Should restaurants give out recipes?

[buckytom]

in reading the thread about making za'atar, i thought of the hows and whys of the few times i've gotten recipes from restaurants i've visited.

some restaurants have been more than willing to give out recipes, such as the park and orchard restaurant in east rutherford, nj. they have the most frequently requested ones already printed out behind the bar.

but then there was the now defunct jimmy armstrong's on 10th and 57th in nyc. after jimmy died, myself and a few regular patrons offered the chef hundreds of dollars each for their pork chop marinade when they had been sold and were closing. at the closing party and auction, chef jimmy turned down 7 bills and retired.

so, do you think that restaurants should be willing or able to give out recipes, hedging that home cooks don't have the talent nor equipment to reproduce their fare? or should they keep their cards close to their vest?

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I don't think good food should be taken to the grave...what a waste.

 

[pacanis]

I don't think a restaurant should feel obligated to hand out its recipes. Even for money. I imagine the restaurant industry to be pretty competitive and they don't need their secret marinade finding its way to a competitor's restaurant two blocks down the road. It's a shame some recipes go to the grave though.

 

[powerplantop]

When restaurants get sold one of the terms discussed is recipes. Are they included or not, often a value is placed on them. Some chefs even sell recipes to other places.

If the recipe is given out for free to everyone who it does reduce the price tag during a sale.

On tripple D what I see a lot of is the places show you basicly what goes in and the meathod of cooking. Which gives you a good idea of how to cook the dish but now how to make an exact copy.

Lawsuits are aften filed over recipies. Restaurant owner sues over recipes

That said it is some places do give them out to customers.

 

[BigAL]

As for me, they could give me the recipe and the ingredients and it still wouldn't taste the same. That is the fun of cook'n, adding your "touch". I'm guess'n that most chef's don't make it the exact same way twice, either. Am I wrong?

 

[medtran49]

On tripple D what I see a lot of is the places show you basicly what goes in and the meathod of cooking. Which gives you a good idea of how to cook the dish but now how to make an exact copy.

.

Triple D does have a cookbook out and I believe there has been a second season one published as well. With that said, I've never actually eaten at any of the restaurants showcased so can't give an opinion on whether or not the recipes given out match up with what you get in the restaurant.

 

[powerplantop]

Triple D does have a cookbook out and I believe there has been a second season one published as well. With that said, I've never actually eaten at any of the restaurants showcased so can't give an opinion on whether or not the recipes given out match up with what you get in the restaurant.

The food network website even has a top 100 recipes. But like you I have never been to any of the places that were showcased.

 

[jennyema]

Recipes are the originator's intellectual property and can do with them what they want. No one can be obligated to share them if the don't want to.

 

[letscook]

Although there are many resturants I would loved to have some of their recipes.
I say no to giving them out. Reason being, that is what makes the resturant, if the recipes are out then once the sense of going to the resturant to eat, make it at home, then the resturant that worked hard to build it up closes due to lack of business.

 

[jabbur]

When restaurants get sold one of the terms discussed is recipes. Are they included or not, often a value is placed on them. Some chefs even sell recipes to other places.

If the recipe is given out for free to everyone who it does reduce the price tag during a sale.

On tripple D what I see a lot of is the places show you basicly what goes in and the meathod of cooking. Which gives you a good idea of how to cook the dish but now how to make an exact copy.

Lawsuits are aften filed over recipies. Restaurant owner sues over recipes

That said it is some places do give them out to customers.

I agree that it is up to the chef/owner whether they want to share or sell or keep secret.

I was reading this post and had to click the link since I knew my favorite pizza joint sued over recipe infringement. Lo and behold, the link was to an article about my pizza place! I grew up in that little town and Guido's was THE place to go for pizza. Every time we went back there to visit a trip to the restaurant was always in order. I've even bought extra pizzas, frozen them and brought them back to VA. My BIL had some shipped to my sister for Christmas. It is truly some of the best pizza around. You could not get it anywhere else.

 

[GB]

Should restaurants give out recipes? If they want to, sure. If they don't want to then they should not have to. I think the majority of restaurants would not be harmed by giving out their recipes. People go out for more than just the food. They want the experience, they don't want to cook or do dishes, etc. Having a recipe will not keep them from going out in most cases. Sometimes though this is not true and a restaurant have a special dish they are known for that no one else can make the same way. Those places often benefit from the secrecy.

 

[Andy M.]

... I'm guess'n that most chef's don't make it the exact same way twice, either. Am I wrong?

I think you may be wrong.

If you go to a restaurant and eat a meal that is "out of this world" great, you're going to go back. What happens if it doesn't taste as good when you go back? Would you be satisfied by the chef's response that he never makes it the same way twice? ...me neither.

They have to make it the same way every time. Customers count on that. It's what creates repeat business.

To the larger point, It's nice when a restaurant shares a recipe but I understand when they refuse.

 

[Uncle Bob]

Agree with Andy.....Restaurants must have consistency...even a one location Mom & Pop DDD.....

Many Restaurants have Cookbooks...Where they have *A* recipe for a certain dish..but it's not *The* recipe...The hand out's I would venture to guess are the same thing....'A' recipe, but not 'The' recipe....Close maybe...but no Cigar!

 

[Aunt Bea]

I enjoy it when a restaurant gives out recipes and I think it creates a sort of goodwill.

I have only purchased recipes once and that was from an old german chef who sold three recipes for each fifty dollar donation to his pet charity. This was years ago when a fifty had some power left.

In any case the recipes cannot recreate the ambiance of the restaurant and usually do not come out the same in a home kitchen. They are just kind of fun to have and talk about.

 

[spork]

The pro-con ledger looks like Michelle Kwan & Andre the Giant on a see-saw.

It's not exactly the same thing, but I wonder what would happen to the franchise if wikileaks ever got a hold of KFC's recipe...

 

[medtran49]

It's not exactly the same thing, but I wonder what would happen to the franchise if wikileaks ever got a hold of KFC's recipe...

As far as the home cook, probably not much as I believe they use equipment to fry that a home cook isn't going to be able to duplicate.

Professional, probably another story.

 

[roadfix]

Secret sauce recipes should never be given away.

 

[CWS4322]

When my parents owned their restaurant, there were recipes that people asked for all the time...because the recipes were large quantities, my parents didn't usually share them. When batting my big blue eyes still worked, I talked a lot of chefs out of signature recipes when I worked as tour manager in the US and Canada. I am still reluctant to share those recipes with others because I feel I was given a gift. At my parents' restaurant, the cooks had "secrets." Anne swore that you could not serve steak until after a dab of butter was put on top...Clara swore that you had to use lard as part of the shortening for pastry...and, for perfect donuts, you had to let the grease get hot enough for a cube of bread to pop to the top...

One of the recipes (which I have posted here--the peach cream pie recipe) was in my dad's family for probably 100 years. I have a LOT of cookbooks (probably over 1000). I have never seen this recipe in one of the cookbooks. My mom, who was never a good cook, shared this recipe for a fundraising cookbook (years after the restaurant was sold). Now, I feel I can share it because it is 'out there' in a cookbook. I don't know how to search for the thread where I posted it to put it here, but it is on the forum--probably under pies/desserts. It is one of my favorite things to eat for breakfast during peach season...

 

[BigAL]

I think you may be wrong.

If you go to a restaurant and eat a meal that is "out of this world" great, you're going to go back. What happens if it doesn't taste as good when you go back? Would you be satisfied by the chef's response that he never makes it the same way twice? ...me neither.

They have to make it the same way every time. Customers count on that. It's what creates repeat business.

To the larger point, It's nice when a restaurant shares a recipe but I understand when they refuse.

I think you may be right. Good point. Shows how much I go out to eat at a restaurant with a chef.(or what I'd call a chef)

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

Wasn't it Martha Stewart that always left something out of her recipes so no one could duplicate them?

I have had restaurant chefs give me recipes, without asking, just because I praised the recipe and told them how much I enjoyed it. They were, however, recipes that are no longer on the menu, such as Mahi-Mahi in coconut caramel sauce from Ana Mandara, and Snapper Romano from Scoma. Scoma does provide some of their recipes on their web site.