Stage at Everest – Where I Broke The Plates!
by Maheen Sohail , November 24, 2019
In May 2019, I set up a stage at The Everest located in Chicago through a mutual friend who worked there.
This was my first ever stage in Chicago and the pressure was intense. As I head up the elevator, trying my best to look “proper” in every way possible, I was welcomed with smiles and handshakes. Everyone in the kitchen including the servers came and introduced themselves. Everyone was hustling and bustling and being monitored by Chef Terry. They gave me a tour of the kitchen to get me familiar with the set up and had me prep a few ingredients.
The time for service was now upon us and everything was sparkling clean and was ready to be used to cook delicious, beautiful dishes. The heat in the kitchen had created the image of rain of sweat dripping off of our chef whites. However, everyone was determined to come to an end with a successful service. Each dish was intricately created and flavors were adjusted. Herbs and flavored oils like curry oil was drizzled over the beautiful dishes to finish them off at the expeditor’s station. Being there, I felt like I was in a musical where even though everyone was dancing to their own rhythms yet, everyone was also creating a well-choreographed performance.
It was now time to clean up. In the rush, I was saving myself from the boiling saucepan only to realize my arm had hit two of the main plates. My heart stopped and I quickly picked up the plates to throw in the garbage can. I noticed that everyone noticed yet carried on with what they were doing. As three of the chefs approached me, I wanted to run away and hide. To my surprise, they came to warn me about throwing the broken plates in the trash as they were concerned for the person who would take the trash out.
Overall, I had an amazing experience. The environment of how everyone treated each other was amazing to see and the food that was created was remarkable. At the end, Chef Terry gave me some words of encouragement and told me how much he was pleased with my effort. I will definitely go back there in a blink of an eye.