Charlie Trotter - Found Dead in his Lincoln Park Home (Kell: restaurants, price)

[chet everett]

Many of the folks that had their own very successful restaurants took their "vacation time" to work at Charlie Trotters, these were not traditional "apprenticeships" so much as accomplished chefs sharing ideas / techniques...

Rest in feast: Celebrity chefs recall Chicago's Charlie Trotter | UTSanDiego.com

BTW the main restaurant generally did offer a vegetable centered menu and the carry out menu also had many excellent non-meat options:

http://www.charlietrotters.com/resta....asp?menuID=53

I dined at the main restaurant nearly a dozen times and cost for two was never more than $600.

We often enjoyed carry out items at my sister's place in Lincoln Square from the Trotter's To Go at Fullerton & Wayne -- $40 or so would generally get a very nice lunch / light dinner for four with many items emphasizing roasted vegetables and similar meatless options.

[Lookout Kid]

My wife and I were planning to go back to Trotters for a milestone wedding anniversary, but we never got the chance because of the restaurant closure. It was always the measuring stick that we compared all other fine dining experiences against in Chicago, whether it was Tru, Everest, Alinea, or even Goosefoot. Through it all, including the bad press, I thought Charlie would reinvent himself and come back guns blazing with something incredible in a new restaurant. He was only 54, after all. But at least his legacy lives on through the dozens of other chefs that have learned from him in Chicago.

[baileyvpotter]

Originally Posted by Drover

I don't think anyone is disputing his impact, and I didn't mean to dance on his grave or invite others to do so. I just took issue with the idea that it would be a shame if he were remembered as anything less than a saint, because he wasn't. Various tributes in the media tacitly acknowledge this with euphemisms like "eccentric" and "taskmaster" and "sometimes difficult" and "didn't always have the best people skills" which is a polite and proper way to pay tribute to a legend while acknowledging that he wasn't necessarily the nicest guy on earth. I have no personal stake in whether he's remembered as a God or a jackhole; I just don't think it would be a terrible or inaccurate stain on his legacy to tactfully acknowledge that he wasn't always the former.

Originally Posted by marothisu

I have heard Trotter was one of those who did treat people like crap sometimes and others like gold. Grant Achatz only studied under him for either a few weeks or a few months because he felt Trotter was too hard/mean. On the flip side, I have heard stories of him being the nicest guy ever to both people he both did and didn't know.

^^^Probably true. I do applaud him for his culinary expertise and what he brought to Chicago.
Back in September with the pop up gallery incident, he also didn't look well. To me it seemed that
something was physically wrong with him which could explain his erratic behavior. I guess we
will eventually hear if there was something wrong or not.


Charlie Trotter Defends Himself in Art Flap: 'No Good Deed Goes Unpunished' - Lincoln Park - DNAinfo.com Chicago

[chet everett]

The record of success for young chef's in true high end fine dining rarely lasts even five years and Charlie Trotter's run was over two decades. That is pretty impressive all by itself, that he did not spend time extended apprenticeship scrubbing root vegetables in France for years was extraordinary.

The fact that he did not have to dance to the tune of megalomaniacal investors but instead had family ties to bank roll the main spot was certainly a factor, but lots of other kids with well off parents have fallen miserably on their face when the food they are trying to sell finds no takers. Charlie Trotter was not just lucky to have chosen Lincoln Park at a time when wealthy and adventurous people were willing to indulge in fine dining, he was very much like many of the clients in that both he and they wanted to experience some of the "finer things" in life without being a slave to the traditional French traditions. The techniques of Nouvelle Cuisine and molecular gastronomy along with the respect for sustainability raised products seem commonplace now but when Charlie Trotter's opened there were few such places in the world...
His decision to take time off is not unusual for those that experience great success but are unable to replicate things -- despite critical acclaim for other locations in Vegas and Mexico those restaurants proved unsustainable and plans for other locations never materialized. Beyond the monetary success of the Lincoln Park location Mr. Trotter had successful cookbooks and licensening deals so he certainly did not need the money, though divorces can prove costly...

[Attrill]

Originally Posted by gomexico

People who left within a month or so? I suspect those people didn't belong in a fine dining restaurant environment. Few people are cut-out for that challenge.

Not at all. Almost all of them went on to have good experiences working at places like Spiaggia, Everest, and Les Nomades. A couple have opened their own places.

In general I think a lot of people saw Charlie Trotter as a great chef, but a very poor communicator or teacher. It wasn't just that he was abusive, he also expected people to read his mind. He also had a pretty liberal understanding of the practice of staging, and didn't like to pay people to work in his kitchen. Some of the people I know who worked there left to get jobs that paid them.

[gomexico]

All the whining of former employees who didn't like him aside, we've witnessed the long line of successful chefs who understood the fine-dining environment, thrived at Trotter's and went-on to become very successful in their own right. There are always chronic complainers who think they should have things their way, that they know it all ... and want changes without putting money on the line to accomplish it. Was he perfect? No. Nobody has said that. His substantial and positive contribution to the industry is without question, though.

[Chi-town Native]

Originally Posted by chet everett

BTW the main restaurant generally did offer a vegetable centered menu and the carry out menu also had many excellent non-meat options:

Cuisine - Charlie Trotter's

That's the kind of menu non-vegetarian chefs *think* vegetarians want. But most of us don't.

High-end vegetarian to me is Lula, Aruns, one of Rick Bayless' restaurants, nicer Indian or Italian places, etc.

But that's because I ain't fancy.

[ChiNaan]

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

You've heard this before a thousand times, but run-on sentences get in the way of whatever point you're trying to make.

If you still attempt to decipher them, you are a more patient man than I.

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

It's unfortunate that guys like Mr Trotter, who are "married" to their one location, never understand the concept of creating a legacy.

I'm sure he understood the concept of mass-production. It just wasn't his thing. I think his legacy will be just fine. Yes, part of that legacy will probably be his moodiness and less-than-stellar interpersonal skills in carrying out his vision, but that hardly makes him unique among great artists.

[believe007]

Originally Posted by Irishtom29

I didn't know the guy.

Neither did I.
Saw something recently about how much controversy he was facing, then I read this.
Life is unpredictable- one minute you're on top of the world, next minute who knows.....?

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by ChiNaan

If you still attempt to decipher them, you are a more patient man than I.



I'm sure he understood the concept of mass-production. It just wasn't his thing. I think his legacy will be just fine. Yes, part of that legacy will probably be his moodiness and less-than-stellar interpersonal skills in carrying out his vision, but that hardly makes him unique among great artists.

I still have to exhale a few times while reading a Chet rant. I don't think that commas and semi-colons are allowed in them....