Bryce Baird, Executive Chef of the Country Club of New Canaan, ran out of lemons and used this to make chicken française.
Chef’s Thoughts is sponsored by barillafs.com.
E. Bryce Baird is the Executive Chef of the Country Club of New Canaan in Connecticut, a position he’s held for the past three years. Prior to this post, he was the Executive Chef of the Bedford (N.Y.) Post Inn.
- You’d be surprised to learn that I am into ornithology, the scientific study of birds.
- If I could trade places with one chef, it would be Thomas Keller.
- One of my most memorable meals was in Ragusa, Sicily. The restaurant was carved into the side of the mountain and it was in the middle of a tremendous rainstorm. The power went on and off all night, but the meal never stopped.
- My go-to drink is sugar-free Monster.
- My last meal would be blueberry pancakes with a side of crispy bacon, three eggs sunny side up and a toasted, buttered blueberry muffin.
- My worst culinary creation was Snapple lemonade chicken française. I had no lemons.
- If I could change one thing about my club it would be adding more land for bees and honey.
- My favorite junk foods are frozen Snickers and Cool Ranch Doritos.
- If I weren’t a chef, I’d love to be a landscape architect.
- I knew I wanted to be a chef when my mom threw me out of the house and said go to culinary school.
- You’ll never see liver on the menu at my club because it’s liver.
- The most ridiculous member or guest request I’ve ever had was puréed lamb chops.
- I love being a club chef because of the immense feeling of camaraderie.
- When I’m not in the kitchen, I’m walking my pooch or golfing 36 holes.
- My biggest mistake when I first started as a chef was not listening and not taking notes. Once I learned to write things down and to pay attention to the little details I started to see improvement and achievement.
- I cook Stouffers creamed chip beef on a toasted bagel at home, but I’d never cook it at the club.
- If I could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, it would be my mom.
- The most valuable piece of career advice I’ve ever received was, “Good things don’t come to those who wait. Good things come to those who work their a**es off.”
- My favorite celebrity chef is Thomas Keller because of his simple yet complex approach to making things amazing. He is an artist and a poet who speaks through food like no other I have even seen or eaten.
- The most important thing in my kitchen is the staff.
- I want to learn more about food because it’s my life’s work and my passion.
- My favorite ingredient is butter or cardamom. Truffles are the most overrated ingredient. Fresh toasted cumin is the most undervalued ingredient. I detest oysters and I cannot live without cookies.
- I do not like to brag, but my cheesecake is the best there is.
- My most embarrassing moment in the kitchen was when I made vichyssoise with coffee. The recipe I had said to use “Coffee Cream” so I used half coffee, half cream and I was so proud of myself. When the chef asked me who made it, I burst out, screaming, “Me!” Then I immediately began bragging about how delicious it was. Ahhh youth.
- I’d like to see more club chefs start sustainable practices, such as beekeeping and farming on site.
- My favorite cookbook is my own. It’s the complication of 20 years of recipes from chefs all over the world and by my teachers and mentors. It’s incredibly valuable and I’d be lost without it.
- My favorite kitchen hack is my combi oven.
- I am motivated and inspired by my desire to learn every day about food.
- The hardest service of my career was Mother’s Day at the Outback Steakhouse. We did 3,000 covers in 9 hours.
- The most popular item on my menu based on sales is tacos.
- I’d lose my job if I took the Warm Chicken Salad (mixed baby greens, dried cranberries, candied pecans, crumbled goat cheese and house dressing) or the Bellagio (sourdough, grilled chicken, bacon, tomato, avocado, and peppercorn mayo) off the menu.
- Drive and desire to succeed are the most important qualities in a sous chef.