“I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.”

It wasn’t her fault, but it was her fate, like so many single mothers, to be caught between a wistful child and his fantasies of the father who is perfect, in part because he is hardly ever there.

The more the small things became second nature, the more I would be free, as a chef, to build on the foundations with even more complex combinations of tastes, textures, and colors.

“Only if you cook what you love and truly understand will people be happy with your food. Running a restaurant is not a popularity contest. It is not really any way to get rich. But you can make beautiful food and you can live your life your way,” he told me one day as he was writing out the menu on the chalkboard. “C’est toi qui décides. It must

In many countries, waiting tables is a working-class trade, or something you do just to pay the rent while you pursue a more creative profession. But in France, being a waiter is a proud vocation with a noble history.

Fish, which is what I did for Robuchon, is more technical, but meat is more sensual. At the time, I was more of an intellectual chef. But it’s important to have both—the instinct and the technique, the elegance and the muscular sensuality—to be a great chef.

My father died when I was young. That is the central tragedy of my life. But his spirit never left me, and that may be the defining miracle of my life.

We only get one shot at this life, so why not float like a butterfly and sting like a bee?

The only way that I could tell she was sorry for all of the changes in our lives was through her food. Cooking gave her emotions a place to go.