Anyone out there?

Tonight, Sunday night the 14th, was the last night of my externship at Canlis (though I'll be at the restaurant on Monday; details later). Overall, I had a great last night. First, I led the 2pm hot line meeting. Later, Chef Aaron invited me to the pre-service front of the house meeting, where he told the assembled staff that I was the most advanced student they'd ever had, that I'd been an integral part of the kitchen the past five months, that he wished I wasn't leaving, and that I should keep them in mind for employment after graduation. He then presented me with a copy of the menu, signed by many of the staff, as well as an All Clad one quart saucepot because, in his words, I am "master of butter sauces."

During service, I was in the dining room working as the expiditor, wiping plates as they came off the broiler, adding final garnishes, organizing the plates for the servers, and working as the point of contact between the front and the back. This was quite an honor; in all the time I've been at Canlis, I've only ever seen Aaron fill this role.

Tomorrow, as mentioned above, I'll be back, but in an entirely different capacity. I have the opportunity to shadow Canlis General Manager Chris Heldridge as he goes about his day as GM. This will including "working the floor" with him when the restaurant opens for dinner, so I'll be all dressed up in a suit. If you're in the neighborhood (and properly attired, of course), stop by and sit in the lounge for a drink and perhaps an order of truffle fries.

I'm about a week out from leaving Seattle for the Hudson Valley, my third trip between zip codes 98116 and 12569 in roughly a year. I hope the car is up for it.

In case you were wondering, yes, I did finish all my homework. Thanks for asking. I'll post some of the more interesting modules in the next week or so.