Celebrity chef Tim Raue "I was the biggest screamer in the kitchen"
Chaos in the kitchen, mountains of meat on the plates and a family conflict: in a Greek taverna, restaurant saviors Tim and Katharina Raue have to step in as amateur psychologists.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Celebrity chef Tim Raue and his wife Katharina are on the road as restaurant rescuers for the TV channel RTL.
- In the TV show, the couple want to help restaurants that are in danger of going out of business out of the crisis and support the operators in making a fresh start.
- Nerves are on edge at the Greek taverna "To Steki" in Saarbrücken, Germany.
- Dafi founded the restaurant with its gigantic plates of meat 40 years ago together with his sister Anastasia.
"If you do that again," roars celebrity chef Tim Raue, staring into terrified faces, "I'll chop your hands off."
It's a moment of shock in the kitchen of the Greek taverna To Steki in Saarbrücken, Germany, where employees often step on each other's feet in the agonizingly cramped conditions. And it's a calculated effect.
Of course, two-star chef Raue, who is once again on the road as an RTL "restaurant savior", doesn't want to threaten anyone and certainly doesn't want to hurt anyone.
However, it's not just Tim Raue who is often at the end of his tether in the family-run Greek restaurant. It's a chaotic place - with a very specific problem: too much family closeness.
Irini: "Nobody listens to me here"
It's true that things often get heated at "To Steki" - not only in the kitchen, but also in the coordination between the patron of the house, restaurant founder Dafi, and his service team.
Dafi founded the tavern with its gigantic meat platters 40 years ago together with his sister Anastasia.
Tim Raue also knows a thing or two about shouting. With his martial threat, he just wants to show the shocked staff how he, too, used to fly off the handle as a young chef. Whenever he didn't have the situation under control. This is exactly the problem at To Steki.
At the center of the Greek hurricane is Irini, daughter of co-founder Anastasia. Despite being 39 years old, Dafi and Anastasia always call her "the little one".
Irini is supposed to take over the restaurant one day. The problem is that the two older relatives still don't seem to really trust her with the job.
Their suggestions for improvement are listened to by Tim Raue, but not by the current owners. No wonder Irini's self-confidence is not good. She has called Raue and the "Restaurant Rescuers" team to "To Steki". "Nobody listens to me here," she complains. Now she is hoping for help.
Irini speaks drastically of a "Greek madhouse"
Irini speaks drastically of a "Greek madhouse", into which the Raues are supposed to bring a little order. This time, Tim's wife Katharina not only provides them with a great new interior design that makes them want to go on vacation to the Mediterranean, but also psychological support.
After all, despite many regular guests, the restaurant is not running smoothly.
"Expenses are high and there is little profit," admits founder Dafi, for whom his role as boss still seems very important. He is very worried about whether Irini can really keep the restaurant open in the long term.
"I don't want to take it over as it is," Irini clarifies. Her vision: more contemporary dishes for a younger audience, more freshness and also more visual enjoyment on the plates. Celebrity chef Raue agrees that the dishes served to guests so far are "more like something from the 80s".
However, Irini has not yet been able to get her ideas accepted by her relatives. "I may be 40 next year, but to them I'm still 15," she complains.
Patron Dafi says clearly: "I'm the one who's still running it." A tricky situation that requires tact and also tries Tim Raue's patience.
Tim Raue: "You can't mix the two"
After all, all parties involved are using heavy artillery in their arguments. "If anything goes wrong, I will have destroyed my entire life's work," says Irin. Her fear is obviously holding her back, as is the lack of trust from her elders.
Tim Raue first has to provide clarity: "In terms of work, you have to start the whole thing from scratch," he says. Family sensitivities have no place here. "You can't mix that up."
First of all, he wants to steer the kitchen away from the "a lot is good" approach. And, of course, from being over-excited when things get extremely hectic again. "I was the biggest screamer in my kitchen," admits Raue.
But only because he couldn't get to grips with the difficulties at the time. Now he has calm and an overview on his side. "The chain has to be broken somewhere."
