Episode 83 – Chef Evan Rich of Rich Table and RT Rotisserie
If you want to be a great chef someday, you are going to have to put in the time. Period. It’s simply a tough job, and Evan sums it up perfectly. He can pay you $120,000 a year to be a line cook, but it is still going to be hard; you’re going to have to work more than you want to, you’ll still get burned, and you’ll still have a long list. It’s just a hard job. It doesn’t matter if you’re working at the local diner or at the three Michelin starred restaurant; there are a lot of similar tasks that still have to get done every day no matter what restaurant you work at in order for it to be successful.
Evan and his wife Sarah are both New York City-trained chefs who left over a decade ago and landed in San Francisco, where they put down roots and opened Rich Table and RT Rotisserie, which are both perfect expressions of their passion for fresh, quality, and seasonal products.
There’s a lot to unpack in this nearly two-hour episode, but here are some of the highlights:
- It’s a hard job, no matter how you look at it
- You can be passionate, but you can’t make it personal
- The puzzle that Evan is obsessed with putting together
- Success is a mix of drive and choice
- Evan’s rise in New York City at one of the most iconic restaurants, Bouley
- The New York City blackout disaster
- Why cooks should learn to “give themselves over” to the industry and dedicate themselves
- Evan's upbringing in New Jersey
- Crashing his parents' car forced him into the kitchen
- Eli and Evan's time working together in New York
- His time as the CDC at Quince
- His time working at Coi with chef Daniel Patterson
- What he learned working there and how to understand flavor
- The challenges of running a small restaurant in San Francisco
- Why his food has a connection, and why the guests will know if it doesn’t
- Why your entire team has to buy into your concept
- The beauty of a rotisserie chicken and why it will never go out of style
- Using technology to streamline labor
- How to scale up your company without losing that personal touch
A huge shout out to our sponsors, Maxwell McKenney and Singer Equipment, for their unwavering support, which allows us to bring these amazing conversations to you. Check out their websites for all the high quality equipment they can supply your restaurant with to make it more efficient and successful.