KentCooks – He Certainly Does!

Life - with Relish and Mustard

Life – with Relish and Mustard

Last weekend we had the privilege to spend some time with two real entrepreneurs – entrepreneurs in the biggest sense of the word. Tired of corporate life, corporate demands, corporate control, they branched off on their own. Now, though they work hard, they work for themselves, their work makes meaning in their lives, they enjoy the work they do. What a great move.

Gutsy, yes. But talk about quality of life.

Kent is the owner of KentCooks, a personal chef service now in Glendale, Arizona, just a few minutes from Phoenix. He is a man who truly has a loving relationship with the food he prepares. He uses the best  ingredients and we watched him turn them into masterpieces right before our eyes. Some dishes were so simple, it was amazing. But then with a deft flick of his wrist and an added ingredient or two, the simple became special.

I imagined myself eating in a quaint gourmet restaurant instead of around a cozy kitchen table. And the food was damn near perfect. Pork loin stuffed with bleu cheese and figs; hummus so full of flavor and freshness, I will never want to eat another bite from a plastic container; a pear and apple souffle that melted in my mouth.

So are you wondering about the hot dog?

No, Kent didn’t prepare hot dogs for lunch. But we were at the Desert Botanical Gardens in Phoenix at noon, and we ate in their outside cafe. Here is Kent’s take on the hot dog.

“Every chef has a favorite junk food. Hot dogs are mine. Not gourmet hot dogs, just plain old hot dogs. Love ’em.”

His wife finds it fascinating that a chef who is meticulous about using fresh ingredients–he raises an eyebrow when she uses frozen veggies instead of fresh–would love hot dogs.

But food is a strong connection with happy memories; a lot of food is about memories. And I am still loving the memories of the many foods Kent shared with us. Ah, the stuff long-lasting memories are surely made from.

If you are in the Phoenix area, check out KentCooks. He provides a wide variety of opportunities to enjoy his food. It’s a great service, and he is simply a nice guy to boot.

Gardens in the Desert

Phoenix Arboretum Entrance

Phoenix Botanical Garden Entrance Way

The Desert Botanical Gardens located between Phoenix and Scottsdale are the perfect primer to desert plant life for someone like me whose mouth drops open and gets wide-eyed at the sight of a mountain with saguaros dotting the terrain. By the looks of the crowd last weekend, it must be as popular with the local crowd.

Papago Mountains

Papago Mountains

This was the view as we sat eating our lunch at the Botanical Gardens cafe. I’m certain that I enjoyed the food, but I can’t quite remember what it was I ate. The scenery was absolutely too distracting.

Jumping Cholla

Jumping Cholla

This cactus has an great story. Seems if you brush too near the plant, a bit will break off and “jump” onto you. It seems a clever means of dispersing the plant to other areas.