Posts tagged ‘business owners time management’
Andrew Zimmern’s Bio – Bizarre Food TV Show
Chef Andrew Zimmern’s Biography
Andrew Zimmern, is a respected Chef, TV personality, food writer and teacher. He is also the creator, host and consulting producer of Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods TV show. The 49 year-old Zimmern, is a resident of Edina, Minnesota. He is a husband to Rishia and father to the 4 year old Noah. He is most well known for eating bizarre foods from all over the world. Even so, he cannot eat the durian fruit that grows in the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia. Yes, Andrew Zimmern’s nemesis is Durian.
Andrew was born on July 4, 1961 to a Jewish family in New York. He Began his culinary training when he was 14. He attended the Dalton School and graduated from Vassar College. Andrew has contributed to many of New York’s finest restaurants as either executive chef or general manager, and has also lectured on restaurant management and design at The New School for Social Research.
Despite his accomplishments, Andrew hasn’t always led such a successful life. In fact, this very successful and popular chef and a blogger of Chow & Again was a severe drug and alcohol addict. He told Nightline Tonight on July 27, 2010, “you’re living the life where you are constantly beat up, abused, abusing other people, doing something horrifically shameful and tawdry things that crater your soul – you give away pieces of yourself that you swear you would never do. I was the guy you crossed the street to avoid if you walked by me in New York. I lived in an abandoned building in lower Manhattan; one that we squatted – a bottle gang and I, stole purses for money to support my drug and alcohol habit.”
In 1992, Zimmern left New York and moved to Minnesota, where he checked into the Hazelden Treatment Center for drug and alcohol addiction treatment. In his words: “a homeless, alcohol- and drug-addled wreck.” After being rehabilitated and becoming sober, Andrew got his life back and gained wide acclaim as the executive chef of Cafe Un Deux Trois in Minneapolis. Having found his haven in cooking, Andrew’s menus received the highest ratings from the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Minnesota Monthly, Minneapolis-St.Paul Magazine, as well as national publications.
Two of his mottos are: “One man’s weird is another man’s wonderful. Change our world one good odd meal at a time.” and “If it looks good eat it.” Apparently, bugs, spiders and organs look good to him and that’s why he doesn’t have any problem eating them all.
Prior to Bizarre Foods, Zimmern had an extensive radio career. His shows Chowhounds, The Andrew Zimmern Show, and Food Court with Andrew Zimmern achieved wide popularity in the Twin Cities.
Additionally, Zimmern was the food features reporter for Fox 9 News Minneapolis, and was also a featured contributor on both HGTV’s Rebecca’s Garden and Tip-ical Mary Ellen, where he handled on air food duties for both shows. He was the food and lifestyle features reporter during the 1997 season of the UPN network’s nationally televised Everyday Livin.
Andrew is also the author of The Bizarre Truth, a columnist of Minneapolis-St. Paul Magazine and a senior editor at Delta Sky Magazine. He starred in The Cooking Club of America’s instructional video series. In May 2010, Andrew became a James Beard Award-winning TV personality. This “fat and bald guy” as I described him when I was having a problem remembering his name is the international spokesman for Travel Leaders and Elite Destination Homes.
His online series, Toyota’s Appetite for Life, won an Effie Award in 2010. Bizarre Foods also took home two CableFax awards in 2009, one for Best Television Program: Food, another for Best Online Extras for Andrew’s other web series, Bizarre Foods in the Kitchen.
Andrew has a lot of recipes on his website but two Asian recipes in particular caught my attention: Hotel Saigon’s Beef Rolls which is just a very simple ground beef rolled in grape leaves. And Chicken Satay which is a GBD (golden brown delicious) which BBQ chicken thighs with curry powder and fish sauce.
I first got to know this bubbly Chef while I was still in the Philippines when my husband told me about this Bizaare Foods TV Show hosted by the fat and bald guy. Keith told me this because Andrew went to the Philippines, specifically to Manila – the capital of the Philippines to feature our country in his TV show. What surprised me was that he ate balot. Balot is an 18 day old duck egg that has the dead chick inside. This is one of the most common of Filipino traditional foods. Literally, the chick is dead inside because the balot makers, wait for the eggs to be 18 days old and then cook it by incubating it. When you open the egg, you will notice a brown “sauce” which is actually the blood of the chick and then you will, of course, see the chick and has to eat it itself. Even as a Filipino, I am not eating that! I haven’t eaten it ever and I have no plans of eating it. But, Andrew Zimmeren ate it! I was surprised and shocked! That one episode really led to me watching almost all his shows.
He is really a very unusual and quirky man. But when I found out that he used to be a severe drug and alcohol addict who had turned his life around and is now a successful chef, writer, and tv show host, it really increased my interest. That is a phenomenal story!
The point here is that your past doesn’t necessarily have to define your present and your future. If you are willing to change for your success and have the vision to be successful, you definitely can. Therefore, you don’t have to be perfect all the time to be successful. Most of the times, challenging failures can help you get to your destination.
That’s why in three to five years from now I want to be an Executive Chef and in six to ten years from now have a profitable and successful Filipino-American restaurant that would introduce real Filipino good and odd food meals yet delicious to St. Louis, Missouri.
Citations:
http://www.startribune.com/templates/Print_This_Story?sid=26187774
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Beard_Award
http://blogs.mspmag.com/chowandagain/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Zimmern
http://www.mspmag.com/homes/hometours/2007hometours/75229.asp
http://eater.com/archives/2010/07/27/andrew-zimmern-discusses-druggie-past-on-nightline-tonight.php
Julie and Julia Book Review
Julie and Julia
by Julie Powell
First and foremost I got to say that the book is 75% different from how they made the movie. I really appreciate the three attitudes that were highlighted on the book: 1) frank, 2)candid and 3) vulnerably brave. Let me explain why. On the writers frankness. Clearly, Julie Powell is not that sweet, super crying baby that they showed on the movie. She was brutally honest on everything that she felt. As she quote this. “The Contender: Government drone by day, renegade foodie by night. Too old for theatre, too young for children, and too bitter for anything else, Julie Powell was looking for a challenge. And in the Julie/Julia project she found it. Risking her marriage, her job, and her cats’ well-being, she has signed on for a deranged assignment.” For me “risking her marriage, her job and her well being for a deranged assignment” was a very revealing statement. Specially when she didn’t know how this project is going to end. I can totally related to that because I risked everything too to be where I am right now. My family, my friends and my everything were all left in the Philippines to venture my life here in the United States. And I know, like Julie it’s never easy, and it will never be to open up yourself to something that is not your comfort zone.
Secondly, the book is so candid, I can’t stop laughing on how she just mentioned fowl word F_ _ _ all the time. I know it’s not funny but the way she says it in almost every sentence is undeniably funny. In fact, one of her bloggers posted a comment on her blog saying, “If you only stop saying fuck too much.” Ofcourse, she never stopped saying it. She just say it as it is. Another candid part of the movie that made me laugh unexpectedly was when she didn’t hesitate sharing her childhood story about his father’s book. She described it as “plain black clothbound book at the very rear of the deep cabinet, kept spine down so the title was hidden.” It was actually a sex book that she had been reading alternately if she wasn’t scanning Julia Child’s cookbook. She showed us that everyone has fantasies. And it’s true. You just have to know the boundaries of those fantasies.
The last but not the least is this book showed and amazing mix of vulnerable yet brave personality of Julie Powell. Which I literally have. Until I wrote this book report, I never thought I could mix this two words “vulnerable and brave.” Why did I chose this two words? Well, she was never afraid to tell everyone her failures. Specifically when she admitted that after the 365 days of her cooking project, she “still confuse easy with simple” when she just neglect the fact that you can not make mayonnaise using food processor instead use your hands to whisk it. She was brave because eventhough she doesn’t really know who reads her blog or who cares about what she’s doing, she just bravely put it there anyway.
I feel that this book is going to be loved by people who like me wants a direct-to-the-point story without any “roaming around the bush” style of writing. It specially influenced me to move on with my culinary career because it’s very clear that Julie Powell and Julia Child found their bliss through cooking for their beloved husbands. Thus feeding their soul with everyday accomplishment brought by instant gratification of “eating” not just good but “great food” freshly made out of their own kitchen.
The last chapter of the book showed how she is now reaping her success from being 1) frank, 2)candid and 3) vulnerably brave. She quoted, “Two years ago, I was a twenty-nine-year-old secretary. Now I am a thirty-one-year-old writer. I get paid very well to sit around in my pajamas and type on my ridiculously fancy iMac, unless I’d rather take a nap. Feel free to hate me—I certainly would.” Who would know that it would be this successful from starting a “no purpose project”. I don’t mind having that kind of success too. That’s the reason why I am making sure that I suck all the knowledge that I can get from school everyday.
Has it ever happened to you?
Has it ever happened to you when you scheduled something to do that day, that time and that moment, yet you end up doing something else and at the end of the day feeling unaccomplished?
Yes it happened to me before every single time. I would say 75%. Now it still happens to me, but just 90%. I leave the 10% for myself to identify the tasks if it’s worth doing or not (while I am in that very moment). You don’t have to have a fully booked day all the time.
You can have schedule a “Free Day” in your planner. While having a peace of mind that you have already scheduled what are the most important thing to do on the following day.
That’s the beauty of the Simply Effective Planner http://www.simplyeffectiveplanner.com
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November 18, 2009 ; 9am-12nn at Maryland Heights Centre
2344 Mckelvey Rd., Maryland Heights 63044
Based on your comments, we will select 7 of the
busiest people to win FREE TICKETS to our Workshop
Just click Reply and Blog it here!
3 days from now… You will know how to improve your daily productivity by
Since, it’s year end of 2009, we are offering you a very important workshop
you don’t want to miss this year!
Workshop on “Increase Your Daily Productivity By 500%”
We are telling you, this will give you Instant Gratification from you Daily Chaotic Tasks!
What will you expect for 3-Hour Workshop ?
1. Looking Back – Your accomplishments this year
2. 5 Years Goal Setting – Goal Setting Technique
3. Freedom! License to Brag about what you want in life
4. Instant Gratification to learn how to Increase Your Daily Productivity for 500%
Free 21-Day Simply Effective Planner
DO NOT MISS THIS DAY!
December 2, 2009 ; 9am-12nn at Maryland Heights Centre
2344 Mckelvey Rd., Maryland Heights 63044
This workshop is valued at $489 ; Special Promo Rate of $259.99
And an additional 20% OFF from $259.99,
So it becomes $207.99!!!
BUT WAIT!
We are giving away 7 FREE ADMISSION TO THIS WORKSHOP.
All you have to do is : Prove You Have Too Much On Your Plate
To Win a FREE TICKET to Our Productivity Workshop!
By Blogging at www.erforme.wordpress.com and
Tell us why: “I win the prize for having
too much on my plate because…”
November 18, 2009 ; 9am-12nn at Maryland Heights Centre
2344 Mckelvey Rd., Maryland Heights 63044
Based on your comments, we will select 7 of the
busiest people to win FREE TICKETS to our Workshop
Just click Reply and Blog it here!
