SO. Last week I was really really sick. I had a miserable cough, I was congested, and generally just run down. I ended up at the doctor on Monday, and he prescribed me antibiotics. I've really only been feeling decent for two days now, but at least I made it through the weekend.
Even though I was sick, I am required to come to class as long as I'm not dying. So on Tuesday and Wednesday I hauled myself up to Roth Hall and endured two six-hour kitchen classes. This week, I was on the tart station. We had freedom to choose the flavors of tart we made, so we chose: a 10" peach and blueberry tart, chocolate and caramel mini tarts, a raspberry linzer tart (we didn't get to choose that), and smaller tarts that featured an array of fruit. The best part about tart day was chef telling me that if I sold my peach tart in a bakery, it would be the first thing to go, regardless of price. *ego boost*
By Friday I was feeling a little less like death, so I headed to Boston after my last class. I had previously arranged a stage (temporary employment stint) at a restaurant in Cambridge called Craigie on Main. I may have mentioned this in a previous post, but I got to do the actual work on Saturday. I showed up at 9 AM, nervous as I could be, and walked in through a large red door on the back of the building. I quickly stumbled upon a man sweeping the floor who spoke no English. Fortunately, he directed me to the lady I was going to be working under for the day: Jess.
To get started, she gave me a tour of the area I would be working in. It's a cave. Literally, a cave. It's the craziest restaurant set up I've ever seen. The baking and prep areas are downstairs (underground), as well as dry storage and a small wine cellar. That was where I worked for eight hours. It was great. I started out cutting peaches, melting chocolate, making rochers, and making dough for galettes. It was near the end of my shift that I was allowed to do something really cool; I was taught how to make frozen desserts with liquid nitrogen. I spun a buttermilk ice cream, as well as a coconut sorbet, and I couldn't have been more excited. What a cool thing to know how to do.
At the end of the night, Jess took me into her "office" (the dry storage area) and talked to me about how I did. She said she was very impressed with my speed and my ability to do multiple things at once. She said I am a lot better at both of those things than a majority of people with my experience level. I was really excited to hear that. After our short conversation, she offered me the opportunity to externship at Craigie. She said she wanted me to come back and do a production shift (where I work when the restaurant is actually putting out desserts) on October 6th, but that she would be glad to see me working at Craigie for the 18 weeks I am allotted to extern.
^That's the building. It's adorable.
I GOT OFFERED AN EXTERNSHIP!!!!! I am so pleased with myself. I will most likely be working under Jess Scott, the best pastry chef in Boston, from late January until mid-May. What a cool weekend! I'm so stoked!
While I have been offered an opportunity, I am still waiting to hear back from a few places in San Francisco, and one place in Charleston, SC. I need to weigh out all of my options before I decide where I want to end up for four months. I'll post more when I know more!
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