The “Chef’s Special” on a restaurant menu sounds enticing. It suggests a unique, creative dish showcasing the chef’s flair for the day. While sometimes this is true, in many busy kitchens, the daily special serves a much more practical purpose: it’s a delicious and efficient way to use up surplus ingredients and leftovers from the previous day’s service. The term “leftover soup” can be used metaphorically here for any dish crafted from these repurposed components. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing—it’s smart, sustainable cooking. But savvy diners should understand what that “special” often represents. Here are twelve types of chef’s specials that often sound fancy but are clever uses of leftovers.
