Greetings from Altadena

[theroc]

Hi. This is Roc from Altadena (just up the hill from Pasadena in So Cal). Joined the Pitmaster Club in July, but just
getting around to introductions.

I've been cooking since the mid-1970's when I was putting myself through college working as a grill cook at
the Old Ox restaurant in San Diego (we were cooks back then, not chefs!). Knocked out a couple hundred
steaks, chops, etc each night back in my prime. Hung up my professional tongs when I went to graduate
school, but remained a passionate cook, and have the reputation for grilling anything, anywhere, anytime.

Lusted for real BBQ over the years and finally bought a modest propane smoker a few years back. Still having great fun
experimenting and trying new things, taking great advantage of all the wonderful resources offered by AmazingRibs.com.
Thanks, Meathead! Latest obsession has been to get back to grilling with real wood, so I bought a Buckaroo Chunk Wood grill
from Tom King in Lompoc, CA. Great compact grill with some really nice features that fits nicely in our
cozy backyard. Finally getting those wonderful wood flavors on the steaks and chops again. Lots of nice compliments
from the neighbors from the aromas, too.

Looking forward to reading more from all the other members, especially any who are in the LA and Pasadena area.

[Jerod Broussard]

Welcome and thanks for the support!!

Think just about everyone back home worked in restaurants to get through college at some point. Not sure how I would have made it without waiting on tables.

[Jon Solberg]

Hey Roc, welcome!

[Huskee]

Welcome Roc! Gald to have you here, and thanks for the support. Better late than never saying hi. I cleaned banks for almost 5 years at night through college, and worked as a student in the hospital I still work in. I also had a gig as a student teacher at the college I attended. Oh, we all have those stories of "back when..." don't we?

When you get a minute, check out Pit Boss' Welcome & Announcements channel, if you haven't already, but also check out the tips posts in that channel. These will help you set up your signature, navigate around and also learn the best way to post some nice big pictures here of your equipment, your thermometer(s), and your cooks. Enjoy!

[theroc]

Thanks! Will do.

[_John_]

Welcome to the Pit! I did some restaurant work in San Diego, in boot camp I was the personal gopher for the DI table, I ran a lot and got hit with a lot of coffee jugs.

[David Parrish]

Welcome to the Pit! I did some restaurant work in San Diego, in boot camp I was the personal gopher for the DI table, I ran a lot and got hit with a lot of coffee jugs.

All double time I hope. lol

[David Parrish]

Welcome to The Pit theroc! So riddle me this, how do you cook a couple hundred steaks in a few hours and get them all the correct doneness?

[theroc]

Hi Pit Boss.
We used a lot of tricks to manage the cooking. First, we used different cuts for different degrees of doneness. It was all sirloin: Baseball cuts for rare, triangle cuts for medium-rare, and strip cuts for medium and up. Next, we would utilize different temperature zones on the grill for different degrees of doneness. We also used the different zones to make sure we could cook steaks from the same order in the same amount of time so all of the order would go out at the same time. Finally, we'd move steaks around within zones to keep track of where they were in a cook. Ultimately, we constantly tested for doneness by feel.
Wow - this all sounds really complicated to me now! It was a little intimidating at first, but it didn't take too long to get in a zone.

[David Parrish]

That sounds like a lot of great experience. And so it's true, they give the worst cuts to the well done folks.

[Huskee]

So riddle me this, how do you cook a couple hundred steaks in a few hours and get them all the correct doneness?

Oh, yeah Fri night at the Parrish house is approaching. Lol...