Learning Lessons Through Thanksgiving Service
by Cathy Moon
December 24, 2008
On November 25, Restaurant Management students had the opportunity to put their skills to the test. Students invited their parents, faculty and staff members to participate in a fine dining experience. AVC students had the chance to pre order dinner which they would receive as a take out order.
Restaurant students prepared for the dinner by learning about proper customer service, organization, timelines, costing of foods and preparation techniques. Students who wished to participate in a leadership capacity as Chef, Sous Chef and Dining Room Manager presented a resume and letter of qualification to Mrs. Moon and had an interview. Veronika Rone from River Ridge was appointed Chef, Sam Heim from Galena as Sous Chef, Valerie White and Deeanna Much from West Carroll shared the duties of Dining Room Manager.
Students arrived at 7:00AM and began their preparations. Dining room servers and managers worked on setting up the school lobby as a fine dining restaurant, complete with table linens and china. They also set up their server stations. Cooks, chef and sous chef began the huge task of serving not only 44 adults at the 11:00am dinner service, but also the 58 student orders.
The students were introduced to the pressures of service, and found that some of the most important things they learned were following directions, proper organization, and how to stay calm under the heat of service. After several hours of work, the servers and cooks were then ready to sit down and have their own meal. Many of the students had no restaurant experience, and felt that the Thanksgiving meal had given them a good experience on what to expect when working in the hospitality industry.
