Definition

To give something away for free, usually to apologize for mistakes or impress VIPs. Management's favorite way to fix problems that cooks created, using the restaurant's money.

Example Usage

Comp their desserts and send over a round of drinks—the chef just dropped their entrées on the floor.

Origin

Short for 'complimentary'

Fun Fact

Strategic comping can turn angry customers into loyal regulars, but excessive comping destroys profit margins.

Source: Restaurant service terminology

Related Terms

Advanced

panade

A paste of starch and liquid used to bind forcemeats and maintain their texture, preventing your pâté from turning into expensive cat food. The unsung hero that keeps delicate preparations from falling apart both literally and metaphorically.

🍳 Food / Culinary
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Jus

The natural juices from cooked meat, served as a light sauce. Not to be confused with gravy, because jus is French and therefore fancier, thinner, and three times the price. Ordering something 'au jus' makes you sound worldly even at Arby's.

🍳 Food / Culinary
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nuke it

To reheat food in a microwave, usually said with mild shame in professional kitchens where microwaves are considered the lowest form of cooking technology. Every chef's guilty secret.

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sauté

To cook food quickly in a shallow pan with a small amount of fat over high heat, achieving that coveted golden-brown crust while keeping the inside tender. It's the cooking technique that makes everything better and is legally required for at least one step in every French recipe. The culinary equivalent of a quick sprint rather than a marathon.

🍳 Food / Culinary
Intermediate

carbonize

The fancy culinary term for "I turned it into charcoal," involving the chemical transformation of organic matter into carbon through excessive heat application. It's what happens when you answer one text while cooking and suddenly your dinner becomes a science experiment. Professional chefs call it technique; the rest of us call it ordering takeout.

🍳 Food / Culinary
Beginner

schmear

A generous spread of soft cheese, cream cheese, or other spreadable ingredients, most famously associated with bagels. It's the Yiddish way of saying 'don't be stingy with the cream cheese.'

🍳 Food / Culinary

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igtkya

im going to kick your ass...