Chef Michael Poole – Summer Sabbatical

A few months ago, I was pleased to learn that Seattle Fire Lieutenant and Chef Michael Poole was coming to town in July for his summer sabbatical. He visits Paris every year and often spends time in a professional culinary establishment to perfect techniques and to learn new ones for his catering business and chocolate-making activities. I arranged to meet him and his life partner and Director of Public Relations and Marketing for Hot Chocolat, Dr. Michele Simms-Burton, at a café to find out what they have planned for their stay this year. It would be our first face-to-face encounter!

Michele Simms-Burton and Michael Poole
© Discover Paris!
For the next several weeks, Chef Michael is working at a bread, chocolate, and pastry shop called Pascal Pinaud on rue Monge. He spent his summer sabbatical there in 2005 and again in 2012, working with owner Pascal Pinaud. Chef Pascal was once a pastry chef at the Cordon Bleu, the cooking school where Chef Michael graduated as valedictorian with Le Grand Diplôme in 2003. The network of contacts that he developed at the school has proved invaluable. This summer he has come to Paris to improve his macarons, which are already making a big splash in the U.S.

Macarons
Image courtesy of Chef Michael Poole
After receiving his diploma, Chef Michael began his quest to become a master chocolatier with a fellow Cordon Bleu grad, Virginie Duroc-Danner. He worked with her in 2003, 2006, and 2008. Last year, he continued this pursuit during his stint at Chef Pinaud’s pastry shop. This year, he carried a sample of his most popular flavors to Paris. Shown below (from left to right), they are Raspberry, Coffee Caramel, White Chocolate Lemon Meringue, Macadamia Nut Caramel, and Honey-infused Lavender.

Signature “Hot Chocolats”
© Discover Paris!
I was tempted to devour the White Chocolate Lemon Meringue ganache but had to restrain myself – these samples had a more important purpose that day.

As well as meeting Chef Michael, I was excited to meet Michele Simms-Burton because she has handled much of the correspondence that I’ve had with the Chef. Michele is a Certified Instructional Systems Designer who consults with businesses and the U.S. federal government to improve organizational and human performance through designing and developing training. Prior to consulting, she was a university professor for 20 years, ending her teaching career in African-American Studies at Howard University. She met Chef Michael at Malika’s, a former Senegalese restaurant in Paris’ 6th arrondissement in 2008. As soon as Chef Michael presented samples of chocolates that he had made, she realized that he might be an interesting person to get to know. The rest is history!

Michele and Chef Michael maintain residences on both coasts of the U.S. (in the Washington, D.C. area and Seattle, Washington, respectively), so they do a lot of cross-country travel. In addition to her own professional activities as a consultant, Michele handles the organization and administrative responsibilities for Chef Michael’s events. She even trims and boxes chocolates for the events, relieving him of this time-consuming task! Looking beyond their chocolate-making activities, she and Chef Michael have designed an online training module for culinary students who wish to intern with Chef Michael.

When asked about what’s new with Hot Chocolat, Chef Michael’s artisanal chocolate brand, the Chef reported that he now has a line of spicy dark chocolates consisting of Firehouse Chili (a white ganache with his award-winning chili mix), Habernero Caramel, and Cayenne Caramel. He has also created a line of vegan chocolates made with 70% cocoa, coconut or soy milk, and coconut butter. The five ganaches that comprise this line are Coconut, Raspberry, Coconut Caramel, Mt. Rainiers (Marcona almond), and pure Dark Chocolate. I was intrigued to learn about his dark-chocolate-enrobed Bacon Cayenne Caramel bar – it has a piece of home-fried, apple- or maple-cured bacon in every bite! Unfortunately, he did not bring a sample of this creation with him. In other news, Chef Michael told me that his Hot Chocolat ganaches and bars are now available at six retail outlets in the Seattle area.

In terms of shows, Chef Michael was pleased to report that he won a gold medal for his toffee at the 2012 and 2013 Seattle Luxury Chocolate Salons. He plans to participate in the Northwest Chocolate Festival in Seattle in September 2013 and the 7th Annual Los Angeles Chocolate Salon in October 2013.

After our conversation, we left the café and meandered up rue Mouffetard to Mococha Chocolat, my favorite chocolate boutique in the 5th arrondissement. After I introduced Chef Michael and Michele to proprietor Marie Gantois, he presented his chocolate samples to her. Some stimulating conversation ensued and as a result, there’s the distinct possibility that Chef Michael will be a guest chocolatier at Mococha next summer!

A suivre… (To be continued…)

To view the previous ETBP articles on Chef Michael, click on the links below:

Chef Michael Poole – Firefighter and Cordon Bleu Grad
Chef Michael Poole – Artisanal “Hot” Chocolat

Check out the Paris Insights blog post about Chef Michael here:
Meet Michael D. Poole – Chocolate and Pastry Maker

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Chef Michael Poole - Firefighter and Cordon Bleu Grad

Chef Michael Poole trained at the world-famous Cordon Bleu in Paris and has gone on to win several prizes for his artisanal chocolates in the United States. In Part 1 of this exclusive interview, he relates the story of how he fell in love with cooking, became intrigued with French cuisine, and pursued his culinary training in Paris.

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Chef Michael Poole at the Fall 2011 Luxury Chocolate Salon in San Francisco
Image courtesy of Chef Poole

ETBP: You have an intriguing career – firefighter, gourmet chef, and chocolatier! How do you find time for all of this?

MP: It's not easy! At first I would get overwhelmed taking on too much work (catering) and then going to my firefighting job. Over the years I have learned how to balance working for the Fire Department, cooking, making chocolates, and taking time for myself by going on vacation.

ETBP: Your love for good food stemmed from your grandmother’s kitchen. At what age did you decide that you wanted to pursue cooking professionally?

MP: Becoming a cook at the firehouse was the beginning of my passion for cooking.

I was twenty-one years old and it was early in my fire department career. I started off as the fire station cook. I was assigned to a busy downtown fire station in Seattle. I was cooking for twelve hungry firefighters who liked good food and lots of it. During that time I became very passionate about my food and cooking. I would buy cooking magazines like Bon Appétit and Gourmet and try out new and complicated recipes.

I would shop at the Pike Place market buying fresh vegetables and seafood, where there was a butcher who always called me “fireman.” He would ask me what I was making. I would tell him and he would share some of his recipes and techniques with me for cooking a certain dish.

After a few years of cooking, I decided to start up a food concession business. During the summer I would set up my food booth for the local fairs and festivals. I named my concession "Sweet Jamaica," and I specialized in Jamaican Jerk Chicken, rice and peas, Jamaican Pattie, and tropical fruit juice. It was best to sell product at the fairs and festivals that no one else was selling.

ETBP: Do you have Jamaican heritage?

MP: No, but at that time I had a Jamaican girl friend who lived in Vancouver BC. In Vancouver there is a big West Indian community, while discussing this with her, she suggested I sell Jamaican Jerk Chicken. In Seattle, at that time, there were no Caribbean restaurants.

ETBP: Are you aware of / connected with the Jamaican community in Paris?

MP: I am aware of the Jamaican community in Paris. While attending school I use to attend functions given by the Jamaican community.

ETBP: When did you decide to apply to the Cordon Bleu and why?

MP: My interest in Le Cordon Bleu did not come all at once. As I think back on it, there were several different influences at different times, none particularly significant.

Once I had been cooking for about 20 years, I became very passionate and wanted to learn more. During that time, I became interested in French cuisine, the culture, and the mystique about French food. French chefs have the reputation of being some of the best chefs in the world. Catering lunches for fashion photo shoots deepened my desire to one day attend a culinary school. On the photo shoots, the crew — the models, photographer, and art directors — would eat out at fine restaurants all the time. They were always talking about food, where they were going for dinner, restaurants they had already visited, and how the food compared at the various places they had dined. Therefore, I wanted my food not only to be delicious, but also to be as memorable as some of the dishes that they had at the fine restaurants where they dined.

At first, I worried about cooking for these sophisticated people. I thought of myself as merely a firehouse cook. Each day that they liked my food, I worried about what I would make the next day. How would I ever top myself?

Lacking confidence, I assumed that I had just lucked out that day. Somehow, day after day I continued to fool them. Time after time, each crew liked my cooking. The next thing I knew, I was the most requested cook for the photo shoots. I would get all the good jobs traveling to locations like La Jolla, Santa Barbara, and Fort Meyer Beach, Florida.

ETBP: Tell us about the program that you followed at the Cordon Bleu – length of time, number of courses, exams, internships…

MP: The first year I started out in the Diplôme de Cuisine intensive course – Cuisine de Base (Basic Cuisine). This is a six-week course, going to school six days a week three classes a day with very little down time to experience and see Paris. During the first semester of cuisine classes, I decided I wanted to do the whole Grand Diplôme program, which is a comprehensive combination of cuisine and pastry classes.

The second year I took Pâtisserie de Base Intensive. This was also a six-week intensive class, but only in pastry. I took this course in August, the hottest time of year. Because of the heat and a lack of air conditioning, I learned techniques during this class that were invaluable.

The third year I took the regular 10-week courses in intermediate cuisine and pâtisserie. Taking the two courses simultaneously was much better because I had time to really process what I was learning and I also had time to see and enjoy Paris.

The fourth year, I took Superior Cuisine and Pastry, which was another 10-week course. During that time I started working and training with a former student who had graduated and opened a small chocolate factory outside of Paris. After I graduated and received my Grand Diplôme, I stayed for another three months for a cuisine stage (apprenticeship) at Restaurant le Chiberta, 3 Rue Arsene Houssaye, Paris 8th.

ETBP: Which appeals to you more – preparing savory dishes or sweets such as pastries and chocolates?

MP: I enjoy both.

ETBP: Did you do any professional cooking while you were attending the Cordon Bleu (private chef services, restaurants…)

MP: I did not do any professional cooking while I was enrolled in courses at Le Cordon Bleu. I felt that there was so much for me to learn that I was just a student. However, I did complete my stage after I graduated. During the times when I was stateside, I worked as a professional cook at restaurants in Seattle, and I also had a catering business.

ETBP: Please give us a description of your experience as a stagiare (apprentice) at the Guy Savoy restaurant Le Chiberta.

MP: In 2003 Restaurant Chiberta had a different chef whose name I can’t think of right now.

It is true that French chefs yell. Or at least this was my experience during my stage at Le Chiberta.

At that time Le Chiberta was a 2-star restaurant; it was open for lunch and dinner. I would start work at 9:00 am, work until lunch was over about 2:00-2:30, and return at 6:00 pm for dinner service. I would complete my day around midnight.

The first week none of the other cooks would talk to me. This is a type of hazing that is customary in the industry, particularly in France. After I made it through the first week, things changed.The cooks started talking to me in English, but the chef told them not to speak to me in English.

On a typical day, the cooks would arrive and start the prep. The chef would keep a sharp eye on me, and if something wasn’t perfect and I mean perfect it was “merde” (sh__). The next time he would come by and say “Si vous voulez être un chef Français, vous devez apprendre à travailler vite!! Vite, vite, vite!” ("If you want to be a French chef, you must learn to work quickly! Quickly, quickly, quickly!")

We would make lunch and dinner for the staff, then sit down and eat. After our meal we would put on our toques, and the yelling would start and continue until food service was over. The chef or sous chef would yell “Nettoyez, nettoyez toujours! Qu’est-ce que c’est? Merde americain? Vite, vite, vite!” ("Clean, always clean! What is this? American sh__? Quickly, quickly, quickly!")

Come back next week for Part 2, when Chef will talk about his signature chocolates and his views on French and U.S. culinary culture.

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