By Christopher Koetke, CEC, CCE

A tool for exploring sustainable seafood.

If there’s one thing we educators all share, it’s a shortage of time. That’s why turn-key teaching tools, especially those that aren’t developed to promote a product, are manna from heaven. When it comes to sustainability, seafood is a particularly thorny issue because there really are no black-and-white answers. As Bon Appétit Management Company’s Helene Kennan, executive chef at Google, has said, “Sustainable seafood is the culinary challenge of the 21^st century.”

“Green Chefs, Blue Ocean” has arrived on the scene to help. Developed jointly by Chefs Collaborative, one of the most forward-thinking chefs’ organizations in the country, and the Blue Ocean Institute, this program can help you and your students explore the world of sustainable seafood.

By Michael Riggs, Ph.D, CEC, FMP

An educator returns from a summer excursion abroad with a new appreciation of community and culture communicated through food and cuisine.

Over the summer of 2010 I was given a unique opportunity to spend 14 days in England at Oxford University studying the history of European cuisine. First let me say that what took thousands of years to develop could not be researched in 14 days even with the 100 miles of books at the Oxford Bodleian Library. But what I did learn and experience came in the form of the best kind of research, eating and having conversations with chefs, restaurateurs and the people of the countries I visited: Let’s begin my journey…

[See part 1 of Riggs’ story of his journey by clicking here. The story concludes below.]

While in Oxford I was able to gain a solid understanding of English cuisine, its focus on fresh products, light meals, healthier cooking techniques (except for the pastries) and a more relaxed approach to dining as an event—not just something to somehow squeeze into the day. The diversity of ethnic cultures in Oxford and England as a whole has led to a wide selection of international cuisines with a great deal of authenticity in them in comparison to the “Americanized” international cuisines we commonly see in the United States.

Korean tacos, Southern comfort and “frugality fatigue” are among the leading restaurant trends predicted by Technomic for next year.

As the nation begins to emerge from recession, restaurants are seeing lapsed customers return. Same-store sales are inching up, signaling the industry’s initial rebound to health; hiring is also up, signaling positive expectations for 2011. But this isn’t the same restaurant industry as before. Big changes are on the way—on menus, in concept development and in the competitive landscape.

Technomic, the leading foodservice research and consulting firm, examines the future for restaurants through the lens of 40-plus years tracking the industry, and sees 11 top trends emerging in 2011:

Grant program honoring exemplary culinary training across the nation exposed food editors and other media to educators’ innovations on the plate during the 2010 IFEC Conference in New Orleans.

Olson Communications, a full-service agency that specializes in delivering innovative marketing communication strategy to its portfolio of select food-industry clients, held a Chefs of Tomorrow™ dinner for trade and consumer food media at Delgado Community College in New Orleans on November 10 during the International Foodservice Editorial Council (IFEC) Conference.

By Edward M. Korry, CSS, CWE

Having identified types of sparkling wines, here’s how to serve them.

While true service is the ability to read the customer and make appropriate suggestions to enhance a diner’s experience, it also includes the mechanics for seamlessly delivering a product to the customer. We have discussed the types of sparkling wines one might offer. The following article includes the basics of the mechanics for serving sparkling wines.

Sparkling wines should be chilled to 40ºF to 45ºF before opening. This allows the server greater control, as the gas is in a more stable form when chilled, thus preventing the all-too-frequent explosion of corks from the bottle and the resulting loss of wine.

When handling the bottle, the server should ensure that it is dry so that it does not accidentally slip out of his or her hands. Many restaurants set as a service standard the practice of wrapping a service towel around the bottle. This practice stems from a time when bottles were less uniformly made and prone to occasional explosion, and less necessary today.