Hubert Keller - Hubert Kellers Souvenirs: Stories and Recipes from My Life

Riding my old bike out into the Nevada desert at sunup.

C H A P T E R

Chantal and me enjoying cocktails at home in Las Vegas.

C H A P T E R

During the holiday fair in Ribeauvill. Do you see the castle outlined against the sky in the background?

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I NEVER THOUGHT ID WRITE A MEMOIR , but as I worked with my coauthor, Penni Wisner, downloading favorite stories and memories into her recorder, I realized I had an opportunity to look back at my journey. So many people have helped me on my way, beginning with my parents, Yvonne and Henri; my first mentor, chef Paul Haeberlin and all the Haeberlin family; my best friend and wife, Chantal; my partner in Fleur de Lys, Maurice Rouas, who supported me even when his longtime customers expressed dissatisfaction; Marjorie Poore, who produces my Secrets of a Chef television series for PBS, and Mary Rogers of Cuisinart, our sponser; and Penni, who dug into the material I gave her and then wrote and cooked and wrote and cooked until she was satisfied. To all of you who support and challenge me on a daily basis to do my best, especially the chefs and staffs of all my restaurants and our customers, thank you for your understanding and friendship.

A big thank-you to our agent, Carole Bidnick, for her firm belief and support, and to the team at Andrews McMeel Publishing, especially Jean Lucas, our editor, and Kirsty Melville, our publisher, for their insights, enthusiasm, and patience.

Thank you to Don Morris, our book designer, and Eric Wolfinger, our photographer, for taking a strong personal interest and going the extra mile to make the design and photography great.

To our recipe testersAlison Thoreau, Anita Chu and husband Mike Dimmel, Brian Banuelos, Chad Schmidt, Francesca Bannerman, Robin Wirthlin, Elspeth Martin, Laura Martinez,
and Nikki BlumPenni and I thank you so much for your care and insights. What a lot of great work. Hubert Keller

Once or twice a week for months in 2011, Kyle Anderson, then the Burger Bar sous chef, and I test cooked at Fleur de Lys in San Francisco in the morning while the kitchen was quiet. Kyle cheerfully gave up days off or worked a double shift in order to help me make sure the recipes were right. Hermenegildo Gilberto Banuelos Villarreal, the pastry chef, worked alongside us, and often with us, mentoring us and giving us the benefit of his more than twenty years experience at Fleur de Lys. When our work extended later into the day, everyone flowed around us, accommodating us into the rhythm of the kitchen. Often the chefs taught me techniques and prevented my errors. The waitstaff and Marcus Garcia, dining room manager, demonstrated the authentic sense of hospitality and the graceful dance that characterize great service. To all of them, I am so grateful for their generous welcome. I also want to thank Robin Wirthlin and Francesca Bannerman on whose energy, advice, and cooking prowess I relied. And to my family and friends for their compassion and understanding as I took them on the roller-coaster ride that is writing such a big, complex, and exciting book. With my whole heart, I especially thank Chantal and Hubert for entrusting me with their stories and food. Penni Wisner

On Sunday, everyone came in for special pastries and cakes for their familys lunch.

My dad, Henri, and our family dog, Zezette. Me with a friend from childhood, Yves Baltenweck, on the first day of harvest in 2011. Ptisserie Keller on the ground floor; my family lived on the floor above.

SUNDAY LUNCH IN RIBEAUVILL

WHEN I WAS GROWING UP , my family lived on the first floor above my fathers shop, Ptisserie Keller, and his mother lived on the second floor. She was Grandma and cooked Alsace dishes influenced heavily by her experience of living through World War I and the food scarcity it caused. As my fathers business flourished, he indulged in foods such as wonderful cuts of beef that were unavailable when he was growing up. And he no longer wanted to eat Grandmas budget-conscious traditional cooking. But my brother and I loved her cooking. Because my parents worked such long hours in the shop, Grandma was in charge of most meals for my brother and me.

A big Sunday lunch was a real tradition in Alsace. Every household would sit down to a big meal with all the family membersparents, children, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, and cousins. But for us, Sunday was a little crazy at home. It was the only day we didnt eat together as a family. While Grandma kept us busy upstairs, Mom and Dad were busy downstairs. It was the busiest day of the week in the shop. Everyone came in for special pastries and cakes for their familys lunch.