At the age of 17, Bobby dropped out of high school.
After that his dad Bill, manager of the Joe Allen's Restaurant in New York's Theater District,
ordered Bobby to replace in for a sick busboy.
Quite soon, this turned to be a full-time job
where Bobby moved from busboy to being a kitchen helper.
Later then, his boss sent and paid for him
to attend the French Culinary Institute in Manhattan.
He attended this institute after getting his high school equivalency diploma.
After that, he went from being a stockbroker's assistant on Wall Street,
to working for a series of New York restaurants,
most known those of restaurateur Jonathan Waxman.