Taking a taste of Google [Back Story]

Silicon Valley companies are famous for using such temptations as foosball tables, weekly massages, beer blasts, pet-sitting services, and other perquisites to lure smart techies. So with Google and Facebook in a death-match struggle for tech talent, you´d expect the perks battle to be epic. And you´d be correct. Google is, after all, the company that took the definition of free food upscale, from popcorn and soda to sashimi and Kobe beef, among other gourmet delectables. So what was Facebook to do? Well, the opening salvo left no doubt that Facebook meant business: It lured away three of Google´s top chefs and one of the pastry chefs. Yes, this is what it has come to: chef poaching.