Newest EI textbook introduces lodging industry

The American Hotel & Lodging (AH&LA) Educational Institute, www.ahlei.org, has published the seventh edition of its textbook, The Lodging and Food Service Industry, introducing readers to the complex lodging and foodservice industry.

The textbook provides a historical perspective of the lodging and foodservice industry and a department-by-department overview of its organization and structure. New material also includes industry globalization, emphasizing China, India and the Middle East; green hospitality and ecotourism; merger, acquisition and conversion activity in the hospitality industry; and job opportunities in the hospitality field.

To order the newest edition of The Lodging and Food Service Industry, by Gerald W. Lattin, Ph.D., visit the AH&LA Educational Institute's Web site.

First CIA transfer student earns degree

The first transfer student from The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), San Antonio, Texas, to the CIA's flagship campus in Hyde Park, N.Y., will receive her associate's degree in culinary arts on Feb. 27. Kaiulani Tellez-Giron is one of nine CIA students who have transferred to Hyde Park in pursuit of a culinary arts degree after studying for seven months and earning a certificate at the college's San Antonio campus.

The ability of students to begin their education in San Antonio and complete it in Hyde Park is one benefit of the college's El Sueño initiative, which aims to elevate the global status of Latin American cuisines through research and education. In 2007, philanthropist Kit Goldsbury made a pledge of nearly $35 million for scholarships and facilities to support El Sueño.

Tellez-Giron will remain at the CIA's Hyde Park campus to earn her bachelor's degree in culinary arts management. She plans to then earn her master's in food science at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.

L’Academie de Cuisine students tour White House kitchen with the first lady

As reported by The New York Times, this past Sunday, while the White House kitchen staff prepared for the Obama's first official dinner (honoring the nation's governors), Michelle Obama gave a select group of students from L’Academie de Cuisine in Gaithersburg, Md., a tour of the kitchen and a sneak peek at some the evening's menu items.

The special invitation, offered to L’Academie de Cuisine's top six students, was part of the first lady's ongoing community outreach efforts. Ms. Obama also reportedly used the opportunity to vocally support local and sustainable food--and to praise White House kitchen staffers, who, she admits, know how to make a "mean batch of french fries."

Click here for the complete article.
(Photo credit: Haraz N. Ghanbari/Associated Press, from The New York Times)

Kendall instructor joins board of Bread Bakers Guild of America

Melina Kelson-Podolsky, a baking and pastry instructor at Kendall College in Chicago, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Bread Bakers Guild of America. A Certified Master Baker, a Certified Executive Pastry Chef and a Certified Sous Chef, Kelson-Podolsky has been teaching for eight years and a member of the Guild since 2003.

"I’m excited to be able to give back to The Guild," Kelson-Podolsky said in a press statement. "If it weren't for what they have offered to people like me, I'd be worlds behind where I am today. The Guild helps you to reinvent yourself."

The Bread Bakers Guild of America is a non-profit organization made up of professional bakers, farmers, millers, suppliers, educators, students, home bakers, technical experts and bakery owners and managers who work together to support the principle and the practice of producing high-quality baked goods. For more information, visit the Bread Bakers Guild of America's Web site.

College of DuPage to host 12th annual 'Traditions in Excellence' event

On April 21 College of DuPage will hold its 12th annual "Traditions in Excellence" food and wine dinner to raise money to improve the school's Hospitality Administration program.

This year's event, which will run from 5:30 to 9 p.m., features a champagne reception followed by a four-course sit-down dinner prepared by the school's culinary students. The College of DuPage also will recognize Gus Vonderheide, vice president of Hyatt Corp. and a College of DuPage graduate. Dessert and a live auction will take place at about 8:30 p.m. to close the evening. Guests will have the opportunity to bid on items such as a trip to Napa, California, including airfare; dinner for eight at home with chefs from the College's Hospitality Administration; and a Jade commercial grade in-home stainless steel oven/stove.

All the proceeds from the event will go directly to the College of DuPage's Hospitality Program and expansion. Expansion plans include a new hotel lab with a hotel front desk, hotel room and reception area; two kitchens; two bake shops; a chocolate room; a bistro; and a new culinary market.

Tickets are $75 each. For more information, visit TraditionsinExcellence.com.

Winston's Restaurant at Sullivan University raises $3000 for Salvation Army culinary program

On February 10, Winston's Restaurant at Sullivan University hosted a fund-raising dinner for the Salvation Army Culinary Training program (SACT), which trains homeless and low-income citizens to enter the workforce in the restaurant and hospitality industries. The event, which was emceed by SACT graduate Valuen Cooper and featured live music by Pete and Pete, raised $3000 for SACT.

The event's five-course dinner, presented by Sullivan graduate chef Timothy Tucker, was prepared by SACT program participants and featured fresh dishes like the "Tower of Hope"--herbed grilled vegetables stack with dried tomatoes, goat cheese and basil oil--and "Braised Salvation Short Rib"--slow-cooked pork served with Caribbean slaw, truffled fingerling potatoes and roasted red pepper sauce.

Chef Tucker conducts classes at the Center of Hope, where he is also responsible for feeding 400 people daily, developing relationships with local farmers and program supporters, and catering and tending to the center's on-site gardens, which supply much of the programs herbs and produce.

For more information, visit www.salvationarmylouisville.org.(Pictured l to r): Timothy Tucker, a graduate of Sullivan University and a chef-instructor for the Salvation Army Culinary Training program, with John Richards, director of the university's Food and Beverage Operations





- Photo credit: Estes Public Relations

The French Laundry through the eyes of a kitchen veteran

by Evan Noetzel

Chef Robert Corey--owner/founder of Denver-based 12 Seasons Personal Chef & Sommelier Services (formerly The French Manner) and a chef-instructor at The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Colorado--has amassed many an accolade during his more than three and a half decades working in both foodservice and culinary education. And now that he's paid his dues? He's taking a well-deserved break ... Well, not so much a break as a research-intensive culinary sabbatical.

As it turns out, Corey is almost half way through a two-month-long stagiaire (a glorified industry term that's French for, roughly, unpaid apprenticeship), working under the Thomas Keller at his world-famous eatery, The French Laundry in Napa Valley, Calif.

Corey, 50, started his French Laundry journey on January 19 of this year and has documented his every thought and experience along the way--from the honor of doning "the blue apron" to his new-found appreciation for "Micro-Hyacinths and sheer-sliced Toyko Turnips"--on his blog: "The Need to Feed--My Sabbatical Journey."

"I think that chef Corey's journey is a refreshing and encouraging story," 12 Seasons executive sous chef Mary Reish tells CET, "about a chef, who, quite late in life, is willing to place ego and familiarity aside in order to learn from the best, with the ultimate goal of sharing his knowledge and experiences with his students, his clients and his staff. This is a story of a successful, inspiring, yet patient chef who has thrown caution to the wind in order to bring the best to Denver."

To follow Corey's progress, view his great photos and read his daily musings--for instance, today a sleep-deprived Corey blogged about fighting fatigue and looking for inspiration for an upcoming "Burgundian Winter Dinner"--visit www.theneedtofeed-mysabbaticaljourney.blogspot.com.Chef Robert Corey at The French Laundry holding "fresh black truffles from Provence, France."