Naughty Steps and Movember Vibes

Naughty Steps and Movember Vibes

A letter from Chef James Noble

As I sit on the bottom step of my kitchen, watching the team work in harmony I’m reminded that the bottom step was always the naughty step and as it’s Halloween and I’m feeling a little naughty, if not mischievous, I’ve brought the team funny head adornments to wear for predominantly my own amusement but also for team morale.

A pumpkin hat for Blue, pumpkin boppers for Chef Remi and I donned a nylon wizards’ hat — not my finest hour near naked flame I must add and that has left scars.

Today is not only Halloween but also the end of our opening month, a month where I can’t be disappointed, we are all survivors. A month where we managed to reach the dizzy heights of #6 on TripAdvisor, a month where we saw returning guests and were never empty.

October leaves us with a great taste in our mouths, the desire to do better but also maintain our high standards and check back and look over each other’s shoulders for help, advice, and reassurance.

It’s been a challenge and the hulk only reared his head a few times but all in all, a month we should all be proud of, a month with less stress than in our previous property, and a month that tells me we have a chance, a chance to show what we can do and a chance to build higher on solid foundations.

Am I tired? Of course! Will I get back all my investment? Probably not, but we don’t plant trees to sit under, we plant them for those who follow. I’m getting Nancy measured for her chef jacket as we speak.

What Were The Highlights?

Well, I think it was when the brulé set or when we secured the best supplier for locally rope-grown mussels for now and future menus. [see ChefJamesNoble.com]

What Was The Learning Curve?

That would have to be how I react to frustration, I think frustration must be the most frustrating thing of all, however. What makes me frustrated will make me stronger and look at myself more deeply.

I need to teach more and communicate better, I need to be able to scoop up people but give them clearer instructions and responsibility and remove the training wheels in November, I believe that will come as the team learns, nurtures, and grows and I count to 10 and breathe and try to get a hold of my personal ikigai.

As A Fledgling Restaurant, How Do I Think We Have Been Received?

I feel people are starting to understand that Ikigai isn’t a Japanese restaurant and are starting to believe in balanced plates. It makes me happy.

They are starting to understand. They are leaving the table at 80% full with a little more money in their pockets and a mouth bursting with interesting combinations having endured food they wouldn’t have not necessarily ordered before seeing our menu. Or indeed tried a new ingredient they would try again. This makes me happy.

Overall, an all-around jolly good performance with lashings and lashings of learning and development done and ongoing and great feedback.

As we leave the nest of the opening month, let’s hope we fly with changeable menus and of course The Chilled Chicken Pick on Sundays.

With your love and support, near or far, positive vibes will travel and we need those in a congested, albeit, not always great marketplace. 

So alongside cooking, serving, and chatting, we have also sold no end of quality vintage steel in the guise of our Japanese past knives. I think over the opening month we sold over 40 blades, whoever anticipated that?

New stock is arriving as I write with some real antiques on their way — to be used of course. When we sell a knife, we don’t just sell you the most expensive or the biggest, thickest, or longest, we listen to what your usage would be and look at ways to find a new home for the blade and partner it perfectly with its new owner. We ask you to shake hands with your knife as you will be the custodian for a long time. 

The kitchen, well, she is doing well, as are the knife sales so now let me update you on the culinary library, what a joy!

Books are coming in from all over and it sends me back to my college years. The smell of a book, the glossy pictures I aspired to copy, the stained pages where it was stood up in a kitchen, turned with dirty hands, and shouted at when it didn’t work. Goodness me I do love a book.

So, these have now been categorized, numbered, and shelved ready for anyone to borrow. From Escoffier to the Hairy Bikers - Mosimann to Delia, this is a great collection for anyone to thumb through and come and chat with us chefs for an insight into the industry whilst here.

Location Alert!

Those who have been to Ikigai know that we are tucked away down a little street I like to call Sesame Street. As you head off the main road you will see our logo lit up outside and when you arrive someone will be at the door to greet you.

We consider ourselves the center of the universe but in honesty, we are a little speck on the culinary landscape, humble hospitality is the heartiest hospitality, and to be humble plays a very large part in my personal ikigai, as I try and dilute my life of the narcissistic tendencies this industry provokes.

This being said, there are rumblings next door — land is being heavily cleared and flattened, and much against Ikigai's thought process trees are being felled and shards of light never before seen are starting to appear on Sesame Street.

I understand progress and I understand the need to heighten areas and create more jobs so off I go with my must-know-everything head and asked what is going on that creates such noise and dust and I found out.

A tourist attraction, one that’s been done many times globally and indeed here in Chiang Mai, a bloody airplane restaurant. For those who don’t know what that is it’s exactly what is said on the tin. A full-size retired airplane made into a soulless - tin can of an eatery, fully air-conditioned with recycled bacterial air.

Chiang Mai — experience the great outdoors says TAT! Hmm, that campaign is going well. If you fly to get here and experience sad food, why would you come and eat in a plane? What do they think we want? I’ll keep you posted as this monstrosity gets moved from one already failed site to here, I say NIMBY, I may have to add some bones to the soil to slow down the progress and get forensics in, see, I’m mischievous.

The Nancy Report: First Week Back At School

With the football incident, a venus fly trap, and research on the river, which is now a full-time project at school, river watch wasn’t a waste of time after all.

She’s had an interesting week, back at swimming class all be it a struggle as there’s a new teacher in town but she is settling into restaurant life like a pro. She eats well, does homework, and gets herself up in the morning without a knock and does her own brekkie, but we don’t have our evenings, and that troubles me, my time with my Chicken is less and that’s not balanced.

Time to be honest, I’m struggling to find my balance, the happy place in the middle of the 4 circles. My Ikigai. The place where I feel happiest.

So, October passes and I’m sporting my November mustache, as a mixed-up man I annually grow the silliest mustache, disguised in a heavy beard, and when we enter Movember cut away the rest and leave my Mo!

I stand with anyone and everyone who suffers, I know what medical constraints mean and I’ve been wired up wrong since birth. If I went to see someone, they would give it a name, but Mum and I prefer the saying wired up wrong. Creativity and passion have a flip side and that’s the hardest of all.

If my Mo makes you smile and now you know why I got a mustache, then my monthly task is achieved, peace and love gentlemen, peace, and love.

Before I leave you my recipe and my mind map of weekly food let me tell you this: It doesn’t matter how many great reviews you have or likes or pokes. What really matters is bums on seats and real relationships. We are struggling to get that no matter how we sound online on the interweb. On paper we are great, but kitchens are not played on paper. Not being busy means mental stress, financial worries, and the desire to drink. Please help where you can.

When I was young, they needed to always end the evening news on a happy note, man makes it to 110 years old and runs a marathon, cat stuck up a tree gets airlifted off, that kind of positive happy news.

Well here’s mine! Nancy came home from the month of mum, kissed me, hugged me, and said I was her everything and this is home. Now, these may be words for Chicken Noble but that is my happy news and I will always remember that.

And my passing funny note is I joined a gym, a posh name for James, but I joined, released the beast and the positive endorphins, and kept eating the green veggies and drinking sage tea.

This Week’s Recipe

Join me as I try to re-center this week. Send me your emails because you’re not alone as neither am I. I have you lot and you have me. Culinary questions are always welcome, and private chats too if you fancy it.

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