Thank you for sharing your personal story about Robert Steinberg. and so forth? David: Well people also don't realize, it's really hard to catch your own typos. Ive gotten a number of them from pastry chefs who knew him as well, and it was pretty amazing that something that he did touched so many of us. Oh, yeah, theyre discontinued at Albertsons. I agreed with him and didnt quite have an answer, but I do know that there was much more truth in that statement than all those silly scientific studies. Robert, who was also a medical doctor as well, and did this while battling lymphoma, which he lived with for well over a decade. What a lovely way to honor your friend a man who, in his own chocolatey way touched all of us. I don't know why, she's just kind cool. I need to hear no more. He didnt do that because he was trying to sell them chocolate. Greg: I'm curious David: what is your relationship to that thing called blogging right now? David Lebovitz age is 60 years old. David: I do, I have a lot of foreign readers, it's very interesting but a lot of French people read my site. I went in to apply for a job, and the chef at the time, she told me to get out because she was really busy. And I look at the bartender, and if I always tell people, never order a drink if the bartender goes "What's that?" on a regular basis. David: No, no, no, no, it was commercials with Anna Maria Alberghetti, she talked about making this Italian dressing. And he's like, "No, no." I'm like, "While I'm not sitting here with playlists. And I knew hed died. He would have wanted the last word, especially when it came to something that he was so passionate aboutchocolate. And just actually getting back to that point about being seeded, one quality the French admire is, it's called exigence, which is being discriminating. Thank you for the remembrance. Knowing this increased my appreciation chocolate all the more, and made me conscious of buying excellent chocolate from socially responsible producers, which Scharffen Berger is. Recoiling a bit, when he opened the crinkly foil, in the middle was a small nugget of something dark, sticky, and melted. Greg: I grew up in Berkeley, and I never went there until I was an older teenager, and didn't really know about it. Thank you for sharing your memories of Robert Steinberg and for reminding us how much he contributed to elevating chocolate to a sublime level here in the United States. Because oh, yes, this book is delicious. They don't cook fancy food, they don't pull out recipes and make macarons and so forth. David Lebovitz. Here's the transcript of our conversation in The Eater Upsell Episode 5: David Leboviz, edited to the main interview. Helen: We'll be conducting the remainder of this conversation in French. A veteran pastry chef who spent 13 years working for Alice Waters at Berkley's famed Chez Panisse, David Lebovitz has written six cookbooks including the best-selling The Perfect Scoop and The Sweet Life in Paris (stay tuned for the upcoming My Paris Kitchen, due out in 2014).After choosing the expat life in Paris a decade ago . People are making their own sausages and they're thinking about the ingredients. Before these two started making and selling their chocolate, most folks just bought chocolate from the store, unwrapped it, and either melted it down or ate it without giving it too much thought. Like and also I don't think they sell a lot of books, because they've lost this audience that was following them, so I don't quite understand why I mean, blogging is a lot of work, I do it, it's my life, it's integrated into my life. You know hormones are going wild after work, when you're drinking beer and wine and so forth things happened. Thanks for sharing these special words with us. I don't care. It was pretty we had a lot of misunderstandings, we were pretty funny. Ugly food. Many people dream but never are able to reach their dream as Robert did. He will live on in the minds of his frriends, family, business associates and all who learn about his life. They brought it back a few years ago, they rereleased it. A chicken dish is not meant to have 14 different spices and seasonings and all this weird, you know it's meant to be, like, "Put the chicken in the oven with some salt and pepper." Rest in peace, Robert. There were, of course, premium chocolates (mostly from Europe), but few people probably gave much thought to how they were made, who made them, or where. This was in 2003 or 2004. Im glad you showed him the CP kitchen at lunch rush I well remember the comments of irate pastry chefs who were recipients of calls or surprise in-person visits from him! Knowing Robert for just a few months, and mostly via his lovely, evocative handwritten letters, was a gift. Whod have thought? Its like, "Oh my God, this is not a good place." Because he doesn't see that if I go out with my American friends, sometimes they will put us in you know, they'll hear our accents. Helen: There was this one guy David Lebovitz in the pastry section like no, I was, I don't know I feel there was, it was probably just like shameless gossipmongering but people were just, "Oh yeah, you know, the food is incredible, the kitchen is amazing but everybody is screwing in the walk-in and doing coke off the freezer top and" , David: Okay well, I was there for a period of time and I saw certain things, and participated in certain things, but to be honest , David: To be honest, I've worked in some restaurants where it was, like oh my god. And I was actually talking to someone I said, "Well I was staying in Brooklyn there's no bakery and we should have, like, a bread bakery." " (It's not acceptable), did his level best to keep the elusive and laissez-faire building crew in check. Do you watch it? And I didn't know what I want to do with my life, and so I ended moving to San Francisco with someone who I had met when I was traveling in Turkey, a very nice woman. And I'm not just saying that because they probably are listening to this but A lot of, if you've ever written a book, most authors, you write a book you turn it in and you don't know what it's going to happen, you don't know what they are going to do with the cover, what they are going to do with the content, what they are going to cut out. I was invited to be a guest for dinner at Amma, and Hemant sent one luxurious dish after another to my table. On Twitter and so forth you can go, "This sucks." Greg: It sounds like they need to bring a French McDonald's to America. David: Well they don't dance, they don't go there anymore. I'm like, if you came to Paris I wouldn't say "There's a great bagel place you have to go to, or there's this amazing cart that has egg sandwiches you need to get one." It was like an ephiphany for me. Bestselling author and world-renowned chef David Lebovitz continues to mine the rich subject of his evolving ex-Pat life in Paris, using his perplexing experiences in apartment renovation as a launching point for stories about French culture, food, and what it means to revamp one's life. I have to say she's a very she's a great person, I know her now, I've never talked to her about the story. I was like, "Oh, okay!" So I went there to do chocolate, and it was really amazing. good day to all! But she's great, she's great. I hope he knew. Thank you for the tribute. Helen: The finale is like someone punching you in the face. It's a bowl of really cold creme anglaise with poached meringue and caramel sauce. David: What's called a gateau tropezienne, or tarte tropezienne. In today's episode of the podcast, food blogger, renowned pastry chef (having worked for 13 years at Alice Waters' Chez Panisse) and best-selling cookbook author David Lebovitz joins me to talk about his new food and Paris destination memoir L'Appart: The Delights and Disasters of Making My Paris Home . David: Well you know, the thing about like a perfect croissant, does it need like jam, butter, and so? David: Right it was The, what do you call it, the salt cod fritters were excellent. It's just, you don't just write about all the pretty things and little things and little hands with macarons and . When Id visit San Francisco and call him for a get-together, hed invariably say, Lets meet for lunch at 1:00. It was kind and fair. I have only seen Robert once when he came to stay at my house in MA. Please enter a valid email and try again. Soon, Chef Mathur came out to my table and asked if I would introduce myself to the man and woman, and convey to them his appreciation for their visit, as he felt his English was not adequate. Robert was always such a gracious gentleman to me whenever we met. a true loss for the chocolate world. A man who was passionate about chocolate, and compassionate about the folks who made it, be they the family growers in the tropics or the patient and diligent women who first handwrapped those Scharffenberger bars in that oh, so elegant, yet difficult to fold paper. In spite of all the online ranting, I knew Robert, and knew that it was an extremely difficult decision for him. David: Sort of, but as a very people say "Berkeley elitist" but it was a very democratic restaurant. I am sorry about your loss and I have hisfamily and friends in mind as well. David: I was there thirteen years. Im sorry for your loss and to his family. Greg: The ultimate farm-to-table restaurant. He was very young and its sad to read about this. And they don't make sense three weeks later, so you cut them out. [No one ever pressed charges; each person I took on the tour was enchanted.] Earlier this week I wrote about how much we as consumers have benefited from the emergence of all the specialty chocolates on the market these days and Robert Steinberg is one of the people we have to thank. Helen: If you are on a road trip in a car, and you are by yourself, what is the album that you are blasting? David: No they took over; well they published all but my first two. David: Well also writing is all about editing. On a more serious note, the short lecture before we went out onto the factory floor was very informative. But the chef had had picked up on this whole difficulty I was having with everyone else, and he grabbed me the last day and he spent the whole day with me in the factory where they make all the candies. It was his passion. One of the things that I have been so amazed by is how much I misperceived Paris when I was there. Recipes change, so after 10 years I got to revisit all the recipes add things change techniques so it was great. From the first page to the last, it was warm, funny, engaging, absorbing, and delightful. I also, didnt know the full back story of the company, and this is always good to know. The amazing thing about his story is how chocolate wasnt a niche product, its so obvious, yet Steinberg came in with his passion for it and elevated everyones idea of it and expectations for it. They know that they're good at it, they don't have anything to prove, they make good stuff. Even now, back here Im importing Scharffenberger chocolate.all my friends back in the Bay Area know what to send me when the cravings hit me ;-). Visit my blog at www.davidlebovitz.com Thank you for all the memories you have of Dr. Steinberg that youve allowed us to know. David: Right now is Orange is the New Black because I just finished it, and the second season freaked me out. Like you go into a McDonald's you have a couple of Eames chairs in France . Yesterday I was in Albertsons of all places, and what did I see but a bar of Scharffen Berger chocolate. I'm like, "I know, get away from him.". Helen: I totally agree and I think you're right, the reissue was amazing because it reminded of about the original but the original was the magic. I am a chocolate lover and was his girlfriend during the period he left family practice and the whole idea of the chocolate started mulling in his head. What a lovely tribute to Robert and his exceptional life. David: There's this whole discussion this week about Monterey Market, and people don't realize that was a really democratic place. It's actually an old French recipe that she adapted and it's amazing. The world would definitely be a little less refined without his contribution! Tags: chocolate chocolatier Robert Steinberg San Francisco Scharffen Berger. he touched soooo many of us! I just so I made an executive decision: You know what? I can get them at the charcuterie. Like the stubborn man that he could be, Robert took that information with him. Let people do what they do well, and then they should let you do what you do well, and hopefully all comes out well. Helen: Well I feel French food in New York and in the US in general, I think, it's like having this tremendous resurgence. It's the perfect glass of white wine, the perfect steak, the peach just happens to be this very sexy, juicy, salacious , Greg: Because it's not just a peach that they picked up across the street at Andronico's, or whatever . This wonderful thing that he helped put forth changed many peoples perception of what chocolate is and what it can be. I feel like Greg probably knows the stories more than do. You shouldn't just walk into a restaurant and say, "I want to work here." 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