A year of reflection in the kitchen

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The highlight of my year has been working with the team of kitchen staff at the Marlborough Convention Centre, Heartland Hotel and the Marlborough Farmers' Market.

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It's crying time again Make lunchbox-packing child's play Chicken full of flavour Breathe fire into your food Early birds catch the fish Berry appealing Crimson power packs a punch Confiscating contraband to cooking Delighting in differences Relishing the taste of local garlic

Step back 12 months ago and things were sounding grim. We were just about to start an economic recession, jobs were going to be lost, wages were frozen and it would be years of uncertainty and fiscal frustration before we found our way back into the black. From what we were being told it was going to be one hell of a year and on reflection it has certainly been a interesting 12 months.

Having spent a lot of time cooking over hot stoves in even hotter kitchens, the highlight of my year has been working with the team of kitchen staff at the Marlborough Convention Centre, Heartland Hotel and the Marlborough Farmers' Market.

It has been a pleasure to work with some of the best people and I take my hat off to them for their dedication and commitment to getting the job done, no matter what the challenge. Their days featured long hours with relentless amounts of dishes and cleaning, followed by yet another day of the same but with more dishes and scrubbing. To work in the kitchen is not rocket science, it is about consistency and high standards no matter what the challenge is.

Christina, Helen, Abby, Shannon, Nana, Hilary, David, AJ, Josh, Desrae and all the others who have worked in the kitchen for the last 12 months, I hope that the coming year is more rewarding than the pessimistic people were saying last year.

While some businesses have struggled to change with the current situation, others have flourished and adapted to what is needed to be done at the right time and place. This is certainly a reflection of the work that you have all put into making the kitchen a rewarding and satisfying place to work in over the last 12 months.

The kitchen nightmares, staff not turning up, smoke and fire alarms going off, loss of power and gas, staff walking out, demanding customers, unexpected bookings, cuts, burns, lost paperwork, burnt food and spillages, wrong deliveries, kitchen tantrums, working public holidays, late deliveries, last-minute cancellations and number increases are part of last year's book.

While there are a number of challenges to be faced in a commercial kitchen, they are no different than those faced in any other job. It is the team of people which produces the final product and delivers the results for the future. Well done, keep smiling and keep cooking.

OPTIMISTIC PIE

10 staff members

1 large hot kitchen

Chefs' whites and aprons

Pots and pans, frying pans

Assorted cooking equipment, bowls and vessels

Knives, assorted sizes

Plates, utensils and wooden spoons

Front-of-house staff

Salt and pepper

Sense of humour and a dash of optimism

Take all of the staff members and put them in the kitchen, give them the tools to be able to do the job required. Provide menus and recipes, ingredients, pots and pans. Use the knives to cut up the local fresh produce and mix with the wooden spoons. Cook medium rare, taste and season and then use the utensils to serve on to the plates. Get the FOH staff to serve to the customers and repeat again and again and again. Take compliments to heart and criticism as part of the experience, sprinkle with a sense of humour and add a dash of optimism to taste.

- The Marlborough Express

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