Doug Psaltis and Julia Powell
Two authors join Mark and Francis to discuss their books. Doug Psaltis has gained recent notoriety with the publication of his book The Seasoning of a Chef where he recounts working in the kitchens of some of the world's most famous chef's such as Alain Ducasse and Thomas Keller. In the book, Psaltis takes aim at theses chef's, though he said much of the what he has been criticized for has been taken out of context. Criticisms come from pretty high up the food chain. Both Jacque Pepin and Mario Batalli had written blurbs endorsing the book, only to recant once the book was published. Pepin is reportedly irate! The Guys bring Doug on to talk about his book and the controversy surrounding it and to talk about restaurant life in general. Psaltis has a different restaurant philosophy than The Guys and it's interesting to hear them disagree. The guys find Psaltis angry young chef persona a bit hard to take. Doug doesn't really feel that giving notice to an employer is necessary and when subordinates give him notice he doesn't feel it necessary to honor their notice period. The Guys however, believe in honor and respect. "I think that's kind of a jerk move."--Francis
Julie Powell was turning thirty and having a bit of a midlife (early midlife) crisis. To spice up her life and help get her marriage out of a rut, Julie decided to spend a year, 365 days, cooking 524 of Julia Child's recipes found in Mastering The Art of French Cooking. Working a full time job at a government agency in lower Manhattan, Julie would stop on the way home to buy ingredients, then cook from Julia Child's book. Most dinners were done by midnight. Julie started documenting her experience on a blog which then led to the writing of her book Julie and Julia. Mark and Francis first discovered Julie Powell when her op ed piece appeared in the New York Times, a controversial piece where she takes on in her words "this cult of garden-freshness".
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Podcast Date: 10/26/2005