Perhaps you’ve heard of Eric Ripert, famed chef and co-owner of Le Bernardin, which just happens to be ranked 18 on S. Pellegrino’s World’s 50 Best Restaurant’s list.
Or perhaps you’ve seen him on one of his appearances as a guest judge on Bravo’s Top Chef or hosting his own PBS series Avec Eric.
Or perhaps one of his four cookbooks is sitting on your kitchen bookshelf right now.
Well, I happened to read an old interview with him recently from Food & Wine magazine and this Emmy and James Beard award-winner, who also happens to be the recipient of France’s Legion d’Honneur, shared some food wisdom that has particular relevance for us Vintage Crusaders.
In the interview he was asked to elaborate on a statement he once made where he claimed “to cook for the food, not with the food.”
And in explaining the distinction, he compared chefs to jewelers saying the fish is the diamond and a chef’s job is to find the right cut and the right setting for it.
He further explained that “to elevate the flavor of the fish, I will probably add fewer ingredients, but the right ingredients.”
And I immediately saw how applying these principles could elevate a gal from a mere one star to a coveted five stars rating in an imaginary Zagat Guide for dress.
Because isn’t our job simple?
First, we need to be honest about the shape of our bodies and learn how to play up our assets and minimize our deficiencies by choosing the right cuts with the right proportions for us. Even if that sometimes means shunning our favorite silhouettes from the current runway trends.
We also need to have an awareness of what’s appropriate to wear where and opt to wear clothes in the right setting. Even if that sometimes means waiting patiently for the proper social invite to debut a new outfit.
Plus we need to recognize that just like the finest cooking, the finest dressing is about choosing the best quality ingredients and learning how to make them work together so that no one flavor overpowers. So that the flavorings (accessories) enhance the main dish and bring out its best features. So that the final dish (the whole outfit) is greater than the sum of its ingredients.
Finally we need to recognize that less is very often more. That choosing fewer pieces for our closets but choosing each of these pieces with greater awareness can lead to a more cohesive wardrobe and a stronger sense of personal style.
Yesterday I shopped at my local farmer’s market and roasted fresh vegetables for dinner with just high quality olive oil and sea salt to accompany them. It’s probably one of my favorite meals — pure and delicious.
Likewise, sometimes our style can be pure and delicious without any fancy accompaniments.
Take today’s VPOD for instance.
This vintage Ossie Clark blouse is pretty and feminine and completely stylish all by itself.
And so you see how thinking like a chef can help you dress like a Vintage Crusader!
Available at Resurrection Vintage.
