and I really needed to start cleaning down and get set up for service. I quickly did this. At the very end of the night, when everyone else was gone and I was finishing my cleaning, I saw a server chuck over forty of my bread rolls into the garbage. INTO THE GARBAGE. This is definitely one of those ‘I told you so’ moments. I think I know how much I need to prep, even if I am only the intern. Did I run out of anything tonight? No. Really, the garbage? I feel like they could do something with them, I know bread is best the day it is baked, but even put it in bags and offer it free at the front desk to guests. Or would that cause them to spend less money dining on the estate? I don’t know.

Around the same time, the cook came to inform me there were thirty-one girls’ getaway diners, who dine on special packages, meaning they have reduced menus and I would need a lot of crème brulées and soufflés. Well, it’s a little late now to be asking me if I need more crème brulée made, luckily I didn’t. Also apparently all girls’ getaways get sorbets, not soups, and he told me the fifty I had prepped (which I thought was more than enough) wouldn’t be enough and I should do twenty more. 70 sorbets with only 81 diners. Really? Some get soup, some get neither. At the end of the night, there were at least twenty-five of those left too. I did save two jobs for the beginning of service when it is slow – I always try to save at least one easy, compact, mind-numbing job so I am not just standing around – picking mint for the brulée and mojito garnish and separating doilies for dessert plates. 

Service went smoothly for such big numbers. I am used to dessert orders of two or four, which are easy, even if you get a few in a row, they are staggered enough it is simple to pull off. Even an order of ten isn’t so bad. But an order of ten followed by an order of eight. And all the girls’ getaways do pre-orders, so I have several dockets staring me in the face, and I have to wait until they are called. I would just rather receive the docket when the order is away, I don’t like having them in advance as they confuse me. Plus sometimes they change their mind anyway. It’s not so bad with big orders because you are bound to have at least one tarte or soufflé, both of which take seven minutes to bake and in the meantime you can prep the brulées and mojitos and delices. But making nine other desserts in seven minutes takes longer (and requires more space) then prepping one or two other desserts in seven minutes. Sure I can easily make a brulée and a mojito while the tarte cooks, but can I do four cheese platters, three mojitos, two brulées, and a delice? Needless to say, I did have some help (except for the eight-top, as everyone had deserted me by then), but I also helped plate a bunch of these starter orders when they came in.