It's Father's Day, and being a parent in the hospitality industry can certainly be challenging given the level of commitment required for the job.
Most chefs, regardless of parental status, know that Mother's Day is actually one of the quintessential examples of a "food holiday." Whether it's brunch reservations at a fancy restaurant snagged months ahead of time or just ordering takeout from a local favorite, many Americans choose to .
Father's Day, however, is a different story.
"All of the work and plans are usually for Mother's Day," ICE Los Angeles' Lead Instructor of Wine Studies Paul Sherman says. "On Father's Day, we usually like to just relax."
Even though the holiday often brings rest in having a day off from restaurant work, many chef dads still have food-related traditions that they've stuck to through the years. Some dads, including ICE New York's Lead Chef and Operations Manager Joshua Resnick, are creating their own special memories for their families for years to come.
"[My dad and I] used to grill together. In more recent years, since I've become a father, we now smoke meats," Chef Joshua says.
We asked our Chef-Instructors from both campuses how they plan to celebrate Father's Day this year.
Joshua Resnick, Lead Chef and Operations Manager
"We don't smoke the same meats consistently. We just like to use it as something that we can do together. I come from a culinary background, my dad doesn't. So I've kind of used [smoking meats] as like a wave to teach him some different stuff. He likes reading about it and doing stuff and then you know, we get to do it and enjoy it together. Last year was brisket. The menu for this year is ribs. We're doing baby back ribs and we're doing beef short ribs.
Last year was brisket. The menu for this year is ribs.
We're not super saucy. We're more about the rubs. We do like different versions of classic spice wrote like classic barbecue rub. So it's normally going to have smoked paprika, garlic powder and onion powder. It'll also have brown sugar and a good bit of salt and black pepper. But sometimes we like to keep like certain things a little bit more simple and just play around with some different woods. So we might do salt and pepper, but then we might smoke it with applewood, or we'll might do it with hickory and just kind of play around with it that way. Oftentimes, I like to add things like I like to add caraway seed into my spice rub for certain items because I feel like they bring out like a more unique flavor. One of my favorite smoked items is pastrami. So for me, I always think pastrami, I think of rye bread. So for me, it's kind of a fun way to combine like more of like a Texas-style barbecue, but still having a little bit of that almost — New York deli flair to it. I also make my own version of Old Bay seasoning, but I call it 'New Bae.'"
Rèmy Forgues, Chef-Instuctor, ICE New York
"On Sunday, I plan on doing jujitsu with my daughter, and then we'll grill local catch like porgy or black bass and serve it with a side of salsa verde."
Stephen Chavez, Chef-Instructor, ICE Los Angeles
"Here in Pasadena, we have the street Chalk Festival that goes all weekend long. They start on Friday and by Sunday, they have these amazing works of art. So we'll normally come down in the morning, we'll walk around for a good couple hours in the morning, maybe grab a little snack from a street vendor or something like that. This year, we're going over to my mom's and having a little Mexican food — homemade chili relleno from mom. It'll be really delicious and nice. Father's Day is about family. Being a dad is the best thing in my life."
Being a dad is the best thing in my life.
Ozmar Heredia, Chef-Instructor, ICE New York
"[In the past], we gathered around, someone cooked something, so it's just like spending the day having dinner, talking to each other. I don't recall any specific tradition for home cooking in this case other than like any type of Peruvian cuisine. My dad likes chicken and beans."
Jeff Shields, Chef-Instructor, ICE Los Angeles
"Food traditions, after sleeping in, would be mainly grilling and barbecuing. Hot dogs, hamburgers, steaks, anything outdoors. My older son will cook sometimes, he also does like Thanksgiving meals and stuff, he'll help with some sauces. He's eight and my youngest daughter, she's six. We love to do mainly anything outdoors."
