CIA Day 2

Now that everyone is dancing the kitchen seems to be humming along more smoothly. Students are wondering around the kitchen more tonight looking to see what the other stations are making. This is different from when I was here 10 years ago. Then, I felt, you had to keep your head down and get your work done. If you were to talk with other students the chefs would be unhappy due to the noise. I am happy the students are able to learn from each other now.

10 years ago it seemed as though the CIA was going through a transition. The older European chef instructors were retiring. In their places were going young, energetic chef instructors. These new instructors were excited about food. They loved to talk about food. That was very encouraging as I was leaving the school back in 1997. Unfortunetely, I did not have a lot of these thought provoking foodaholics. I had the instructor that liked to stand over you and tell you what you were doing wrong, must of the time in an elivated voice level.

In fact, in the first class where you produce foods that are eaten by the regular student body (intro to hot foods) I had a little Italian chef instructor. This guy was 5 foot nothin' and reminded me of Yoda. He liked to yell. So much so, one day in the middle of food service he has a heart attack! Not the first time it happened to him. Even as he was leaving the kitchen, hands clutching his chest, he was yelling.

Now, the school has chefs like sagely Chef Leroux. We now get to hear his wisdom, if we have question we can ask him for help. If we want to learn what the other students are doing, we just go learn from them.