Tuesday 19 May 2009

Catch up

Rita has been in Launceston again – for another conference, again. (Missed you this year TJ). This time the venue was Country Club.

A question – if you’re a waitperson and a customer asks you what the sauce is in that container there alongside the container of cooked pasta, is your response “I dunno. I’m not the chef”. I don’t think so! Sorry but that was the answer to my question at lunch at CC today.

Not impressed CC.

Meanwhile I caught up with many others of interest. Popped in to Ut Si’s Café in Perth to check out how her NY trip went, and how business is. She looks great, but admits she’s never worked so hard in all her life as she has since she opened the café. I’m sure many of you will agree it’s bloody hard work. She has lost her apprentice, and with chef son Julian moonlighting at Fee & Me as well as being main man at Ut Si's, is currently looking at how best to tackle this.


I also had a good chat with Nick Platon, el supremo of IndustryLink (Kuzina). Nick is in the throes of opening another place in Launceston, so the empire is expanding big time, and the obvious need for hospitality training is there.

Nick claimed he hadn’t known who Rita was, until she admitted it to him today! He told me a funny story of an evening at Kuzina recently when they noticed a middle aged woman taking lots of pictures of the food and the restaurant, and made the assumption that said lady was Rita. He alerted the kitchen and floor staff to keep an eye on Table X where the lady and her partner were seated! Someone obviously was on the ball as he said they woke up to the fact that it wasn’t Rita because this lady was drinking wine – and we all know how that so wouldn’t happen if it was Rita eating out!

Well – Rita’s huge organizational nightmare (for work) occurs on Thursday this week at Wrest Point, and after that, Rita can relax and eat out a bit.

I have in my immediate sights: Infusion and Green Store, plus, as Nick gave it such a hard sell, and claims there is absolutely nothing I could fault Kuzina on, of course Kuzina. He has thrown down the gauntlet there so I feel I must take him up on the challenge.

Keep eating……

Posted on by Rita
5 comments

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Glad to see you are keeping us bastards honest Rita, Don Chipp would have been proud!
In fairness to that CC waiter he could have been being ironic?1
Also maybe it was code for 'whatever you get served its not my fault!'
Who knows?

Rita said...

Nope - I'd totally get irony - but don't respond too well to direct rudeness. I commented on his response on my return to my table, and others reported similar lines from him over the last 2 days!

Glad I'm making Don Chipp proud too! He was a good guy.

Anonymous said...

hi Rita... not sure if I could have coped at this year's conference - was a bit miffed by the convict ghosts being blamed for our poor level of skill and qualifications in Tasmania. May be I read it out of context but really...

TJ

Rita said...

I think that was taken out of context though I haven't yet seen the Merc account of the speech. I heartily agreed with all his points actually, and was extremely interested in his research into the issue. It was a logical thread if you heard the full presentation.

Anonymous said...

in that case, I may try and follow up his presentation further for a good read! ta, TJ