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“These are too thick. Do it again.”
“Yes, chef.”’
Further down the line, he nodded at the diced onions and peppers, then dipped a spoon into a sauce. He tasted it, tilting his head sideways, then tasted it again.
“Well done.” The young woman let out a sigh, nodding.
“Thank you, chef,” she said softly. He stared at her, wondering why she wasn’t yelling it the way the others did. A ‘well done’ from him was like getting an A+ from Einstein. Or at least he thought so.
“What’s your name?” he asked, tilting his head sideways to stare at the young woman. She seemed familiar, but that only meant he’d probably tripped over her in the kitchen at some point.
“Casey, chef.”
“Casey. When did you start working here?” he asked, staring at her.
“Two weeks ago, chef.”
“Where did you train?” he asked.
“I finished culinary school in Paris, then worked at the Plaza in New York for two years. I moved back to New Orleans to be near my father.” He nodded, still staring at her. She could feel the hairs on the back of her neck standing up as he watched her.
“Okay. I’ll be watching you. You have promise.” He walked away, and she just stared at him. Quietly, she finally responded.
“Thank you, chef.”
“Well done, kid,” said Talbot. “He doesn’t give praise like that often. Keep up the good work.”
“Thank you, Talbot.”
He nodded at her, giving her a little smile. When he’d hired her, he wasn’t sure she’d last the week. Quiet, unassuming, almost hiding in the background. She seemed like a frightened little mouse, always ducking out of sight when Islip came into the room. If Islip got a hold of her for something he thought she’d done wrong, he’d tear her apart.
But so far, she was holding her own and, by all accounts, was an excellent sous chef. She was still learning their systems and unsure of how certain things needed to be Islip’s way, but overall, he was thrilled with his new employee.
Although everyone in the restaurant was technically working for Islip, it was Talbot or Marks who currently hired the chefs. In this restaurant, the hierarchy was Islip, the Chef-Owner. He not only ran the business but oversaw everything was cooked.
There are two executive chefs, sometimes called head chefs or chef de cuisine. Talbot and Marks held those titles. They oversaw all the aspects of the kitchen, including daily operations, kitchen costs, food preparation, and menu planning.Withthe approval of Islip.
There should be two sous chefs who acted as next in command. Their job was to hire the newly hired chefs and cooks. Casey was one of those, with another still vacant.
Five senior chefs ensured that the specific areas of the menu were carried out. Two pastry chefs, one sauce chef, and two fish chefs. Rounding out the team was a vegetable chef, a meat chef, a fry chef, who also acted as their grill chef, and the pantry chef.
He was the one that Marks and Talbot had their eyes on. The pantry chef was the one that was responsible for things like carved or molded ice or fruits, salads, cold cuts, hors d’oeuvres, and dressings. But in their kitchen, he also inspected the produce.
Right now, it was his head on the line, even if he didn’t know it.
CHAPTER FIVE
Ghost and Nine waited up for Gabe, Otto, and Luc to return. They were dragging as they stepped off the boat onto Belle Île. Their feet hurt, their backs hurt, and their hands, in spite of the gloves, were raw and red.
“Well? Any thoughts?” asked Ghost.
“Yeah. I’m fucking glad I joined the Army. That shit is hard, brother. Everything moves so fast it’s hard to even get a good read on what’s going on. There are at least a dozen chefs in that kitchen, all so fucking busy I’m not sure how they could do anything with the food other than cook it.”
“Maybe someone is doing it before their shift,” said Nine.
“It could be,” said Gabe, “but only a few actually have keys to get in early. Those individuals appear loyal to me.”
“Well, we had to pull some strings,” said Ghost, “but we’ll be coming in for dinner a few times over the next couple of weeks. Islip said he would add a table that was permanently reserved for us. How is he as a boss?”
