Fatted Calf

I wasn’t really planning on taking such a long break from the blog (it’s been over a month since my last post) – I guess I’ve just fallen victim to a serious case of writer’s block over these last few weeks. It’s not for lack of inspiration when it comes to food as the wife and I have enjoyed our fair share of memorable meals and have been to some really great food festivals since we’ve arrived back in the San Francisco Bay Area. Part of my absence from writing can be attributed to my own lack of focus. Lately, I’ve been feeling compelled to narrow down the subject matter within my blog, while at the same time I’ve wanted to get away from the routine of blogging about what I ate, where I ate it, and how it made me feel (there are plenty of established and very accomplished food bloggers that have this niche covered) and get back to my original mission of documenting my career change and development process. Since arriving in SF, I’ve been doing a lot of ‘soul searching’ with the goal of determining the best career move for me. I think I’ve got a pretty good idea of where I want to head and now that I’ve got some exciting news to share, I have the perfect reason for emerging from my self-imposed hiatus.

Beginning next week, I will be working in the Fatted Calf’s new San Francisco store. I am thrilled to be saying that. The Fatted Calf is a charcuterie shop that’s been operating out of the Oxbow Public Market in Napa, CA (and at some Bay Area farmer’s markets) for the last few years. They specialize in producing many different varieties of fresh sausage, pates, and salami using the freshest and highest quality ingredients available, including organic and hormone-free meats and natural/organic seasonings. Products are made in small batches in a kitchen located behind the retail counter at the Napa store. With an expansion into San Francisco comes a need for new staff. A few weeks back, I saw an ad on craigslist titled ‘Meat Enthusiasts Wanted’ and after learning more about the Fatted Calf, which included lots of tasty hands-on research, I knew I wanted to be part of their team. After two interviews, one of them being a six hour, hands-on ‘stage’ at the store in Napa, I got the good news last weekend. In-store training begins this Saturday afternoon, followed by a staff party early next week, serving as a celebration of all the blood, sweat and tears that have no doubt been shed in order to make the new location happen.

People that really know me know how excited I get when talking about meat, so this opportunity in many ways actually makes perfect sense. I’ve always considered myself to be a carnivore, only recently making ‘friends’ with salad and other non-animal based foods. In addition to being an emphatic consumer of meat, thanks in no small part to my culinary training which increased my technical ability and knowledge, I now have much more faith in my cooking skills. This allows me to cook with more confidence and seek out dishes with higher ‘degrees-of-difficulty’ than I had previously attempted to prepare. As a result, a lot of my home cooking exercises have involved experimenting with different cuts and parts (lamb’s heads, pig’s feet, and pork belly) that I wouldn’t have dared mess around with prior to my culinary awakening. Throughout culinary school, I was also exposed to a totally new world, one filled with delicious artisinal products prepared by talented and creative chefs that seek inspiration from long practiced techniques making use of any and all parts of whatever beast is available to them. From one chef, I sampled a terrine made from pigs ears that had been slowly braised over the course of 36 hours and knew that I was tasting something special, something that bridged centuries old, time honored techniques with a flair for the modern. It’s also right to credit culinary school with making me, first, more appreciative of something like pig’s ears, and second, showing me that there is a real art and craft to charcuterie. Having had a chance to explore different parts of the country this year, including a trip to Seattle and New Orleans, I’ve also discovered that people around the country have also had similar ‘awakenings’ and are producing some exceptionally delicious cured-meats and sausages of their own. Check out Salumi in Seattle and Cochon Butcher in New Orleans and do as my friend Brad recommended, buy anything that they will sell you – you won’t regret it. It’s a fascinating craft, one that takes lots of time and training in order to produce at the same high level that these folks do and I want to learn as much as I can about it.

There’s a lot more to this story, but I will conclude now by saying I’m more excited for this opportunity than anything else in recent memory. I’m really fired up over the chance to learn charcuterie from people that are clearly passionate about what they do and who also happen to make damn products. To be in a position that will allow me to talk about meat, sausage, and salami all day long is also great and quite a shift from my previous day jobs spent talking about Excel spreadsheets. I want to tell you about the books I’ve been reading, the other research I’ve been doing and the class I’ll be taking towards the end of the month, but that will have to wait for another post. I think I’ve found my focus – my ever so elusive end goal.