Happy Holidays! See you in 2013!

We're closing for the holidays with this picture that was taken in Chef Gronert's class a few years ago.

Hope all our students, faculty, staff, and friends have a wonderful holiday season. See you in 2013!

CIC Grad Opens New Restaurant

Were you in school with Nathan Conkle? Perhaps you'll want to visit this CIC grad in his new resto, The Gathering Cafe.

Kristin Hackler wrote in The West Ashley News: "According to Conkle, the menu comes from a variety of inspiring source...s. From Wolfgang Puck to Jamie Oliver, Conkle also drew from his training at the Trident Technical Culinary School and his experience working in area restaurants from Magnolia’s downtown to the Sanctuary on Kiawah Island....

“'I’d say my greatest inspiration recently has been the menu at the River Cottage in England. Overall, I try to keep it simple and health conscious but still in the comfort food style.' ... 'I try to do as much local and organic produce as possible,' says Conkle. 'A lot of the produce comes through GrowFood Carolina, the sausage comes from Kingstree, the eggs are local through Limehouse, the grits are Adluh grits, and the chicken and bison are both from North Carolina.' Even the bread is baked just up the road at Pane di Vida, a bakery that currently sells exclusively to area restaurants.

"The sides, Conkle noted, will also change with the seasons and with demand. Right now the menu features winter favorites such as Roasted Brussel Sprouts, Acorn Squash with Honey and Sea Salt, and Potatoes Au Gratin, but as the weather warms up again the sides will switch out for whatever is ready to pick in local fields."
Check it out. The Gathering Café is located at 1124 Sam Rittenberg Blvd. in the Orange Grove Plaza. For more information, call 297-8380 or visit www.gatheringwestashley.com

UPDATE: The Charleston City Paper notice Nathan's restaurant. Read what they had to say, plus see a picture of the interior. http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/Eat/archives/2012/12/07/gathering-caf-livens-up-west-ashley

TTC Signs on to Participate in Food Composting

According to an article in the Nov. 24th Post & Courier, TTC, MUSC, The College of Charleston, and the Citadel  will be recycling their food waste thanks to a contract with Koeckeritz’s Food Waste Disposal. "So far, only MUSC and the College of Charleston have begun collecting the waste. And they’re doing it on a limited basis. The other two schools are expected to roll out their programs soon. ... To participate, the schools receive 64-gallon containers, which Koeckeritz collects several times a week so that it doesn’t pose a health hazard." Charleston County's food composting facility at Bees Ferry Landfill is the only DHEC-approved commercial facility in the state.

Chef Wilson's Petits Fours Class Offers Clever Final Presentations

Chef Carmel Teaches Healthier Holiday Dishes to Louie's Kids

On behalf of the Louie's Kids organization, on November 3rd., Chef Carmel, and three CIC student assistants, went to Zucker Middle School on Dorchester Road to teach twelve to fourteen year-old students healthier holiday dishes. Chef Carmel selected a chicken or turkey pot pie with a phyllo pastry top and colorful dish of Spaghetti Squash Provencal.

Louie’s Kids is a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization that raises funds to help treat childhood obesity, which afflicts 25 million American children today. Louie’s Kids works to find the best treatment options to meet the needs of each child. http://www.louieskids.org/

Chef Kevin Mitchell Attends World of Flavor Conference at CIA



Chefs Kyle Connaughton, Max Bilet,
Mourad Lahlou, and Gunnar Gislasson.



The Culinary Institute of America held its 15th World of Flavors Conference & Festival at its Greystone campus in the Napa Valley. The conference brought together over 700 industry people and chefs for a three day exploration of  the "Arc of Flavor" which spanned through the Mediterranean and the Middle East to Asia. Seminars, demonstrations, and panel discussions familiarized the attendees with the importance spices have on the  cuisines of today. The 2012 Conference & Festival represented more than twenty cultures and cuisines, including Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, Spain, Morocco, and Indonesia. Each day was capped off by a Marketplace dinner where attendees were able to taste the food from the visiting chefs. 

Seminars that Chef Mitchell attended included Destructing Curry: Mapping Flavors and Spice Mixtures for American Menus; From Mekong To The Markets of South India: Mastering Aromatics in the Asian Kitchen; and Savory and Sweet: Layering Flavors in the Indian Spice Kitchen. Some of the presenters that he heard were John T. Edge, Southern Food Scholar and Author, Director of Southern Foodways Alliance, Oxford, MS; Maxime Bilet, Modernist Cuisine Co-author, Director of Culinary Arts and Sciences, The Cooking Lab/Intellectual Ventures, Seattle, WA; Jehangir Metha chef/owner of Graffiti and Mehtaphor in New York and Next Iron Chef contestant; and Mourad Lahlou, Chef-Owner, Aziza; San Francisco, CA. http://www.worldsofflavor.com/

Tryouts for San Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef Competition

Left: back Will D'Erasmo and  front Michael Wilhite
Right: back Mitchell Cooper  and front Shamona Dunmeyer



On Nov. 2nd, four CIC students tried out for the San Pellegrino Almost Famous Competition: Will D’Erasmo, Mitchell Cooper, Shamona Dunmeyer, and Michael Wilhite. Will was the winner of the competition. Michael was the runner up and first alternate. Chef Instructor Joe Branton (in the photo above left), a former San Pellegrino Almost Famous Competition People's Choice Winner was also in attendance and acted as one of the Chef Judges for the competition. The next step for Will is to compete in the SouthEast Regional on January 27 and 28^th at the Art Institute of Atlanta. The finals are in Napa in February. In the meantime, you can keep up with how other teams are doing across the country at http://www.facebook.com/AlmostFamousChef 

CIC chefs worked toward advanced certifications through American Culinary Federation

L - R: Chefs Miles Huff, Richard Nickless, Bruce Ozga (ACF Trainer), Kevin Mitchell, M. Kelly Wilson,
Ward Morgan, Greg Mueller, and Robert Murray.

On a dark, cloudy day, with Hurricane Sandy churning 350 miles off the coast of Charleston, the American Culinary Federation (ACF) Greater Charleston Chapter hosted the first of two annual practical examinations, where hopeful chef candidates from as far as Bluffton, South Carolina, braved the weather for an opportunity to earn advanced culinary certifications.

ACF is the leading accredited organization in the United States operating the most comprehensive certification program for current and future chefs and pastry chefs. Depending on the certification level, chefs are required to demonstrate expert knowledge in food safety and sanitation, menu development, cooking technique, taste and plating skills. In addition to the cooking practical portion of the exam, candidates must also pass a separate 100-question written exam.

The examination was proctored by ACF chef evaluators Michael Carmel, CEC, CCA, M Edu. (lead); Kimberly Brock Brown, CEPC, CCA, AAC; Elena Clement, CEPC; and Ron Andrews, CEC. The Greater Charleston Chapter celebrated the following passing members: Chefs Charles Arena, Tim McAuliffe, Chad Billings, and Scott Stefanelli, Certified Executive Chef® practical exam; Chef Joe Branton, Certified Sous Chef® practical exam; and Evelyn-Zale-Brown, Certified Chef de Cuisine® practical exam. All six candidates must now pass the written exam in order to obtain their respective certification levels. Congratulations to all!

On the day before the practical exam, a group of ACF chefs came together for Approved Certification Evaluator (ACE) training.  Lead by Bruce Ozga, CEC, AAC, ACE, from Johnson & Wales University, Robert “Mile” Huff, CCE; Ward Morgan, CEC, CCE; Richard “Nick” Nickless, CEC, CCA, AAC, CDM, CFPP; Kevin Mitchell CEC; and Greg Mueller CEC, CCA, CDM, CFPP participated in and passed an intensive eight-hour instruction and mentoring session and next-day exam observation. The group will separately observe three additional ACF practical exams throughout the year before obtaining their ACE status, providing the Greater Charleston Chapter with five additional ACE chefs.

For more information about ACF certifications or ACE training, visit www.acfchefs.org For information regarding the ACF Greater Charleston Chapter, membership and meeting dates, visit http://charlestonacf.squarespace.com.

CIC Chef Instructor Ward Morgan and CIC Adjunct Instructor Simon Andrews Attend Wisconsin Dairy and Cheese Making Symposium

Chefs Morgan and Andrews recently participated in the Wisconsin Dairy and Cheese Making Symposium put on by the Center for the Advancement of Foodservice Education and the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board. Their educational trip was very similar to the one that Chef Stefanelli was privileged to take in May. 

Above left: robot that removes each plank of washed rind cheese, washes it, and puts it back in a new spot. Right: bars of Limburger cheese. This is the only place that it is made in the United States.



Above left and right: Rounds of Swiss, Gruyère, and Appenzeller cheese in the aging cheese at Emi-Roth Cheese Company, a Swiss-owned cheese maker in Monroe, Wisconsin. The CIC uses their Gruyère.

To the left: the silos hold dairy ingredients for the Mystic Valley Dairy Farm in Sauk City, Wisconsin.

Celebrate the Heritage of the Eastside Community and the 50th Anniversary of the Former C.A. Brown High School at Palmer Campus

Palmer Campus will celebrate the heritage of the Eastside Community and the 50th anniversary of the former C.A. Brown High School as part of Spirit Week, Oct. 22-26. Highlighting the week will be a parade and special presentation from the Preservation Society of Charleston to the former C.A. Brown High School on the campus’s Eastside Day on Thursday, Oct. 25.

The week will kick off with the campus’s safety awareness campaign, followed by the Begin with Books Kickoff on Monday, Oct. 22. On Tuesday, Oct. 23, scholars and community leaders will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the book “Between the Tracks: Charleston’s East Side” and talk about new ways to look at the history and heritage of the Eastside Community. The campus’s green initiative will be introduced on Wednesday, Oct. 24, followed by a C.A. Brown High vs. Burke High Alumni basketball game in the evening at Mall Park.

On Thursday, Oct. 25, Eastside Day will start with a parade beginning on Nassau Street, near Ebenezer A.M.E. Church, traveling to South Street, America Street and ending on Columbus Street in front of the Palmer Campus. Immediately following the parade, the Preservation Society of Charleston will unveil a Civil Rights Historical Marker for the former C.A. Brown High School, now the home of TTC’s Palmer Campus. The unveiling ceremony will be followed by the Hampstead Park Celebration.

Friday will conclude all activities with a walking tour of the Eastside Neighborhood, including a visit to the Eastside Neighborhood Association headquarters. Artwork by students, faculty, staff and members of the community will also be on display all week in various locations at the Palmer Campus.

CIC Chef Instructor Kevin Mitchell a Return Guest Chef at Jacksonville Black Expo

Thomas Media Group, LLC, publishers of the Black Pages USA directories, has successfully promoted minority business expositions for the past thirteen years. Known as “Black Expo,” the one-day event has been held in Columbia, S.C. (thirteen years),Charleston, S.C. (eleven years), Jacksonville, FL (nine years) attracting over 800 exhibitors and 85,000 visitors. The year 2011 marked the inaugural year for the Upstate Black Expo targeting Anderson, Greenville and Spartanburg, S.C. This concept was taken from Black Expo USA which was a national event that traveled the country and no longer exists. Black Expo is the largest event of its kind directly targeting the African-American community.

The purpose of the Black Expo is to promote economic development through increased exposure for minority-owned businesses. African-American owned businesses have the opportunity to showcase their products and services to the public and procurement officers from major corporations and government entities. It is also an opportunity for major corporations and government entities to develop viable working relationships with minority-owned businesses while marketing their products and services to a growing consumer market. The Expo is also a forum to educate, enlighten and inspire the entire community and the African-American community in particular. Aside from economic development, exposure to cultural resources is a part of the focus for this event.

Blake Hallman, instructor in CIC's Department of Hospitality and Tourism, featured in TTC's Career Spotlight

We found out that the piece in TTC 's Career Spotlight was part of The Post and Courier's weekly Career Center page. It also featured a picture of Stephen Reyes (below), a CIC student working for the Hotel Operations Certificate and an interview by Hospitality and Tourism Department Chair Patricia Agnew. Congrats, team!

These are some of the questions that were asked of Mr. Hallman.

Q. What is a hotel manager? What does a hotel manager do?

A. A hotel manager is the person responsible for the final decision making for all aspects of the hotel: operations, financial and marketing. He or she is responsible for measuring the success of the property's policies and procedures through financial reports, room occupancy, revenue per available room and guest comments. The hotel manager leads and motivates the management team, typically through daily meetings. He or she also helps set the tone for the hotel's operations.

Q. How do you get started in a career as a hotel manager?

A. The path to the hotel manager's position may vary: some attain the position without an education after working for a hotel for multiple years and having mastered most if not all of the department positions. Those managers who show a strong understanding of the financial side of the operation may be able to speed up the climb to the hotel manager's office. Education can also expedite the process. Hospitality schools, such as the Culinary Institute of Charleston, offer specific career paths that focus on hotel management. There is even a six-class hotel management certificate option that allows those currently in the industry to focus on key hotel concepts while working full time at a hotel. With the hotel industry's focus upon technology, the more education a hotel manager can get on the subject, the better prepared he or she will be.

Q. What advice would you give to someone considering a career in this field?

A. The first step should be to work in a hotel to confirm that you love the industry, then add to that with a two- or four-year degree, preferably in hospitality or business. Tons of baby boomers will soon be retiring, opening up more job positions than ever. Those jobs will go to those best suited for the position. Education and experience are the key to success.

For more information about this program, call 843.820.5090, or visit the Culinary Institute of Charleston online.

CIC Grad Benjamin Dennis IV Featured in City Paper

Chef BJ Dennis Delves into His People's Gullah Geechee Past to Inspire His Future

October 10, 2012  By Stephanie Barna

"As a kid growing up near West Ashley's historic Maryville neighborhood, BJ Dennis (that is, Benjamin Dennis IV) had no idea there was anything special about the area. He was clueless to the fact that it was a historic place where local blacks established a town in 1886, named after an educator and leader named Mary Mathews Just. Maryville was the first model of black self government in South Carolina.

"He didn't know much about Gullah Geechee either, the nation of West Africans that grew a unique culture on American soil. As far as he knew, he was just a regular Charleston kid growing up in a neighborhood that, he says, wasn't ghetto but was definitely hood."

Read the rest of Ben's story of his life through the trenches, as he gets his culinary degree at CIC, and the journey that eventually takes him back to his roots. "At his Sunday pop-up dinners at the Butcher & Bee he's found an eager audience for his purloos and okra soup, including food critic Jeffrey Steingarten, who gave him a mention in his big Vogue story on Sean Brock. 'He called my food "exceedingly savory",' says Dennis, obviously stunned and thrilled by the unexpected attention. Right now, he says, 'I'm just riding the wave to see where it takes me.' Ultimately, he thinks his future is turning diners on to the true Lowcountry cuisine that people, particularly the Gullah Geechee, eat at home. 'That's my biggest challenge," he says, "bringing it back.'" http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/chef-bj-dennis-delves-into-his-peoples-gullah-geechee-past-to-inspire-his-future/Content?oid=4202012 photo credit: Jonathan Boncek.

What Happens When Two CIC Alums Go Face to Face in an Iron Chef!

 

L - R: Chefs Karut and Ondo

Chef Eric Huff



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On September 28th, two CIC alums were pitted against each other in the Southern Living Taste of Charleston Iron Chef Competition. On one side, Lana Restaurant Chef John Ondo (CIC) and Graze restaurant Chef Michael Karkut. On the other, Burwell's Stone Fire Grill Chef Eric Huff (CIC) and Poogan's Porch Chef Daniel Doyle. Ondo and Karkut took the title, but we're told it was a great battle! For the deets, read the Post and Courier account below.

http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20120929/PC16/120929134/iron-chef-competition-showcases-local-kitchen-creativity

Congrats to the Wedding Cake Class for their beautiful cakes!