My most memorable meal was with my parents at Joel Robuchon's Restaurant Jamin in Paris. It was Christmas 1982, and the flavors - from cauliflower and caviar to crab and tomato - astounded me. It was the first time I remember thinking that I would like to really learn how to cook.
The best place to use vanilla beans is anywhere where they won't be mixed in with a million other flavors. Anything with dairy, yogurt, milk, cream, or eggs - any custard or flan - how can it be bad?
I really love muscle cars. I don't think people might realize that about me. I really want to go to an auto auction and blow my life savings on a Camaro. They have such design around them, such panache.
A homemade hamburger can be a real treat.
One of the most practical utensils I can't live without is my 'Joyce Chen' Scissors. They cut with precision.
If I am making a spice rub or a spice mix for a braise or even just to crust a piece of fish, I'll use mustard seeds. If you soak them in a little bit of vinegar and let them get plumped and soft and then you puree them, they're delicious.
The better the ingredients, the more farmers I can buy from, the closer I feel to the food I want to make that represents what I care about as a chef.
Sometimes I look up a recipe for chicken and tomatoes and end up cooking pork. The inspiration gets lost in translation.