“People like to think the creative process is romantic. The artist drifts to sleep at night, to be awakened by the subliminal echoes of his or her next brilliant idea. The truth, for me at least, is that creativity is primarily the result of hard work and study.”
-Grant Achatz
If you’re hungry, the streets of Chicago are lined with options
for any craving. But, if you have a few hundred dollars to spare and you’re
looking for something more from your food, a restaurant called Alinea, in Lincoln
Park, is the place to go. Grant Achatz, the Chef and co-owner of Alinea and two
other restaurants in Chicago, is a world-renowned chef elevating the mundane
act of grabbing a bite to eat to an experience of fine art. His artistic
plating, unique presentations, constantly changing menue, and innovations to the
overall restaurant experience have helped shape the frontier of modern cuisine.
After graduating from culinary school, Grant spent several
years collecting ideas by working in the field. He cooked in restaurants in the
US and Spain, before settling in Chicago. In those formative years, Grant
credits Chef Thomas Keller, owner and chef of French Laundry in California, as
the mentor who led him towards his own success. After working as executive chef
at Trio, in Evanston, Grant followed in the footsteps of his mentor and became
co-owner and chef of his own restaurant: Alinea.
But, in 2008, Grant was dealt an extraordinarily cruel and
ironic twist of fate. He was diagnosed with stage four tongue cancer, told the
treatment was to have it amputated, and given two years to live. Grant overcame
the odds; his cancer is now in remission and he luckily refused the amputation,
but the treatments robbed him of his sense of taste for several years. In his
episode of the Netflix show, Chef’s Table(season 2 episode 1), Grant
explains that this limitation changed the foundation of how he creates. It forced
him into divergent thinking; he could no longer rely on his palate, so he taught
his nose. He had to make new connections, learning to create dishes with his sense of smell and memory of flavor.
He also had to give up complete control and rely on his sous chefs to taste his
food. Thus, his limitation caused him to innovate and experiment further.
If you’re interested in learning more about Chef Grant Achatz in his own words, I highly recommend watching his episode of Chef’s Table on Netflix. Grant has also co-authored a memoir called Life, on the Line:A Chef''s Story of Chasing Greatness, Facing Death, and Redefining the Way We Eat.
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/05/12/a-man-of-taste
I really enjoyed this post! I'm also very interested in culinary creativity and the way chefs can break from the traditions that came before them. I think food has a very unique way of expressing identity, and it offers a lot of room for new chefs to establish new looks and tastes within the field.
ReplyDeleteFor a chef to get tongue cancer is indeed, as you say, an extraordinarily cruel and ironic twist of fate. However, I think great hardships like that often drive people to either begin their creativity or to take their creative work in a completely new direction, adapting to the situation that they were dealt. Achatz is a key example of this, as you mention how he shifted from creating with his palate to creating with his sense of smell and memory. It reminds me of Beethoven composing music while being deaf — physical inhibitions don't necessarily mean mental or creative ones; sometimes they're exactly the opposite.
Thanks for this post — I had never heard of Achatz, but I'm definitely interested in learning more about him now!
Wow this one blew me away! I'm so intrigued by creativity in the culinary domain and this man has such a unique and impressive success story. I was pretty hooked from the start by his quote you included about creativity being a product of hard work and study, but then I just continued to be awed. What a truly ironic set of challenges to lose your sense of taste as a chef. It is so cool how he let that challenge drive and expand his creativity when it could have been the end of his career. I appreciate that you've provided some opportunities to look into him more I'll definitely be doing so!
ReplyDeleteAs an amateur chef myself, I found this post and Grant Achatz's work rather inspiring. Rather than quitting, he overcame such a setback and continues to produce captivating culinary masterpieces. His quote about creativity being more ambitious and studious than artistic showcases how he overcame the loss of his most important tool as a chef. When I think of creativity, I think of it as something that just comes to you and flows through you-- something you have no control over. However, Achatz seems to believe it is the exact opposite. If he simply allowed the universe to determine his destiny, he may have been less successful in his career. However, he took control over his fate, innovated ways to adapt, and learned to create. The shift in his creative process after he lost his sense of taste is more creatively impressive than the actual art he produces. I will definitely be watching his episode on Chef's Table; this is truly an inspirational story.
ReplyDeleteComing from an Italian-heritage family and having been involved with cooking since I was around 4 years old, I can confidently say that I do not normally take appearance into consideration when cooking or eating. "Food is food is food," as my father would say, boiling down my belief that if its' edible, that is the sole barometer by which one should judge what is on their plate. However, after watching Chef's Table (and The Great British Baking Show, also on Netflix) during much of quarantine, I have myself started to pay attention to plating and finer details associated with food. When cooking for my roommates, gone are the days of pot-to-bowl-to-mouth. Now, as you've reflected in your post, I attempt to cater my food so that it not only appeals to the nose and tongue, but the eyes as well. Like the old saying goes, "You eat with your eyes first" (or maybe that was just my Mom referring to me...)
ReplyDeleteGrowing up in the Chicago suburbs, Alinea was talked about as THE restaurant to go to for special occasions (given you have the resources to afford a meal). I cannot imagine how Grant felt when hearing his diagnosis from his doctor. Tasting was his whole livelihood. It's critical for being a chef. I imagine that the news initially tore him apart. But instead of forgoing his career, his condition allowed him to experiment culinarily in ways that he may have never encountered without his condition. Grant's story reminds me of Beethoven and how he became deaf. Despite losing the sense that was integral to their passions, they transcended.
ReplyDelete