Caesar came by the kitchen at 11:55. He asked Bill and Jimmy G if they were set up. In fact they were and they were both chilling out, Jimmy G sitting down reading a magazine, Bill in his corner smoking a cigarette.
“I have people at the door,” Caesar said.
“No problem,” Bill said.
“Reservations go all through the day, full house.”
“We’re ready.”
Jimmy G did not say anything. Bill told Caesar he was going to run to the bathroom and be right back. But he did not go until he was sure that Caesar was away from the kitchen.
Before Bill had started there, as Bill and Caesar had first words about, Caesar would have walked into the kitchen and looked at everything, tasted what he felt he wanted to taste. Bill, as any self-respecting cook would have/should have done, stopped that practice immediately and made it so if Caesar wanted something he had to ask for it. No way Bill was having him put his hands in the pans of food.
For speed, and some for taste too, everything today was pre-sliced and ready to go. The turkey sat in pans with clear broth keeping it moist. Hams were sliced and set in glaze. Each order of turkey as it was dished up was a mix of dark meat and white unless the order specifically requested one or the other. The ham was ham, all the same. It was meant to be easy peasy.
No way Bill was having Caesar touching any of the food that would in one way or another be sent out to customers. No way Bill was having Caesar taste anything by reaching into anything.
“You want to try anything?” Bill asked.
“No,” said Caesar, “not now.”
“It’s all good,” Bill said. “Believe me.”
“I know it is,” Caesar said.
So after Caesar had walked away Bill ran to the bathroom. Almost literally. He walked double-time and did not stop for anything. He went to the nearest and quickest employee bathroom, peed, washed his hands and ran back.
Jimmy G went next. When Jimmy G came back it was 12:05 and Bill already had three orders, all of them family orders with nothing but the daily specials. He had already laid out the plates for the first table and was working on it: three ham dinners with yams and two turkey with mashed and stuffing.
The routine was simple. Bill plated the special, Jimmy G the sides and whoever had free hands finished up whatever had to be finished up. They did that table working out their pattern, coordinating how they worked together on these specials.
The second and third tables were similar, all daily specials, and by the time they had finished that third table they had four more orders, but most important they had their routine down. Jimmy G laid out the plates from Bill’s side toward his and as they were being laid out, Bill started plating what needed to be plated. He went down the line, and no matter where he was, once the plates were laid out, Jimmy G started plating the sides per what Bill called to him.
When Rosie picked up her last of that second round of orders tables, she told Bill they were getting slammed and that the room was full. This was, in the scope of things as such meals went, a very good thing because once the room was full the tables could only turn so fast. As one emptied, it was re-set and a new party was seated. With mostly pre-prepared specials going out, Jimmy G and Bill not only could keep up, but they could stay ahead. And this they did.
Bill called to the main kitchen within the first half hour and told Jimmy Banquet Chef to just start running out food, all specials and all sides. The banquet chef told Bill it was no problem, that he would be there within minutes.
And that was that.
