Can we talk about the old prep cook in Amarillo who bet me $20 my hollandaise would break if I warmed the bowl

Rowan Gonzalez · 2026-10-26T11:15:05.87891+00:00

Back in my second year on the line in Amarillo, this old prep cook named Eddie watched me make hollandaise every single morning and never said a word. One Tuesday he finally leaned over and said, "You're gonna break that, kid, if you keep warming the bowl like that. Cold bowl, room temp butter and slow down your pour." I laughed him off because every cookbook I owned said warm bowl, and I even bet him 20 bucks I'd be fine. The next Saturday brunch rush I did it my way, dumped the butter in too fast over a warm bowl, and watched the whole thing turn into a greasy soup right in front of the pass. Eddie just smiled, didn't even collect the 20, and mixed me up a fresh batch his way in about 4 minutes flat. I've used a cold bowl ever since, and the worst part is the man was right on a detail I'd argued about for 8 months. Any of you ever get something like this handed to you by the quiet person on the crew who never bothers to argue?

Librear

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Can we talk about the old prep cook in Amarillo who bet me $20 my hollandaise would break if I warmed the bowl | Chefs - Librear