Work was the young chef's refuge from the depression. While Gordon Ramsay's convulsive fits of rage make for good TV ratings, that's on its way out as a management tactic.Ĭhang, once a junior state golf champion in Virginia, also exhibits admirable frankness in discussing his extended battle with a bipolar condition, a 'handicap' that actually fueled much of his success, although at great cost. On the positive side, a star of the hospitality business has chosen to shed light on a problem that's long been rampant in the industry. For example, Chang shares the story of almost being deported from Australia after a rage incident, but doesn't speculate on the emotional turmoil his victim-and others-must’ve felt. needing to punch walls as a release), he's less forthcoming about the pain he's caused others.

But while there's plenty of focus on what his frequent convulsions of rage did to him (e.g. Confess your sins, and then you may be forgiven. Eat a Peach is an extended mea culpa aimed at absolution. While Chang's name's never been bruited about in the #MeToo arena, there's much less acceptance now for the bullying workplace behavior. He was that rage-fueled guy in the kitchen we've all heard about, but his success provided him with a pass. The Korean-American bad-boy chef has a history of wall-punching, desk-breaking, and employee abuse. For an example of a person unconcerned with the consequences of revealing the worst things they've ever done, look at the late journalist David Carr's brutally honest memoir, The Night of the Gun. We don't cook for people like you.'Īlthough Chang shows regret with his memoir, Eat A Peach, below a certain depth he gets the bends. It's odd that someone who has no recollection of sounding like a mafia loan shark trying to collect a debt can recall that 20 years ago he'd said to a person who'd insulted his first restaurant, 'Fuck you. I will murder your fucking family!” When Eater asked the Korean-American chef to comment, he claimed no memory of it, but didn't deny it.

A former employee of celebrity chef/TV host/restaurant mogul David Chang wrote for Eater, a culinary website, that he once told a cook who he thought had done a poor job in preparing the employee meal, “I will scalp you.

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