Nose-to-Tail

Definition

A cooking philosophy that uses every part of an animal, from snout to tail, because waste is bad and also because chefs realized they could charge premium prices for parts butchers used to throw away. Oxtail went from peasant food to $35 an entree real quick.

Example Usage

"This restaurant practices nose-to-tail cooking. I ate a pig ear appetizer and honestly? Best thing I've ever tasted. Don't tell the pig."

Related Terms

Beginner

chit

Another word for a ticket or order slip, proving the restaurant industry has seventeen terms for the same piece of paper. Usually printed on thermal paper that fades faster than your will to live.

🍳 Food / Culinary

Beginner

covers

Restaurant industry speak for the number of customers served, because saying 'we did 200 people tonight' sounds vaguely sinister. Each diner equals one cover, regardless of how much they actually order.

🍳 Food / Culinary

Intermediate

bat it out

To cook and serve orders extremely quickly without compromising quality, usually during an intense rush. Requires skill, speed, and mild superhuman abilities.

🍳 Food / Culinary

Intermediate

Julienne

Cutting vegetables into thin, matchstick-sized strips because apparently the shape of a carrot matters. It's the knife skill that separates professional chefs from people who own a mandoline and a collection of band-aids.

🍳 Food / Culinary

Advanced

goujon

Fancy French term for breaded and fried fish strips, because calling them "fish sticks" wouldn't justify the restaurant markup. Traditionally made from sole or other delicate white fish cut into elegant batons and deep-fried to golden perfection. It's essentially the grown-up, bistro version of what you ate from a box as a kid, but now it costs $18 and comes with aioli.

🍳 Food / Culinary

Beginner

chez

French for "at the home of," used to make any establishment sound infinitely more sophisticated than it actually is. Slap this in front of any name and suddenly your food truck becomes an intimate dining experience. It's the linguistic equivalent of putting a white tablecloth on a card table.

🍳 Food / Culinary

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ymmv

your mileage may vary...