Final Week Spring Quarter

George Akau-first year instructor

Our last theory practice project is soft pretzels, savory with salt sprinkles and sweet with sugar sprinkles.

We have two quizzes this week, covering the chapters on yeast breads and cakes, and a final on principles of baking in the kitchen.

My assignment is the dining room. The first part of the day we help prepare the food to be cooked by CTO (cooked to order). After our 10am lunch we set up the tables and serve the customers, starting around 11. They say they have many regular customers, ( other than the staff who usually eat their lunch in the dining room), who come in at the same time every week.
One never knows how busy the dining room is going to be. One day the place serves only a few of the house staff and the next day every table is filled. I hear that the only one of the house staff who leaves a tip for the servers is our instructor, George. (His picture is at the top of this post).

Susan, the college employee who manages the dining room, allows me to have lunch with my friend from out of town on Wednesday. I think I'll be back as a customer many times. The food is much better than our cafeteria choices have been, and not all that expensive.

The traditional management course is three quarters. I hear from one of the third quarter management students that he plans to go on for a fourth quarter. He is on a subsidized program which pays his way, and with the tight job market I suppose school feels "safer". Another third quarter management student already has a job in one of the lodges at Mt. Rainier National Park.

The kids on the dessert station have a final day "bake off". They make molten lava cake, (which is literally death by chocolate), with strawberry sorbet and candied orange peel brownies.

Next Monday is the day of cleaning the kitchen, receiving awards and taking group pictures for the archives. I will receive my chef"s certificate by mail because I"ll be in New York City with my granddaughter.

Nineth Week Spring Quarter

Last week the health department inspectors came
to the kitchen and everyone scrambled to make
sure the place was spotless. I hear we received a
just about perfect report. The pizza warmer was
not keeping the prepared slices up to the correct
temperature, so they plan to order a new warmer.
Someone told me that Clark College has the most

money of any of the community colleges in the state, so they can pretty much order any equipment they find necessary. We have two commercial convection ovens that are new, and a 6 burner gas stove showed up in place of a huge soup kettle that was never used.

We are working our way through our heavy textbook, "On Cooking", with homework assignments and open book quizzes every other week. Since the quizzes are open book , I continue to get A's. It would require much more study and memorization if I couldn't look in the book for the answers.

Tuesday I signed up for a banquet from 1pm to 8pm. I decide to skip the day of school because 13 hours is like being a slave...been there, done that, don't plan to do it again. We can miss up to 3 days of school without it effecting our grade.

The only banquet I experience is created for the college alumni. It is held in the auditorium just outside the cafeteria and the food is served buffet style.

Before the event, the students make a delicious dinner for themselves of coconut shrimp, grilled new york steak, potatoes, rice pilaf , green beans, and salad. Worth working the banquet for the unusually good meal!

For the guests, we prepare chicken picatta, tri tip roast beef, manicotti stuffed with

ricotta cheese and covered with basil cream sauce, corn salsa served heated, caesar salad, a huge mixed fruit plate, rolls, and tiramisu for dessert. Some students cook and some set up the tables for 120 people, although there are several empty chairs. We are presented as a group at one point and thanked for our efforts. Because it is buffet style, we do not serve the tables, only pick up the used dishes and take them to the kitchen.
Once again there are too many students for too few jobs and the pace is half time with many breaks-not what it would be in the real job world.
When the banquet is over, and the speakers are finished, we clear the food and dishes and go home. Tomorrow is another day in the kitchen. I get to keep a beautiful red, white and blue bouquet center piece-another little perk to make my time worthwhile.