Overheard a line cook trash the special, then stole his idea outright

Last Saturday during service at our spot in Portland, two cooks from the next station were arguing about the halibut special. One said it was dead because the lemon beurre blanc was too heavy for August. I stood there for a minute, then went back and swapped it for a light dill yogurt sauce with pickled fennel. Sold out by 9 pm, 28 plates. He was right about the seasonality, even if he was being a jerk about it. Anyone else ever take a complaint from the line and turn it into a better dish?

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jamesroberts1mo ago

Notice how the best ideas often come from people who are too blunt to wrap them in nice words. That cook probably said a lot of garbage that night, but the one part he got right was the key. It’s like when a friend tells you your outfit is off, you get mad, then you fix it and look better. Most feedback is noise, but there’s usually a tiny nugget of truth buried in it if you’re willing to dig past the attitude. You did the smart thing by separating the message from the messenger.

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