In the culinary arts program at Nature Coast, students learn by getting their hands floury.
By LOGAN NEILL
Published March 25, 2004
When the 10 a.m. bell rings signaling the end of second period at Nature Coast Technical High School, Peter Diulio's classroom really heats up. As lights gleam across shiny stainless steel surfaces, students in the culinary arts program begin filtering into the huge kitchen to begin what will amount to a two-hour test of their skills.
Kitchen manager Katie McCabe takes the last of the morning's lunch orders and tapes them to workstations while the rest of the class begins preparation.
Across the way, Lauren Dodson and Nicole Bishop help cart out items from a huge refrigerator as the rest of the 25-member crew filters in. By noon, the staff of the in-school operation dubbed "the Restaurant" will have prepared and delivered about 45 meals for teachers and staff throughout the school.
"This gets to be a crazy place in the morning," said Katie, 18, whose job is to oversee the three-days-a-week operation. "It's hectic and hard work, but for a lot of us, it's probably the most fun class of the day."
Begun when Nature Coast Technical opened last year, the culinary arts department has become one of the school's hallmark vocational programs, said Diulio, who was hired to teach the class in October. Diulio, who spent several years in the hospitality business and was general manager of a Holiday Inn in Weeki Wachee, believes that students learn best by doing.
"The prime reason for running the lunch business is so they can get the feel for what it's like working in the food business," said Diulio. "Everything they do here is the real thing. They make their share of mistakes, but it means a lot to these kids that their product is as good as anything out there."
About 140 students are enrolled in the program that teaches everything from proper sanitation methods and safety to advanced cooking techniques.
About 40 percent of the coursework is lecture and book-based, while the rest is gained by hands-on experience in the school's state-of-the-art kitchen.
Diulio teaches his students everything from how to prepare basic sauces to how to bake bread. Though many of the skills are essential to those who plan to work in the culinary arts, Diulio said, the course also appeals to students who seek to become better cooks at home.
"I cook all the time for my family and wanted to learn how to experiment more," said junior Lindsay Kowal, who acts as kitchen manager for the early morning Culinary Arts I class. Though she comes from a family of longtime restaurant owners, she's not sure it's her career path.
"One of the great things about being here is you get to see what it's like," said Lindsay. "Kids who don't like doing hard work tend to find out pretty quickly that this isn't the place for that. You really have to love this in order to want to make a living doing it."
Diulio agreed. He is pleased with how quickly some of his students learned high-level cooking skills since the program began last August. Many have proved their talents by preparing full meals, a requirement to earn their class grade, and those meals were then critiqued for taste and appearance.
"It looks pretty easy until they actually have to do it," said Diulio. The experience is designed to teach students the differences between cooking for themselves and cooking for others.
"If they're going into the business, they have to realize that people are paying hard-earned dollars for the experience of eating something they've created," Diulio said. "The bottom line is that we're teaching kids how to fulfill those expectations, and to be proud of when you do it."
