| BRIGHT LIGHTS - BIG
KITCHENS |
| Jackie first worked professionally
at the East River Tennis Club. |
"My first food service job! Very exciting.
I made a selection of salads, and packaged them up and
sold them to the 'ladies who lunch'. Curried chicken
salad with mango chutney with raisins and toasted almonds
inside— it was all terribly exotic at the time."
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| Then
she took a serious jump to one of the hottest restaurants
in New York at the time. Café Seiyoken. |
"I remember walking into Seiyoken that first night
to meet the chef, Mitsu Kikuchi. Jaw on the floor!
It was the most stunning restaurant I'd ever seen.
And an amazing kitchen to work in. Spotless, organized
and great food. I was hired and I had dinner there
that night. From that moment, I was hooked on fine
dining. No drugs or alcohol for me. I'd found my vice!
|
| Her pursuit
of quality food standards wound up jumping her from the
kitchen to the manager's position at Serendipity. |
"I went in for a cook's job and complained
about it being so disorganized. They asked me to change
it and gave me the back house manager position. What
an amazing place! A real institution. Flat out busy
from opening to close. It wasn't just a sea of frozen
hot chocolates either. It had its share of glamour too.
I managed Chastity Bono's birthday party and Lorna Luft's
baby shower. Liza Minnelli asked me where the john was.
Very glamorous."
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