Chef's PSA

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera makes the case that seasonal cooking is not a trend or a marketing angle but a foundational way of learning how to cook. He explains how following the seasons shaped his own culinary development, forced him to understand ingredient transitions that most chefs never fully learn, and

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera addresses the tension that sits at the center of almost every serious culinary career: the gap between cooking from passion and running a business that survives. He argues that this dilemma is not a choice between creativity and commerce but a failure of preparation, and that the

Episode Overview In this special crossover episode, André Natera sits on the other side of the mic for an interview originally recorded for the Proper Thieves podcast. The conversation covers his unconventional path to success as a chef, the discipline and willpower practices that have defined how he works, and the morning routine he developed

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera shares a collection of practical kitchen tips and techniques drawn from his professional experience that most cooks learn slowly on the job or never learn at all. These are not beginner fundamentals. They are the kind of operational and technical insights that experienced chefs accumulate over years

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera walks through what it actually takes to prepare a professional kitchen for a major event day, drawing on his experience as an executive chef running operations during high-volume occasions like Super Bowl Sunday and Valentine’s Day. These are the events that expose every gap in your planning,

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera delivers an unfiltered, honest, and occasionally hilarious take on one of the most contentious topics in professional kitchen culture: brunch. He makes no attempt to be diplomatic. Brunch is operationally chaotic, economically questionable in many contexts, and consistently underappreciated as one of the more genuinely difficult services

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera makes the case for slow, deliberate career building in an industry where social media constantly promotes rapid ascent. He talks about the urgency that platforms like Instagram and TikTok create, how that urgency leads young chefs to make career moves before they are ready, and why the

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera walks through the critical path for changing a menu in a professional kitchen, a process that most operators underestimate in complexity and most cooks never see fully executed at a high level. A menu change is not just a creative exercise. It is a project with stakeholders,

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera delivers a direct argument for why maintaining standards without compromise is one of the most important things a chef or operator can do, and why the first time you let something slide is almost always the beginning of a longer pattern of decline. The logic is simple

Episode Overview In this solo episode, André Natera makes the argument that the single most reliable way to make your food better is to use better ingredients. This sounds obvious. It is not always practiced. There is a tendency in professional kitchens, especially under cost pressure, to over-rely on technique to compensate for average ingredients.