It's getting away! Get it, get it, get it! But you know what I think, Linguini? I think you're a sneaky, overreaching little. You will make the soup again, and this time I'll be paying attention.
Then back to work! You are either very lucky or very unlucky. Since you have expressed such an interest in his cooking career, you shall be responsible for it. If he wishes to swim in dangerous waters, who are we to deny him? He has taken a bold risk, and we should reward that, as Chef Gusteau would have. Perhaps I have been a bit harsh on our new garbage boy. Who made something she liked! How can we claim to represent the name of Gusteau if we don't uphold his most cherished belief?Īnd what belief is that, Mademoiselle Tatou? if she write a review to that effect and find out you fired the cook responsible? LeClaire likes it, yeah? She made a point of telling you so. What do you mean, wait? You're the reason I'm in this mess! Linguini! You're fired! F-I-R-E-D! FIRED! Oh no no no, oh no, don't let them, don't eat. Move it, garbage boy! You are cooking?! How dare you cook in my kitchen?! Where do get the gall to attempt something so monumentally idiotic? I should have you drawn and quartered! I'll do it! I think the law is on my side! Larousse, draw and quarter this man! After you put him in the duck press to squeeze the fat out of his head! The soup! Where is the soup? Out of my way. Is this going to become a regular thing with you?! What can I do? I am a figment of your imagination.īut he's ruining the soup! We gotta tell someone that he’s– and nobody's noticing?! It's your restaurant! Do something! no! No, this is terrible! He's ruining the soup. How did you know! What do I always say, Remy? Anyone can cook. He washes dishes or takes out the garbage. Chef de partie, demi chef de partie, both important. The sous is responsible for the kitchen when the chef’s not around. Let us see how much you know, huh? Which one is the chef? I will be returning to Gusteau's soon, hungry for more. It is difficult to imagine more humble origins than those of the genius now cooking at Gusteau's, who is, in this critic's opinion, nothing less than the finest chef in France. Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere.
In the past, I have made no secret of my disdain for Chef Gusteau's famous motto: 'Anyone can cook.' But I realize, only now do I truly understand what he meant. To say that both the meal and its maker have challenged my preconceptions about fine cooking is a gross understatement. Last night, I experienced something new, an extra-ordinary meal from a singularly unexpected source.
The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that, in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. In many ways, the work of a critic is easy.