A Chef’s Cathedral – Part 2: The Silence Between Courses

John N. Wilson

17 May 2025 — 1 min read

“Music is the space between the notes.” ~Claude Debussy

I’ve always felt that great meals are like great symphonies.There’s a rhythm to the room. A flow to the conversation. A cadence to the courses.

And just like in music, the art doesn’t live only in the big moments; It lives in the silence.

The space between courses.
Between glances.
Between the clink of a fork and the warmth of a second glass of wine.

That’s where the room breathes. In those quiet moments, something beautiful happens: The chef, the diner, and the space all begin to move in sync. And the background music, when it’s dialed in just right, sets the emotional tone for that next bite.

It shapes the pacing.
It colors the mood.
It turns the ordinary into something shared.

As Alberto Portugheis once said: “Ultimately, cooking and music have a great deal in common. They both provide emotional experiences... the end result of both is to make people happy.”

That’s what I love about this work. We get to help shape environments where people feel that rhythm. Not because the tech is impressive, but because it disappears into harmony.

Food is flavor.
Music is feeling.
But dining…
Dining is connection.

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