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.