I stood on top of two old Coca-Cola wooden crates to reach the old Rockfront Cafe’s big flat top grill, learning how to flip hamburgers and grilled chicken fried steaks when I was five. My objective was simple … to earn a nickel from Mom so I could go to old man Berry’s corner store to buy a chocolate fudge ice cream bar. This was my daily ritual during the hot summer of ’65. This was my first experience of earning a simple wage to buy what I wanted. There was no such animal as an allowance in our regime. Contribute to the family business and you’ll be paid accordingly. A valuable lesson well heeded.
As the years passed, my knowledge grew as did my pay scale. A dollar an hour in the summer of ’69, working as a prep cook/bottle washer supreme at Kelley’s Restaurant on Surfside Beach. Twas turbulent time in American history. The Vietnam War was at its height of escalation, taking a toll on our family and circle of friends. I watched Cronkite on CBS nightly, seeing the war firsthand, laying on the living floor, observing that most of the soldiers were not much older than my brothers, which worried me greatly. In a few years, the war was over and I had become a teenager. That is when I began to comprehend culinary cuisine.
In the summer of ’74, I became a line cook at the Knot & Loop Club. The class of customers were the elite of Brazoria County, mainly Dow Chemical executives and local politicians. Being a private club, we were able to sell liquor spirits, which was a rarity in a dry county, but for the upper crust of this small pond, there was always loopholes and perks that the average citizens couldn’t obtain. My education in classic French cuisine began here, as did my rubbing elbows with the power players of South Texas. I was in awestruck amidst their presence, and they, in return, were amazed that an awkward fifteen year old kid was cooking their gourmet meals. Being a literal sponge, I absorbed knowledge easily and had total recall. That being, once I cooked a recipe, I envisioned it, step by step, in my mind. Sometimes in color, seeing the finished product before starting the procedure. This skill would lead me into new extreme venues a few years down the line.
PREVIOUS PAGE
