The visual aspect of a dish is so important; the shapes and colors and overall design have to strike the right mood and convey the right idea.

As I mature as a chef, I no longer aim to pack multiple techniques and ingredients into a single dish. Realizing that restraint is more difficult, I find it often renders incredibly beautiful results.

We use many expressions of fennel: blended with potato, it's an earthy, rich puree; the raw fronds add a fresh, green note; and the braised version gives it a luscious, home-cooked feel, something people can connect to - you need that in any dish.

A cook never knows if the dish he perfected for hours was described properly or if a guest even liked his food. It's hard to spend hours perfecting a dish only to relinquish control. But chefs need to put aside their egos and trust the people serving the food.

It's very colorful with many different colors juxtaposed. That is part of the charm of the design. Every color goes with every color.

It's all kinds of shapes, colors and sexes. I've gotten every story there is.