There's an old joke about a mother, a daughter and a pot roast. The daughter is cooking a roast from her grandmother's recipe, and the recipe calls for the roast to be cut off by 2 inches from each end. The daughter doesn't understand the reasoning behind this, so she calls her mom to ask why. Her mother, of course, doesn't know why — even though she's been making the roast that way for close to 30 years.

"I've never thought to ask," says the mother. "Let's call your grandmother."

JAN POLABINSKI/iStockphoto.com (ENLARGE)
Sometimes asking 'Why?' helps the cooking experience, as in the old pot roast joke.
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"I cut the roast off," replies the grandmother, "because my pan was too short."

There are lots of lessons to be learned from asking why, especially in cooking. But I found when I was in culinary school that even my revered chef instructors often didn't know that answer. In cooking, the emphasis is so often on how, not why.

And of course the "why" is how we have come to have baklava that differs not just from country to country in the Middle East, but from region to region, town to town. Never tell someone from Lebanon that these puffy layers of phyllo and nuts are drenched with a honey syrup, as they are in Greece. They'll more than likely belt you.

"Why" is how there are as many red sauces in Italy as there are cooks. And as many ways to fry chicken as there are frying pans. It's how there are a million different ways to form masa into various round, flat shapes — tortillas, sopes, huaraches, gorditas. And it's why I've actually eaten better pad Thai in the United States than I did when I was in Bangkok.

My grandmother made her potato salad with mayonnaise, celery and onions (and potatoes). She never added eggs or mustard. She never added pickle relish. You either liked it or you didn't. I've never known anyone else to make it that way, I never knew why she did, and I've often kicked myself for not asking.

Because "why" is how a chef expresses herself — really great chefs know how to combine "why" and how with just the right amount of impetus. Interpretation is what creates art, not technique; and it's that dance between skill and joy that makes cooking more than just a craft.

Vine changes in Va-Hi

Best restaurant in the category of musical restaurant owners? Vine in Va-Hi. The spot, which was vacated by Tiburon Grill and changed to Vine back in 2004, has gone through a slew of owners. Now Stephen McGuffin, who was slated to buy and reopen Dish this spring, has bailed on that project and bought Vine with the help of his mother, Ginger McGuffin, and brother David. Chris Reid, the sommelier, is still plucking wines from a global selection, the only survivor of not one, not two, but now three owners in just a little over so many years. The name will remain, but executive chef McGuffin plans to "cook globally but source locally," drawing from French, Spanish and Asian influences. Bro David will act as pastry chef. The group took over ownership about four weeks ago. Vine, 1190-B N. Highland Ave., Atlanta. 404-892-2393, www.vinerestaurant.com.

Americana at Blue Plate

Got a hankering for an old-fashioned black cow? Jonesing for a big, bad plate of meatloaf or chicken potpie? Neighborhood Dining Group has turned its third location of Chicago's Steak and Seafood into Blue Plate Roadside Café, a casual diner serving classic Americana — fried green tomatoes, oversized salads, sliders and blue plates of shrimp and grits and pecan-crusted chicken with sweet potato casserole. Desserts include chocolate cake and fruit cobblers. The atmosphere combines Route 66 with the soda fountain set. 5920 Roswell Road N.E., Sandy Springs. 404-257-8883, www.blueplaterc.com.

Get into the conversation: Log on to my blog at www.ajc.com/tabletalk. If your restaurant is new, closing or undergoing changes, or you have a food-related event, we want to hear from you. Send the information — including your name, phone number, e-mail and Web site if you have one — to Meridith Ford at mford@ajc.com.