CULINARY CAPERS
JUNE 2017 Edition
In this edition:
Graduation 2017
2017 Valedictorian: Anna Marano
Joseph Hoare Gastronomic Writer in Residence Announcement!
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE GRADUATING CLASS OF 2017!
The School extends a hearty congratulations to the SCS Class of 2017! We are very proud of your achievements while at the School and wish you all the best in your future endeavours.
Back Row (left to right): Tom Giannakopoulos, Max Thuss, Mitch Graper, Aaron Miller
Middle Row: Dean Pazianos, Jaylen Wickert, Andrea Monzon, Akeela Rabley, Jared Hartley, Megan Hitchon
Front Row: Loghan Chambers, Stephanie Brown, Regina Simoni, Stepfanie Spencer, Jala Vicario-Robinson, Anna Marano, AJ Whyte, Meaghan Evely, Amy Columbos
Not Shown: Hunter Bruce, Nick Schroder, Chelsea Stemmler
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF OUR AWARD WINNERS!
Stratford Chefs School Award
Commitment to Industry & Academic Achievement
Recipient: Anna Marano
Elizabeth Baird Award
Outstanding Achievement Overall
Recipient: Andrea Monzon
John Richardson Memorial Award
Outstanding Achievement | Pastry
Recipient: Aaron Miller
Nigel and Ruth Howard Award
Outstanding Achievement | Business
Recipient: Jared Hartley
Eleanor Kane Award
Outstanding Achievement | Gastronomy
Recipient: Akeela Rabley
Stratford Chefs School Social Media Award
Recipient: Anna Marano
Bradshaws & Kitchen Detail Award
Outstanding Achievement | Food & Wine Service
Recipient: Andrea Monzon
The Vine Agency Award
Outstanding Achievement | Wine
Recipient: Hunter Bruce
Christopher john sinopoli memorial Award
Outstanding Achievement | Larder
Recipient: Stepfanie Spencer
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2017 VALEDICTORIAN: ANNA MARANO
- Anna Marano, 2017 Valedictorian Speech Excerpt
2017 Graduation Award & Scholarship Donors
Elizabeth Baird
Bradshaws & Kitchen Detail
T. Kent Calhoun Memorial Fund
Garland Canada Manitowoc Foodservice
Joseph Hoare Gastronomic
Writer in Residence Fund
Nigel and Ruth Howard
IODE Festival Jubilee Chapter
Eleanor Kane
Bonnie Richardson
Stratford Tourism Alliance
The Vine Agency
2016 Student Support Donors
Joyce M. Abbott
Reya Ali-Dabydeen
BMO Financial Group
Paul Butler
Anurag Chopra
Marianne De Salis
Carol Duncan
Karen Fleming
Chris Giannakopolous
Pia Hachler
Paul T. Hellyer
Alison Howard
JoieFarm Winery
Linda MacDonald
Connie and James MacDougall
Fran and Ross McElroy
Gary Miller
Dr. Dennis and Laurie Nuhn
Pizza Bistro
Christopher E. Reed
Carolyn Schmidt
Gordon and Elaine Steed
Deborah Wrack
Eric Young
Thank you to Mercer Hall and Terry Manzo Photography for providing your services and Stratford Festival for the venue!
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PARENT TESTIMONIAL: JAYLEN WICKERT
Our son began to show an interest in cooking when he was 15. Soon after starting as a dishwasher at East Side Mario’s in London, he made his way to the line and began to cook.
Despite his age, he was driven and loved the fast pace of the kitchen. He pursued and landed a co-op with The Springs restaurant in London, a fine dining restaurant. This co-op led to a permanent position as a cook under Chef Andrew Wolwowicz, a graduate of the Stratford Chef School.
While working under Chef Andrew and producing some of the best food in the city on a nightly basis, our son needed to make a decision on where to get his education.
A tour and interview in Stratford confirmed his research and he enrolled in the 2-year program which began in October 2015.
As parents, we were extremely impressed with the organization and welcoming nature of the school. The Stratford Chef School promised to be hands-on and personal with small classes and many qualified instructors who brought real-world experience to the kitchen. This promise became reality and our son flourished under instruction from top-end Chefs, including many visits from highly regarded Chefs from around the world.
The facilities are world class and allowed him to work with equipment that he will see in the real world.
In addition to the high quality instruction, he was able to connect with employment at Rundle’s Restaurant in Stratford under the watchful eye of Chef Baxter, a world renowned Chef. This experience between semesters has helped mature our son and teach him the level of excellence that is expected of Stratford graduates.
He wrote and passed his Red Seal after graduation and has the goal of working at some of the finest restaurants in the world before eventually opening a Michelin Star restaurant of his own.
Stratford Chef School and the Stratford community were a perfect fit for our son. We highly recommend the school to anyone pursuing excellence in food preparation, especially to begin a career in fine dining.
- Glenn and Yvette Wickert
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COMING UP THIS JULY
- Get a delicious start to your sesquicentennial Canada Day long weekend in a hands-on cooking class dedicated to regional Canadian dishes with Get Cooking! | Canadian Classics. In celebration of Canada's 150th, use promo code CANADA to get 15% off this class!
- Discover the wines of British Columbia and Ontario in Trade Secrets | The Best In Our Own Backyard. A three hour tasting that is as fun as it is informative!
- Learn how to use shortcrust pastry just in time for berry season in Pies & Tarts lead by local pastry maven Tracey Pritchard. All participants will take home the pie they made in a lovely dish from Bradshaws & Kitchen Detail!
- And speaking of Bradshaws, there are more opportunities this July to hone your Knife Skills!
- What's the buzz? The bees are back! Learn about the important role bees have in our food production and the different characteristics of honey with local beekeeper Stuart Arkett in Trade Secrets | Bees Are Humming.
.... and so much more!
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2017 JOSEPH HOARE GASTRONOMIC WRITER IN RESIDENCE
Andrew George Jr.
The Stratford Chefs School is proud to announce its 2017/18 selection for the Joseph Hoare Gastronomic Writer in Residence program named after Joseph Hoare, a former food editor for Toronto Life magazine who died in 1997. Hoare was immensely supportive of young writers interested in food and wine, and this program allows the students of the Stratford Chefs School to broaden their knowledge of food writing. Celebrated chef and author of Modern Native Feasts: Healthy, Innovative, Sustainable Cuisine (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2013), Andrew George Jr., a member of the Wet’suwet’en Nation, will take up the residency in late October of this year.
Raised in the interior of British Columbia (B.C.), Andrew George Jr. grew up with five siblings in Telkwa, in a home with no indoor plumbing or running water. The family harvested trout and salmon in spring and summer, hunted moose, rabbit and deer in autumn and ice fished in winter, he explains in the introduction to Modern Native Feasts. He studied culinary arts at the Vancouver Vocational Institute and began his education in conventional Western cooking. His philosophy of cooking is to choose “local, fresh, natural, organic” products. In a 2014 Post Media interview, George explained that Aboriginal cooking is transforming traditional dishes to make them healthier by lowering the salt and fat content. Chef George has instituted cooking programs in schools in Surrey, B.C. and run summer camps to teach kids how to cook in a healthy way.
On the international scene, George was Head Chef at the Four Host First Nations pavilion during the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and one of 24 international chefs asked to participate in the Culinary Diplomacy: Promoting Cultural Understanding Through Food event presented by the U.S. State department in 2012. George also authored Feast! Canadian Native Cuisine for All Seasons (Doubleday, 1997), Feast for All Seasons: Traditional Native Peoples’ Cuisine (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2010)
Chef George will present a free public lecture, “Eating Words” in partnership with the Toronto Public Library on October 23 at the Palmerston Branch Theatre. Seating is limited, please call Sarah Weinrauch for details 416.393.7013 or email sweinrauch@torontopubliclibrary.ca
The Stratford Chefs School has been training chefs since 1983 and is ranked among the finest culinary institutions in the world. The School has an international reputation for quality cookery, innovation and entrepreneurship. It operates from a state-of-the-art facility in Stratford, Ontario, Canada.
WELCOME TO THE TEAM
Stepfanie Spencer, Administrative Assistant
Stepfanie studied at OCADU in Toronto before living and travelling in Australia and Vancouver. Once back in Ontario, she worked in a number of Kitchener-Waterloo restaurants, including for an SCS Alumnus, which led her to apply at the School.
A recent graduate of the Stratford Chefs School, Stepfanie has been working as a Kitchen Manager for a Waterloo-based catering company and was recently accepted into the Digital Innovation Skills Certificate Program through Wilfred Laurier University.
She looks forward to assisting the next generation of Chefs through their time at the Stratford Chefs School.
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LONG TABLE DINNER
Save The Date: September 10th, 2017
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Did you know?
Students enrolled at the Stratford Chefs School are eligible for up to $4000 in apprenticeship incentive and completion grants?!
Pair those with a Canada Apprentice Loan and pursue your culinary education (and dreams!) at the Stratford Chefs School.
Since 1983, The Stratford Chefs School has trained not only some of Canada's finest chefs, but also some of Canada's finest culinary entrepreneurs.
Apply today and take advantage of your opportunity to train with the best.
Our unique apprenticeship program offers:
- small class sizes
- exceptional training and unique learning experiences with world-renowned chefs
- access to state of the art facilities
- up to $4000 in grants, plus additional scholarships (available by application or nomination)
- a variety of courses in wine, gastronomy, commodities, nutrition, food styling, and pastry
- industry connections with a network of over +750 alumni, sommeliers, and restauranteurs
Applications are currently available for Fall 2017 start!
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Join us for your very own Personal Tour!
A personal visit to the School can be as simple as a Q&A with Admissions, or as involved as becoming a guest in our kitchens for a day.
Sign-up below and let us customize your visit to the Stratford Chefs School. We'd love to show you what we do!
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Stay Connected!
/StratfordChefsSchool
@stratfordchefsschool #stratfordchef
@StratfordChef
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and receive first notice of menus and upcoming events, as well as an insider's look at the SCS!
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A Special Thank You to our Partners!
Board of Directors
Ryan Donovan
Nigel Howard
Timothy J. Leonard
Dr. Dennis Nuhn
Kathy Vassilakos (ex-officio)
Advisory Group
Dan Donovan
Carl Heinrich
Eleanor Kane
Jessie Votary
Carrie Wreford
Photography Partner
Terry Manzo
Scholarship Partner
($10 000 +)
BMO Financial Group
Joseph Hoare Gastronomic Writer in Residence Donors
Elizabeth Baird
James Chatto
Catherine Galligan
Lighthouse Lemonade
Anne Lindsay
Sandra and Jim Pitblado
136 Ontario Partners
Leah Aylsworth
Bradshaws & Kitchen Detail
Anne and Dave Campion
The City of Stratford
Conway Furniture
Employment Ontario
Garland Canada
Ideal Supply Co. Ltd.
Le Creuset
revel
Mcdonnell Carpentry Ltd.
Manitowoc Foodservice
Medici Décor/Design | Ron Nuhn
R. Ritz Architect
Routhier et. Fils
STOP Restaurant Supply
Neil Matheson
Klub Project Managers Inc.
Open Kitchen Partners
$10,000+
Dr. Dennis and Laurie Nuhn
Chef in Residence Partner
($5 000 +)
RBC Foundation
RE/MAX a-b REALTY LTD.
Coffee Partner
revel
Beverage Partner
Black Swan Brewing Co.
Cave Spring Cellars
The Vine Agency
Westcott Vineyards
Curriculum Updates
Elizabeth Baird
Kelley Fairbank
Larry and Gail Folliott
Deanna Horton
Nigel Howard
Dr. Dennis and Laurie Nuhn
Elena Pastura
Probus Club of Stratford
revel
Carolyn Schmidt
Kim Thompson
Stratford Chefs School
Classrooms | 184 Ontario Street
Kitchens and Dinners | 136 Ontario Street
Email: admin@stratfordchef.com
Website: www.stratfordchef.com
Location: 136 Ontario Street, Stratford, ON, Canada
Phone: 519-271-1414
Facebook: facebook.com/StratfordChefsSchool
Twitter: @Stratfordchef