Toronto chef Matty Matheson: “We don’t want a 45-year-old food writer to understand what the fuck we’re doing”
Toronto chef Matty Matheson: “We don’t want a 45-year-old food writer to understand what the fuck we’re doing”
—Matty Matheson, the notoriously hard-partying (but recently reformed) chef and owner of Parts and Labour in Parkdale, speaking to the Chefs Feed Network about why he isn’t interested in the opinions of middle-aged restaurant reviewers. You can go here to watch the full three-minute interview.
As someone in their early 20’s I can easily say that if a chef/owner is that rude & discriminatory towards any paying customer–middle-aged or not–I have no interest in eating there. You should be humbled that anyone would pay to eat your food, and making comments like that, you obviously don’t appreciate that it’s a gift to be able to run your own business. You should be welcoming everyone with open arms. Safe to say I won’t be checking out Parts & Labour anytime soon.
I know Matty Matheson and he’s a total prick. That being said, he’s not wrong in the things he said in this video. P&L is a loud and crazy place on any given night. Many reviewers have complained about the noise level and I don’t blame them. It is an atmosphere that many over the age of 40 cannot stand to be in. I am sure some middle-aged people enjoy that scene, but I am certain none of them are food writers. Matty is a great chef and has truly turned his life around. I applaud him for all his successes. I still think he’s a dumb jerk, but maybe his knack for brutal honesty has something to do with that.
As someone from the industry, after watching that video. Here’s what I think; If that’s what you got from this I’m glad I won’t be seeing you there.
Unfortunatley, it’s the 40 and 50 year olds that have money to spend in restaurants.
I’m 50 and a total foodie with a food blog, and myself and my friends definately won’t be eating there.
Very well stated !!
Well then you are welcome to come hang out @sorellatoronto 2763 Dundas St west. Best Italian Sausage in Toronto. Made in house and waiting for your opinion.
Taylor, you have no idea what you’re talking about… watch the video again with an adult…..
And Mary (as a food Blogger) I hope your palate is more discerning and less sensitive than your propensity for being offended.
Well, it’s pretty sad that you have to be condescending towards me and insinuate that I’m not adult enough to understand the video. I’m entitled to my opinion, and obviously a lot of other people agree with me soooo…
There are some very good lessons to be learned from the last portions. He says how hard he works, and how busy he is and that is what made him turn it all around. Arrogance is a part of growing up, and to mature into someone that knows what sacrifices are needed to continue climbing is starting to show. Life altering moments make you arrogant to say “i do what I want, there may not be a tomorrow”. Good luck
Although…I do think the fact that anyone here is grouping all people who hate noise as “over 40” is a bit ridiculous. Sometimes people like noise, sometimes they don’t, no matter what their age. Matty Matheson brought age into it, but it shouldn’t even be part of the equation. As a man covered in tattoos working in a loud restaurant, will he all of a sudden want to watch Murder She Wrote and pet kittens in a quiet room once he hits middle age? I think not.
But, you’re not the only people who go to restaurants. The 18-35 crowd is more than arguably the crowd that interested in being out socializing and spending money on a regular basis. Someday I’d like to compile a list of all the things we would not have because the 45 year-olds, who felt like they had all the disposable income, felt that it shouldn’t be done that way.
He’s not discriminating against customers. He’s saying he knows what he’s doing and he’s knows who he appeals to, and he doesn’t care what a 45 year-old food critic thinks. So, really, if he’s discriminating against anybody it’s people who don’t like what he’s doing.
I have a lot of tattoos, although no where near that many, and write about loud music for a living, and when I come home from a show, ALL I want to do is pet a good kitten. Let’s not make any assumptions about tattooed men who like loud music also not liking kittens. Kittens are fucking great.
I appreciate anyone who can work a good plug into a comment section.
Typical gen y beta response that gen x is holding them back from being the precious snowflake that they were raised to believe that they are. So you’re going to make a list are you? How productive and brave.
Are you kidding me? I’m not the one claiming that I’m from the only age group that spends money. BTW, I’m Gen X.
I guess he’s comfortable living the “if it’s too loud, you’re too old” cliche. Sorry Matty, it’s all been done before.
you can’t please every patron.
like, open a mexican restaurant and have someone bitch that you don’t sell burgers.
if he wants music and his patrons don’t care about the volume and he’s still busy, who cares? Live by the sword, die by the sword.
I do actually somewhat agree with you, but I also think he shouldn’t be bringing age into it. Maybe talk about how you don’t like picky/negative food critics instead of generalizing about 45 year olds and food writers
Was he generalizing or referring to a specific food critic who wrote a specific review? Since when does the entertainment industry not have demographics?
I’m on Team Tom and I’m an old bitch. People really missed the point watching this video
The man knows his audience or who he wants his audience to be. I say good on him for having a clear vision instead of trying to be all things to all people. It’s obviously working for him. And as a vegetarian who is closer to 45 than 25, I can say that’s a beautiful looking burger and I am not remotely offended that he doesn’t care what I think.
If you were actually gen x then you’d not be going on like you are. Go blog about, share it on social media, take a selfie of yourself being upset about it, then share that and maybe you’ll feel better. Walk it off, crybaby.
I’m sorry your copy and paste trolling didn’t work out.
I am yet to see the day when a 20something year old says “I really are about the opinion of a 40-year old”. But then they grow up, become 40 years old, and eat humble pie.
Cry it out bitch boy. You should make a list of your failures.
I think it’s adorable that you just keep on trying.
Ooo! He’s so *edgy*! I mean, no generation before has listened to loud music or indulged in petulant ageism. Kid’s a douche, straight up.
Man, as a chef in Toronto I can’t help but feel that everything this guy is doing is some attempt at celebrity douchebag status. Everything is a gimmick, right down to the man himself. He is a walking exaggeration, a joke in itself. A reformed hipster chef who doesn’t like old people. I wonder what his mom thinks. Such a loser. Have never been drawn to P&L and now I have no reason to give a shit about his corner of Parkdale ever.
He is sadly an example of why anyone today can call themself a chef. And I mean anyone! An arrogant douchebag. He can keep his crappy food….and it is crap from what I have heard from a number of people.
I wouldn’t want to eat anything offered by this foul mouths moron. If your afraid of reviews then there’s something to hide…like a bad performance in a play…we want to know before we spend the money and hate it.
Her comment got 52 likes, more than every other comment….so she may know what she’s talking about after all.
I’d argue that the 18-35 crowd is more interested in going to bars and clubs than restaurants, preferring to drink more than they eat.
Agreed, I’m a foodie, too.
To: Matty Matheson: Grow a set of big-boy chef’s knives and face your critics.
You only want people under 45 to eat your food?
That crowd (around the ages of 19-35) don’t usually go to restaurants.
They go to bars and clubs.
Matty Matheson hasn’t earned the right to be arrogant. It’s a quality, or rather it’s his character flaw, that the “older” crowd won’t tolerate from a narcissistic little upstart “chef.”
I will avoid any establishment where the owner is so adamantly opposed to listen to the voice of experience. By Matheson placing a restriction that he will only listen to young critics and diners, it will alienate his diners and limit his mass appeal.
Yet it’s pathetic that you keep responding to someone you claim is “copy and paste trolling”. Hit refresh again then blog it out beta master!