Lessons in Excellence from Charlie Trotter

by Paul Clarke

An insider’s look into the award-winning restaurant of internationally acclaimed chef Charlie Trotter, with techniques and strategies to create top-tier service, food, and atmosphere.Charlie Trotter's Chicago restaurant is not only one of the premier eating experiences in America, it serves also as the model of a thriving business whose cutting-edge approach to management is setting new standards for quality, efficiency, and profitability. In fact, people in just about any field can learn from Charlie's methods. For this breakthrough business guide, journalist Paul Clarke conducted in-depth interviews with Charlie and his associates, distilling invaluable lessons for entrepreneurs and hospitality professionals who are committed to creating highly respected and innovative businesses. Anyone who wants to improve their business will be sure to learn something new from this Midwestern dynamo.

Genres: Food, Business, Cooking, Nonfiction

Unknown Binding

First published July 1, 1999

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Jeannine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was an assignment for school and turned out to be a pretty good read. It total you the basics how to run your business and you must be driven adn passionate about it. I would hve never picked up this book if it wasnt for class but it wasnt that bad.

[Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is a lot of fear today and when coupled with expectations and entitlement, look out, you'll probably become an activist because effort and commitment cramp your style.

Also, an incredible amount of revisionism takes place today, and that makes sense when you consider the above because it allows you to back out. I remember a scene in Grace where the young Chef returns to Trotter's restaurant, after having been part of a successful lawsuit against the restaurant (I am fairly certain it closed shortly thereafter) and the GM told Duffy to take a hike.

It's hard, the quest for excellence, the nurturing of commitment, it's incredibly frightening, but whether Trotter was a prick or not doesn't really change what he accomplished, in fact it might even tie into it. It reminds me of a quote from the B'Sh'T. "There are two reasons people become angry with others. The first is, what we despise in ourselves we point out in others. The second is, when we have overcome our shortcomings we might find ourselves with little patience for those who entertain their's."

I am paraphrasing of course, but Chef Charlie Trotter reached the summit, he overcame the obstacles, and if you've tasted that, even a little, you know, quitters and naysayers will find you deeply flawed.

[Suzy Hendrix · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I had read this book while I owned my own cafe. There is a great deal of insight in this book that was directly applicable to running a restaurant and making it the best possible concept in your market. If I do decide to take the leap into business again I will be much better informed than I was the first time.

[Bill Homan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I should start out saying that I first went to Charlie Trotter’s restaurant when it opened in 1987 and continued to be a customer until it closed in 2012. During that time, I had many in-depth conversations with Charlie. He was driven. My general impression in reading this book, is that it is no wonder that Charlie burned out and fell over dead at age 54. The book starts out saying that work was the only thing that mattered to him and that it took precedence over his friends and family. Charlie supposedly always worked over 80 hours a week. Can you say violation of the work-life balance? I guess that’s why he was married three times. Then it says that he expected his employees to be as driven as he was, disciplining them whenever they fell short. He was supposed to be hell to work for, but aspiring chefs did to get the experience from a master. The book continues in a similar manner.

The book is written from a gung-ho drill sergeant point of view. I didn’t think it would be realistic from today’s point of view. Nobody would put up working for a company or boss like that. While I was tempted to dismiss it, I think it would be a good book for and industrial/organizational psychology research project, a leadership course or for an aspiring entrepreneur.

[Mundi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Timely that I picked this up to read the day before I read of his death. As a jumble sale find, this was to become part of my reference library, however, as I read, it is more a self-help book for finding your career path, and less the biography of Charlie Trotter that I envisioned it to be.
Still, there are useful glimpses into the man and his kitchen, which was the reason I picked the book up in the first place. And I am fully getting my dime's worth.

Ended up setting this one back on the shelf, maybe for reference, or maybe I will let it enrich another life, but it became less and less about the man I was hoping to learn more about, and more and more the loose skeleton of reference around a man in order to advance ideas regarding leadership style.

[Doug Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't get it. It just seemed like a writer shadowing a chef, writing about how great he was. It was assigned for a class but there are far better books on management, leadership, and excellent with a real-world twist than this one.

[Jerrod Stephan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I am no currently a fan of Charlie Trotter, you have to admit that his passion for perfection is inspiring in this industry.

[Brent]

The book is about excellence. And about Charlie Trotter. And Charlie Trotters' thoughts on his own excellence.

[Lisa Beng · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good ideas in here but I only read it as part of a class I'm taking.

[Deanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I met Charlie Trotter at a lecture series in Fort Wayne, In. Really impressive person!