And Away We Go

Today starts the second half of my culinary education, and perhaps the best of what the education has to offer.

In level 4, we learn to cook for the masses. We will rotate through three stations - buffet, family meal and production. We will also learn the wonderful world of charcuterie (sausages, prosciutto, etc)! Yeah! My first rotation is buffet. In addition to family meal, which is when we cook dinner for the entire school and deliver it to the various classrooms, there is also a buffet every night in one of the kitchens by the restaurant. This is also available to the school, and an alternative for those who may not like the family meal delivered. Today, we are all to bring in 10 recipes, and with our Chef we will try to plan out our buffet stations for the next 2 weeks. Finally, the production rotation is responsible for helping with the butchering for the restaurant, as well as making all the mass quantities of different stocks used as the base for almost anything served with a sauce.

When this level is done, I will officially be off to cook in L'Ecole!!!! I had originally thought it was just in level 6 I got to be in the restaurant, but it is actually levels 5 and 6! So, I will get a full 12 weeks in the restaurant! Can't wait!

Oh, I forgot to tell you all - last Friday, while I was taking my midterm, the level 6 students were hard at work at their final. One of the celebrity judges was Hung - Top Chef season 3 winner! The girls in the locker room before the exam were really nervous because he is known to be VERY critical in his feedback. If I see any of them today after their graduation, I will be sure to find out how it went!