It stinks. And frightening in a broad perspective--we hear that unemployment figures are rising, but just in the last four weeks my own circle of acquaintances have taken a beating, as I suspect everyone else. I've been knocking on wood a lot lately.

This from a poster named Vicks on Chowhound...

"Eric Anderson and Doug Flicker are still in the kitchen,

Steven, Landon, and Josh Habiger are all out.

Steven is a tremendous chef and person who will land on his feet somewhere. I hope Porter and Frye and Steven the best, both are great assets to the Twin Cities dining scene..."

FWIW

Guess I was off by a few months...

He'$ going to get $queezed by the owner$ at $ome point...I'm still setting the over/under on his staying @ P&F at 9 months. He just doesn't strike me as one to dumb down his food and cut corners just to make the P&L look pretty. That's what it takes to survive in this town, folks. You can put several bows on a this pig, but at the end of the day, it's still Minneapolis.

Posted by: geoff on January 28, 2008 at 3:34 PM

Respoonse to Geoff:

Thanks again for giving us your opinion, you always seem to have a grasp of what is going on in Minneapolis when it comes to food.

You are correct we are a pig. We are a noble creature that has sustained people through all sorts of time and still to this day is a cornerstone of the food world. Ah, the pig, what would we do with out it. It is comfort food for a number of cultures, it is a challange to some as to what level thay can elevate such a simple and yet wise animal.

But, in the end, we are a pig. I can't thank you enough for that comment. I look forward to working in Minneapolis every day. This is becuase we are real people here, similar to a pig. We don't need the latest trend or the latest spin. It takes a while for people to persued us to join anything. Some may say we are behind the time, however that is ok, because we are doing it our way.

We are not a NY, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Seatle, New Orleans or any other place. We are Minneapolis + St. Paul, and that is why we are here. If you do not feel that this town lives up to your culinary standards, as a number of my relatives from Minnesota would say, " if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." Yes, old saying, and a bit predictable, but think of what would happen if we all just gave each other constructive critisisnm and compliments.

Scott, you couldn't have said it better!

Steve Brown: Great Chef . . . Great Person . . . Great Mentor . . . Inspiring Teacher . . . He'll be around!

Scott...where I come from they say, "if you don't have anything nice to say, welcome to Detroit"

I greatly enjoy your restaurant. It lives up to my culinary standards (whatever-the-hell those are). It's what we need more of in this town...affordable chef-driven neighborhood restaurants with character. Now, if only there were more people like yourself willing to put dedication to craft over profit margin and more people like myself who were willing to appreciate it by dining at restaurants like yours during the week, think of how much better off you'd be. Be careful what you wish for, I guess.

And Rick...I agree that Steven Brown is a swell guy. and I also have no doubt he will be around. and around. and around.

i love these blogs it gives a chance to those who don't amount to much or who have sold out long ago to exist in a self indulgent parallel reality and spew their wisdom on the rest of us poor lot instead of actually doing something with their lives

hey, g'sb (if that's your real name) welcome to the internet. Just for future reference, you left out the part about how blogs allow folks like yourself to be dime-store psychoanalysts under the cloak of anonymity.

dime-store restauranteur did you say? anonymity? isn't that what you practice? the question's been asked ... why don't you deliver? just imagine the added foot traffic to your joint just from those reading this blog!

here you go...

http://shefzilla.com/?p=31
http://shefzilla.com/?page_id=2

Steven Brown, well two words come to mind "over rated" he is a Bistro chef,knows lots on produce and I have no doubt knows what good food is,but lacks in the creative department and has no background in fine dinning,for some of us who have really got to know him I can tell you he is a two faced back stabber who is loved by all the Mpls wannabees. Throw in the towel steven you started 10 years too late in the kitchen and were good at best, Hiring Doug who is 10 times the chef you are shows your poor ability to hire people to follow you rather than take your kitchen over.....all your bad kitchen karma is coming back to you...perhaps a new line of work is needed if you want to hold a job for more than a year.Swell guy you say, then you dont know him...he is a swell guy as long as you kiss up to him 24-7.