Burned 40 steaks on a Friday night because I trusted my new line cook too fast

I was working the grill at a busy spot in Portland last week when my new guy told me the fire was "perfect" after I asked him to check it (he had 3 days experience). I turned away to plate two orders and came back to a wall of flames from a grease flare-up that ruined an entire $700 worth of ribeyes. How do you guys break in rookies on hot stations without babysitting them every second, or am I just expecting too much too soon?

3 comments

3 Comments

jason_stone17d ago

Dude, I let a rookie ruin a whole cambro of pulled pork last month and @davis.mia is so right about making them watch first!

davis.mia17d ago

Man, I feel this so hard. My record is ruining a whole 24-pack of burger patties because I thought the new guy knew what "medium rare" meant. I tell rookies to stand there and watch me mess up once before I let them touch the fire alone.

lindahunt12d ago

Hear me out though, is a ruined 24-pack of burger patties really the end of the world? I mean, @jason_stone and @davis.mia, it's just some overcooked meat, right? Like unless you're running a Michelin star joint, people are probably still gonna eat them if you throw enough sauce on it. I get it's a bummer to waste food, but acting like it's this huge tragedy that needs a whole training ritual seems a little extra to me. Maybe it's just me, but there are way bigger problems in a kitchen than a few patties that got a little too done.