I've been thinking a lot lately about the professional quality of the food I produce. I got some professional feedback recently about dressing up my food, and clients often ask what my presentation is like. My training with Gabe drummed into me the ridiculousness of non-functional garnishes, and I took that to heart. The problem is that in the catering realm, non-functional garnishes are de rigueur. To get an idea of what I'm referring to, imagine a four-star Hawaiian hotel buffet where it looks like they chopped down all the nearest palm trees just to line the table and make the food look more substantial. Professionally I think this is unnecessary, and personally I'm appalled by the waste (there's already enough landfill created by the food industry).

But, nevertheless, the feedback was there and the urge remains. I don't think I'll ever go to the silly lengths of decorating the buffet line with whole fruits or anything, but I did start to think about my presentation. There is something to be said about thinking of the design of a platter, and I'll admit it's not something I've given a lot of thought to in the past. But I've been considering it a lot more now. And there is something very appealing to the eye about a platter full of canapes, creating a visual texture through the repeating elements.

I've also been watching myself battle back and forth between "perfect" and "good enough". One side of me truly believes that "good enough" is exactly that: I met the goal, everyone's satisfied, and it was "good enough". The problem is that "good enough" has a connotation that it actually means "not good enough", or "less than satisfactory". Incidentally, this is the sort of thinking that drove me from Microsoft!

And so, I always make sure that my food is good enough, meaning it's exactly what the client wanted and expected, and that they are completely satisfied with my services. But on the other hand, the martial artist and chef in me wants the food to be absolutely perfect for my own professional satisfaction. I'll admit as a business owner that this drive for perfection is expensive, especially when clients can't recognize what they're getting, but as a chef, I like the idea that my perfection can only be understood by professionals.

This drive for perfection runs very deep in both my martial arts and cooking, but it only gets expressed in my martial arts. I never ask "was that kick good enough?", I always ask "Is that the best I can do?" when I'm training, but it's just the opposite when I cook. To be clear, I never cut corners or serve crap food but I will admit in the heat of a deadline I often do less than my abolute best. Some would say that's ok, and that to do more than the client is paying for is pure ego, but others would say that at the end of the day I only have myself to please. I'm just not sure how I can reconcile the two in the kitchen.

So, I'll I continue to push myself and be disciplined about my quality and while also remembering that the perfect is the enemy of the good. Perhaps with more time and practice, my "good enough" will get closer and closer to "perfect".

Footnote

I can't remember where I read it, but there was a story about a master potter in ancient Japan that was so good his pots never sold. So he deliberately introduced flaws into his work to make them even more beautiful. That is definitely beyond my current skill level when it comes to cooking!