Important Restaurant Dropout Links
Menus // All previous weekly menus
Recipe Vault // All published recipes
Essentials // A list of recommended essential ingredients and equipment
FAQ // Frequently asked questions
About Restaurant Dropout
As an ex-restaurant cook (*ahem* a restaurant dropout), I am here to help you tackle your kitchen like a pro—efficiently and promptly while never compromising quality.
Think of your home kitchen as a restaurant; you are the line cook. In your “restaurant,” you have 5 dishes on the menu that change (almost) weekly—one grocery haul will result in 5 different dishes for the week. Several ingredients get used more than once, and if you’re up for it, these ingredients can be prepped ahead of time so that when it comes time to make the dish…well, all you have to do is toss it together, maybe heat something up, and voila: dinner is served in a matter of minutes.
Restaurant Dropout simplifies dinnertime by providing dinner plans, grocery lists, and prep lists to save you time.
By subscribing, you'll have full access to the following:
Subscription Types
Free
What you get:
Access to some menus
Paying ($6 monthly or $65 annually)
What you get:
Access to all menus
Categorized shopping lists
Prep lists designed for efficiency
Recommended ingredient substitutions
Video demonstrations
Recipes for dish elements and full meals
Tips on prepping, storing, cooking, and more!
Restaurant Dropout Framework
Every Friday, you’ll receive an email (or notification on Substack) for what we’re cooking.
Here’s what you’ll receive:
I highly encourage you to read over every element of each newsletter prior to cooking the dishes included in the Recipe Vault (included at the very end). I typically include notes or demonstrations for things like specialty ingredients, methods of preparation, or anything else you might find confusing, so by reading everything before prepping or cooking, you’ll go into each week with a better understanding of what to expect.
In Time to Shop, you’ll find a printable PDF including all of the ingredients (and their quantities) necessary to make each meal for the week. Each grocery list includes a key indicating which ingredients are included in each dish, as well as a list of Essential Ingredients (things you likely already have on hand) and Time Savers (ingredients you can save time on by buying already prepped).
In Mise en Place, you’ll find a printable PDF including a Prep List, which will map out all of the tasks you need to complete in order to prep for a full week of easy cooking. Each Prep List typically includes the following:
Prepping produce (like chopping carrots, washing kale, etc.)
Prepping breads (like pizza doughs, flatbreads, etc.)
Prepping sauces (like marinades, dressings/vinaigrettes, etc.)
Prepping dish toppings (like crispy shallots, tortilla strips, etc.)
In Recipe Vault, you’ll find recipes for individual elements (typically prepped ahead of time) and recipes for each meal of the week.
For those who love to prep everything in advance, you’ll want to save or print the ‘Element’ recipes for Prep Day
For those who want to cook each meal as you go, you can do so by just following the ‘Full-Meal’ recipes
The Comprehensive Recipe Vault
If you want to cook on the go—perhaps you’re traveling or don’t have the energy to prep—you can always find past and present recipes in the Recipe Vault.
If you want to cook a different week—perhaps you don’t really like what’s on the new menu (no offense taken)—you can always revisit previous menus here.
The Dessert Menu (Launched in November 2024)
When the kitchen’s not too busy, you’ll receive a dessert or pastry recipe that can be made in advance (to enjoy throughout the week)—think cookies, sweet breads, muffins, ice cream, and biscuits.
All Dessert Menu recipes can be found here.
About Me
For those who might have found me on Substack and know nothing about me, here are a few fun facts to help introduce myself:
I attended San Francisco Cooking School a while back. It was one of the most exciting times of my 20s, and I would have recommended it to anyone passionate about cooking if the school hadn’t closed down a few years ago.
I completed my cooking school externship at a fine-dining farm-to-table, all-organic restaurant called Flea Street (located in Menlo Park, California). I then accepted a full-time job to work there as a line cook. Flea Street completely changed how I view locally sourced ingredients. I highly recommend trying the restaurant if you ever find yourself in Menlo Park.
I worked as a Chef Instructor for a small San Francisco startup, where we sold ingredient kits for remote group cooking events. I taught classes on jiaozi, Massaman curry, popcorn chicken, and more to primarily tech companies, such as Twitter, Facebook, and Twitch.
I have been sharing food-related content on social media for roughly 2.5 years—you can find all of my videos on Instagram and TikTok. YouTube or Facebook accounts with my name are fake (please don’t engage with them…or better yet, report them).
Last year, I married Tate (the LOML & Restaurant Dropout’s head recipe tester), whom I met while playing D1 soccer at the University of Arizona (he played D1 baseball). He’s the son of a third-generation almond farmer in the Central Valley of California—witnessing the annual harvest and spending ample time on the farm completely changed my perspective on seasonal ingredients and increased my adoration and appreciation of those who grow and farm our food.
