Surf n' Turf Saturday Night

So the guy from my last "Saturday night" post? Yeah. We're still seeing each other. And he's been just as awesome. I keep telling him I want to cook for him, but with our schedules, it's been close to impossible. Currently, I only have Saturday nights free to spend with him; and that's usually after a brunch shift that totally drains me. However, he's been fantastically understanding. Last Saturday, we grabbed Little Caesar's and just chilled at his place. Last night, he offered to cook for me!

When he picked me up, he mentioned we had to stop at the store- he had picked up some beautiful ribeyes earlier at the farmer's market, but needed to pick up a side dish. Apparently his green beans are magical,  so we stopped at the grocery store by his place to pick them up. On the way, we both decided we were a bit too hungry to wait and needed a pre-dinner snack. And something for dessert. We walked the aisles, snagging brownie mix (because if I didn't have energy to make a whole meal, dammit, I can do brownies from a box at least) and a shrimp cocktail platter.

We got to his place to discover the shrimp was frozen solid. So I set it under a tap of running water and got "baking" while he started dinner. Once the brownie mix was in the oven and he was halfway ready to start cooking, his mom called. Dinner got put on hold for a bit while he took the call, and I remembered an old quick-thaw trick for frozen cocktail shrimp I learned at a restaurant I used to work at. By the time he was off the phone (and 15 whole minutes after I could have had the shrimp thawed), we were decimating our snack.

Watching him cook, his technique could have used work. But I behaved and kept my mouth shut- after all, he was cooking for me! And you know what? It wasn't perfect, but I enjoyed it immensely. I'm so thankful he was willing to cook, and I hope he does it for me again.

*Andi's "no shit sherlock" shrimp thaw trick*
Put the frozen shrimp in a bowl and cover with very hot water. Let it sit for 2-3 minutes.  Drain, then quick chill in ice water and drain again. Serve immediately
*I cannot guarantee this is the most food safe way to do this, but to my knowledge it hasn't gotten anyone sick yet.

Stimulation

It's been a busy night. Saturdays usually are. Somehow I've been lucky the past two nights, and the morning cook has actually done the prep lists I've left him. I struggle to seem busy while my fellow line cooks actually prepare their stations.

About 7pm, we actually start cooking. We have a crapload of reservations, but they're behaving and flowing in steadily.

8:30pm rolls around. One of the owners brings a round of whiskey shots, the first time I've seen this happen here. A food runner gives me an espresso shot immediately after. I feel good. Really good.

12:30am hits. We're just finishing cleaning, and slamming beers in the walk-in. We need the medication after 240 covers that night.

1am. I've been sitting at the bar with my coworkers, coming down off the adrenaline high with more beer and a cigarette. I'm proud. We kicked ass tonight.

Tonight is cooking in a nutshell. Adrenaline, caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol all feed into each other; occasionally balancing out, and ultimately fueling the fire. I can feel myself passing out. I've earned my days off.