IN THE WEEDS

I have been working in this industry for more than thirty years. I started as a server, then as a manager, and then as a GM. Then I wanted to know more, especially what happened on the other side of the pass. So I moved to sous chef and then executive chef. I know every fucking dark corner of a restaurant. I feel them; I talk to them. It's like a sixth sense. But I don't see dead people. I see wrong decisions, dysfunctional places, ghosts of bad management creeping inside the walls, and haunting common sense and efficiency. As far as I am concerned, a restaurant is a living organism. It shifts, reacts, and moves constantly. What worked on Monday guarantees nothing for Tuesday. What works at lunch can fall apart at dinner. And occasionally, what works at eight p.m. crashes at nine. Because service doesn't repeat itself. It resets—and tests you again. So don't take this book as a step-by-step plan or a manual. It's not "hospitality for dummies,' for fuck's sake. Over time, I've learned there are no specific rules, no universal solutions. No magic recipes because all GMs, chefs, and teams are different. But there are clues, tools, and truths that remind us of what has to hold every single fucking day for service to work no matter what. Because restaurants are all the same. So basically, it's always the same shit, but different toilets. And in hospitality, nothing sticks together by sheer miracle; every table is a new adventure, every Saturday night is different, and every shift is a new challenge. You don't handle a regular brunch the way you handle Mother's Day brunch. You don't approach New Year's Eve like a regular service. And don't make the crucial mistake of comparing Valentine's Day to any other busy night. That's what this series is about. Five volumes. Five services. Five different kinds of pressure. And Vol. 1 focuses on Saturday night service. You have a full dining room and no margin for error.