Andrew Blustein

Meet the 91��߹ Alumni Among James Beard Award Semifinalists

ablustein — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 20:18:49 +0000

Meet the 91��߹ Alumni Among James Beard Award Semifinalists ablustein Fri, 02/25/2022 - 15:18 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/91��߹%20alumni%20James%20Beard%20Award%20semifinalists%20header.png.webp?itok=LtbmgUBq Rachel Yang, Mashama Bailey, Shennari Freeman and Ayesha Nurdjaja These seven graduates have some of the best restaurants in the country. February 25, 2022

By Andrew Blustein

After a two-year hiatus, the James Beard Foundation is once again doling out its prestigious awards within the restaurant industry this June. On February 23, the Foundation announced the semifinalists for their Restaurant and Chef Awards, and among them, a number of 91��߹ alumni.

These 91��߹ graduates are receiving national recognition from one of the most prestigious culinary organizations, the James Beard Foundation, despite the uncertainty the restaurant industry has faced in the last two years.

Mashama Bailey (Culinary, '01)

Outstanding Chef, The Grey

Chef Mashama’s The Grey is one of the country’s standout restaurants. Now in operation for nearly a decade, the Savannah, Georgia-based concept was named one of TIME’s Greatest Places 2018, and was the subject of an episode in the latest season of the hit Netflix show, "Chef's Table." Her menu uses regional ingredients to create comforting and creative dishes that have attracted diners from around the world.

Rachel Yang (Culinary, '01)

Outstanding Chef, Joule

After graduating from 91��߹, Chef Rachel worked in fine dining throughout New York City before moving to Seattle in 2007 to open her own restaurant with her partner, Seif Chirchi. Joule serves refined Korean fare using classic techniques, and it almost immediately put the two chefs on the map. They landed a spot to compete on “Iron Chef” in 2010 and have been consistently nominated for the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Northwest. Now Chef Rachel and her partner are in the running for the country’s most outstanding chef.

Pursue your culinary dreams at 91��߹ today.

Mary Attea (Culinary, '11)

Best Chef: NY State, The Musket Room

When Chef Mary took over as Executive Chef of The Musket Room, a Michelin-starred restaurant in Manhattan’s Nolita neighborhood, in February of 2020, she took the bold step of transitioning the then seven-year-old restaurant’s menu of New Zealand cuisine to a menu that featured more global fare.

Clearly, the switch has paid off.

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Helen Nguyen (Culinary, '17)

Best Chef: NY State, Saigon Social

Chef Helen worked in real estate for a decade before enrolling in Culinary Arts at 91��߹ New York. After working her way up at Chef Nicolas Abello’s L'Appart and Chef Daniel Boulud's eponymous two-Michelin-starred flagship, she opened her Vietnamese comfort food restaurant, Saigon Social, in 2019.

Ayesha Nurdjaja (Culinary, '07)

Best Chef: NY State, Shuka

Chef Ayesha is on a culinary roll. Her Shuka offshoot, Shukette, was recently recognized by the New York Times as one of the city’s best new restaurants in 2021. Now she’s in the running for Best Chef in the state for her accomplishments at her first restaurant, Shuka, a Mediterranean eatery she opened in 2017.

Shennari Freeman (Health Supportive, '21)

Emerging Chef, Cadence

Ever since earning her diploma in Health-Supportive Culinary Arts from 91��߹ New York, Chef Shennari’s star has been quickly rising. Her vegan soul food restaurant, Cadence, has earned much acclaim from the likes of the New York Times, Tasting Table, Esquire, Resy and VegOut. Now the James Beard Foundation is recognizing Chef Shennari for her talents, putting her in the running for emerging chef.

Sohui Kim (Culinary & Management, '02)

Best New Restaurant, Gage & Tollner

Chef Sohui is another 91��߹ graduate to be honored by both the New York Times and the James Beard Foundation. The first iteration of Gage & Tollner was open from 1879 to 2004, but it wasn’t until 2021 when Chef Sohui and her business partners brought the iconic restaurant back to hungry New York City diners. Patrons and critics alike are happy to see the famed institution return.

Chefs Ayesha, Shenarri and Sohui were all recognized by the New York Times for having outstanding restaurants in 2021.

Culinary Arts James Beard Foundation Awards and Honors

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An 91��߹ Alum’s Journey to Osteria Francescana, One of the World’s Best Restaurants

ablustein — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 21:02:13 +0000

An 91��߹ Alum’s Journey to Osteria Francescana, One of the World’s Best Restaurants ablustein Tue, 01/25/2022 - 16:02 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/matteo%20and%20massimo%20header.jpeg.webp?itok=QYYxxioI From 91��߹ LA to Modena, Italy January 25, 2022

By Andrew Blustein

91��߹ alum Matteo Lanza-Billetta (Culinary Arts, ’22) landed his dream externship at Osteria Francescana, ranked number one by World's 50 Best in 2016 and 2018, where he even made a standout dish for chef Massimo Bottura.

Matteo worked as a host at a local restaurant in high school but never thought about working in kitchens as a career. “I never even looked at the kitchen to be honest,” he says.

So after never considering life as a chef, majoring in finance at University of California Riverside and working in the insurance field, how did Matteo wind up at at three-Michelin-starred Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy, one of the world’s best restaurants just three years into his newfound culinary career?

Matteo didn’t realize how much he liked cooking until after he graduated from college. He’d watch videos on Instagram of floating hands making random dishes and think, “I can totally do that.” So while he was working in data analytics for an insurance company, he got a weekend job at a local restaurant in San Diego.

He bounced from station to station, moving up from garde manger to hot appetizers to proteins, where he’d stay for two years. Eventually he transitioned away from his insurance job, and decided to take the dive and work full-time in restaurants.

Matteo (left) and Chef Massimo (right)

Matteo and his girlfriend packed their bags and moved in together in Los Angeles, where Matteo would simultaneously pursue a diploma in Culinary Arts at 91��߹ LA and work at Crustacean, an Asian-fusion restaurant in Beverly Hills. At 27 years old, three years after starting his weekend restaurant gig, Matteo was in school pursuing his culinary calling.

“I really enjoy it,” Matteo says. “It's something that I can go and do every day and not get bored with; I like that about this type of work. It's something new every day, and you always have an opportunity to learn.”

Matteo took the shot on his own and applied to Osteria Francescana but never heard back, so he figured he’d extern at Crustacean where he already had a good relationship with his employer. But his girlfriend gave him an extra push, so Matteo turned to 91��߹’s career services team for a little help getting his foot in the door. Suddenly, he was in.

“I knew I could do it. I just had to get the opportunity, and that's why I'm so thankful to 91��߹,” Matteo says. “They gave me the platform to do this. 91��߹ really gave me the support and the push to make it there.”

Matteo grew up in an Italian household. His mother is from Piemonte in northern Italy, and his father is from Sicily in the south. Surrounded by the language and food his whole life, Matteo was set to spend nearly five months in Italy immersing himself in the country’s fine dining culture.

Though he’s fluent in Italian, he had to learn specific Italian-language restaurant slang for common kitchen terms like ‘fire,’ ‘sheet tray’ and ‘lobster claw.’ He said the camaraderie among chefs made for a fun atmosphere, but the work itself was intense.

“It was very fast paced. Everybody really prioritizes speed, and quality, obviously,” Matteo says. “Working with some of the chef de parties, you really have to be on. You can't zone out for even a second.”

Germano, an Eel terrine with crispy chicken skin on top, sauced with sour marasca sauce and foie grass with cherry balsamic.

Matteo prepped chicken skins into rectangles for an hour-and-a-half, which would later be crisped for service and top a final dish. After that he would make all the sauces ahead of service, toast rice for another dish and then whatever the chef de partie or sous chef asked him to do.

But working at Osteria Francescana under renowned chef Massimo Bottura was still an opportunity of a lifetime.

“Overall, it was probably one of the best experiences of my life. I had so much fun,” Matteo says. “Even though you're a stage, they really take you in and treat you with respect.”

Eventually Matteo earned the trust of the kitchen to be the only stage to work solo with a chef; at one point he was even training other stages, a proud accomplishment for him.

Of course, there were some speed bumps. After making a mistake, Chef Massimo, one of the best chefs in the world, raised his voice in displeasure at Matteo. But he didn’t let that bring him down.

Savarin, an Italian Chawamunshi, topped with beef tongue, squash puree, morel mushrooms filled with cotechino and garnished with shaved black truffle.

Toward the end of his externship, Matteo was working at Casa Maria Luigia, Chef Massimo’s hotel and dining experience in Emilia-Romagna. Chef Jessica Rosval, who’s leading the kitchen at Casa Maria Luigia, requires all of her stages there to make a dish for Chef Massimo, who wanted to be served something that represented Matteo as a person.

“My parents being Italian, they’re from totally different sides of the country,” he says. “The food is different, the people are different, there's a very big stigma about North versus South — they hate each other. So, I wanted to find a way to combine the two.”

He immediately thought of bagna cauda, an anchovy and garlic stew Matteo’s mom used to make and serve with raw vegetables. Then agnolotti, a stuffed pasta common in Piemonte, came to mind.

For the south, he immediately thought of tomatoes, and used a technique he learned from Osteria Francescana to prepare them.

Matteo serving Chef Massimo his personal dish

“They blend tomatoes, and then they put them on a perforated sheet tray with layers of paper, and then they just compress it. All the water comes down and you can use that as a broth. So I made that broth, and then I infused it with shallots, basil, oregano, all these different things,” he says.

His north-meets-south dish of stuffed pasta in broth was akin to tortellini en brodo, a staple dish of Modena, where Osteria Francescana is located. To garnish the dish, Matteo topped it with burnt, smokey almonds, nuts that are found all over Sicily. The plate captured the entire country.

The combination of ingredients worked. Chef Massimo liked the dish.

“It was my very last day … and [Chef Massimo] was there and he started saying, 'This guy made me such a good plate today, it was so conceptual,' and like the whole kitchen heard and started clapping. I couldn't believe that,” Matteo says. “Honestly, it was one of the best moments. I kept whispering to myself, 'I can't believe that just happened. I cannot believe he just said that.' And in front of everybody too, so it was a good way to end my stage there.”

Matteo left the Osteria Francesco kitchen in good graces and is now back in Los Angeles relaxing and figuring out his next career move. His ultimate goal is to have creative control of his own Michelin-starred restaurant with a menu influenced by Italian and Asian cuisines.

“91��߹ gave me the preparation that I needed,” he says. “To be organized, to know kitchen etiquette and be mindful of who you’re working with.”

See where your passion for Culinary Arts can take you.

Culinary Arts Externship Italian Food Global Cuisine

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Our Top Five Stories of 2021

ablustein — Wed, 12 Jan 2022 18:03:23 +0000

Our Top Five Stories of 2021 ablustein Wed, 01/12/2022 - 13:03 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/before%20culinary%20school%20header%20%281%29.jpeg.webp?itok=2luxTDHz This is what you our readers enjoyed most January 12, 2022

By Andrew Blustein

Food stories are universal, and here at 91��߹ we want to share those stories, along with our knowledge and expertise, directly with you.

Home kitchens are often the place where friends and family gather to tell stories and make memories. Here are some of the top stories we took from our kitchens that we wanted to share with you.

Four All-Purpose Flour Alternatives

This guide to understanding healthy wheat-flour alternatives was our top story of 2021. 91��߹ Chef Palak Patel shares tips on how to store different kinds of flour, the different properties of each and then shares a buckwheat flour flapjack recipe to help get you started exploring new foods.

What Michelin Stars Mean

Many of our alumni go on to cook at — and even run — Michelin-starred restaurants, but what exactly does that accolade mean?

Michelin stars are considered a hallmark of fine dining, and they’re not so easy to earn. A restaurant can receive between one and three stars, and the inspectors who dole out the honors are totally anonymous.

Things to Know Before Culinary School

Have you been asking yourself if you should go to culinary school? To help you decide, we laid out some basic facts and tips to know before kickstarting your culinary career at 91��߹.

Here’s one piece of advice that will help you thrive in professional kitchens: clean as you cook. Keeping a clean station is stressed in both the classroom and restaurant kitchens, so getting into the habit of being neat will prepare you for your professional career.

Pursue your culinary dreams at 91��߹.

Giving New Life to Vintage Chocolate Molds

91��߹’s Creative Director Chef Michael Laiskonis is an avid student of chocolate history, culture and manufacturing who collects all kinds of food artifacts, including several vintage chocolate molds dating back 100 years or more.

He found a letter and number mold from the 1920s and a rare hinged cigar mold, and then went on a journey to refurbish and mold his own chocolate from these beautiful molds.

How to Cook an Egg

This may sound like a simple kitchen task, but many of you wanted to better understand how to make a proper egg.

91��߹ alum Melissa Lamothe shares some tips and explains why it’s so important to get good at cooking this delicate ingredient in restaurant settings where you could be serving hundreds of them during a busy brunch service.

See our most popular recipes of 2021.

Culinary Arts Pastry Arts Health-Supportive Culinary Arts

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The Culinary Traditions of Kwanzaa

ablustein — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 19:00:58 +0000

The Culinary Traditions of Kwanzaa ablustein Thu, 12/30/2021 - 14:00 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/kwanzaa_HERO.jpg.webp?itok=BfhnCyhv It's a celebration of family, community and culture. December 30, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

What food do you eat on Kwanzaa? Well, there isn't one answer, but there sure is a lot to choose from.

A relatively new holiday, Kwanzaa's origins go back to 1966, during the Civil Rights Movement, when activist Maulana Karenga, Ph.D., made a holiday specifically for African-Americans.

The name Kwanzaa comes from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, which means “first fruits,” harkening back to when people collectively harvested fruit and vegetable crops and gave thanks for the bounty of their efforts and for each other.

“Kwanzaa is based on the many harvest festivals and rituals practiced across the African continent, during ancient and modern times, that would last about seven days, from the end of one year to the beginning of a new,” says culinary historian Tonya Hopkins on her podcast, “American Food History for All…From a Black Perspective.”

There are seven nights of Kwanzaa, from December 26 to January 1, each celebrating a different principle or social value. On the sixth night, Kuumba (meaning “creativity” in Swahili), is the feast.

“While there is no set Kwanzaa menu, it is customary to serve African and African-influenced foods for any Kwanzaa meal,” Tonya says.

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When Tonya was researching and writing about Kwanzaa's food history for the Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, she spoke with Maulana, who said the first fruits and vegetables of the harvest traditionally included the likes of mango, pineapple, oranges, okra, eggplant and yams, all of which were part of the diet of enslaved Africans who were brought to the Americas. So, the Kuumba feast features a central meal typically from the American continent and surrounding dishes from different African communities.

That covers everything from jambalaya and Jollof rice, to Canadian groundnut stew and Philadelphia pepper pot soup, to West Indian and South African curry dishes, and much more.

“It's also a great opportunity to eat and drink together,” she says, “and to explore all kinds of delicious [and] nutritious foods from our bigger and broader culinary heritage.”

Food History Culinary Arts

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How To Pair Wine With Vegetables

ablustein — Mon, 20 Dec 2021 21:42:36 +0000

How To Pair Wine With Vegetables ablustein Mon, 12/20/2021 - 16:42 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/wines%20and%20veggies%20header.jpeg.webp?itok=Cez08fMz Experts explain how to match wines with plant-based meals. December 20, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

Two 91��߹ experts explain how to pair wines with vegetable-forward and plant-based meals.

Pairing wines with proteins is an age-old practice. We know Argentinian Malbec will go nicely with a ribeye, but what vegetarian dish would it pair well with?

Palates are diversifying and restaurants are embracing plant-based cuisine. Three-Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park recently overhauled its menu to go mostly meatless. Three-Michelin-starred L’Arpège in Paris, ranked among The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, has embraced vegetable-forward cooking since 2001. Amanda Cohen’s Dirt Candy, which offers a rotating, seasonal tasting menu and a wine list curated by sommelier Lauren Friel of Boston’s Rebel Rebel, has been leading the movement in New York since its opening in 2008.

So how do you pair wines with vegetable-forwarded dishes, which are becoming the focal point of many dining experiences? First, start with how it’s cooked.

“Sometimes it's not the protein or the vegetable in question, but the method of cooking. Sometimes, you're pairing wines based upon the sauce,” says Dean of Wine Studies Scott Carney, MS. “You're trying to find the key flavor of the dish.”

Enroll in the country’s premier wine program at 91��߹.

Charring locally grown corn on the grill? Trying your hand at polenta cakes? Pair those with something skillfully oaked, like a Grgich-Hills Napa Chardonnay, to accentuate those deep flavors, Scott says.

It’s also important to think outside traditional food group pairings, like matching red wines with red meat or white wines with chicken and fish, says Ann Ziata, Chef-Instructor for 91��߹’s Health-Supportive Culinary Arts program, which explores plant-based cooking.

A vegetarian dish presented for restaurant concept day in Health-Supportive Culinary Arts

“Consider where ingredients originate, what the seasonality of the dish is, the main cooking technique used in the dish and how delicate or strong the flavors of the dish are,” says Chef Ann, who also graduated from 91��߹’s Intensive Sommelier Training program. “Malbec is a strong, bold wine grown in warmer climates, most notably Argentina. In the summer, I would pair this with a smoky, high-heat dish like grilled cauliflower steaks or portobello burgers. In the winter, with a hearty baked sage and lentil stuffed pepper.”

How to pair wines with plant-based foods is a common question among people who avoid meat, adds Chef Ann, who says it’s an easy problem to solve when vegetables are prepared as the main course and not just a side dish.

“Many of my favorite vegan restaurants have incredible wine programs,” she says, which include abcV and Dirt Candy in New York, and Millennium in Oakland. "It’s a very outdated and narrow-minded concept that wine needs meat. Does a steak need a glass of Bordeaux? Yeah, I’d say so. Does a Bordeaux need a steak? Definitely not.”

The menu for restaurant concept day in Health-Supportive Culinary Arts

In 2010, Scott opened Junoon, an Indian restaurant with an expansive option of vegetarian dishes. As the beverage director, he not only developed a wine program for a restaurant whose cuisine does not have a rich history with wine, but he also faced the fun challenge of serving clientele with vastly different tastes.

For those who couldn’t handle spice, Scott would recommend off-dry wines or wines with lower alcohol content. A tendre Champalou Vouvray Les Fondreaux works magic. And for those who wanted to bring on the heat, he’d recommend the Sula Sauvignon Blanc from Nashik, India to amplify those flavors.

“It’s important to listen to your guests to decide what they’re familiar with and gain their trust. That way you can encourage them to try new things and create a memorable experience,” he says.

Overall, whether you’re a carnivore or vegetarian, the general principles of wine pairings remain the same. Wine can either contrast your dish, like pairing something fatty with a high tannic wine to cut through the meal’s richness, or complement your dish, like pairing fresh green vegetables with a Sauvignon Blanc, which is high in methylpyrazines, an aroma compound that smells of bell pepper.

And if you’re going to a vegetarian dinner party and you’re not sure what to bring, both Scott and Chef Ann say something bubbly — like Champagne, Cava or Prosecco — go with almost anything.

“These are fantastic food wines that pair with everything. You can also serve them pre-dinner to start off the night with a little bubbly,” Chef Ann says. “Wine makes a dinner, but sparkling wine makes it a party.”

Study plant-based cooking with Chef Ann.

Health-Supportive Culinary Arts Intensive Sommelier Training Wine Vegetarian Plant-Based

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Meet Chef Shawn Matijevich

ablustein — Wed, 17 Nov 2021 19:41:35 +0000

Meet Chef Shawn Matijevich ablustein Wed, 11/17/2021 - 14:41 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/shawn%20header.jpeg.webp?itok=JCRT3tjZ He’s leading 91��߹’s online culinary arts program. November 17, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

Shawn Matijevich, Lead Chef for Online Culinary Arts & Food Operations, started his culinary career as a chef in the Navy. After spending years in fine dining and education, he’s now come to 91��߹ to guide students through their online culinary school experience.

Chef Shawn’s mother grew vegetables in their family home’s garden in Seattle and sold flowers at bustling Pike Place Market. Despite the natural bounty available, he wouldn’t eat any of the fresh food grown right in his backyard, and instead preferred plain cheeseburgers and blue box mac and cheese.

Growing up, Chef Shawn was far from a foodie, but his mother made him get a restaurant job as a teenager to give him an outlet for his rambunctious energy. Suddenly, food was amazing.

“It was pretty tough to hate food and work at a restaurant,” Chef Shawn says. “You eat something prepared by someone who knows what they’re doing and you’re like, ‘This is what it can be?’”

From that moment on, Chef Shawn fell in love with food, a passion that’s taken him around the world and ultimately to 91��߹, where he’s leading the newly-launched Online Culinary Arts & Food Operations program.

Chef Shawn wanted to go to culinary school after high school but couldn’t afford it, so he enlisted in the Navy knowing the military would cover the cost of his education.

“They wanted me to do something with computers or something to use my aptitude, but I wanted to be a cook,” he says.

As a chef in the Navy he toured 15 countries and cooked for thousands of people. He’d often make chili mac and mashed potatoes — “things that would fill you up,” he says — and fill 80-gallon steam-jacketed kettles to feed mess halls full of hungry soldiers.

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He doesn’t cook at the same scale anymore and now has access to better ingredients, but Chef Shawn has taken important lessons from his five-year stint in the Navy, where he’d leave with the title of leading culinary specialist (for civilians, that’s an executive chef).

“It’s influenced my philosophy. It’s important for me to leave my mark, because it could be someone’s last meal,” Chef Shawn says. “What I created was the only thing they had to look forward to, except for going home. That’s stuck with me.”

After the Navy, Chef Shawn worked as a chef-instructor in San Diego for three years before moving east to work in fine dining in the Washington, D.C. area. He was chef de cuisine at Range by Bryan Voltaggio and executive chef at BLT Prime by David Burke. Eventually he moved back to Virginia, where he spent most of his childhood. He landed a job as executive chef of The Restaurant at Four Eleven York in Norfolk.

From feeding thousands in the Navy, he went on to serve about 500 guests a night at his stops in the capital where his back-of-house staff totaled upwards of 60. By the time he moved to his intimate Virginia restaurant, that number shrunk to six.

Having seen it all in restaurant kitchens, Chef Shawn made his way back to education. But while teaching at culinary school, he faced the now-familiar challenge of shifting from in-person to online lessons.

“When there’s a challenge you can decide to rise to it or run away from it,” says Chef Shawn, who’s bringing his experience of online education to 91��߹.

While the concept of online culinary school may have seemed foreign in the past, it’s now a must, given all the changes throughout the ongoing pandemic. He says the expectations of an online culinary education are similar compared to an in-person one, and it’s an especially attractive option for those who cannot attend classes at 91��߹’s campuses in New York or Los Angeles.

“We’re providing great resources, demos and recipes," he says. "I'm here to coach and guide you."

Chef Shawn has worked in the industry for over 20 years, and he’s excited to keep going and dive into the new world of online culinary education.

“I’ve been able to go all around the world and raise a family, so to help someone else who’s thinking about making a change in their life gain the skills to do that, that’s an incredible job and brings an incredible amount of satisfaction.”

Take online culinary courses with Chef Shawn.

Culinary Arts Career Changer Los Angeles New York City

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Starting a New Career at 91��߹ — After Retirement

ablustein — Tue, 09 Nov 2021 21:22:01 +0000

Starting a New Career at 91��߹ — After Retirement ablustein Tue, 11/09/2021 - 16:22 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/retirement%20header_0.jpg.webp?itok=BoLZidap Rafael Diaz (center) with his final cake Pursing a second career in culinary arts. November 10, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

Many people wonder what to do after retiring. One idea: attend culinary school.

After 31 years teaching in Brooklyn’s Canarsie neighborhood, Mindy Rich retired with her pension in July. But at 55 years old, she was left to decide what to do next.

She’s always enjoyed cooking, saying she makes a “mean chicken soup.” About 20 years ago, her husband needed to start changing his diet, which also changed the way Mindy cooked. Now she makes a mean tofu burger.

She found 91��߹’s Health-Supportive Culinary Arts program, and decided to take some time off before enrolling in November.

“I wanted to give myself a few months, but I sat home and thought, ‘I sit here and I just watch Law & Order all day, and I can't do this,’” Mindy says.

Instead, she came to 91��߹ New York the same month she retired and is now working her way through a program that focuses on sustainability and plant-based cooking. After three decades teaching, she’s now on the other side of the classroom.

“I'm just so excited to learn,” she says.

Students at 91��߹ come from all walks of life, and many have held entire careers before enrolling in culinary school. Some spent years in the military, some come from corporate finance and others, like Rafael Diaz (Culinary Management, ’21), worked in IT for 35 years until finally deciding to pursue his culinary dreams.

Rafael moved to Long Island from Colombia at the age of 11. He spent his teenage years working in restaurants, but after high school he went on to study IT. He said going to culinary school was always in the back of his head, especially when his job was stressful. At 60 years old, he finally decided to take the plunge and pursue a double diploma in Restaurant & Culinary Management and Pastry & Baking Arts.

“Thirty-five years later I realized I’m at a good time [and] a good place where I can retire and start something up,” says Rafael, who’s currently doing his externship in the bakery department of his local Stew Leonard’s.

Since Rafael learned to cook in Italian restaurants in his early days, he decided to practice his pastry skills at 91��߹. His ultimate goal is to run his own food truck (it’s already sitting in front of his house waiting to be fixed up) that serves hamburgers, hot dogs, cheesesteaks, pizzas and desserts like tiramisu and New York-style cheesecake.

Rafael Diaz's Pastry & Baking creations, including his final cake (right)

What has Rafael learned from his classes so far? Everything, he says.

“Everything that I learned I’m using now,” says Rafael. “[In the management class] they teach you how to price things out and how to keep track of your price and your losses. A food truck has a limited amount of space, so I have to be very careful with [both] what I have and what I purchase. [I'm] cooking, taking my time and making sure that if I do something wrong [to] restart, slow down and do it correctly.”

See how you can qualify for double diploma credit.

Suzanne Trice, 48, also enrolled in the Culinary Arts program at 91��߹ after spending decades in education, but she didn’t wait until retirement to finally attend culinary school. Suzanne worked as a teacher, assistant principal and director of operations in Atlanta, New Hampshire and the Bronx, but she couldn’t see herself spending another 15 years in her role waiting for her retirement benefits to kick in.

“I just woke up one day, and I thought, ‘What are you waiting for?’ Suzanne says. “I got old enough to realize: Take that something that you really enjoy doing as your creative outlet and turn it into a new career.”

Suzanne got her first restaurant job at 15 and immediately fell in love. Even while she was an assistant principal she picked up serving gigs, both for the paycheck and the joy she got out of the job. She credits some of passion to her parents: Her dad worked in the hotel business and her mom was a fantastic cook who knew how to throw an excellent dinner party.

Suzanne’s culinary goals are clear. First she wants to work back-of-house at a restaurant to gain experience before becoming a private chef in New York. Second, she'll take those skills and move back up to New Hampshire where she’ll open a provisions store. But to get there, Suzanne said she wanted to come to a place that offers formal training in an environment where she can make connections.

“I'm definitely a lifelong learner,” she says. “So even though I know how to cook really well, I'm trying to move away from some of my bad habits and learn the proper technique.”

Follow your culinary voice at 91��߹.

Career Changer Culinary Arts Pastry Arts Health-Supportive Culinary Arts Restaurant Management

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Kristin Donnelly Dives into Food Media

ablustein — Wed, 20 Oct 2021 13:36:48 +0000

Kristin Donnelly Dives into Food Media ablustein Wed, 10/20/2021 - 09:36 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/donnelly%20header.jpg.webp?itok=P3svgL4p Credit: Vince Camiolo The 91��߹ alum has helped write four cookbooks. October 20, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

Kristin Donnelly (Culinary, ’05) wanted to get into food media but didn’t know how. Then she came to 91��߹, which kick-started her career path. Now’s she’s written two cookbooks and co-authored another two, including the recently released “The Chef’s Garden: A Modern Guide to Common and Unusual Vegetables.”

When people ask Kristin Donnelly what she does for a living, she racks her brain to think of an all-encompassing answer. She works in food media, but that includes a lot. As a seasoned recipe tester, cookbook author, digital publishing veteran and copywriter, Kristin says, ultimately, she helps food brands tell their stories.

Kristin graduated with a degree in media studies from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. After that she took some odds jobs, one as an administrative assistant for an engineering firm and another in public relations.

“I knew I wanted to get into food media, but I didn't necessarily know how,” she says. "And to be honest, I expected it to take a lot more time to try to figure that out.”

Kristin was cooking a lot for fun, and a friend had recommended she go to culinary school. Soon she decided to follow her passion, leaving her odd jobs behind and heading up the coast to enroll at 91��߹ New York.

The 91��߹ alum said that the Culinary Arts program helped her understand the discipline of professional cooking, and that the school’s Career Services team helped introduce her to the world of food media.

Career Changer FAQ.

91��߹’s Career Services team connected Kristin with famed chef and cookbook author Lorna Sass, who was working on a new book. Twice a week Kristin would go to her apartment and help test recipes.

“Taking advantage of the Career Services office is really great,” Kristin says. “I remember when I first graduated, I was always looking at the emails with the jobs [listings]. There were some things in there that you wouldn't find elsewhere.”

Kristin landed an externship at Food & Wine magazine, where she was eventually hired full-time after graduation and would work there for eight years. She’s been freelancing ever since, copywriting for brands like Blue Bottle Coffee, publishing recipes for outlets like Epicurious and, of course, authoring four cookbooks.

Her two solo ventures are the “Modern Potluck,” a 100-recipe guide of crowd pleasers, and “Cauliflower,” which is dedicated to the vegetable’s versatility.

And Kristin has co-authored two more cookbooks, including the recently-released, 600-page “The Chef’s Garden: A Modern Guide to Common and Unusual Vegetables” with Farmer Lee Jones. She’s also working on a cookbook with Caryl Levine and Ken Lee of Lotus Foods tentatively titled “Rice is Life,” that’s slated for a 2022 release.

While she was at Food & Wine, Kristin signed with a literary agent in 2007 and her cookbook journey began. Almost 15 years later, that agent got Kristin on the list of possible co-authors for “The Chef’s Garden.”

“That's the typical process. The person who wants to do the book will meet with a few different writers, and then they decide which writer they want to work with,” Kristin says. “And there have been plenty of books that I've interviewed for and not worked on. So [for] that one, we just had good synergy.”

But you don’t have to have your name on the front cover to be an integral part of bringing a cookbook together. Kristin’s held supporting roles on at least nine other books.

She says cookbook authoring can be a solitary process, and since there are often hundreds of recipes to develop and test, authors are often in need of helping hands. Simply reaching out to your favorite authors, food bloggers or anyone else in the recipe testing game can be a good way to get your feet wet.

“Don't be afraid to reach out for informational interviews," Kristin says. "I would reach out to multiple people to see if they needed help with anything, and wouldn't get offended if I didn't hear back."

Just as she was paired with Lorna Sass, Kristin brought in an 91��߹ graduate who was looking to try out recipe testing. For anyone looking to follow a similar path, Kristin says it’s important to have your measuring tools — kitchen equipment like scales and rulers — to help you become an expert recipe tester.

“Recipe testing is very different from cooking in that you've just got to be really present and really careful and follow things as written,” she says.

Pursue your passions in Culinary Arts at 91��߹.

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How to Become a Personal Chef

ablustein — Tue, 05 Oct 2021 17:23:53 +0000

How to Become a Personal Chef ablustein Tue, 10/05/2021 - 13:23 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/personal%20chef%20header.jpeg.webp?itok=FZ956rPd Credit: Kyle James 91��߹ alumni start their own businesses. October 5, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

Two 91��߹ alumni have recently started their own personal chef businesses, taking lessons from the classrooms into their careers. They explain how they got started and share their thoughts on pricing and kitchen must-haves.

Kathleen Lewandowski (Culinary, ’07) started her career working in magazine publishing as an art director and could often be found styling food for photo shoots. Her colleagues consistently asked her why she didn’t pursue culinary school since her food creations always looked so good. Then one day a brochure from 91��߹ landed in her mailbox. “I was like: ‘It’s a sign,’” she says.

Kathleen, who enrolled at 91��߹ at the age of 42, kept working in media until she was laid off in 2009. That was the push she needed to pursue a culinary career full-time, and last May she started her own health-focused personal chef business, Kathy Is Cooking.

Stephen Lampshire (Culinary, ‘19) was working in ad sales for a science journal in London, eventually moving to America when a position opened up in New York City. But he hated his job.

Stephen’s mother was his culinary inspiration. While his dad was in the army, his mom would cook huge meals for all the officers and their wives. At home she made an amazing lasagna. So when she died of cancer, Stephen thought, “Why am I doing a job I’m miserable in?” — so he enrolled at 91��߹'s New York campus.

“Unless you’re some savant, culinary school is absolutely necessary,” Stephen says. “You have to go and learn the skills and get the advice from people who have worked in kitchens all their lives.”

Stephen took what he studied at 91��߹ and is now applying it to his personal chef business, The Private Kitchen, which he launched this August. He’s still making some of his mom’s recipes, like her moussaka, and is using her 40-year-old cookbook to help him with his new venture.

Culinary school isn’t just for people who want to train to become head chefs at Michelin-starred restaurants. Kathleen and Stephen enjoyed cooking in their personal lives but neither had any professional experience before coming to 91��߹, and neither aspired to work in restaurant kitchens after graduation after completing their Culinary Arts degree programs.

Stephen, who came to 91��߹ in his early 30s, externed at Marley Spoon, Martha Stewart’s meal delivery company, and would work there full-time after graduating. He liked the idea of creating his own recipes so later he worked for a personal chef service in New York. After doing that for two years, he decided, “I could be doing this on my own and keeping all the money.”

Kathleen got her start as a culinary demo specialist at Whole Foods, cooking both in-store and off-site. Her position got axed after Amazon bought the grocery chain, and that’s when she started thinking about running her own business. It wasn’t until a friend told Kathleen they knew someone in need of a personal chef that she would go down that route.

Getting Started as a Personal Chef

Stephen was able to take some clients with him from his old personal chef gig when he started his solo venture. He said the first thing he did was file an LLC and learn how to keep client records and finances.

“What I’m trying to do is just take on a few clients at first, see how it goes and just learn from that,” says Stephen. “Just try and not overdo it straight away.”

Stephen reading from his mother's cookbook (Credit: Kyle James).

For Kathleen, the most important thing she did at the start was hire a good accountant.

“Think about every move you’re making with your business,” she says.

Kathleen got her first client with the help from a friend, but to get — and keep — the business running, she needed to know what to charge. So she called 91��߹’s then-Director of Career Services Maureen Drum Fagin (who’s now Director of Compliance for both NY and LA campuses) to get some advice.

“Alumni affairs have been really helpful in getting some of these gigs that I’ve gotten,” Kathleen says.

91��߹’s career services team helped Kathleen understand what to charge for her work when she first started her business, and 91��߹’s job board was a helpful tool she used to find new clients.

“You can’t start out the gate thinking you’ll be getting over $60 an hour. Now that I have almost two years of experience under my belt I’m going to go into that range,” says Kathleen, who works in Northern New Jersey. “You can’t undervalue your time. That’s the most important thing.”

Keeping clients isn’t all about the quality of your product. It’s also about personality, adds Stephen, who also works out of New Jersey, emphasizing the importance of getting clients to like and trust you since you’re going into their homes. “You can’t just be a good chef. You have to be a switched-on person,” he says.

Kathleen also recommends meeting and speaking with other personal chefs in your area. “Once you get involved with other people, they pass along people your way when they can’t do jobs.”

The Tools You Need for Personal Cheffing

Stephen works out of his home kitchen and drops batches of meals off to his clients, saying it’s more efficient to work from home and that his customers actually prefer he work elsewhere, as kitchens are often a household hub and people can be in the way.

Kathleen at 91��߹.

He says he’s using eco-friendly bags for his drop-offs, and that he’s considering hiring a driver to manage deliveries so he can spend more time cooking in the kitchen.

Kathleen does some prep work at home, but she works mostly in her clients’ kitchens. She’ll bring anything she thinks she might need on the first trip to a client’s home, and she’ll continue to do so until the customer gives the OK to use their equipment.

“If people offer, then I’m comfortable with [using what’s in their kitchen], but I’ll probably still bring my knives, my towels, things I feel comfortable with,” Kathleen says.

Developing a menu is a collaborative process. Both Kathleen and Stephen will go back-and-forth with their clients to understand their likes, dislikes and any dietary limitations to create a custom meal plan.

For Stephen, one of his most essential kitchen tools to create satisfying meals for clients is his cast iron pan, something he uses for searing and roasting meats and vegetables. And since he’s running his own business, he also understands the importance of food safety — how to heat up foods to a certain temperature and cool them down properly — knowledge he picked up at 91��߹.

“All that’s not stuff I would’ve known before coming to school,” Stephen says. “Now I’m on a different level.”

Culinary Arts Business of Food Alumni Culinary Education

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Marc Melvin Goes From Rao's to 91��߹

ablustein — Thu, 23 Sep 2021 13:58:00 +0000

Marc Melvin Goes From Rao's to 91��߹ ablustein Thu, 09/23/2021 - 09:58 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/marc%20header.jpeg.webp?itok=zwKNxKHv This student's pursuing a double diploma while working at the famed restaurant. September 26, 2021

By Andrew Blustein

Marc Melvin (Culinary, '21), has worked at iconic Italian restaurant Rao's in East Harlem for nine years. He's come to the Institute of Culinary Education to pursue a double diploma in the hopes of one day opening his own Italian eatery.

Marc has worked in hospitality for 15 years. He learned the ropes at some neighborhood spots and spent the last nine years working front-of-house at Rao’s, the venerated Italian restaurant with tables reserved for high-profile diners in New York’s East Harlem. Ready for a new challenge, he began to seriously consider opening his own burger restaurant in late 2019, going so far as negotiating a lease.

But something didn’t feel quite right, so before the end of the year he backed out. That proved to be good timing as restaurants around the city and around the world were about to close en masse. Left behind with time and savings that were supposed to go toward starting his own business, Marc decided to invest in himself and enroll in the Culinary Arts program at 91��߹.

“It was the challenge that I was asking for,” he says. “I’ve now had the chance to create relationships that I wouldn't have had if I didn't come here.”

Marc Melvin (center-left) next to Chef Josh Capon at Rao's

Marc didn’t always have culinary dreams. One of eight kids, he grew up in East Harlem, just three blocks from Rao’s. At age 12 he worked for a local butcher and delivered meat to the famous Italian restaurant, not knowing that he’d one day work at the 125-year-old institution.

After graduating high school, Marc said he was lazy, just hanging around the house or with friends. But his family was evicted from their home, forcing Marc to find a job to support them. He’d soon get his first restaurant gig, working 10-hour days into the early mornings and bringing home just $20 a shift plus tips. Through hard work, he’d quickly find his footing in the industry.

“When I got to Rao's is when I realized how much I actually loved it — the service, how you make people feel when you walk in a restaurant. That's when I started going, ‘Maybe one day I can do this,’” he says.

Marc Melvin (back-right) with Chef Bobby Flay

Marc completed the Culinary Arts program knowing he never wanted to be a chef. Instead, he was thinking of his future, realizing he needed to be well versed in front- and back-of-house operations if he were to ever open his own restaurant. He’s since come back to 91��߹ to pursue a Restaurant & Culinary Management diploma, which he says is opening his eyes to the business side of the industry.

“Now looking back, it was a godsend that I didn't open up the burger place because I had never thought about numbers,” he says. “I just thought, If I make a good burger, people will come. I didn't realize how much more there was to running a business.”

Marc has since ditched plans to run a burger joint, instead hoping to open an Italian-American restaurant that features fresh pasta made in-house within the next two years. He hopes that his well-rounded experience and education will make him an attractive bet to future investors.

“There's a passion that drives me,” he says. “I want to learn as much as I can from everyone.”

Develop your food concept business plan with management training at 91��߹.

Culinary Arts Restaurant Management Culinary Education Entrepreneurship

Andrew Blustein

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Marc Melvin Goes From Rao's to 91����߹

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Marc Melvin Goes From Rao's to 91��߹