Michelin-deserving Michigan

by Charlotte Young Bowens
Staff Writer

On April 19 at the annual Community College day, WCC’s culinary arts students served lunch to over 300 guests at the Michigan Capitol building in Lansing.

“The words I want to use are, beyond my expectation,” stated WCC board of trustees President Diana Morton. “I knew they would be good but they went outside the box in everything they did and in every detail.”

As early as 6 a.m., students bustled about the kitchen of Garrett’s, WCC’s full-service student-operated restaurant. A sense of camaraderie filled the air as students and faculty put the final prep on food items to be served later in the day. Their coordinated efforts had the trailer packed by 7 a.m., so the group could arrive by 8 a.m to finalize their setup for the 11 a.m. event start time.

“We accomplished a lot considering the obstacles and the fact that we only found out about the event a mere two months ago,” confided Chef Derek Anders, faculty member for the Culinary Arts & Hospitality program.

The challenge of catering food in the Capitol included the absence of a kitchen with running water and no available refrigeration. And once in Lansing, the Capitol had limited access to the building due to construction, requiring the group to carry food up two flights of stairs. These compounding issues could have been discouraging but WCC’s culinary students took things in stride.

The two-hour annual event is organized by the Michigan Community College Association and is an informal reception for Community College administrators and elected officials. Each year a Michigan Community College Culinary Arts program is selected to host the event. Henry Ford Community College was selected last year and next year’s group has not been decided.

“It’s my favorite day of the year and the culinary arts students are amazing. I wouldn’t miss this for the world. I was happy when I saw this on today’s agenda,” shared the Ann Arbor state Rep. Adam F. Zemke.

Impressed by the quality of the food, Capitol staff confessed to sending texts to their colleagues in the building, encouraging them to not miss out. It took the whole two hours for over 300 attendees to get through the food line.

The menu highlighted several ingredients made in Michigan. The Michigan salad included cherries from Traverse City and the menu’s signature drink called the Michigan Mule featured Michigan’s own Vernor’s, lime juice, cherry puree and little sugar crystals made of Vernor’s on the rim of the cup.

Attendees raved about the table décor with fresh flowers. The biodegradable bamboo plates left an unforgettable impression and the Salmon Galantine were amongst people’s favorite.

“It was amazing food, delicious and the team of faculty and students worked collegiately. These students produced 1200 pieces of dessert and a signature drink. WCC’s action stations were a first and brand new at this event,” said Eva Samulski, academic dean of business and computer technologies. “WCC’s Culinary Arts program is a great learning environment for front of house, back of the house, pastry and culinary students.”

Fall 2018 course catalog reflects the change in curriculum and overall revamping of the program. New offerings like CUL 234: Vegetarian and Vegan Cuisine Course that focus on vegetarianism; CUL 233: Ice Carving, and CUL 201: Chocolate Confections are in response to the demand and trends in culinary arts.

“Unbelievable. Our students exceeded everybody’s expectation with the finest cuisine and how well everything went together and all of it was so complimentary,” said WCC President Rosa Bellanca.

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