Let me tell you what is possible with the wonders of technology in today's kitchens. Not so recently, at one of Mario Batali's restaurants(Can I be sued for this mention?), I was doing a "trail" to feel the place out, and, if hired, consider the possibility of working at said place.
It is commonplace to pursue several trails in a given period before weighing all your options based on salary offers and whatnot. The restaurant also takes on several trails and hires based on performance, pay requirement, and body odor.
Anywho, at Mario Batali's restaurant, I'm following this know-it-all guy from Vermont(who was quite successful there, apparently, but had never before set foot in an NYC kitchen) and he tells me in his haughty manner to fetch some treviso from the walk-in for our grilled treviso plate.
Now, any normal human(or a cook from the past) might say, "Treviso? What is treviso?" After reading my culinary school's guidelines on trails, I decided it was best not to ask questions. Yes, the school suggests that is best to make assumptions rather than bother the chef. My smart brain told me two things to assume. "Treviso" kind of sounds like "chorizo," so it must be some sort of cured meat. The fact that we would be grilling it further supported my assumptions.
I spent a good two minutes snooping around the walk-in, looking for a meat called treviso. I began to panic a little bit, but since there was no one else in the refrigerator, I pulled out my phone and googled it(other uses include snapping photos of station set-ups and searching for recipes). It turned out to be a type of lettuce. WHAT? I proudly brought the bin to my trainer, who was not impressed. Nevertheless, I got the job. I turned it down for a slightly better-paying, but still a slave-wage job(see previous post below).
