Behind the scenes at a restaurant kitchen

Times-Union
 

He’s not exactly sure what’s behind it.

Perhaps it’s all of the cooking shows that have commanded space on the tube but, more and more often, people not only seem to want good food, they also want to take a peek into how it’s made.

Tom Gray, executive chef and owner of Moxie Kitchen + Cocktails gets it, which is why his kitchen is open for all to see.

“It is kind of an amazing thing to observe,” said Gray, who was also the owner and executive chef of Bistro Aix.

If you’re what’s referred to as a foodie, an endearing term for those who love all things food, then you’re going to want table 66 or 51 — both large, round leather booths that face Moxie’s open kitchen. Not only are they cozy, they are front-row seats for watching all of the action during service.

Gray who has the words “air traffic controller” on his business cards, isn’t modest in saying there’s a lot to see. There are plenty of moving pieces to get your order out and on the table.

“We really want you to come here and relax and enjoy your dinner,” Gray said. And if you want a glimpse as to how it all comes together, that’s not a problem.

Gray has a team with him as he maneuvers traffic from the control tower. On a busy night, there’s likely seven cooks in the kitchen. And all seven have specific duties.

There are two people on the grill station — they’ll handle items such as steak.

Another two people will work with pasta and a piece of equipment called the Plancha, which provides consistent, even heat on a flat, stainless steel surface, making it perfect for searing food without burning.

There are three other cooks that handle soup, salad and appetizers, Gray said.

A HECTIC KITCHEN
Ocean 60 owner and executive chef Daniel Groshell said that the kitchen can get a bit hectic.

Maybe not as hectic as it appears on TV shows such as “Hell’s Kitchen” with Gordon Ramsey, but to get the food out in a timely fashion, it’s important that everyone is in place and doing their part.

Groshell makes sure to get an early start. At 8 a.m., he heads out to local markets, personally picking the produce and fish that will be served.

Moxie's Gray gets an early jump as well. He said there’s only a few hours on any given day that the restaurant is completely empty. There’s always preparation to be done, which is why they try to get as much done early as possible.

Robbert Bouman, culinary arts instructor at Florida State College at Jacksonville, said an actual restaurant experience is achieved by cooking for the Mallard Room, FSCJ’s lab restaurant.

He agrees that for restaurants to be successful, they must get the food out on time and cooked to perfection — and that’s all about the prep and execution.

“In our school and many restaurants, you have everything in place and you’re ready to execute without running all over the place,” Bouman said.

He said to get a dish out in a timely fashion, most places will pre-cook their entrees between 80 to 90 percent of the way.

Gray of Moxie tells how it all comes together:

“When an order is entered by a server, tickets are routed and printed based on which station in the kitchen is responsible for preparing those dishes. Our pantry station prepares cold appetizers and salads, while our line cooks working the grill and saute stations to prepare the entrees.

“The expeditor is in charge of coordinating the timing with these various chefs to ensure each dish within a course is ready at the same time and is promptly delivered to the table by a server. We time the ‘firing’ of each course, which is when it begins to be cooked, so that the courses are paced appropriately for the dining experience.”

CHEFS THERE TO HELP
Jonas Loh, general manager at bb’s, usually has eight people in its open kitchen.

His restaurant has two prep cooks and two chefs — one executive chef and one sous chef, who’s in charge of the specials. Someone also is over the grill, the saute station, someone manages the oven, and another cook handles the deep fryer.

At any point, if one station gets in trouble — like falling behind in service because someone isn’t at a station or a piece of equipment isn’t working — the sous chef can jump in.

“I wouldn’t say it’s magic, but it’s a lot of preparation,” Loh said.

Dolphy Hill, executive chef at Bucca di Beppo, said things can get tense, but it shouldn’t get completely out of control.

“As long as you have somebody to delegate your team, it shouldn’t get crazy, but sometimes it happens. You have to be calm, especially working in the kitchen,” he said

He said each station is organized and he knows about how long it should take to prepare each dish.

Desserts take about 3 to 5 minutes, appetizers 5 to 10 and, overall, it shouldn’t take more than 20 minutes for a guest to get their entrée, Hill said.

Still, sometimes the timing is off because a group is lingering over its appetizer and not quite ready for its entrees.

“If we notice a table is taking their time or deep in conversation, we count on our service team to inform the kitchen and we can then adjust the timing accordingly,” Gray said.

As a restaurant that makes everything from scratch, Moxie does most of its prep work, including butchering, preparing sauces and salad dressing, braising, pickling, etc., in advance.

“As orders are fired,” Gray said, “we begin cooking each dish, which allows us to accommodate personal preferences and dietary restrictions of our guests.”

Bouman appreciates the restaurant that makes everything from scratch; it’s tough because of the labor and coordination that it takes to do it.

“You have to pick your battles,” Bouman said. “Are there restaurants that do everything from scratch? Yes, but they are far and few between.”

The restaurant kitchen is a place of great organization and coordination. Groshell said to think of what happens as orchestration — everyone has a part to play, and when everyone is on their job, the “music” is quite delicious.