Too Many Cooks? Yale to Host National Workshop for Dining Hall Chefs First Week of January

Lars Kronmark, chef-instructor for advanced continuing education at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Napa Valley, Calif., will lead a Culinary Enhancement Workshop at Yale University, Jan. 5-8. Twenty cooks and assistant cooks, including four from Yale, will gather in University Dining Hall (Commons) for four days of hands-on training. Asian cuisine, vegetarian and vegan diets, and batch cooking will be among the topics explored.

Members of the media are welcome to come and see how mountains of raw ingredients are turned into tasty meals. This will be a highly visual event. Please arrange to attend by contacting the Office of Public Affairs at the phone number given above.

The workshop will be presented by the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS) and the CIA. Jeff Trombetta, executive chef for Yale Dining Services, is coordinating the effort, the first in the 1999 series of NACUFS workshops. Trombetta serves on the NACUFS committee that organizes in-service programs, and he participated in setting the national curriculum. NACUFS has more than 500 colleges and universities in its membership. Additional workshops in 1999 will be held at the University of Northern Iowa, University of California (Berkeley) and Villanova University.

The Yale workshop will combine lectures and demonstrations with hands-on production. Participants will learn basic cooking skills in a high-volume setting, using equipment and recipes found in a typical college kitchen. Culinary terms, presentation methods, quality control and sanitation practices are part of the curriculum.

Duane Clark, director of Yale Dining Services, said, “I want to make sure our guests are treated well in the best traditions of Yale University. ARAMARK is honored to be the provider of dining services at Yale, and delighted to be the host site for this workshop.” ARAMARK is the company that has provided Yale’s dining halls with food service since September 1998.

Workshop participants will prepare the featured lunch and evening fare each day. With assistance from employees of Commons Dining Hall, under the direction of Commons managers Dan Flynn, Caryn Camp and Ed Bebyn, full-course meals, including salads, freshly-baked breads and desserts will be prepared, served and evaluated.

This workshop trains primary cooks and assistant cooks from colleges throughout the Northeast and Midwest. Four Yale Dining Service employees – Frank Douglas from Trumbull College, Sharon Little from Commons, Sevie Pearson from Pierson College, and Lyle Widdows from Silliman College – will represent the University. Participants also come from Smith College, Williams College, Bates College, Michigan State University (East Lansing), Rutgers University, Brown University, and other schools.

Trombetta can be reached at 432-0415