Letter of Intent

So I go tomorrow morning to sign the letter of intent for the former Pickles Kosher Deli location. I'm extremely excited about this. The next step will be to design the place. The vibe and look need to be cool, comfortable and accessible. I want everyone to feel like they're walking into my home kitchen. I want everyone to feel like family. Open kitchen and counter seating all add up to this environment in my mind.
For anyone wondering, when I walked in the space, the Cuento Gastropub name didn't seem to fit. I'm not abandoning the name. Maybe the next location carry that name. This location needed something more appropriate, something that tie into the former occupant. Most people from that end of town will always know it as "Pickles". Relish sounds good to me. Relish has numerous meanings and all of them seem pretty good. Look them up if you don't believe me.

We may have a winner!

I went to a former deli in Dewitt, Pickles, and I really like the location. It's going to take a decent amount of work but it will be worth it. It's not a big spot, but done right it will seat around 60. It has a set up for the open kitchen I want and we'll have to construct a bar. Space will be a premium, but I've worked in tiny places. I'm optimistic that I will be serving food by the end of summer. All good things are happening in my life. I had some stressful weeks lately, but everything is lining up.

I've won custody of my two children, Amber and Christian. This was the culmination of 4 or 5 years of fighting in court. I'm so happy and excited about this. I have an absolutely amazing family and support system. My parents are going above and beyond to help with this transition. My mother is taking the kids to school and picking them up everyday. I can't possibly thank her enough. I love you Mom and Dad. My girlfriend is also taking care of things and working on opening her business while I'm working in Oswego everyday. I love you honey. I also have the honor of cooking for the Great Chefs Dinner again this year. This marks my 5th year participating. I have met some fantastic people through my participation in this great event. I have much, much more to be thankful for and to be happy about but I won't bore you with all the details.

I am such a luck man. I am surrounded by great people and I can't wait to invite all of you for the opening party at Cuento Gastropub. Thank you everyone.

When life gives you lemons...

either make margaritas or do some tequila shots! Things have sort of hit a few snags here in my personal life. Professionally I'm excellent! Job is going well, business plans are moving forward. Personally, life is rough. Not rough in the sense that the woman and I are breaking up or anything like that.

Just when things are on track and heading in the right direction, someone comes along and ruins it. Now I'm not going to let this stop me. Nothing more than a speed bump, but DAMN! When is enough enough? Why is it certain people can't move on? You can't live in the past you can only learn from it if you allow yourself to. Holding grudges and hatred ages you and makes you ugly no matter what. There is no way to hide your inner ugliness. I hold no grudges. How could I? I forget what I'm supposed to be mad at most of the time. I don't know. I'm planning on taking all these little inconveniences and making myself better and stronger.

I'll update again in the next day of so. Busy few days coming up. Wish me luck!

I'm getting excited!

It's spring! That means soon it'll be time to plant gardens and crops. I'm looking forward to fresh local asparagus, strawberries and rhubarb. I love taking the kids to our secret spot to pick wild ramps. I don't mean to sound like I'm tired of winter cooking. I find the long cooked braises and root veggie dishes of winter soul satisfying, but I'm ready for some fresh and lighter dishes. I want to come in from enjoying the outdoors and whip up a quick dinner. Although I have been using my grill fairly regularly, I would appreciate not freezing my ass off while doing so.

I have a couple of dinners coming up in the next few days. One is for a 50th birthday. My services were purchased at the annual Mr. Habitat auction. I'll be cooking a multi-course meal for 12-15 people. The menu is as follows:

Hors d'oeurves:
-Tataki-sashimi venison loin on a toasted baguette with garlic aioli and a pickled cranberry
-lentil/tofu stuffed chard rolls with a chipotle tahini
-BBQ rabbit on hoe cakes with herbed chevre
-oysters on the half shell with a mignonette trio
-oysters Rockefeller

Dinner:
-seared duck breast with a sour cherry glaze and sauteed kale (yes the same kale from my Youtube show)
-southern fried chicken with maple pecan glazed carrots and potato hash
-ratatouille stuffed quail with roasted Brussels sprouts, toasted walnuts, pomegranates and thyme; rutabaga-winter squash Duchess
-chile marinated grilled halibut with something(I don't know yet)
-roasted lamb with a mint chimichuri oven roasted potatoes and asparagus
-cab franc poached pear spiced with clove, star anise, cinnamon and ginger with a lemon thyme infused mascaropne
-flourless chocolate layer cake with chocolate ganache pickled blueberries and a blueberry gastrique

The quail dish could be changed to pheasant which would change the entire dynamic and the dish.

The second meal I'll be doing is my spin on the traditional Passover Seder. I don't need to worry about the gefilte fish, matzo balls or chopped liver. I do love eating all that though. I know it will include a roasted leg of lamb with the traditional bitter herbs. I'll be doing a sweet potato gratin, asparagus with an herbed hollandaise. The rest is up in the air at the moment. I'll hammer that down soon.

I'm getting hungry. Who said writing this thing on an empty stomach was a good idea? Well, I'll keep you posted on these two meals and give you feedback after I get it. Give me your impressions of the menus, likes, dislikes, let me know.

Anticipation

I had a meeting this morning with a couple of ladies who purchased my services at the Mr. Habitat Auction. These ladies have been eagerly following the progress or lack thereof regarding the restaurant. They have no interest whatsoever other than they like my food. Almost every single day I'm asked how things are coming or when will you be open. My answer is always the same, when I find the right location. Now, I know you're thinking, "Yah, yah, I've heard this before..." Trust me, I hate sounding like a broken record. But, it is good to know that there is still interest.

Anyway, in the meantime, I'm busy working here, there and anywhere. I'm at the OnCenter occasionally and I'm helping to open a place in Oswego. There aren't too many places out there that will hire me. I've been over qualified for just about every position. If I don't mind working for $500-$600 a week, I can have a job in Seneca Falls. $600 a week for 70-80 hours, plus driving, not a bad trade. I love making between $7.50 and $8.55 an hour!
People think $10/hr is GOOD money. Have they tried living on that? How about $15, $20? Come on! At this point though, I'll take it, but you're only getting my ass for 40 hours, nothing more or less. Also, don't ask me to hold your chefs hand and teach him. Pay me what I'm worth and we'll talk. Otherwise, you'll get what you pay for.
I interviewed at Arad Evans, they hired someone for about half of what I was asking. I wish them luck. I certainly hope the chef doesn't try to strangle anyone. Well, maybe I do. I could get a call asking if I'm still interested. Who knows...

I can tell you now I'm ready to do this. I'm antsy. I've got all this pent up energy just ready to go. For now, I need money. So I will do whatever it takes, even if that means working for next to nothing. Because as we all know, something is better than nothing, but just barely.

So here we are

I'm wondering if the right place is out there. I'm not looking to buy a building. I don't want to be a landlord. I want to lease a property. What's wrong with that? People do it everyday. Almost every piece of real estate I've looked at is for sale with no option for a lease. Everyone, the realtors and sellers keep telling me what a good deal this property or that one is. Of course it's a good deal, you're all making money off of the sale. I need to have money to open and run a restaurant. Buying a building is not in the cards now, maybe down the road. The other issue I'm having is everyone is trying to SELL me on the properties. I keep telling them, I'll know it as soon as I walk in. Does anyone listen to what I want or is it all about the commission? It would seem to me that it's all about the percentage. Why else would I be dragged around town looking at buildings and restaurants that are nothing like I've described countless times?

I'm anxious to start cooking. I've been slowly working out recipes that will be featured on the menu. It's almost spring. I can't wait to start seeing local products and produce in the regional market again. A friend of mine sends me emails from his company regarding availability of fresh produce. What I read seals the deal completely about buying locally and seasonally. Freezing temps in Florida, California, Arizona and Mexico have all but obliterated certain items causing the price to skyrocket. The earthquake in Chile has had long term impact on the exporting of cash crops like table grapes and berries. If we went back to eating what was available seasonally and locally we would be better off. The local economy would benefit. There is an economic model that shows how every dollar spent with local businesses circulates through the local economy 3 times, whereas spending that dollar with a national chain, that dollar is there and gone. I don't know about you, but I like going to the regional market or a U-Pick field. You actually get to talk with the people growing your food.

Ok, enough of my soapbox stand. I hope everyone had a good time on Saturday, whether you went to the parade or out bar hopping. Me, I worked. It was alright. I wish I could've had a beverage or 20, but thems the breaks.

A few final thoughts, for those of you waiting for the next Cooking with Chef Paul, we have been having technical difficulties. It's done, but we can't upload it for some reason. Keep checking Facebook or Youtube.
If anyone has any ideas on where I can find a good restaurant location, send them over.

A little rant

I've worked in many places throughout my life. I've worked with every sort of person imaginable. Geniuses, idiots, perverts, the whiners, the unwashed, fat, skinny and lazy. Or so I thought. The crew I worked with this passed weekend takes the damn cake for laziest most complacent bunch...EVER. My friend Jerry calls me occasionally to come down to help him with big events. I went to work on Thursday thinking I would be setting up for his busy weekend. It started out that way and ended in me slinging made to order pasta at the flower and garden show for four days.

Now not much makes me happier or is more fun to me than cooking and interacting with a crowd. When you combine the two, I tend to come out of my shell. Those of you that know me understand. Cooking up made to order pastas with three different sauces but numerous combinations thereof and a wide assortment of toppings with 4 different pasta choices isn't really difficult. It's fun. It's even more fun when you have 5-10-30 people in front of you telling you their orders and watching the show.

Now that the table is set, let me tell you about my "co workers". Things didn't start out well on Thursday. I had been at the OC for an hour or so and had just finished searing off a few hundred steaks when the phone rings in the kitchen. My other friend Rick answers and starts laughing. He turns to me and says, "Hey Midge, wanna go upstairs and bail out the pasta station? You'll laugh your ass off when you see who's crashing." Up I go. The mess and chaos I walked into made me cringe. First, the station was an absolute disaster. Unorganized, messy and completely not set up. They had been crashing since they opened at noon. It was now 1:30 and I had 20-25 pissed off people waiting for pasta. Ed, the cook was trying, but failing. As I stated, the station wasn't set up properly and I've watched my grass grow faster than Ed could cook. I walked up, he said "Thank you Jesus" and watched in awe as I banged out order after order after order...you get the idea, and got the place set up and clean. Now the ladies (used very loosely) I was labored with were a ragtag, motley bunch. For those that don't know, I ran two restaurant at the Great New York State Fair this passed summer. I know what a carny is. These people give a whole new meaning to the word. Some people should never have jobs that require them to interact with ANYBODY, let alone the public. They wrapped EVERYTHING in foil. Few if any had all their teeth. Few spoke more than ebonics. All had and answered cell phones while dealing with customers. Most ate in front of customers, and unknown to me, a couple pulled the last of the chicken I was using and wrapped it up for themselves. I was serving a bunch of people and they were telling people we were out chicken, when here come foil wrapped ghetto gift baskets containing chicken and the questions of can you make me my lunch. Really? Really you piece of crap? You want me to cook your lunch with chicken that you've told all these PAYING customers we were out of? I saw the chicken and so did the dozen of so people standing in front of me. I was angry. I was embarrased. What do I do? The customers were justifiably angry. The hungry "coworkers", never even flinched. It didn't bother them. I did the only thing I could. I added that chicken to as many pastas for the paying customers as I could. You can probably imagine how well that went over. I heard "Is you crazy?" "What is you doin'?" "That mine!" The more pissed they got, the happier I was. Another instance that fired me up was when this rather short robust woman with flaming red hair waddles over to one of the carnies and demanda that she go downstairs to make coffee. Tina, the carny was all set to go, when I intervene. You see, Tina was the ONLY one authorized to run the cash register and there were 15 or so people in line. I asked Sue, the little red bowling ball of a woman why she wasted so much energy walking across the exhibition hall to tell someone else to go make coffee when she was more than capable. She informed me she was Tinas supervisor and she needed to find things to keep her busy. Must be the 15 people waiting to pay wasn't enough. I politely asked Sue to please go make the coffee and that for the duration of the event, I was Tinas supervisor. Now their boss walked up and decided to give me some attitude about him being my boss and he threatened to send me home. I told him to do what he felt was necessary. I told him I would not go home I would go downstairs and work. I made it a point to ask if we could go someplace to talk instead of in front of everyone. He decided we were fine. I proceeded to point out all of his stations shortcomings and his peoples ineptitude. You would think that when you pull someones ass out of the fire they would be even a little grateful. Maybe that's how some people show gratitude, by being confrontational.
Some of the other hits from the weekend include:
-sitting down when taking a customers order or money
-Eye rolling, "Oh Lord"s and incredibly heavy sighs if someone was a bit indecisive -Leaving their station at any point to go browse the show and shop, on the clock of course
-EVERYONE disappearing at the same time
-knocking on the mens room door informing me I have an order
-Throwing the union contract into any and every situation or conversation where you think someone else is benefiting and you aren't
-Publicly buying food stamps from someone and then talking about it
-Yelling from one across the exhibition hall the the concession stand
-A customer and "salad girl" get into a headed argument and the "salad girl" starting to come around the table, threatening the customer while taking out her earrings (one of my personal favorites)
-constantly complaining that you feet, back or legs hurt to customers
-getting snippy with customers or talking loudly about a customers NOT leaving a tip

You get the idea. The list would go on but I'd rather not think about it. It embarrasses me. I don't want the customers to affiliate me with them. As for the tip thing, I should've gotten them. ALL of them. I stood essentially in the same spot for 10-12 hours making pasta. Or omletes. Saturday and Sunday morning I made omlettes to order. Where was my union break? Where was someone qualified to break me? Don't know. If I walked away from the station, the carnies panicked. God forbid I have to pee.

Anyway, that was my weekend. How was yours? For those of you that asked, I will be doing another installment of my Youtube cooking show this Saturday. Check it out.

Where will I end up? The garden.

This is the burning question a lot of people are asking me. I wish I had an answer. I've seen too many places to recall. Do I want to be in Syracuse? Manlius? Auburn, Skaneatles? Why not close to home in B'ville? Cicero? I just don't know.
I looked at a place in downtown Auburn that I liked. It has potential, but so do places around here. Oh well, something will come up soon. It has to soon. I'm getting impatient.

I will say I am getting excited about winter getting close to the end. Plans are being made for the garden. Seeds will be started soon. I get all happy when the little sprouts come up. I start dreaming of what I'll do with the "fruits of my labor", so to speak.
Certain things have to make their annual appearance; cucumbers, zucchini, numerous varieties of tomatoes and chile peppers. But what else to add to the mix? Corn didn't work out so well. I think we had 5 little dinky ears. Tomatillos were the champions last year. Oh well, I'll look through some seed websites and order some funky and interesting stuff.

I'm beginning to wonder

I'm starting to think that maybe my expectations are too high. As far as the location is concerned, I'm not sure if the perfect spot is out there or if I need to turn a location into the perfect spot. People tell me about places they've seen. Many times I've seen the same places. I find myself defending my choice to not choose a particular place. I ask them if they would settle on a house or on an apartment.The answer is always no. I have to tell them it's the same thing. It's hard to explain. I'll know it when I step inside the door. It'll just feel right. If I'm going to be there 5 or 6 days a week for 14-15 hours a day, it sure as hell better be right.

On a different topic, the Syracuse ACF (American Culinary Federation) is in the middle of planning the Great Chefs Dinner. This years event will be like none other. It will be a fully interactive show to engage all of your senses. We will be cooking and assembling our creations in the middle of a "kitchen arena" in the center of the Grand Ballroom at the OnCenter. Kitchen Arena will be a raised platform. Some of us, two actually, will be using different chemicals (all food grade) and techniques to dazzle and amaze the crowd. I'm not going to steal anyone elses thunder, but I will be utilizing methylcellulose and dry ice. With the methylcellulose I'll be transforming olive oil into faux rice kernels and making paella. The dry ice will be used to foam a berry puree. One other chef is using methylcellulose and liquid nitrogen. Anyone interested in attending let me know or call the American Red Cross and ask about tickets.

Food is the easy part.

This endeavor, with varying degrees of intensity, has been going on for a little over a year. Why, do you ask, is it that it's taking so long? Location, location, location my friends. I've been close on two previous spots only to have a nagging doubt throw me off. I have to "feel" the spot. There can't be any question. Sometimes I wish it were simple. I've walked in and out of 75 locations in the last 3 months. Not one of them gave me the "this is it" feeling. I'm wondering if I need to expand my search radius. You know, include areas like Skaneateles or Auburn. What about Ithaca? They have a much more progressive attitude. This is my dilemma. I just need to stay positive and keep looking.

Like I said, the food is the easy part.

Any ideas on locations are welcome.

Things could be looking up

Word is getting out about Cuento. People are calling local TV stations and writing letters to the Post Standard asking if and when it'll open. A week ago I was still pushing forward with it, but I was getting skeptical. Nothing seemed like it would line up.

Last Friday, January 29th was my 40th birthday. A birthday that brought promise, my focus and drive back 1000 fold. I had met with a lady from the Syracuse Chamber of Commerce on Thursday. She asked me about my vision for Cuento and I let fly with all the excitement, passion and love I feel about the place, it's not even a place yet, but it has taken on a life of its own. We had a nice meeting and parted way after about 2 1/2 hours. Little did I know, but she went to speak with an individual who works in another industry and another city. She spoke to this gentleman about my concept and he told her to pass along his information, he may like to invest. I was ecstatic. She promised to email the gentlemans information to me on Monday. She was good to her word!

So I got home from work on Friday to a small but nice gathering of family to help celebrate the big 4-0. Cake-pie etc. Nice. Everyone left as it was getting late and the weather was not good. I decided to jump online to check emails and check the wonderful world of Facebook. I saw the usual assortment of garbage. I noticed I had an unusually high number of emails in my Facebook inbox. Many of them were well wishes for my birthday, but one caught me as a little funny. It was from a woman I had never heard of. Curiously I opened the email and read that this person had read about Cuento in the P.S. and wanted to know if there was a way we could talk about her becoming a possible investor. Again I was shocked, happy, skeptical you name it. I ran the gamut of emotions. After a few emails back and forth and a phone call by me, I am happy to say we are meeting Thursday morning.

I can't wait!

Still looking....

Over the last week or so I have seen maybe 2 dozen locations. Most of them are completely forgettable. I did see a place in Manlius today that intrigued me, but after meeting with the owner, I'm not sold. The building itself is an old church. It had plenty of potential, but it is too chopped up. No coherent floor plan to speak of.
I'm pretty sure my Agent, Amy, is a little frustrated with me, but it has to feel right.

I know given the opportunity and the right location this restaurant will be a big success. There is nothing else like it in the area.

Can someone show me the RIGHT location?

The Search Continues...

I received a call yesterday from a gentleman saying he would like to invest in a restaurant. He had extensive knowledge of the restaurant industry, and seemed eager to sit down and discuss the idea and give me his imput.

I met with him this morning at 11am at Kind Coffee Co. Things didn't start out promising. He was late. I'm not a big fan of people being late. Secondly, he heard what I had to say as far as the concept was concerned, but he definitely didn't listen. HIS idea was to turn the concept into yet another "red sauce pasta" place. While there is nothing wrong with that, I don't want to be one of the masses. I believe the market is saturated with American-Italian places.

It seems to me like people mistake need for desperation. I will not compromise myself or my ideals to achieve my goal.

Cuento Gastropub-Building the Dream

“gastropub, n. Brit. A public (pub) house which specializes in serving high-quality food.”

As many have read and seen on local news, I am opening a restaurant. The posts are simple, keep people interested and anticipating the opening. By keeping a log of what is happening, I hope to build a following.

The process has been slow. I am currently looking for an investor. This task is far more daunting than I originally thought. The concept of building a green, sustainable, locally sourced restaurant isn't new, but it is my goal. People view restaurants as a risky investment and justifiably so. Only roughly 30% succeed. The gastropub will be the first of its kind in Central New York. I'm not looking to reinvent the wheel. I want to open a place that I would go. A place that is comfortable and relaxed with excellent food and a great wine and beer list. I believe that what I intend to do is as close to a "can't miss" as you'll ever see.

The menu will be simple. A large appetizer section built around sharing and entrees of refined "comfort foods". By focusing on locally sourced, organically grown and Pride of New York products, I see this as a winning combination. Add to that the warm inviting ambiance of an open kitchen with seating at the kitchen window, it'll feel as though you're in my home. I want my guests to feel like they're my friends, and after we show them what we can do, that' exactly what they'll be.