Chef Fritz and His City: My Education in the Masters Kitchen

It was the first visit to Philadelphia's Deux Cheminées restaurant for Samuel Young and his wife, Risa, and after the meal, Chef Fritz Blank came grumbling by to join them for a few minutes. Despite his rant, though, his eyes were merry, and he left the table with a joke about the tears of the city's chefs.

After that engaging introduction, it was hard not to say oui when the mail brought an announcement that a class with Blank would be introducing students to the preparation of three simple...