Chatting to a friend today, and reading the comment from first Anon in my last post, prompted me to think about kids and cooking.
My friend pointed out that she has always been crap in the kitchen, and has found it very hard to adjust to being a wife and mother of two, with a principal role there being as main provider of meals in the household.
She is slowly training herself to produce meals that are a joy to eat, but along the way has decided that she wants to incorporate into her own education, the cooking education of her older (eight year old) daughter as well.
So she's taking her daughter along on this voyage of discovery with her. Together they have mastered the mysteries of the roast, pizza and some elementary slow cooked food, and it continues.
I think that is a lovely story. It has always been fine for us who love to cook and have always paid attention to all things food-related. But for the majority of people out there who don't give the proverbial 'fat rats' about it, I reckon it must be really hard to be in a position where you HAVE to have some kind of interest in putting something on the table for each mealtime.
I have always had a passion for teaching kids to cook, which was temporarily halted at one stage after I conducted a series of cooking lessons in my home at Lenah Valley for six Grade 6 kids at the local Primary School. I made a list of all dishes cookable by them given the space and time and costings.
The last lesson included Spring Rolls. Kids love 'em. They're easy to prepare and cook - you'd think! Well, they ARE, in principal, except when one of the kids manages to upset the whole deep fryer of oil on my NEW carpet! (The oil wasn't heated up at that stage so posed no OH&S problem - luckily).
If it had been one of my own kids, a quick swipe with the tea towel would have sorted them out! As it was, I had to pretend it didn't matter one iota, and was all in a days work for me!
Like hell it was!
Anyway - I love to see little ones in the kitchen, and if there's a way to make money from it, I'll be there with bells on! It's great to know the future of cooking is safe in at least some very young hands.
Wednesday, 29 August 2007
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12 comments:
Yes, I find kids usually love to have a go, Rita.
But the younger ones just like the mess...especially flour and dough!
But sometimes they inspire us olderies to freshen up our outlook.
I've made one or two dishes with my kids I never tried before....apple turnovers were a great success.
And fun too.
Sir Grumpy
Sorry to hog your space Rita, but me and my wife just had an eating experience that vindicates what you, Gobbler and your respondents have said over and over.
Good staff are the key to it all.
We had been looking forward to takeaway from a new, really smart place.
The new people had made a wonderfull-appointed takeaway, clean, sleek appealing.
The mail out of the menu brought us a quality little thing to stick on the fridge.I even thought their name was fresh and inviting.
Today we called in for the first time...and probably the last.
My wife got the fisherman's basket and it was okay...not a lot of fishy things but enough...plus lots of chips.
I got crumbed trevalla and chips.
When we opened it up...shock.
They had, first of all given me a whole cardboard fishbox takeaway of string chips.
In another box was the fattest and darkest brown piece of trevalla ever.
It was at least three inches or four inches thick. Impossible to cook through unless you leave it to go almost black..which is what they did.
Inedible.
I called up, complained, took it back at got my $5.
Mind you the birds also got about $4 worth of my chips.
The overall manager apologised and agreed the girls (two of them) shouid had sliced the fish in two to have any chance of a good result.
The two girls..what were they thinking..were they thinking at all. Manager, who wasn't there at the time of cooking, agreed it was rubbish.
It's a new business. We want it to succeed...but if they have staff who serve this sort of crap up...god help them.
All that money on fixtures and fittings and the main thing...the food...is the least looked after.
Don't they realise early good reports are what makes a business and early bad reports break them.
UNBELIEVABLE.
Anon 5.27pm
I understand your disappointment. I'd love to know where this place is, but also appreciate how damaging a review like this can be.
Maybe, just maybe, better training would be in order for these girls. I gather they were young girls and maybe not so sure of how to cook the fish to it's best, and I don't care how you cook them, I HATE string chips.
If every thing else is pretty great with this place, maybe a few lessons on the finer art of fish and chips is in order. It's harder than it looks and I admire anyone who can get it right. Sadly thats not too many and as such we NEVER have takeaway chippies. Some places seem to start off so well, then fall to pieces, or get too confident. What I wouldn't give for a decent fish and chipper just down the road. I admit Fish349,Flathead,Chish and Fips and Frenzy do a great job but I find them very expensive with a family of 5.
So in short, all I want is decent fish and chips at a decent price. Too much???
Yes Christina...I deliberately didn't say who it was..I do hope they get it together and succeed.
A friend says Townsville is Good for fish and chips and cheap!
He has been here five years or so and says he has given up in Hobart.
In his Townsvill digs, the local chippie dished up fresh fish and crisp chips EVERY time.
Like he says, IT'S WHAT THEY DO...they should get it right.
It's too far for us, but if they can do it, we should be able to.
I have to add that the manager was very apologetic and I reckon bloody disappointed at what had been dished up.
Training is the key. Where are the experienced staff?
Anon 5.27 - what a horrible disappointment for you & your wife. I'm busting to know where it is now! Their marketing mail-out was probably looking to you like it was going to be good there.
I agree too with both you & Christina about the fish & chips scenario here in Hobart. You're crazy if you go somewhere & order the f&c and expect perfection, except for my few consistent favourites (Seafood De Mayne, Fish Frenzy) (and reasonably consistent, Flathead).
The poms are the masters at the art, in my opinion. It's just about worth the huge airfare just for a beautiful serving of English Fish & Chips!
And you're right - how hard is it? We all live so close to the water, you'd think we'd be a mini-Britain for f&c.
But -the positive is that you returned, spoke to the Manager who acted on it, and was appropriately apologetic, and hopefully embarrassed.
Sir G - well done with the apple turnovers! How about a batch for us now?
My daughter is currently wearing her whites(over her pj's), yes she has a mini set that Grandma' sent over from the UK. She is allowed up tonight as Daddy is home early for a change. She is peeling Carrots with Mum.
I love my daughter playing in the kitchen. On another note on the same subject; I once worked in a small hotel in Wales, on mothers day,diners were invited to let their kids cook them breakfast in our kitchens under the direction of the chefs. They had to be 10years and over, and the kitchen was huge. It was a good laugh for all concerned. Would be interested to see how that would work nowdays in our litigation world.
On a different note, I'm sure I know the name of the takeaway they are talking about here.
If I am right, then its fair to say that others have tried and failed in this same spot. However!!! This is a new venture, and I think they deserve the benefit of the doubt, give them a few months and see, but for anyone reading this, tell the owners first before you tell your ten friends, mistakes happen in the early days.
What a brilliant idea cartouche - having the kids in the kitchen cooking their mum's meals! What small hotel was that, by the way?
I worked in 2 small hotels in W.Wales - in Milford Haven, & a tiny place called Cuffyn.
Is your daughter keen on following her dad into the industry?
Yes, cartouche, that's why I didn't say who it was. I'm not sure you do know and I hope you don't spark more speculation on this, because I desperately want them to succeed.
But if they don't get it together they might not last a few months.
They need to ACT NOW.
And remember Cartouche, while mistakes do happen in the early days, it was a MEAL RUINED for two people.
And it sparks up your adrenaline and blood pressure to have to return the evidence.
Hey, Rita, will you have to buy Jeannie Little's Cleaning Book to get rid of that oil stain on your carpet?
Ouch...as bad as the red wine stain from a whole glass spilled by a neighbour at our post-renovations housewarmer.
That was a brand new carpet too!
Sir Grumpy
No Sir G - I moved out of the house instead! But Jeannie Littles book would definitely have been cheaper!
Rita, Plas Hafford in North Wales. I was born in haverfordwest, but thats about as Welsh as I can claim.
As for speculation, Mums the word. I know as an owner how much reputation counts, and how much money is at stake.
Rita, my daughter will marry well, inherit well (I hope), and if she follows me into the industry, part of me will sing and part of me will cry. In the mean time mini Cartouche is going to be a Doctor of course, silly Rita.
Ah, Haverfordwest... I've spent a lot of time in that particular town. My girlfriend Daphne (another faithful Rita-reader) lived there many moons ago, as did her family. We got up to a bit of mischief together there as well, but I won't belabour that point!
I have in my wardrobe today a particularly fetching pair of shoes I bought back then in H'west, which subsequently went out of fashion and have now come back!
Fond memories indeed for Rita.
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