Michael Mellien is a line cook at Gadabout and has a wide range of experience under his culinary belt. This week, Joe talks to Michael about his time as a line cook at Lou Malnati's, serving hundreds of pizzas a night, and how his attitudes towards food and cooking have matured since he joined the industry.
This week's episode chronicles the career of Michael Mellien, a line cook at Gadabout with a decade of industry experience. Michael shares his earliest food memories including his mom's Christmas cookies, and then describes his first jobs working at a grocery store before becoming a sandwich maker at an Italian deli. We discuss Michael's tenure as a culinary student, and then dive into his years at Lou Malnati's working on a busy line at the popular deep dish pizza chain. Michael discusses his biggest lessons learned from his time on the line, and shares his thoughts on the public perception of line cooks at lower-end establishments. We then take a trip up to Minneapolis where his career really took off working at several restaurants including Grizzly's and White Horse Tavern. Finally we return to Chicago and discuss Michael's current interests and projects at Gadabout and what's next for him professionally.