“It’s great to eat and drink, but after two or three weeks [off], I start to go stir crazy,” he responds when asked about taking time off for vacation, let alone retirement. “I need to be back in the kitchen working. I don’t play golf or watch TV. I don’t know how to do anything else.”
To illustrate his point, Guerithault says he started taking piano lessons five years ago and admits that he can only play for 30 minutes at a time and still fights to find the right keys. The struggle, though, is worth it in his eyes.
“I’m never going to become a concert pianist, but the challenges [of learning a new skill] help me relate to the kitchen. I’m never going to improve if I don’t practice.”
Fans of Guerithault clearly believe that practice has made his menu perfect, with classics such as his lobster chimichanga, smoked salmon quesadilla and duck confit tamales standing the test of time. His mastery of French-Southwest fusion remains his calling card.
“There’s a lot of things we do that are still very French. Lots of butter, lots of foie gras, lots of cream,” Guerithault says. “But we make it interesting with a little touch of the Southwest.”
Dining and Cooking