Once you understand the foundations of cooking - whatever kind you like, whether it's French or Italian or Japanese - you really don't need a cookbook anymore.

But once in a while you might see me at In and Out Burger; they make the best fast food hamburgers around.

Good food is a good trend.

I like to drink young wines, wines which are robust and have a lot of forward fruit to them.

Respect for food is respect for life, for who we are and what we do.

I believe Fernand Point is one of the last true gourmands of the 20th century. His ruminations are extraordinary and thought-provoking. He has been an inspiration for legions of chefs.

When you acknowledge, as you must, that there is no such thing as perfect food, only the idea of it, then the real purpose of striving toward perfection becomes clear: to make people happy, that is what cooking is all about.