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Interview:
He serves as an advisor for several manufacturers and producers, and travels extensively as a chef and conference speaker. He sits on the advisory boards for both the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, and the French Culinary Institute in Manhattan.
RR: Over twenty years ago, you graduated number one in your class from the Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, so it is appropriate to ask you about the modern culinary student. Are the schools doing an adequate job educating our future chefs?
RM: The answer is no, but I'm not suggesting that it is the fault of the schools. The entire celebrity thing has changed the way the students see our business, and that's unfortunate. I see our profession as a craft, and I see us as artists, and they see us more in a marketing sense. The celebrity movement has helped us in many respects, and I have enjoyed the media exposure that maybe would not be as available without all the celebrity focus. I just believe that many have misused this opportunity to their own benefit, and the in this regard, our industry has suffered.
RR: You do Good Morning America, The Today Show, The Food Network, etc., etc., so I would have to think the celebrity movement has been very good for Rick Moonen.
RM: I don't see myself as a celebrity chef, and I use many of these opportunities to discuss issues that are critical to my segment of the business.
RR: In this regard, you have been very involved in the various seafood issues such as the Atlantic swordfish, Russian caviar and the more recent Chilean sea bass.
RM: I'm proud to have been one of the original founders of The Chefs Coalition, a group that focuses on environmental issues such as sustainable cuisine and bioengineered foods. I believe it's critically important to help protect the future of this industry. In seafood, we are talking about the last wild product that is available, and I think it's important for all responsible chefs to help protect the ever-increasing number of endangered species. We must speak out, and of course, remove the items from our menus until the problem is corrected. We discontinued serving Russian caviar in favor of American products. Like so many others, I worry that the beluga, osetra, and sevruga sturgeons of the Caspian Sea could disappear forever. Much of this can be blamed on the breakup of the Soviet Union, and now these species are overfished to a point that the quality and availability is quickly diminishing.
RR: How difficult is it to run a successful seafood restaurant?
RM: It is difficult because your entire concept is dependent upon a very perishable commodity. There is little or no freezing involved, so the entire process is a daily thing. Also, you are so dependent on things like the weather, which can change all your plans without warning. In my mind, the greatest invention in the modern restaurant world is the laser printer. This means that we can change our menu on an immediate basis - a necessity if your direction happens to be seafood.
RR: What is the essence of your buying process?
RM: Our main source of product comes from the Fulton Fish Market. We employ a purchasing specialist who makes the trip on a daily basis. Another difficulty in terms of our buying is that at nay one time, we are dealing with some thirty-five different purveyors. Again, it's a daily process, so from a business end, it is more complicated and you are writing out a lot of checks to many different sources.
I do visit the fish market frequently, but everything is so precise, that we have to have a professional buyer there every day. Everything we do is based on quality, and you have to be an expert to be in this game. The key to this business is dealing with purveyors who handle the fish most professionally. The best fish is not necessarily the freshest; it really comes down to how they handle the fish from the boat to the market.
RR: At what point did you become an expert in the seafood sector?
RM: You become an expert by doing it. I never set out to become a seafood chef, it's just something I grew into, and if you plan to be successful, it is necessary to develop a passion for the cuisine, and that's what I have done. I spent some years in Key West where I developed a real interest in seafood. Fresh seafood is a big item in Florida, and I worked in a restaurant where seafood was predominant. When I returned to New York, I spent six years as executive chef at the Water Club where seafood was obviously a big part of what we did.
RR: With all the pressures of running a restaurant and all the outside activities that you do, what is your secret in terms of keeping your focus, and even your sanity?
RM: There is no one answer to this, and everyone has his or her own recipe for staying focused. I suppose my real answer to this is exercise. I hit the gym every morning, and it's not just the working out part of it. It becomes a social thing and a time to actually relax.
RR: In terms of your future, could you envision a change in scenery, possibly back to a less stressful Florida for example?
RM: New York is my home, and I plan to stay here. When I was in Florida, I was always looking for ways to get back to New York. This is the number one restaurant town in the world, and I really believe this. The customers are very knowledgeable and demanding. You can't fool them, and I respect them. If you want to be successful here, you have to be very good, and that's the way it should be.
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After eight successful years as executive chef and partner of Oceana, Rick Moonen opened rm in the fall of 2002. He is the chef and co-owner of this upscale Manhattan seafood restaurant. The restaurant's continuously changing menu features dishes that reflect Chef Moonen's love and passion for seafood.