Flashback to meeting world-renowned Chef Daniel Boulud…and a glimpse of things to come in France.

The morning of Memorial Day I got a call on my phone…the screen read “Daniel Boulud (Mobile)”. I was still lying in bed at the time and before I knew it I was on my feet screaming in excitement. I ran into the other room and took a deep breath before answering. Behold on the other end of the line was the man himself with his strong French accent. We spoke for a while about my swimming and what I have planned for this summer as well as his new restaurant in London and a new one he’s opening in Singapore.

Daniel went on to say…

Well, let’s take a quick look back to 2008 before getting into that:

On a warm summer night in Beijing, after the swimming portion of the Olympics had finished, I had a chance meeting with a very special someone. As I finished a segment of The Today Show, I happened to run into world famous chef Daniel Boulud. My calm and collected demeanor instantaneously went to giddy and freakishly excited at first sight of him. I took no hesitation to introduce myself and begin a short conversation. Briefly I told him about my passion for food and cooking and how I would love to come to his restaurant in NYC in the fall. Before heading on the set to do a cooking demo he gave me his card and told me to email him when I wanted to come. The conversation which started in Beijing almost two years ago has formed into a very meaningful friendship, one that I truly cherish.

In the kitchen with Chef Boulud and staff at Daniel, NYC

In Beijing I also formed a friendship with Daniel’s daughter, whom I met on the The Today Show as well. She took me to his newly opened restaurant in the heart of the city, La Maison Boulud. Since first meeting Daniel and shortly after delighting in his cuisine, I was hooked on the Boulud train. (Don’t get any ideas. His daughter and I are just friends.)

About a month later when in New York my sister and I ended up eating at his restaurant Daniel and had an incredible time. Since then I’ve built a much stronger relationship with Daniel. I’m so honored to have his friendship. In many ways surprising to me, he is happy to have mine as well. His daughter once told me, “one of the reasons he has gravitated so much to you is because he so readily sees your passion for food and cooking and he loves your work ethic to get better at it and to learn.”

As some of my readers know, last fall I had the privilege to do a month-long “stage” in Italy at Castello Delle Regine. (You can scroll back at my Cooking in Italy archives to see more on that. Thanks so much to my friends Adam Siegel and John Wise at The Bartolotta Restaurant Group for helping with that.) From there I did a short Stage with Daniel and his staff at “Daniel” for three days in NYC. My experience was unbelievable! You can read about it here! And more here. By the way, “stage” is a French term for training in a restaurant kitchen.

Now back to Memorial Day 2010:

After talking for a bit, Daniel gave me the news I had been waiting to hear…about France, about an amazing restaurant…about a kitchen he regards as one of the best in the world… about an opportunity for me to work as hard and learn as much as I ever have in my life…

Here’s a glimpse of where I’ll be traveling to…