The Mind of a Chef - Season 4

First aired: 9/5/2015 16 episodes

In Season 4, enter the minds of chefs Gabrielle Hamilton and David Kinch. Follow these two great culinary figures from their home kitchens to destinations around the globe in search of ingredients, inspiration, and the perfect meal.

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Episodes

1. Prune

Aired: 9/5/2015

With every chipped plate and hand-written to-do list, Gabrielle Hamilton’s “presence” is all over her NYC restaurant, Prune.

2. Garbage

Aired: 9/12/2015

Having been raised in a large family with many mouths to feed, to then needing to fend for herself from a very young age, Gabrielle Hamilton is the master of utilizing scraps.

3. Rome

Aired: 9/19/2015

Explore Gabrielle’s deep love with this ancient city.

4. Hunger

Aired: 9/26/2015

From a very young age, Gabrielle Hamilton was left alone in her home to fend for herself. She rummaged through what was left in the pantry and refrigerator and satisfied her hunger with what she could scavenge. At 16, she moved to New York City where she used her jar of change to feed herself. All her experiences with hunger made her the chef she is today.

5. Past

Aired: 10/3/2015

It’s an age-old saying, but where you have been is almost as important as where you are going and ultimately makes you who you are today. Gabrielle Hamilton has traveled the country and the world, but sometimes, it’s good to go back to your roots.

6. Hustle

Aired: 10/10/2015

Surviving the restaurant game for 15 years in New York City takes some major hustle. From lying about her age to get her first dishwasher gig to lying about her tips, getting busted and charged with grand larceny, hustling was the easy part in running a restaurant for Gabrielle Hamilton.

7. Napkin

Aired: 10/17/2015

Milan is a meeting ground of both contemporary and classic Italian culture. But what really entices Gabrielle Hamilton are the small details, an embroidered curtain, a classically non-garnished plate, a perfectly folded napkin.

8. Evolution

Aired: 10/24/2015

Gabrielle looks long and hard at how she has evolved not only as a chef, but as a writer and restaurant owner.

9. Fire

Aired: 10/31/2015

Things can change in an instant, as David discovered in July of 2014, when he got a fateful call that his restaurant Manresa had burned nearly to the ground.

10. Legacy

Aired: 11/7/2015

Food is evolution, and wise chefs never forget from whence they came. A solid foundation allows them to test new boundaries and push things to new limits.

11. Ocean

Aired: 11/14/2015

Nothing is more calming or inspiring than the sea, and living in Santa Cruz, David is never far from one of his many muses.

12. Strawberry

Aired: 11/21/2015

A dish is only as good as its ingredients, but an ingredient can also be manipulated in many ways. In this episode, David focuses his attention to the strawberry, at the height of its season during production, to celebrate the summer favorite.

13. Balance

Aired: 11/28/2015

For Chef David Kinch, balance in life is as important as balance in a dish. And seeking that balance means walking away form the bustle of the line and demands of running the restaurant.

14. Restrictions

Aired: 12/5/2015

Diners these days can be pickier than ever, and they seem to have no problem telling a chef how to do his or her job. Allergies, self-diagnosed sensitivities and customer “dislikes” have become the bane of several chefs’ existence.

15. New Orleans

Aired: 12/12/2015

When your first restaurant job is Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, you are inevitably destined for great things. As a high school student in New Orleans, David’s eyes were opened by the glamorous Crescent City institution, and a long career in cuisine followed.

16. 25 Bites

Aired: 12/19/2015

A perfect tasting menu relies on balance, and on not fatiguing a customer’s palate. Based on that theory, no meal should be more than 25 bites.