Let Us Know What You Think @TRSatWHC
Camari Mick, Class of 2015
A Note From President Liberatoscioli As each new season comes around, I always ask myself about new opportunities, technologies and strategies that will advance Walnut Hill College as an innovative institution among other colleges and influencers in our ever-changing hospitality industry. Each year, the management, faculty and staff at Walnut Hill College look at technological, academic and industry trends that will enable our students to learn more effectively and efficiently throughout their college careers. This year, one of the initiatives that has presented itself through research is the move towards expanding our Main Dish Magazine and making it GREEN by going fully digital! Through your readership support, we see an opportunity to bring you even more content and information about our students, the industries where they work and, of course, our valued alumni stories. In doing so, we think the best and most efficient way to get all of this goodness to you is to do it through your computer screen and/or your smart device, which you are probably using to read this magazine right now! As the future leaders of our industry, we have a responsibility to find new and exciting ways of being sustainable, modern and most importantly, relevant. We have found our digital path and with that, we hope that you will support our “green� journey and keep reading!
Daniel Liberatoscioli President Walnut Hill College
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Spring 2014
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FORAGING
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SPRING CLEANING
Update & Upgrade: A Guide For College Students
Contributors:
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SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT
Daniel Liberatoscioli | President
A Starter Guide For Local Foraging
Celebrating Food & The People Who Create It
13 16 LOCAL THYME 20 LAUNCHOLOGY 2015 22 ENTERPRISING ENTREPRENEURS 25 HAVE YOU HEARD? BUSINESS OF BEEKEEPING
Adventures in Beekeeping: One Sweet Afternoon
Working with Community Supported Agriculture
WHC Gives A Rundown Of What Was Said & By Who
The Enterprise Center Connection & Scholarships
C’mon, you know you love the gossip.
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Valery Snisarenko | Editor-in-Chief Kelly Vass | Senior Editor Madeline Copp | Associate Editor Rebecca Schwartz | Student Writer
To Submit A News Story: Contact MainDishMag@ WalnutHillCollege.edu
A Starter Guide To from WildFoodies.org In the wild, foraging is an essential part of survival and the reproduction of an organism. In fact, scientists correlate the amount of fitness with the nutrition that an animal can get out of foraging and how that effects its longterm survival. According to wikipidia, “in times of crisis such as depletion of resources, animals will gain from having foraging innovation abilities to survive.”1
Lynn Landes is the founder of Wild Foodies of Philly, one of the largest “wild edibles” foraging & education Meet Up groups in the world. Wild Foodies is a group of wild food enthusiasts who got together in the summer of 2010 to learn more about everything having to do with foraging. The group was founded in response to concerns regarding the use of GMOs, chemicals and other farming practices. Wild Foodies offers the ability for anyone, group or organization, to announce a meetup if they are within 50 miles of Philadelphia! Additionally, Lynn offers FREE tour leader trainings and leads private tours on weekdays for students, chefs and other interested groups. (http://www.wildfoodies.org/).
For those of us who are not living in the wild, foraging may seem like a strange activity, since, technically, it is unnecessary. But, alas many of the modern day chefs have brought the idea of foraging to the forefront as a method of expanding on the true “Farm To Table” experience. Chefs, cooks and those close to the food industry have been foraging for years as a means of introducing their diners to local, unique and fresh ingredients - and hoping they create a new experience for their customers as well as themselves. Here we have sampled information from www.wildfoodies.org to give you a quick guide on how to get involved! Wild edibles come in a wide variety of flavors: bland, bitter, sweet, sour, spicy, mustard, garlic, onion, pepper, mushroom, etc.. The same plant can taste differently depending on soil conditions, time of year, time of day, etc.
Upcoming MeetUps Tue, March 10 @ 6 pm New Spring Garden Market Wild Food Tours Philadelphia, PA Fri, March 13 @ 10 am Family Foraging @ Manasquan Reservoir Manasquan Reservoir, Howell, NJ
Some people say to forage in the morning when plants are at their best.
Local Food Foragers David Siller - www.yosoybean.com Sarah Murray - stellaloufarm.com/category/events Christopher Brown’s BLOG - foundationalskills.tumblr.com Dan of Princeton, NJ area - returntonature.us Vicki A. Hagel, Esquire - www.ColonialPlantation.org Tama Matsuoka Wong - www.meadowsandmore.com
Local Groups
Avoid certain areas, such as next to roads, former industrial areas, etc.. Lead contamination from cars or house paint can make plants taste sweeter. If you want to grow plants for food, have the soil tested. If it is contaminated, there are plants that can re-mediate the soil over time.
Make sure that whatever you eat raw, is safe to consume. Otherwise, boil or cook it. Always be sure of what you are eating. If you think you know, also look up “poisonous look-a-likes”. If you haven’t positively identified it, don’t eat it. If you want to try it anyway, check out this website -- http://www. wikihow.com/Test-if-a-Plant-Is-Edible
Sat, March 14 @ 9 am Rancocas Creek - Forage On.. . Joe’s Yard - Mount Holly, NJ Sat, March 14 @ 9 am Foraging and Tracks Allaire State Park, Wall, NJ more on site.
http://www.meetup.com/Wild-Foodies-of-Philly/ (Lynn Landes) http://www.meetup.com/Nature-Studies/ (Hugh Brenner) New Jersey Mycological Association (mushrooms!) http://www.meetup.com/Philadelphia-Mushrooms/ Mycological Association of Greater Philadelphia 1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foraging http://www.meetup.com/Wild-Foodies-of-Philly/
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Spring Cleaning By: Valery Snisarenko
Update and Upgrade: A guide for college students.
New Beginnings Spring is a time for blossoming trees, more hours of sunshine and a renewed energy about the year ahead.. It's also an ideal time for one of your dreaded activities - cleaning! But, before you skip to the next article, give these tips a chance. We know that many of you don't have the best idea of where or how to start the cleaning process...and that is why we are here to help you on your journey! We have identified the Top 3 areas where you NEED to get organized and how to tackle each of those areas. And remember, the best way to avoid cleaning is by keeping your space clean! Organization is the key to life! 4 6 www.walnuthillcollege.edu
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update your image INSTAGRAM - If your profile is public and images on your account make your mom and dad squirm, it's time to delete. Employers definitely take your personal life into account when making a decision to hire and to fire. FACEBOOK - Your friends like to tag you in photos and that seems cool - but not for your future employer. Make sure to untag yourself from any unflattering photos. Stat. TWITTER - 140 characters doesn't seem like it would be enough to ruin your future - but it is. If you have posted anything controversial or offensive, its time to put your big boy/girl pants on and DELETE! LINKEDIN - This social media site may be your best friend or your worst enemy when pursuing your career. Make sure your photo is professional and that your information is up to date, including education, work experience and volunteer jobs.
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clean your workspace
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DELETE Old Files - Chances are your desktop screen looks like someone made it rain - with files. Organization will keep you sane and the best way to get there is to delete those one sentence docs - trust us, they will never win you a Pulitzer. DECLUTTER Pesky Papers - Admit it, you are a hoarder of papers. It's OK, it's normal. But, everything is good in moderation. Only keep the papers that are very important or that you are proud of, everything else is just taking up space.
tidy your dorm REARRANGE Your Dorm Room - A great way to solve the problem of a boring and uninspiring room is just to rearrange your furniture and/or get a new sheet set & pillows - get a room in just a few hours (or minutes if you are Hercules!). SELL Old Textbooks & Things - A great way to clean and make $ is to sell your old stuff online, at a store or through a yard sale. Check your local area consignment shops or post your stuff on-line. But make sure to price fairly! Remember it's always better to make some $ than let stuff pile up!
CLEAR Your Mind - The most essential part of organization is clearing your mind of clutter. Meditation, yoga or just a jog can help you prioritize your life and prepare you for the year ahead.
DONATE Clothes You Don't Wear - Donating your clothes is not only good for those who are less fortunate, but also a good method of increasing your financial fortune. Some shops give you a slip that either you or your parents can use towards tax refunds. You're Welcome!
Create a Cleaning Schedule
3 Tips To Staying Organized
By Kelly Vass
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Slow Food is an international movement which “links the pleasures of the table with a commitment to protect the community, culture, knowledge and environment that make this pleasure possible.” Begun in Italy by Carlo Petrini, it is a grassroots membership organization that seeks to protect the environment, encourage sustainable growing practices and promote small growers and food artisans. Its mission is “good, clean and fair food for all” and its educational lectures, programs and events seek to provide learning opportunities and connect people to the small farmers and food craftsmen who create their food. I sat down with the President of Slow Food Philadelphia, Joe Brandolo, to discuss the organization, sustainability and how students can get involved with the Slow Food movement.
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JOE BRANDOLO FROM SLOW FOOD PHILLY WHAT IS THE SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT AND WHAT ARE SOME OF THE AREAS OF FOCUS HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED WITH SLOW FOR THE PHILADELPHIA AREA? FOOD PHILADELPHIA? The Slow Food Movement began in Italy when Carlo Petrini saw a McDonald’s at the foot of the Spanish Steps and in this moment realized that there’s a transformation going on in Europe…not just that fast food has arrived, but that they are going to begin to become like every place else. They’re going to become homogenized. It was a big fear that dovetailed with the formation of the European Union. Despite joining, a lot of these countries still wanted to have their own identities and Slow Food gave Petrini a platform to be able to get governments to recognize that Tuscany isn’t Tuscany if tourists can’t come and eat Tuscan cheeses and drink Tuscan wines. If they lose tourism, they’re doomed because Europe is not the most industrialized region in the world. So really every country is centered on food, culture and everything in between and Petrini realized how important it was to preserve these traditions. Slow Food is all about where your food comes from. It has very little relationship to fast food. It’s kind of a misnomer. I’ve had people ask me whether Slow Food is the opposite of fast food, or if it’s eating slow. It’s not any of that. It’s a matter of getting people to remember where their food comes from and how their food is produced. It has a lot to do with the quality level and with things that are done sustainability, how the field workers and employees are treated. It’s expanded its scope over the years through Terre Madre. It’s expanded to include a lot of specific projects relate to certain needs in specific places. For example, 1000 Gardens in Africa was created because industrial farming was beginning to overtake small farming in villages as people were moving to the city. Therefore, this agrarian lifestyle was beginning to disappear. In India, however, projects are different. In Japan, they deal with organic tea growers… it’s really all about celebrating where your food comes from and the people who create it. I got involved about 15 years ago when I went to my first Salone de Gusto, which happens every two years in Torino, Italy. It’s a two-fold event, composed of Salone de Gusto and Terre Madre. The former is the world’s largest food and wine fair. The latter is an international conference with international delegates who go to various events, tasting workshops and talk about the agenda that Slow Food internationally would like to work on over the next two years. So I went to Salone del Gusto and was totally impressed with the concept, having basically started my career in hospitality (front of the house). I’ve always been interested in food and wine, but mainly where our food comes from and where it’s produced—whether it’s the vineyard owners or the families that own the small farms, as opposed to the big corporations and industrial farming. 10
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Philly is a unique situation when it comes to agriculture, because as a region, we’re completely surrounded on all sides by farming—from West Chester County west of us to Bucks County in the North, New Jersey to the East and Delaware and Maryland to the South. Outside of some of the commercial growers who were growing in South Jersey at one time for Campbell’s, most of the farms that are growing now are small, family farms. There’s also this connection to the respective state universities. If you’re looking at New Jersey, for example, they have Rutgers University, which has a great agriculture department that works with Jersey farms to not only be profitable, but to also be profitable in a sustainable way. There’s a big connection to the academic world and innovation, showing farmers what crops they can grow to make them more profitable, so that they don’t have to become industrial farmers. We do the same thing here in Pennsylvania. We have PASA—Pennsylvania Association of Sustainable Agriculture. These organizations that are part of a network to provide education and various other resources to help them to be profitable. When I got involved, our chapter (Philly) had become sort of a dinner club, which is what had happened to other chapters in the US. These dinner clubs were great because Slow Food would take over a restaurant for the night and you could go to dinner where a chef would prepare a great meal for you. While that’s all well and good and it fits into a certain portion of our theme, it didn’t provide an educational connection. What I wanted to bring to the chapter was not only the educational component, but also a celebration of restaurants who actually are doing the right things, like buying from local farmers through Zone 7 or Common Market. We researched it and created a Snail of Approval Program, which recognizes farmers, caterers, farmers markets, food trucks and restaurants who are doing the right thing. We also do advocacy events. For example, we’re showing a documentary of the Slow Food story. It’s an evolution of Carlo Petrini and how he worked his way in through government channels to connect Slow Food in Europe. Petrini was able to appeal to governments to put money into culinary schools in Europe. They teach everything from farming to cheese making and charcuterie down to bread baking and pastry. They have a much more rounded curriculum (than some schools in the U.S.). So the government stepped in and regents stepped in, various sponsors stepped in like Lavazza coffee, as an example. It really was an interesting dynamic because, by getting these large companies involved, it really made the companies think about where they were getting their product from and to commit to only buying fair trade coffee. It made them more responsible citizens, so it became a symbiotic relationship.
It was a long process to get started—it took about 15 years to begin to get wineries recognized and to elevate the wine regions and quality of wines coming out of those regions by coming out with a publication called Gambero Rosso. Most presently, we have Eataly, which is in several cities around the world and was started in Torino as part of the Slow Food project. They opened up a store revolving around the Slow Food concept and it’s all inclusive, in other words, it has bread, wine, cheese and everything you’d want in a grocery store, except that it’s all small booths as opposed to one giant supermarket. Everything is broken down and it’s all artisanal and made by one bread maker or one wine company. Those are some of the projects that have developed commercially.
and discount stores carry products that are better for the environment, whether it’s cleaning products or humanely raised pork. It may cost a little bit more, but it’s an effort to make an extra step that’s important.
Joe Brandolo, President, Slow Foods Philadelphia
WHAT ARE SOME EASY WAYS FOR YOUNGER PEOPLE (STUDENTS) TO GET INVOLVED IN THE SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT OR HOW FOOD IS MADE? There are lots of opportunities to visit local farms. Wyebrook Farm in Chester County is a perfect example. There’s a gentleman who made a lot of money at a young age and decided he wanted to be a farmer so he brought some people on to help him raise chickens, cows, pigs and goats. There’s Stryker Farm up in the Poconos. There are a pretty fair amount of farms you can visit so you can see what free-range actually really means and to see the difference when you cook a free-range chicken as opposed to an industrial-raised chicken.
“I’ve had people ask me whether Slow Food is the opposite of fast food, or if it’s eating slow. It’s not any of that. It’s a matter of getting people to remember where their food comes from and how their food is produced. It has a lot to do with quality and sustainability”
There’s also plenty of urban farms here in Philly and they’re springing up everywhere. There’s a great opportunity to help out, volunteer at their farmer’s market or rent space. A lot of the urban farms here in Philly do seminars; I’d definitely recommend Greensgrow. They have a satellite farm here in West Philadelphia. They do classes on everything from urban farming to beekeeping and candles.
Sustainability has nothing to do with organic. When you talk to traditional European growers, especially wine-makers, they’ll tell you for them to try to do completely organic wines can be extremely expensive and risky. They need to produce a crop every year because if they miss a vintage, they’re in trouble. So, for a wine-maker, [sustainability] doesn’t mean that they have to do all of the applications of pesticides available, but if there’s something that their crops need, like getting rid of mildew on the plants, then there’s a certain amount of manipulation that may need to occur only to have a successful crop. But, keep in mind it’s done minimally and responsibly so the end result is not over-the-top affected like we would get with industrial farms. For example, I’m in the wine business and I prefer European wines because so many of them produce sustainably, meaning with little manipulation and only as much as they have to use to get a successful crop. So, sustainability doesn’t necessarily mean organic.
WHAT’S YOUR PERSONAL DEFINITION OF SUSTAINABILITY? It’s having a complete awareness of what it is that you are doing and how you are living your life. I think that most people think that sustainability, in some ways, is a foreign concept. But really, it’s a practice. It can be something as simple as recycling. It takes a little extra effort to do that, but it’s a start. For me, it started as a kid—I’ve always had a culinary garden. And then later on, as an adult living in a place without my own outdoor space, I became part of a community garden. I always felt compelled to want to grow the foods I eat because I like better quality ingredients like heirloom tomatoes. However, it was also a way for me to connect with a part of my lifestyle that was important to me like raising good food for myself. There are opportunities that you have to think about, like conserving water, or driving a hybrid car. You have to look at what you do and think about what you do. Even buying green products is easy these days because supermarkets
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SUSTAINABILITY AND ORGANIC?
WHAT’S NEXT FOR SLOW FOOD PHILADELPHIA In April, the Philadelphia Chapter is doing the Slow Food story and we’re inviting local businesses and organizations to table at the event, like Greensgrow Farm, PASA, and Urban Farmers. We’ll present an awareness aspect to this event. We’re calling it Terra Madre Day and it’s just a way of us bringing in a half dozen organizations that are doing the right thing that you can check out before you go see the movie. WINTER/SPRING 2015 11
EVENTS CALENDAR MARCH 2015 $25 Eco-friendly / Green / Natural Wines Tasting & Seminar March 25 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College 4207 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19104 Slow Wine was a transformation that evolved because rating systems judged wine by their flavor profiles without consideration for how the wines were being produced. Slow Wine’s evaluation team visited the wineries to confirm the growers practices. Eco-friendly can refer to grapes grown organically, bio-dynamically, or sustainably. All wines are “natural” so a non descriptor that generally refers to the use of low or no sulphites, a necessary stabilizing agent used in many foods, highly regulated, and a very small… (read more here) APRIL 2015 Celebrating Terra Madre April 29 @ 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm The Rotunda 4014 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19104 Movie Screening “The Slow Food Story” a documentary following the founding of the movement by Carlo Petrini, in a town in Northern Italy, that has now spread around the world. We are inviting Urban Farming Organizations from around the region to man tables so if you are looking to volunteer or join a CSA here is your chance to meet leaders in our region. We will follow the movie screening with an onstage Q & A Forum discussion. (read more here) MAY 2015 $25 Herbs and Beer May 6 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill- College 4207 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19104 Tickets go on sale in April. We decided to merge two seminars in one. Since it is gardening season we decided to have an herb growing seminar but since that was not enough we have asked Victory Brewing to join us and taste some of their beers, particularly their herb infused beers. This one should sell out quickly so stay tuned! (read more here)
learn more at: www.slowfoodphilly.org 12
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SUMMER 2014 15
#bees Adventures in Beekeeping: One Sweet Afternoon By Kelly Vass WINTER/SPRING 2015
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BEEKEEPING If anyone knows about bee character, it’s Don Shump. As owner of the Philadelphia Bee Company and head beekeeper at Greensgrow Farms, he has managed over 40 hives in West Philadelphia, Queen Village, Kensington and Old City for the past six and a half years. Whether he is lecturing at the Free Library, answering questions of passing children or inspecting his beloved hives, he talks about the bees as if he knows each one individually. Female worker bees comprise roughly 58,000 of the 60,000 bees in a hive. As the burly beekeeper shakes bees off of frames, he coerces gently, “Off ya go, girls!” When he adds a new box to the hive for comb-making, he challenges, “C’mon ladies, let’s see what you can do!” For three months of the year, Don’s brain is pre-occupied with nectar flow, the critical period between April and June when flowers and nectar sources are in bloom and the weather is favorable for bees to forage. While many parts of the country get a fall flow as well in September and October, Pennsylvania is not as lucky. Philadelphia’s bees collect the majority of pollen and nectar in April through June so Don continually checks on “the girls” to make sure they produce enough honey to last the winter. Nectar is high in water content. To create honey, bees beat their wings, creating heat in the hive and evaporating water in the nectar. Amazingly, bees know exactly when the nectar has dehydrated enough and begin capping the cells with wax to preserve the honey for winter when water levels drop below 14%. Because of Philly’s botanical history and the plethora of patio & rooftop gardens, community gardens, parks and weeds growing in the city, there is no single source for nectar. Therefore, Philly’s honey can only be classified as wildflower honey. Still, this makes for an ideal situation, as the biodiversity provides for a complex array of flavor notes and colors within the comb. In fact, this range of vegetation also makes urban honey taste better than honey from 14 www.walnuthillcollege.edu
the suburbs. In Don’s experience, the manicured lawns and smaller variety of flowers, results in honey flavors that are one-note. “Philly is a natural smorgasbord for the bees. When I see an empty lot filled with dandelions, I do a jig!” he says, his face lighting up with a smile. “Honey is like wine. There are so many nuances and subtle notes. The flavors change with each harvest, even from frame to frame.” Don recalls how his first year saw hot summers and resulted in floral notes that, as he put it, “punched you in the face.” The following year was especially rainy and the bees’ honey reflected the mellow weather, producing a smooth, buttery honey with evenly balanced notes. With so much talk about flavor notes and viscosity, I was anxious to try some of the golden elixir I had heard so much about. I had come to the Southward/Queen Village Community Garden to see the hives and taste some honey, but to do so, I had to pass muster with Don’s mentor, Carolyn Scott. When Don introduced Carolyn, she exhaustedly walked over and plopped down in a lawn chair next to him, letting out a sigh, as if we were inconveniencing her. When asked what advice she would give
beginner beekeepers, she gruffly retorted, “Don’t start.” Carolyn began working with bees eight years ago when the beekeeper at the community gardens announced he could no longer take care of the bees. “I thought it would be a challenge,” she recalls, shaking her head. “I had no idea what I was getting into.” Without much instruction, she was left to figure out beekeeping on her own, including learning to repair broken frames and treat bees for diseases. In addition to navigating these problems, Carolyn had another battle with the bees themselves. A self-proclaimed control freak, she learned early on that bees are unpredictable. “They’re far from consistent. They can either be exciting or frustrating, depending on the week they’ve had and depending on the week you’ve had.” As she opens up about bees, her demeanor changes. “They’re fascinating creatures.” She smiles. “They are one of the most sophisticated societies known to man—they have a hierarchy of labor, nurse bees, workers, foragers, drones, the queen and even undertaker bees.”
STUDENT ACTIVITIES She pauses for a moment and then asks, “Do you want to help us harvest honey?” Within minutes, I am wearing a netted hat, silently assured that I have received Carolyn’s coveted approval. Don and Carolyn inspect the hive, looking for brood and making sure it is deemed “queenright,” meaning that the queen is alive and laying eggs. Don and Carolyn inspect the hive, looking for brood and making sure it is deemed “queenright,” meaning that the queen is alive and laying eggs. The honey house is a wooden shed on the property of Southwark Bella Vista Community Gardens. At center stage is the star of the honey harvesting operation: the extractor, a shiny circular metal vat that is bolted to the cement floor. Frames are pulled from their boxes and uncapped by running a hot blade over the wax honeycomb to open the cells. Don attempts to use the blade before it is completely heated up and it stutters across the comb like Morse Code. After a few moments, it reaches the appropriate temperature and honey bubbles across the blade. A trail of smoke singes through the air wafting carbon through the small space. Next it’s onto the forking. An ordinary household fork is scraped quickly across the surface of any sunken cells, ensuring that every last drop of honey is extracted from the comb. Finally, the frames are placed vertically in the extractor, ready to take a spin. The extractor uses centrifugal force to draw the honey away from the comb and onto the sides of the machine. Therefore, it is vital that the frames are placed evenly as to not damage the cells. Comb is just as valuable to beekeepers as honey because bees consume eight pounds of honey for every one-pound of wax they make. When the frames have been checked, Carolyn bestows upon me the highest honor: I get to start the extraction process. I turn the dial to 10% of the extractor’s speed, creating a gentle whirring as the frames begin to spin. Anticipation builds as the dial turns to 20% and the whirring gets louder and faster. Then 30%, 40%, 50% and finally, at 60% we are at the fastest speed Don and Carolyn have ever spun. Even more im-
pressive, within a few moments, a stream of viscous liquid gold has begun to make its languid descent out of the spout at the bottom of the extractor: the honey harvest has begun!
ders, he jovially answers without hesitation. “Beekeeping is prooobably the coolest thing you can do. It’s a blast. I highly recommend you get into it.”
As the machine keeps spinning, more honey is forced out at a time and it must be strained as it is collected in a bucket. I suddenly find a spatula in my hand. “Get to work,” Carolyn smiles. As the comb spins, pieces of cut comb fly against the walls and find their way out the spigot. My spatula slowly scrapes the honey around the strainer, pushing clear honey through the tiny holes toward the vat of deep amber below. Comb-filled, honey-laden frames spinning in the extractor at 60% speed Comb-filled, honey-laden frames spinning in the extractor at 60% speed The entire process takes roughly an hour to harvest from two boxes, each containing 10 frames of comb. Harvests generally take place in late summer, but because the weather has been so warm, Don was able to take honey. Temperature is important as warm temperatures make for less viscous honey and less viscosity makes for a quicker spin in the extractor. Don recounts a time where he spent 3 hours to get one spin of honey on a 72-degree day. “After the first spin, I took the rest of the frames to the car and cranked up the heat to get them more fluid. I burned a lot of gas, but saved a ton of work!” As Don turns off the machine with sticky fingers, the moment I have been waiting for arrives. I dip a spoon into the freshly strained silky liquid and have my first taste of pure, sweet gold. The fresh honey had a deep flavor with floral notes and a burst of raspberry flavor that danced on my tongue. This was liquid bliss worthy of the risk of a hundred beestings, a ten mile bike ride up the hills of East Falls and a 90 degree afternoon spent in long pants and a beekeeper’s hat. As a long day comes to an end and the sky begins to match the golden ombre tones of our newly harvested honey, I ask Don what advice he would give to aspiring bee ten-
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Alum Chef Patricia Mulvey, Founder and Owner of Local Thyme, explains the innovative ways that she is working with local CSA’s. By: Kelly Vass
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hen it comes to eating local, Wisconsin-based chef Patricia Mulvey is an expert. As the founder of Local Thyme, she provides her local community with information, recipes and resources to make the most of their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) memberships.
the family. Instead, she cooked everything in the house. It made so much food, in fact, that she filled their refrigerator, freezer and even had to bring some home to store in the freezer at her own house. The family was incredibly thankful for Mulvey’s thoughtful culinary gesture. She recalls, “When my clients got home that day, they were so happy and said, ‘You should just tell people what to cook! We had no idea there were this many ways you could make beets or this many uses for a potato.’” At that moment, Mulvey got the idea to build a website where she could provide recipe ideas
for CSA members based on their shares each week. Using recipes from her two cookbooks, The Asparagus to Zucchini Cookbook and the Farm Fresh & Fast cookbook as starting points, she set out to create a site focused on vegetable-centric seasonal recipes to help members make the most of their CSA bounty. As her business grows, Mulvey says she has a diverse blend of clients who utilize the Local Thyme service—anyone from open-minded, skilled home cooks hoping to expand their culinary horizons to novice cooks looking for easy recipes to families who want to get a simple dinner recipe on the table fast.
Though Mulvey did not originally start her career working in food, she has always had a passion for educating others. Prior to founding her company, she was a teacher and an education administrator for ten years. When she decided she wanted to make a career change, she enrolled at The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College to help her on her path. Within a few months of working in a restaurant kitchen, however, Mulvey realized that the life of a line cook was not for her and explored the world of personal cheffing. “I realized that (as a personal chef), it would be constantly creating recipes and I’d have flexibility in my schedule. It was a perfect fit for me.” Mulvey says that she also loved the creativity and personal touch that being a personal chef afforded her. Many of her clients were families looking for variety and hoping to be exposed to different ingredients and cuisines. Therefore, Mulvey is constantly tweaking recipes to fit the individual needs of each client. In fact, the idea for a CSA recipe service came out of her years working for a busy family. The couple had just recently welcomed a baby into their family and had fallen behind on using their CSA share boxes. As she was about to prepare a meal one day, she discovered garlic scapes, potatoes and tomatoes all ready to rot because they were not stored properly. Though it was a ton of food to work with, Mulvey could not bring herself to only cook the four servings of three meals she normally made for
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BLOGGING
The novice cook tends to be environmentally minded and excited to be a part of a CSA, but has little experience. As Mulvey notes, “They need basic instruction, but also tend to be trendier and into the latest diet whether it be vegan or paleo. That in turn makes me push myself when it comes to recipe development, because these are the largest group of my customers.” Additionally, families utilizing her site present an entirely different set of needs. For families with two incomes and young children, they are often looking to Local Thyme as a way to make their lives a little easier. Mulvey describes this group as “looking to try to get dinner on the table that is healthy, easy to make and that the kids will love.” Because the two largest groups of her clients are utilizing her site for completely different reasons, it is important for Mulvey to create different variations of recipes and ingredients to fit the needs of both groups. For example, for one week, she may create a recipe that is kid-friendly, one that uses every ingredient in the box, and another that is part of an ethnic cuisine. Making multiple recipes each week is not the only challenge Mulvey faces. While the boxes usually include familiar, usable ingredients, there are some weeks when the shares include a disproportionate amount of one kind of ingredient or particularly challenging ingredients. One such box involved a variety of radishes. “[The box] had plenty of ingredients that are easy to cook with, but it also had two daikon radish, two black Spanish radish and a beauty heart radish. I used the daikon radishes and beauty heart radishes in bahn mi sandwiches and grilled cheese and radish sandwiches. I personally am not a fan of black Spanish radish, however, and I find it to be too close to the spiciness of horseradish. I decided to treat it as if it were horseradish and grated it into sour cream, served it with steak and put it with lox and bagels.” Being forced to work with several varieties of the same ingredient also forced Mulvey to think differently about how to utilize ingredients. By playing on the horseradish flavor of the black Spanish radish, she was able to use it in an entirely new way that she may not have thought of if it was the only ingredient in the share. 18 www.walnuthillcollege.edu
This culinary creativity also manifests itself in boxes where there is a disparate amount of one particular ingredient. For example, this past summer, Mulvey had to get creative with a share featuring ten pounds of kohlrabi. Rather than resorting to tried-and-true recipes, Mulvey thought about kohlrabi in a new light when developing new recipes. She says, “It was that surplus of produce that led me to experiment. It made me curious as to how I could preserve the bounty of the harvest, which is not normally something I’m concerned about in the second week of the CSA… Because I had so much of it, I was forced to be creative in a way that I might not normally be.” With the kohlrabi, she made kimchi, an egg salad-style kohlrabi sandwich and a creamy kohlrabi dip that she took to a party. When asked where she gets her inspiration, Mulvey says without hesitation, “I get a lot of my inspiration from reading cookbooks. I read them like novels!” She cites a few cookbooks as being her favorites, the first being Sheila Lukin’s The New Basics Cookbook, for being a straightforward, simple book with informa-
tive charts and guides on vegetables, various cuts of meat and fish. In a similar vein, she also recommends her own book, The Asparagus to Zucchini Cookbook, for culinary students to check out. It features an alphabetical list of vegetables that grow in the growing region spanning from New England down to Philadelphia and up to the upper-Midwest as well as basic descriptions with storage tips, cooking tips, history, fun facts and recipes. Lastly, she recommends Rick Bayless’s The Mexican Kitchen for its detailed, well-written set of authentic Mexican recipes. Mulvey also credits Walnut Hill College with providing her with the opportunity to work with cookbook authors and give her the skills necessary to develop recipes. Aside from teaching her cooking basics, she says that her time at WHC gave her countless opportunities to cook in the community and network with great chefs. She had the opportunity to work with Emeril Lagasse, Mario Batali, and Sara Moulton through the now-defunct Cook the Books event in Philadelphia. Mulvey made the most at her time at WHC by participating in any opportunity that came her way in order to get experience and urges students to get in
menus and learn to manipulate the product to turn it into tasty food.” If volunteering is not in the cards for you, there are still plenty of ways to afford a CSA share on a student budget or limited income. Many CSAs offer payment plans, which allow members to pay in increments, rather than all at once at the beginning of the season. Mulvey cautions against being deterred by the initial price-tag of a membership, as it is actually quite affordable. “I think a lot of people hear $400 and they think it’s too much money but they’re not breaking the cost down by week and looking at how much they would spend at a grocery store.
Lastly, she recommends students explore the creative possibilities of CSA involvement, especially for those looking for employment after graduation. Many CSAs hire chefs to feed the workers lunch or do recipe development, so it’s a great opportunity for students who are looking for non-restaurant jobs in the industry. As Mulvey says, “From a chef perspective, it’s a perfect opportunity because you’ll not only be getting paid to cook, but you’ll have access to the freshest most perfect produce! Plus, you’ll get to work with growers who are passionate about their food and learn how to prepare it and experiment with it.” Learn more at www.localthyme.com.
volved. She says, “In addition to volunteer prep opportunities, I also took advantage of recipe contests on campus. It really helped me to hone the process of creating a recipe. I would urge students to take advantage of these kinds opportunities.” Mulvey also suggests getting involved with a CSA as a great way to gain experience and indepth culinary knowledge. “Almost every farm I know has a worker’s share where you can come to the farm for a few hours a month and you go out, get your hands dirty and do whatever chores need to be done on the farm and you get a box of produce as compensation.” Volunteering on a farm with a CSA is not only a great way to reduce the cost of membership, but it provides a great way to learn about farming and individual ingredients. Mulvey says it’s a great way to learn where your food it’s coming from and when and how it tastes its best. Her advice? “Try kale before the first frost and try it after the first frost and notice the difference in taste and its flavor profile. You’ll also learn which vegetables can freeze and thaw out and which ones cannot. Knowing all of that is going to be a useful tool as you go out and plan
recipes JOIN A
GREENSGROW.ORG BLOOMINGGLENFARM.COM CRAWFORDORGANICS.COM PENNYPACKFARM.ORG/CSA-MEMBERSHIP Eat Local HIGHLANDCSA.CSAWARE.COM/STORE/CSA LANCASTERFARMFRESH.CSASIGNUP.COM KIMBERTONCSA.ORG/INDEX.HTML LANDISDALEFARM.COM With a well-stocked pantry of pasta, dry goods PHILLYFOODWORKS.COM and some herbs, supplementing with a CSA
LOCAL CSA
can be a very economical choice.”
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LAUNCHOLOGY 2015 FEBRUARY 23RD
By: Valery Snisarenko
As a newcomer to the Philadelphia Food & Beverage event scene, PHL Industree has quickly made a name for itself with an exciting and thought-provoking calendar. The Philadelphia branch of the rapidly growing event-based brand “cultivates a community of seasoned industry innovators, future trailblazers and everyone in between to provide the connections, tools and real-life advice that make opportunities possible,” as the Industree site explains. The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College’s Marketing team along with a number of our current students, had the pleasure of attending a recent event called “Launchology” on February 23rd. We had the opportunity to hear industry-specific content from leaders in the food & hospitality industry as well as those who make the scene happen here in PHL. Here is our account of what was said and who said it...
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T
he first question of the day, posed by moderator, Philly. com producer, and “Table Talk” columnist, Michal Klein was “How many of you are currently in the Restaurant Industry?” Suddenly, the room exploded with nearly 70 hands in the air and, unexpectedly, groans spread throughout the crowd like wildfire. Admittedly, the addition of the next question, “How many are looking to get out of the industry?” left me a bit puzzled as a number of hands shot up like they were giving away free lunch tickets. I was confused. Why would all of these “industry” people be here and simultaneously be looking to get out of this fabulous industry? Suffice it to say, a few hours later and a book full of content richer, I understood one essential and fundamental requirement for success in the all-consuming food & beverage industry, passion is not enough, you need knowledge! Launchology certainly delivered the knowledge. The event brought together leaders in the Philadelphia food industry and included panelists like Marti Lieberman of the Mac Mart Truck, Rob Keddie of Garces Group, David Robkin of Honeygrow, Kristopher Serviss of Blue Duck Sandwich BYO (Alum of TRS@WHC), Nicole Marquis of Hip City Veg, Vincent Stipo of a.bar, Jason Brooke of Zavino, Dave-Roger Grovesnor, Doug Green of MSC Retail, Ed Eimer of Eimer Design and Alice Cheng of Culinary Agents. The panelists were divided into categories depending on their specialty, namely, Real Estate (& Legal), Design & Build, and Operations. The first panel dealt with Real Estate and Legal issues and included Rob Keddie, David Rabkin, and Doug Green. “The Philly food scene is as good as in any other place in the country. But you need to bring your A game...Rittenhouse does not need anymore ‘farm to table’ restaurants,” said Doug Green of MSC Retail, a group responsible for real estate concepts, strategies, and solutions for the world’s leading retailers, restaurants, hotels and developers (www.mscretail.com).
phia in the next year,” restaurateurs need to keep their eye on competition and be mindful of concept planning when deciding to open in the city. In fact, Keddie candidly urges restaurateurs to “have something to say. Have a concept. Have something unique and new. Don’t make a new version of Amada or Parc because they will fail.” In addition, restaurateurs have to figure out what they are passionate about and what they are willing to say 7 days a week -
“You can’t be everything to everybody. Be realistic,” declares Keddie with passion and enthusiasm. But as I figured out during this event, passion is not enough and when asked about the all-too-important issue of location, Keddie went on to make a strong case for the importance of finding the right professionals in the industry to guide you along the path of opening a restaurant, particularly an accountant, a lawyer and a real estate professional. To add to the importance of real estate, Green mentions that despite the common misconception, “real estate is literally the last step of opening a restaurant.” In fact, he calms the audience by clarifying that for the most part landlords do not go into details regarding partnership agreements, as long as they get their rent and the company is backed by investors with enough capital to see it through, landlords will not be a problem. Moreover, Green warns us that although “broker” has become a “dirty” word in recent times, the importance of hiring an attorney and a broker who know the restaurant industry as well as the city is vital. As he mentions, “they [brokers] know what is going on [in the industry] and who pays the rent!.”
Doug is alluding to the importance of a concept in restaurant planning. “You have to ask yourself ‘who is my customer and who is coming through the door? Yes, you want to cook with your heart BUT, you have to make sure that your food matches the neighborhood [where you plan to open].’”
Among the other topics discussed was the weight of “culture” on the success of a restaurant brand. And while David Rabkin, Co-Founder and President of Honeygrow conveys the importance of culture for any restaurant, Keddie counters that “if you want your venture to be scalable, then culture is important, but if it is only one location, it will function as it functions.”
Photos courtesy of Twitter #Launchology
Rob Keddie, Executive Vice President, Chief Development Officer and General Counsel of the Garces Restaurant Group, adds that with over “2.6 million square feet of retail space coming to Philadel-
To close out the panel, Rabkin, shines light onto what is probably the best explanation on why so many people in the room were groaning about being in the restaurant industry in the first place --
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“sometimes Chefs don’t want to deal with the business side, but that is what separates the men from the boys!.” Amen.
WINTER/SPRING 2015
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By: Valery Snisarenko Something noteworthy is happeneing in West Philadelphia. An organization has been growing and helping aspiring young and minority entrepreneurs break through the barriers of entry into the food and beverage industry. This organization helps by providing a safe and affordable haven for young and able minds to work on their ideas without the hassle of paperwork and the financial burdens of rent. This organization is also an active leader in the community, spearheading programs for minority leaders, youth, scholarship, business development and education and much more. This organization is, of course, The Enterprise Center in West Philly. Recently, a group of Walnut Hill College students had the pleasure of touring the facilities at The Enterprise Center and speaking with their leadership about the available services and benefits the Center offers young entrepreneurs. Here is an account of the trip from one of our Culinary Arts students, Rebecca Schwartz. 22
ABOUT THE ENTERPRISE CENTER THE ENTERPRISE CENTER MISSION STATEMENT Founded in 1989 by the Wharton Small Business Development Center, The Enterprise Center (TEC) provides access to capital, building capacity, business education and economic development opportunities to high-potential, minority entrepreneurs. Through our portfolio of business-acceleration initiatives, TEC seeks to better position minority enterprises to compete in the local, regional, and global economies. THE ENTERPRISE CENTER COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION The Enterprise Center Community Development Corporation’s mission is to build vibrant neighborhoods where low income residents in the economically distressed section of Walnut Hill neighborhood of West Philadelphia are willing, able, and organized to achieve their common goals.
Enterprising Entrepreneurs Find A Center. By Rebecca Schwartz, Culinary Arts We all need help getting our foot in the food & beverage industry door; The Enterprise Center does just that - they help open the doors for entrepreneurs and small businesses alike. Located at 4548 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA, the Center was built in an abandoned supermarket, and turned into a growing facility with four commissary kitchens. The Center offers a wide array of opportunities that help lessen the threshold of small time restaurateurs into the corporate realm. The Enterprise Center rents out each kitchen incubator for $30 per hour. Every kitchen is equipped with standard appliances such as ovens, mixers, etc., however, utensils and specialty equipment are at the renter’s expense. And, in case you are wondering, you must also provide your own food! Renters may also rent storage cages at $36 per month at the facility. The cages may contain equipment, dry storage, refrigerated or frozen items, allowing you to get started as soon as you enter the kitchen - no heavy lifting or unloading required! The reality is that many people who want to be in the food business do not have a venue of their own, and, their home kitchen is not made for mass production. The Enterprise Center solves this problem by providing professional kitchens for those who are serious about getting ahead. Another invaluable benefit is that the Center has a Commercial Cooking License, which also covers anyone who uses their facility. This means that all of the people who cook in the commissary kitchens are able to sell their food to the public as well as other vendors at any time. Currently, those who take advantage of this perk are catering companies, food truck vendors, bakers and those selling pre-packaged goods. The Enterprise Center, as part of their mission, is also integrated into the West Philadelphia community. Along with renting out their facilities, they are a host to many corporate events, classes, filming opportunities, and also have a community farm. Recently, the Center even started a fellowship program called ‘The Common Table”. Those who are enrolled in the fellowship get to showcase their own concept by running a pop-up restaurant in-house. What’s great is that the Center has all of the legalities, rent, overhead and storage taken care of before you even step through the door - and there’s also the added benefit of industry advice from staff and fellow restaurateurs. In summary, The Enterprise Center helps entrepreneurs and small business owners break down the doors that block their path to success.
LIST OF UPCOMING SCHOLARSHIPS FOR ASPIRING ENTREPRENEURS ENTREPRENEURSHIP SCHOLARSHIPS http://www.bestvalueschools.com/entrepreneurship-scholarships/ entrepreneurship-scholarshipsSince start-ups are vital parts of a healthy economy that provide new jobs, consume goods, and generate more revenue, many organizations are now offering entrepreneurship scholarships to help new innovators keep America out of recession. No matter how far along you are in starting your own business, there are several scholarship options available to reward your creativity, ambition, and entrepreneurial spirit with free money for college. If you’re looking to lower the financial burden of your degree, below we’ve highlighted 20 of the most lucrative scholarships for future entrepreneurs that you should pitch to yourself. AFCEA YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR SCHOLARSHIP Deadline: May 1st Through the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA), a Young Entrepreneur Scholarship program was created to provide $2,000 to students aged 40 or under who are pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree while employed by a small business. All applicants must be at least second-year students, be enrolled in an accredited U.S. institution, carry a minimum overall GPA of 3.0, and exhibit entrepreneurial talents. With the application, candidates should attach an official transcript, a letter from their current small business employer, and a letter from a faculty member displaying their potential as an entrepreneur. CONTACT - AFCEA Young Entrepreneur Scholarship 4400 Fair Lakes Court | Fairfax, VA 22033 (703) 631-6174 | smallbusiness@afcea.org CEO OF TOMORROW SCHOLARSHIP Deadline: June 1st With the intent of being a source of inspiration for future chief executives, the CEO of Tomorrow Scholarship is awarded each year for $2,500 for outstanding college students interested in entrepreneurship and/or business leadership. Eligible applicants must be legal residents of the United States, be at least 18 years old, have current full-time enrollment in an accredited university, and compose a 600-word original essay describing their entrepreneurial talents. All potential winners will be required to submit an affidavit of eligibility, publicity release form, headshot photograph, IRS Form W-9, and copy of their driver’s license digitally. CONTACT - CEO of Tomorrow Scholarship 772 East Utah Valley Drive | American Fork, UT 84003 DR. DENNY KO FUTURE ENTREPRENEURS SCHOLARSHIP Deadline: March 21st In honor of his contributions in promoting venture capital investments and management consulting services to many Pacific Rim communities, the Dr. Denny Ko Future Entrepreneurs Scholarship was created in 2003 by the Southern California Monte Jade Science & Technology Association (SCMJ) to award up to $3,000 annually. The scholarship is open to all Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs who are graduating high school seniors, full-time undergraduates, graduate students, or young professionals. Along with the application, applicants must create a four-page essay or business plan describing how their innovative products/ services can help better the economy. CONTACT - Dr. Denny Ko Future Entrepreneurs Scholarship 2870 Zanker Road | San Jose, CA 95134 (408) 428-0388 | scholarship@scmj.org GRASSHOPPER ENTREPRENEUR SCHOLARSHIP Deadline: April 30th Since its inception in 2003, the Grasshopper Entrepreneur Scholarship has granted $5,000 annually to make it easier for young entrepreneurs to afford rising costs of college education and trek down the road to entrepreneurship. All current college students or incoming freshman who are enrolling full-time in an undergraduate or graduate degree program at an accredited American college are welcome to apply. Candidates must submit a 500-word original essay free of typos discussing what the greatest barriers are for entrepreneurs starting businesses today and their plans for overcoming these to become successful. CONTACT - Grasshopper Entrepreneur Scholarship 197 First Avenue Suite 200 | Needham, MA 02494 (617) 395-5700| scholarships@grasshopper.com GREENPAL SCHOLARSHIP FOR TOMORROW’S ENTREPRENEUR Deadline: May 30th As an evergreen scholarship funded each year for $2,000, the GreenPal Scholarship for Tomorrow’s Entrepreneur is designed to assist motivated, driven college students who will utilize their entrepreneurial spirit to become future CEOs and leaders. Applicants must be currently enrolled or accepted into an accredited college of business, maintain a minimum overall GPA of 3.0, have full-time enrollment, and demonstrate a clear desire to be an entrepreneur. With the application, students must attach an official transcript, a letter of support, and a 1,000-word essay describing their current or future plans for starting a business. CONTACT - GreenPal Scholarship for Tomorrow’s Entrepreneur 1312 5th Avenue N Suite 108 | Nashville, TN 37208 (866) 798-4485 | scholarship @yourgreenpal.com
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The second panel focused on my personal favorite: build & design. Admittedly, I obsess over each element of a restaurant experience, from the flowers to the flooring - and don’t get me started on the restrooms! As they say in the world of hospitality - if the bathroom isn’t clean and tidy, imagine what the kitchen looks like! Panelists Nicole Marquis, Ed Eimer, Kristopher Serviss (WHC Alum) and Dave-Roger Grovesnor provided insight into the design and build process of the restaurant business - and the one thing that they all agree on was the importance of help and guidance from industry professionals. As in the first panel, the level of knowledge that industry-specific professionals bring to the table cannot be matched and should not be short-changed. Kristopher Serviss was very vocal in saying that when it came time to design and build his Blue Duck Sandwich BYO in Northeast Philadelphia, he knew that to get the job done right he couldn’t cut on costs and had to reach out to Dave-Roger Grovesnor, a man that each of the panelists called “their walking Bible.” Dave-Roger Grovesnor is undoubtedly an interesting man. With an air of confidence that can only be expressed by someone who has “been there and done that” (in the Philadelphia world of building permits and licensing), he explained that to get the job done right and to avoid problems down the road, restaurants have to ensure that all codes are met during the building phase. Nicole Marquis of HipCityVeg vehemently confirms Grovesnor’s recommendation. After spending nearly four years on the business plan, financing and design, she also alloted a year just on the build of her first location on Chestnut and 18th Street. She shared that although her space is relatively small (under 1000 sq ft.) - it provided a lot of great design opportunity. Being a perfectionist, Marquis urges the audience to spend as much time as possible on their business plan. Perhaps her most significant piece of advice for aspiring restaurateurs is this: “Many investors are more interested in investing in the person, not necessarily the idea alone.” Therefore, investors are looking for individuals who are motivated, organized and know what they are doing first and foremost. The final panel discussion was perhaps the closest to my little marketing heart; it dealt with operations and branding. Pitter Patter. Pitter Patter. Panelists Marti Lieberman, Founder and
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Operator of the Mac Mart Truck; Vincent Stipo, Service Director and Beverage Manager at a.bar; Jason Brooke, General Manager at Zavino (all locations), Madison Alpern, Product Specialist at The Chef’s Garden and Alice Cheng of Culinary Agents, led an intense and interesting discussion on staffing challenges, branding, social media and even told us about their favorite Philly restaurants. First addressing Alice Cheng of Culinary Agents, a networking and job matching site for food, beverage and hospitality professionals, Michael Klein started the conversation on staffing and the general outlook for the Philadelphia Food & Beverage industry. While Cheng expressed a positive forecast for the industry as a whole, citing an increased number of job opportunities in the area (as well as nationally) and an increase in the talent pool. Jason Brooke and Vincent Stipo were less enthusiastic regarding staffing. As managers at their respective restaurants, both agreed that finding true professionals of high caliber is very difficult, especially for the front of house. Brooke was particularly vocal in that the hardest thing is to find someone who will match the 110% that he expects from all of his staff members, from back of house to hostess. He explains that when employees see their job as a placeholder for another career while they are in college, their heart and motivation are never fully into the job they are doing. And with most of his staff currently in college, especially at the University City location, finding dedicated and serious staff employees who are all in is extremely difficult. On the flip side of the staffing equation, Stipo adds that even good employees can be an issue when managing, in that
ery employee, from the front to the back of the house, has to be passionate and knowledgeable in order for the restaurant to be a success. The food is only a small part in the equation for a good restaurant, especially in a foodie town like ours. Food and service are not the only things that matter when looking for eternal success - branding is key. As a marketing professional, the hard reality is that food and service can be spectacular, however, if no one knows you exist and where they can find you, you will never reach your potential. Marti Lieberman of the Mac Mart Truck is a marketing professional turned food truck owner, and a great one at that. She uses social media as the primary way of getting in touch with her customers and growing awareness for her brand. “Social media is the best way to get in touch with my customers. Hashtags are very important as well as customer photos,” Lieberman adds. Her Mac Mart truck is a buzz name in the Philadelphia food truck scene as a result of her emphasis on public relations; in other words - building relationships with her customers (public). However, with that said, aside from the commonly used social media tools that restaurants and food trucks employ to promote their brand, another social media tool, powered mostly by users, exists and is not a favorite among our panel - YELP. Yep, that’s right, Yelp is not a favorite. Most of the panel admits that they have a love/hate relationship with the customer review site, going as far as saying that it can “eat at your soul.” But, one man, the ever-so-brave Jason Brooke finds that Yelp is a helpful tool for him and his staff in that it provides an opportunity for growth and improvement. He admits that he likes reading the reviews and knowing where Zavino stands in the minds of his customers. Brooke is all about customer service. In fact, he claims that he is never offended or annoyed by customer requests at the restaurant.
“the hardest person to manage is the best employee. That is the first person that is going to “A customer can want marshleave your restaurant.” Therefore, mallows on their pizza and I will managing your best employees means go across the street to get them you have to be mindful of their needs for opportunity and their stakes in the suc- marshmallows for their pizza. cess of the restaurant operation, mak- If they don’t like it, I will comp ing sure that your employees are always their meal. Watching someone learning and moving up. For example, Brooke suggests rewarding staff for ex- leave happy. That is why we’re cellent service and allowing them to try in this industry.” Well said, Jason, new restaurants with earned gift cards so that they can be knowledgeable in the food industry and scene in Philadelphia.
Madison Alpern of the Chef’s Garden and a guru on creating lasting relationships within her industry, adds that “if the chef is passionate, the front of house will be as well. If the chef is not passionate, the front of house won’t care.” In other words, ev-
well said. And that, my friends, is why we are all here and do this job. Amen. An in case you are wondering about favorite restaurants from our panelists: CheckoutTownsend, High Street On Market, Vernick, Abe Fisher, Zahav and anything by Marcie Turney & Valerie Safran!
HAVE YOU HEARD?
Have You Heard? Alum Pastry Chef Jessica Nolen and husband Jeremy Nolen of Brauhaus Schmitz in South Philly, have co-authored a highly anticipated cookbook, named New German Cooking: Recipes for Classics Revisited, the guide to contemporary Teutonic cuisine. The book is available online and in stores. Walnut Hill College is once again excited to partner with Philadelphia Magazine for their Wine + Food Festival on May 5, 2015 at the Lincoln Financial Field. Alumni Get In Free - Contact Us! Two former Chef Instructors of Walnut Hill College, Mark Bellini and Stephen Latona, recently competed on the hit CNBC show “Restaurant Start Up”. Chefs Latona and Bellini presented their concept for a wood-fired rotisserie chicken restaurant called “Smoke Kitchen” and were able to secure an investment from Tim Love. The restaurant is looking to open soon in Malvern, PA. Way to go Chefs! Walnut Hill College is happy to join Philly Wine Week on 3/25/15 with a special event including 8 wines, 4 courses in our Great Chef’s dining room. $55 per person, $99 a couple.
One of our favorite alumni, a successful entrepreneur and Q102 Deejay, Rocco Cima, has opened a new location for his popular Fuel Restaurant Chain in Ardmore, PA. Congrats, Rocco !
PHILLY WINE WEEK EVENTS: :
Eco-friendly / Green / Natural Wines Tasting & Seminar 7pm to 9pm, $25 cost. Seating is limited so purchase advance tickets here.
A special event for Philly Wine Week: an exceptional wine and food pairing competition among students of Walnut Hill College. They will search the world for the best wines while our Chef de Cuisine creates a tailor-made 4-course menu to match. Each course will feature a wine tasting from each competing team and while you dine they strive to persuade you that their particular selection is the winner!
Slow Wine was a transformation that evolved because rating systems judged wine by their flavor profiles without consideration for how the wines were being produced. Slow Wine’s evaluation team visited the wineries to confirm the growers practices. We will taste 8 examples; 4 whites and 4 reds that use these principles in the growing of their grapes and the making of their wines and explain them so you can determine for yourself how to use that knowledge to make sensible choices. We will serve cheese provided by a local producer and fresh bread made at The RestaurantSchool’s Bakery to complement the wines. Read More: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1375144
Wednesday, MARCH 25, 2015 Select From Two Options:
Enjoy 8 wines, 4 courses in our stunning Great Chef’s dining room. $55 per person, $99 a couple including all taxes and gratuities. Cocktails at 6:30pm, dinner at 7pm.
LOCATION & PARKING >
The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, 4207 Walnut Street & 4100 Walnut Street Building Off Street Parking available at their Main Campus building at 4207 Walnut Street.
The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College 4207 Walnut Street Philadelphia, PA 19104 Follow Us: @TRSatWHC @TheRestaurantSchoolatWalnutHillCollege
www.WalnutHillCollege.edu Justin Bogle Corporate Executive Chef, Garces Group Philadelphia, PA
Richard DiPietro Executive Chef, Riverstone Cafe Exton, PA
Joe Steward Chef/ Owner, Crux Cafe Audubon, NJ
Maryann Brancaccio Chef/Owner, august Philadelphia, PA
TyNesha Hills Fondant Decorator, Oteri's Bakery Philadelphia, PA
Michael Griffiths Chef/Co-Owner, Helm Philadelphia, PA
Dean Dandridge Chef de Cuisine, Aramark Citizen Bank Park Philadelphia, PA Tracey Decschaine Owner, Dixie Picnic Malvern, PA Carmen Difogio Chef, Solebury School New Hope, PA
Where Are They Now?
Want To Tell Us Where You Are Now? Email Us At: MainDishMag@walnuthillcollege.edu