The Teen Chef Class program created by CulinArt Regional Executive Chef Lindsey Romain wrapped its inaugural series with a tour of the dining services facility at St. Francis College, during which students got an up-close look at the servery, strolled through both dry and cold storage, and practiced their culinary skills in a working professional kitchen.
Romain launched the Teen Chef program last April at Red Hook Initiative, a youth development center in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn, in an effort to create more consistency and structure in the delivery of culinary instruction. CulinArt chefs leading classes on various kitchen fundamentals—including preparation of complete meals from raw food to final plate—included Romain; Henrick Chen, executive chef at Keio Academy; Josh Moulton, executive chef at Baldor Specialty Foods; and Isaiah Haughton, chef at St. Francis College.
Following the tour at St. Francis College, Haughton led a class in which students worked at garde manager, saucier, and grillardin stations, preparing Jerk Chicken with Rasta Pasta and trying their best to bring their pasta down al dente. They learned some other lingo as well—“FIFO,” as in storage; and “Behind,” as in alerting coworkers that they are nearby.
“By the end of the class,” Romain says, “some students were asking about scholarships at St. Francis College and working in the kitchen over summer break. I would like to thank the entire team at St. Francis—including [Director of Dining Services] Chris Foti, [FOH Supervisor] Melody DeJesus, Chef Isaiah, and [Grill Cook] Momodou Camara. The class was informative, and the youth members had so much fun!”
With four sessions and the tour behind her, Romain intends to assess program, gather participating chefs’ feedback, and fine-tune the program for its next staging. Click here to learn more about RHI and reach out to Lindsey at [email protected] to lend a hand.
