Generation Chef (32 page)

He started to wonder if the hot dog could lead to something more. Like Nate, he was interested in the replicable concept—the Shake Shack connection was a compliment but also a reminder that there was safety in numbers and in easy food. Jonah found himself circling back to the idea of a vermút and pintxo bar, which could be a vermút and hot dog bar, no, why stop there, a beer and wine and cocktails hot dog bar, or wait: Part of what made the hot dog great was the Martin's potato roll, so it made sense to expand from there, and besides, Basque Dog was a pretty cool name for a bar.

Basque Dog: a full bar menu with maybe eight sandwiches and a couple of salads, daytime grab-and-go and a bar at night. The hot dog along with anything else that tasted good on a Martin's roll—and in Jonah's estimation, everything tasted good on a Martin's roll, so there were lots of possibilities. The next few months would be full of unknowns, as Nate did or didn't get Gertie started, and Chris kept looking, and real estate listings hit Jonah's inbox. It wasn't where he thought he'd be by now, but something would fall into place because it had to. Basque Dog: It might be good business, and it could be fun.

I was nine when my father introduced me to the backstage world of restaurants—I drank Shirley Temples while he sold stockpots—and I have loved it ever since. At its best, a restaurant kitchen is full of people who simply want to make us happy at mealtime and are willing to work crazy hours under difficult conditions to do so.

Chef Jonah Miller took a big chance on a stranger; one minute we were sitting in Union Square Park as he pulled sketches out of his backpack and described his dream, and the next I was his shadow whether things were going well or not. He never flinched, not even on the gloomier days. I thank him for his nerve and integrity.

The partners and staff inherited a fly on the wall and got used to it, so thanks to Nate Adler, Luke Momo, Jenni Cianci, Alyssa Campos, Alberto Obando, Max Loflin, Stew Parlo, Laura Valla, Caleb Cutchin, and Lance Hester-Bay.

Chefs around the country provided a historical perspective or a complementary narrative or both. I'm grateful to David Waltuck, Gavin Kaysen, and Stephanie Izard for taking the time to share their stories, and to Nick Anderer, Joyce Goldstein, Peter Hoffman, Tom Colicchio, and Nancy Silverton for providing their perspective. Restaurateurs Danny Meyer of Union Square Hospitality Group and Michael McCarty of Michael's restaurants on both coasts put everything in context; and Pete Wells, restaurant critic at the
New York Times
, took the time to elaborate on his experience at Huertas. Richard Coraine at USHG contributed his analysis of the current scene and then cast a veteran's eye over the pages; his help was invaluable. Joseph Levey made sure I understood the liquor licensing process.

At the Culinary Institute of America, communications manager Jeff Levine
provided an overview of the program, and Chef Elizabeth Briggs allowed me to sit in on her class. At the Culinary Institute of New York Monroe College, Dean Frank Constantino let me watch his competitive team rehearse and discussed access for minority students. I thank all of them for their help, as well as C-CAP founder Richard Grausman, who talked to me about diversity in the professional kitchen.

Eric Lupfer at WME looked after this book as though we'd known each other for years, not months, before we started. An auspicious beginning; I appreciate his attentive support.

At Avery Books, editor Lucia Watson is insightful, precise, and funny; I was the fortunate beneficiary of her enthusiasm. Thanks as well to Megan Newman, Lindsay Gordon, Louisa Farrar, Roshe Anderson, Farin Schlussel, and Anne Kosmoski.

William Whitworth read the manuscript even though he didn't have the time to do so, and I am as grateful as always for the opportunity to discuss my work with him. My thanks to Lisa Belkin for her careful read.

Friend-colleague is an awkward hyphenate, but I am lucky to have several of them at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism: Paula Span, Laura Muha, Amy Singer, Alexis Clark, and Merrill Perlman are great friends and supportive colleagues at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, as is alum and fellow food writer Kate Cox. I thank ex-students Alex Hubbard and Thomas Brennan for teaching me a thing or two about resilience.

Jesse Kahn upped my coffee game and confirmed the value of a dry sense of humor.

I have friends without borders back on the West Coast who refuse to let geography do us in, and I'm grateful when we land in the same time zone: Vicky Mann, Lori Rifkin, Patty Williams and Kenneth Turan, Laura Moskowitz, Cassidy Freeman, and Clark and Megan Freeman. Thanks to Ginger Curwen, who is easier to access.

Carolyn See is with me no matter where we are.

My thanks to my sister, Lori, to Lesly and Trey, Josh and Lani, and the next generation of diners—and to my mother, Norma, who probably would have
preferred plain chicken but was always a good sport about dining out. And always, to my father, Ira.

Which brings me to the person who rounds off these acknowledgments more often than not. Sarah Dietz first appeared in this space as a four-year-old who loved words. She's had some birthdays since, but I thank her for being that girl in spirit, still.

Complete access is a lot to ask of a young chef about to open his first restaurant, but that is what I needed, and that is what Jonah Miller provided. I stood in the kitchen during service and in the hours that preceded and followed it, attended lineup and partners' meetings, and observed everything from recipe prep to the tense moments before a big review hit. To fill out the story, I spent hours interviewing the principals—so when I describe how they were feeling or their private thoughts, it's not because I can read minds. It's because I asked and they told me. If I wasn't present at a particular moment, I talked to multiple sources who were, to make sure that I had consensus on what happened. I also sought out sources whose stories complemented the central narrative at Huertas, from chef David Waltuck, Jonah's first mentor, to chefs Stephanie Izard and Gavin Kaysen, whose paths are very different from Jonah's.

For part of the time my daughter worked at Huertas. If she were a cook we would have had a conflict to resolve. Since she worked front-of-house, she remained out of my professional line of sight.

I made a decision about names that splits the difference between informality and tradition. I refer to the Huertas staffers by their first names because last names—the way journalists usually do it—felt too removed. They're a family, and I was in the midst of it. Everyone else gets the usual last-name treatment.

One last note on parameters: I stick to third-person narrative because I had no role in the story except to watch and listen as it unfolded. I stepped into the story on only two small occasions: I changed the names of a couple of job applicants who came and went, fast—and I changed the fake name that restaurant critic Pete Wells used to make one of his reservations at Huertas, in case he still uses it.

KAREN STABINER
is a journalist and author of narrative nonfiction. She has coauthored the cookbooks
Family Table
and
The Valentino Cookbook
, and her work has appeared in
The Wall Street Journal
,
The New York Times
,
Los Angeles Times
,
Saveur
,
Travel & Leisure
, and
Gourmet
. She teaches at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, and lives in New York.

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