Comments on: September 6

By: Helle

Helle — Wed, 16 Sep 2015 07:46:06 +0000

My "memory" of Alice Waters is from a documentary made by a young Austrian filmmaker who followed her around, talked to her and told all about the different aspects of what she does. The school gardens and food for children being a central part. At the end of the film he wanted to invite one of the young girls from the school, she must have been around 10, with whom he had a very good rapport, to her restaurant, to let her experience what it was that Alic Waters also did. She was vehemently opposed to him inviting the girl, almost started crying, and in the end he didn't invite the girl. It was such a bizarre thing to see, I didn't understand it. She has done and continues to do so many good things that I found it very odd.

By: Trushna

Trushna — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 20:31:16 +0000

Molly, you just made me pump my fist in the air. Yes! You are brilliant. Now I need to stop faffing around with my life and start to "do something that [I] want to see done." Thank you for the inspiration.

By: yp

yp — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 19:20:02 +0000

It's still a strange dream of a past life to me that I spent 3 months in the kitchen at Chez Panisse when I was 19. I think if you knew the behind-the-scenes of most restaurants, you'd be discouraged from eating there. But at Chez Panisse you knew they tasted no less than 9 different varieties of peaches before putting the perfect one on the dessert menu, that the butter had been softed to exactly the right temperature before being put on the tables to go with the bread, that each fig leaf had been hand-polished by someone. I interned there all summer but couldn't actually afford to eat at the restaurant, so when they invited me to a proper meal with a friend, it didn't matter that I'd seen the guts of the kitchen all summer: it was no less delicious and no less magical. I don't think there's any job that's inspired me more in an ongoing way.

By: Celine

Celine — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 17:35:13 +0000

lovely post, thanx!

By: Caroline

Caroline — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 13:06:41 +0000

GAAAAHHHHD Alice! Waters! Molly! Wizenberg! Damn smart women doing bad-ass things, the least of which is not speaking eloquently and powerfully. Thank you for sharing, I'll be here, admiring the hell out of you two and gathering my courage to do half-as-awesome things if you need me.

(PS: I also had a similar Cafe at Chez Panisse first experience with my best friend last summer. She (a native of OKC!) and I were traveling the West coast and could barely contain ourselves...we were like trekkies at Comic-Con. We mentioned that it was basically like a pilgrimage for us and our host happily gave us a tour of the kitchens and their loading dock. I can't continue typing about it because every word it makes less and less sense why I'm here right now and not in Berkley.) Le sigh.

By: Kate

Kate — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 09:47:32 +0000

Hi Molly, thanks for posting this - it was wonderful to read. I live in Australia and earlier this year I attended a talk that Alice Waters gave as part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival and she spoke on many of the issues you touched on today. I came away from that talk feeling so invigorated and inspired, but feeling that her desire for free, good quality lunches for every child at school was something that I could not see happening here in Australia, but yet, we need people like Alice who have that unbridled vision which makes us as communities want to strive to at least meet her halfway toward that vision.

I was lucky to visit Chez Panisse 8 years ago and like you, I remember so many small details of that meal and the detail that came with it - the service, the flowers in the entrance of the restaurant, the beautiful printed menus. It was a beautiful and generous experience. How wonderful you that you have had the opportunity to sit and talk with her.

By: Sheila Irwin

Sheila Irwin — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 04:34:05 +0000

Alice Waters is an inspiration. I worked for a few years as the Chairperson for the Wellness Council for our school district here in California (by law school districts have to have this committee here) trying, sometimes vainly, to institute something even close to what Alice has done in her school garden program. Your writing (which inspired me to write a blog!), combined with her inspiration, is special indeed. It's reminded me why I started cooking in the first place (and that I'm sometimes busier than I used to be so I'm not doing it as much as I once did – or not as passionately, anyway!) Note to self to fix that.

My children are almost out of school now (I have a Junior and a Freshmen in HS) so Molly, it is up to you and your mom “contemporaries” to finish what she started!

Thank you for a wonderful and inspiring post!

Sheila
http://www.maisondecinq.blogspot.com

By: ladzo

ladzo — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 20:20:22 +0000

Great story to share.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 16:59:40 +0000

I love this line: ” And under her quiet grace, she is radical.” Wow.

By: Marla Hill

Marla Hill — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 02:13:00 +0000

Have you seen the Les Blank documentary ” Garlic Is As Good As Ten Mothers”? Released in 1980. If not, there is a generous chunk devoted to Alice as Chez Panisse readies for their garlic-themed menu for Bastille Day. Fantastic footage and thanks to it being a Criterion release, the colors are amazing. Great stuff.