- 2 hours ago
Go behind the scenes as Executive Chef Thomas Allan leads his team through a Friday night dinner rush at The Modern in New York City, a 2-Michelin-Star restaurant. From tasting menu plating to real-time kitchen communication, see how a world-class fine dining kitchen handles over 200 guests with precision and speed during an intense night of service.
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00:00Three by two, three by two.
00:01I'll take that five fish, five fish.
00:02I'll take broth three and two, please, right now.
00:05Two more amuse.
00:07What aren't you tasting?
00:08I need three risotto here.
00:11It's 7.30 p.m. on a Friday night in New York City,
00:14and you're at The Modern.
00:15The Modern's held two Michelin stars since 2016.
00:18Right now, we've got about 75 guests in our dining room,
00:2145 guests in our private space,
00:22about 120 in our bar room,
00:24and all of it's happening in real time.
00:26Let's go, Pharaoh, let's go, Pharaoh.
00:28Lamb, please.
00:30My name is Thomas Allen, I'm the executive chef.
00:33I've been at The Modern for 12 years now.
00:35You can put it right here, these four, let's go.
00:37Get involved.
00:38We can't all run at the same time, right?
00:40Look, behind me right here is three risotto
00:41and one turbo.
00:43Wait.
00:44Let's go, that's it.
00:46Behind me is three risotto, we ran out of space.
00:48It's already up, sorry, wipe, wipe, wipe.
00:50When we're super busy,
00:51I got a little soundtrack playing in my head.
00:54It'll be this busy,
00:55but we'll start to slow down in a second.
00:57We've got to get through the ebbs and flows, you know?
01:01It's going to feel really condensed like it does right now,
01:04but if once we can push out, let's say, the first three courses
01:07of all these big tickets, we'll be in the clear
01:10and we can start to breathe again.
01:12All right, pick up here, please.
01:14Pedro.
01:15Five, let's go.
01:16Please.
01:17Two, two, though.
01:18So I just finished five caviar, we just finished five caviar,
01:21and now Pedro's going to help us get it out onto a tray,
01:24into the hands of the servers.
01:25Take your time, take your time, take your time, take your time.
01:28For me, I always view it like I have a,
01:31like it's like a mental cue, right?
01:32Where like as soon as one thing is finished,
01:34one thing is added on to the back.
01:37And the cue never, you know, the list never ends.
01:41Even when we leave the building,
01:42the next day's cue starts right back up
01:44and we have to keep going and doing more things like different events
01:48and cooking for different people.
01:51Basil, please. Basil.
01:53Please.
02:00Pick up one more lobster.
02:02Please.
02:03So KT has walked.
02:04Please.
02:05Now I need six.
02:06Please.
02:07Four by two by one.
02:08Please.
02:09Behind that, on the board all day, there's two more.
02:11Please.
02:12We use words like on deck or backside.
02:16All that means is like a shortened vernacular
02:18to give the cooks like a mental cue
02:21of the things they have to do.
02:22So I'll say we're picked up on four lobster,
02:24which means right now.
02:26Your backside, there's three more,
02:28which means there's three more behind that.
02:29Or on the end, which is typically on the last part of the cue,
02:33there's two more.
02:34So all day long we're shouting things like four by two by three
02:39or up next or on deck.
02:41If you look over here to the left,
02:42it's the bar room side of the kitchen.
02:44So when you walk into our restaurant,
02:45the first thing you see is the bar room,
02:47which is the neighborhood restaurant.
02:48It's where I would go nine times out of 10.
02:50So that entire team on that side is working on the bar room,
02:53which is its own menu, its own staff.
02:55And then as you come towards this side of the kitchen,
02:58we're cooking for the dining room,
02:59we're cooking for the kitchen table,
03:00and anybody else that wants to walk in
03:01and have something to eat.
03:03Over here is the garmagee.
03:05Garmagee is the cold side of the kitchen.
03:06So we consider anybody that works garmagee
03:08to not have to cook during service.
03:10They may have cooked prior to the service beginning,
03:12but all their mise en place is done
03:13and either room temperature or cold.
03:15Over here on the right side
03:17is where the first couple of bites come from.
03:18These are venison tartare tartlets.
03:20This is the galette with celery,
03:21and this is served over ice.
03:22And over here, Isaac's helping plate the lobster salad,
03:24which is a little composition with shiso,
03:27radish, and mandarin orange.
03:29And that gets an anglaise on the plate
03:32before it walks out to the guests.
03:34There's no shelves.
03:35There's nothing that really restricts your vision,
03:38which is great,
03:38because you can stand anywhere in this kitchen
03:40and see where most help is required.
03:43And typically, it means where the most people are.
03:44So right now, a couple of chefs from the barroom side
03:46are over here helping Chef Nick and Chef Michelle.
03:49Two more amuse.
03:50Wait.
03:51That's four duck and two rizzo.
03:53Wait.
03:54So nobody in this kitchen,
03:55except for the sous chefs on the pass,
03:57both for the barroom and the modern dining room,
03:59have tickets.
04:00A lot of kitchens, even at this level,
04:02they have their own printers, but we really believe
04:05the less they have to deal with outside of the cooking,
04:07the better is that they can focus on the food.
04:09All the notes we make on the ticket
04:10shows the timing of when the food is fired.
04:12And what that means is that there's a team out
04:14in the dining room that are in control of their section
04:16and their tables, and they let us know
04:18when they want us to start preparing each course.
04:22So all the numbers you see on the right
04:24indicate the time on the minute
04:26of when that course was fired.
04:28And so if this is 27, right now 34,
04:31we are, you know, minutes away from getting this rice,
04:36which is actually right behind us.
04:37So seven minutes is a window that we want to stay in.
04:39We don't really want to go above 10.
04:41And there's a really small window
04:43where the food is acceptable to send to the guests,
04:47which is right about now.
04:52Pick up two Turbo.
04:53Wait.
04:53Behind that, let's get ready on three Turbo and one Rav.
04:56Wait.
04:57We're finishing two Lobster.
04:58Wait.
04:59Behind two Lobster.
05:00We're going to go right into six more.
05:02Plate.
05:03Michelle, pull the plates, please.
05:05Plate.
05:05Pull the plate.
05:07That way you know we have to do it, right?
05:09It's your way of saying,
05:11I have six Lobster to do after these two.
05:13If we don't pull the plate immediately,
05:14we're going to forget.
05:15OK?
05:18So there's rarely a moment where a chef will say,
05:21hey, chef, remind me what I'm supposed to do again.
05:24Ideally, everybody's listening and everybody's paying attention
05:26and retaining the information.
05:28So a way that we can kind of like negate falling behind
05:30or negate forgetting what we have to do
05:33is we pull a plate and put it on our pass.
05:36And that shows us that, hey, you know,
05:38if this plate's out and it's spread and it's wiped,
05:41probably in the next four minutes I'm putting food on it.
05:43And that way we don't forget that, you know,
05:45we have to plate two by six Lobster.
05:47These are extra.
05:49Brian?
05:49You're currently on 71 and 62.
05:52Oysters are...
05:56Order in two tasting.
05:57Great.
06:00So right now we're picking up one of the mid-courses in our PDR.
06:03It's a private dining room.
06:04Roasted lobster, maitake mushrooms,
06:07and an emulsion made with pimenton,
06:09which is kind of like a smoked paprika aioli.
06:12The organization here is assembly line style.
06:16One person does one job.
06:17All the food is cooked in advance
06:19before the course is fired.
06:22Everything is hot, everything is seasoned,
06:24everything is delicious,
06:25and we're going to do our best to get it on every single plate
06:27as fast as possible, same orientation.
06:30Tonight we're plating for 40 guests
06:32a tasting menu of eight courses, nine courses.
06:35The difference here is that everybody's eating at the same time,
06:37so there's no way we can pick up 40 of anything
06:40off this side of the kitchen
06:42because there's just not enough space
06:43or not enough people to put that much food
06:46and serve it at one time.
06:47So we have our own team dedicated just for the PDR,
06:51our own sous chefs, our own chefs de partys,
06:54our own maitre d's, our own food runners,
06:55our own managers over there.
06:57The event space can be up to 64 people at one time seated.
07:01Once we start, we can't delay for the next table
07:04or the third table or the fourth table.
07:06It has to start, and once we start, it doesn't stop.
07:10We just go until it's done, and hopefully by two,
07:14two and a half minutes, it's all out of the kitchen.
07:17This is Chef Brendan Durst.
07:18He's in charge of what we call the PDR.
07:21This guy runs this mini kitchen back here,
07:24which does as much revenue as a small restaurant
07:26in the West Village.
07:27Push, push, push, push, push.
07:29Isaac, go to the house, okay?
07:32Rice, ready?
07:33Rice, ready?
07:34Wait.
07:36Chef, two by two.
07:40When we say push, it means go a little faster
07:42than you were before.
07:44Rice, please, ready?
07:45Great.
07:49There's a saying in this kitchen,
07:51if you find yourself falling behind, just go faster.
07:59So this is our signature dish.
08:02This is called eggs on eggs on eggs,
08:04and anybody who gets the long version of the tasty menu
08:07is going to start with this after a couple of small bites.
08:11At the bottom of the bowl is a fried egg sauce,
08:13and it's broken with a dill oil.
08:15With a second egg, it's a poached egg yolk.
08:17We actually poach, pull eggs in a saline solution
08:21just so they're warmed through, not so they're thicker or custardy.
08:25We want the yolk to spill into the sauce,
08:30but it's really tricky because we don't want there
08:32to be too much yolk, so we have to actually work with farmers
08:35to get really small eggs, which drives you crazy
08:39because the farmers are like, why don't you want big eggs?
08:41And we're like, because we want the littlest ones you have.
08:44Chef, toast we go, right?
08:45Wait.
08:45We finish this dish with pickled shallots and more fresh dill
08:48for acidity and freshness,
08:50and then we're going to drop a huge spoonful of caviar
08:52right on top.
08:57Seven amuse.
08:58Eight.
08:58You notice this plate looks a little bit different.
09:00It's because this dish is a vegetarian
09:02or has an allergy or has an aversion,
09:04and this allows us to notate that position one on this table
09:10should not be getting any fish.
09:11Again, it's just another layer of security that we have
09:14to keep people safe and to give them what we want.
09:17All right, let's go.
09:18Toast, toast, toast, toast, toast.
09:19Wait.
09:21Two more amuse.
09:22Wait.
09:23On 73 P4, she goes, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you,
09:25but I actually don't eat red meat.
09:26She doesn't eat red meat.
09:27On 74?
09:2873 P4.
09:2973 P4.
09:30Imad.
09:31Wait.
09:31Pick up one pork.
09:32Tasting.
09:33Wait.
09:34What's going on, Chef?
09:35So a guest just let us know as her food was being dropped
09:40that she doesn't eat red meat, and we had prepared her lamb,
09:44which sometimes happens.
09:45So we're going to make a pork as fast as we possibly can now.
09:51Tasting one slice.
09:52Wait.
09:53It's all right.
09:54Because I don't have anything ready for the guests,
09:56I'm going to rely on my team in the barroom,
09:58because they have a completely different menu,
10:00and that we have a beautiful Iberian pork chop.
10:02So we're going to give her pork instead of lamb,
10:04because she doesn't eat red meat.
10:05So hopefully she likes the pork,
10:07because otherwise we have to wait 20 minutes
10:09to cook her a new piece of meat.
10:10One slice.
10:11One slice.
10:12Brown butter brush.
10:13One slice.
10:15Super tight.
10:16Super tight.
10:18Allegra.
10:19We can't tell the guests,
10:20oh, because you didn't tell us that you don't eat red meat
10:22earlier, now that your experience is going to be sacrificed.
10:25We want to make their experience as seamless as possible.
10:28So we're lucky we can utilize our other spaces
10:32to give us a little head start and give us, like,
10:34a way out of this, because her other guests are actually
10:36eating the food already.
10:38So we have to kind of prepare for all those scenarios
10:41all the time.
10:42I think the mindset needs to be that everything that we do
10:45is going to, you know, is out of our control in reality.
10:49All we can do is kind of be prepared and react to situations
10:52as they come in.
10:54All right.
10:55Can I slice, please?
10:55Can I slice?
10:56Tonight's fish course is turbo.
10:58These come from Spain and Portugal.
11:00We cure the fish, let it dry for a full day,
11:02and then we roast it with pretty aggressive heat.
11:05It cooks for about an hour,
11:06and we rest it in an emulsified butter that we call
11:08vermante, just so it doesn't dry out.
11:11And it allows us to almost slice the fish like sashimi.
11:15And you see a really beautiful, almost rainbow effect to the fish.
11:20Chef Grace, here's the next two, okay?
11:23And then to finish it, it's a little bit of oil.
11:25Thank you, chef.
11:27So this is the turbo garnish.
11:29So this is a little ragu of turnips, garbanzo beans,
11:32which are fresh green chickpeas.
11:34The whole thing's been glazed in olive oil and a little bit of pepper oil,
11:38which is the green.
11:40And then our fish goes right on top, just like that.
11:49Pick up three turbo and one ravioli.
11:52Pick up two caviar.
11:53We gotta go with this four lobster next, right?
11:56Chef Nick, I need two more now, right?
11:58For anybody that has to give direction in the kitchen,
12:01the only way we know you've heard the message is by responding.
12:06So we've unified the response.
12:09Instead of saying, yes, chef, or got you, chef, or just nothing,
12:13we all say we, as in we, chef, for any direction that's been given
12:17to the greater group of people.
12:19We all respond because it's respectful,
12:22but just to show that we actually hear the direction
12:24and we're gonna get the job done.
12:26Chef Grace.
12:27Yes, chef.
12:28Three turbo fired.
12:30Three.
12:31Six.
12:33Ten on the board.
12:34Three.
12:34Eight.
12:35Followed by another 15.
12:37Eight.
12:37All right?
12:38Eight.
12:39Watch the length on the rest.
12:41It can't overrest.
12:42Three.
12:42Okay?
12:43Three.
12:44So the communication goes beyond just saying,
12:46order into tasting.
12:48I'm constantly giving the chefs a sneak peek into what's coming
12:53down the road so they can be prepared.
12:56Again, not because I'm gonna start cooking turbo for a guest
12:58who just got here, but if she doesn't know it's on the board
13:01or if she's not refreshed on her quantities,
13:03then when I actually want it, it could not exist,
13:07which is gonna be a pretty big deal.
13:10Order in for tasting.
13:11Wait.
13:11Rush table, KT.
13:12Wait.
13:13I just called the kitchen table's order in.
13:15We just say KT for short.
13:16Kitchen table is the table in the corner of our kitchen.
13:19When we redesigned the kitchen in 2016,
13:20we discovered that we had this obscure little space,
13:23and so we decided to put a table in there.
13:25We like to nail the timing on the kitchen table because it's the
13:28only table we can see.
13:29So when they start to finish up their course,
13:31we can start to get ready on the next one.
13:34I love that.
13:38So we're slicing some beef for this course.
13:40When you slice the meat, you don't put pressure on the protein,
13:43whether it's beef or duck or anything, right?
13:45Because when you press down on the meat and then release,
13:48it flexes.
13:49So your perfect straight slice all of a sudden bows out,
13:52which is why you see that concave right there.
13:56So you want to have minimal contact with the protein.
14:00I'm not touching it.
14:02I'm just kind of containing it.
14:03So it can't go anywhere.
14:05Right?
14:06I'm just holding it in place so it can't go anywhere.
14:09Now, both of our slices are even.
14:12Right?
14:13Cool.
14:13That's the tray.
14:15Put it on the tray.
14:16I brush.
14:21Give it five seconds right there.
14:23Get the board wiped down, then mess it up.
14:26Nice cook!
14:27This is Wagyu strip cooked on Japanese charcoal.
14:30We make this with a sauce that we make with red cabbage juice.
14:33Instead of, like, a reduced chicken stock or a reduced meat sauce,
14:35we use vegetable juice.
14:36Potatoes and radicchio tardivo.
14:38It's been compressed in a pickle liquid for a little acidity.
14:42Meat's super rich, super highly marbled.
14:44Really, like, just belly warming and delicious.
14:50Order in for tasting!
14:51We!
14:52Listen up, we're all in!
14:53We!
14:54So that's the last order of the night.
14:5670 guests tonight in the restaurant,
14:57which is about 75% capacity.
15:01On the barroom side, we finished at about 170,
15:03and we all know about the PDR.
15:06So overall, this is a generally full night in the modern kitchen.
15:11As you can see, there's people everywhere.
15:13We are tapering off of our busy service.
15:16We're gonna get the whole kitchen broken down,
15:19polished and looking shiny,
15:20and we're gonna come back tomorrow morning
15:21and restart the whole thing.
15:23.
15:23.
15:23.
15:24.
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