The stories of wine lords who trade wine on intimidation or food critics who trade free meals for reviews those are the stories of my life. I am telling the stories of my life in a true way.

Being a cook doesn't necessarily mean you are a competitor.

If you eliminate the junk food, you don't really run the risk of gaining weight if you've got a good workout routine.

The best pastas are cut with bronze dies that give them a rough texture and allow the sauce to cling.

It's one thing to execute dishes on your own time for family and friends, but quite another to perform and be judged in a competition. And that's what cooking in a high profile restaurant is. It's a competition. You're up against every other three-star restaurant in your city, and if you want to stay in business, you'd better deliver.

With four-appetizer, four-entree menus, it's like, give me a break. That's not a restaurant, that's a dinner party.

Most people who open restaurants will fail, because they lack the fundamental understanding of restaurant math. Either they think they're superstar cooks or they think they're superstar hosts.