Down on the Farm

The new class of students took their first field trip yesterday to two farms run by City Slicker Farms (www.cityslickerfarms.org), whose mission is "to empower West Oakland community members to meet the immediate and basic need for healthy organic food for themselves and their families by creating high-yield urban farms and backyard gardens." The urban farms and gardens we visited were full of fresh veggies, herbs, and fruit trees. Farm staff member Sarah Light gave the class a tour, allowed for tastings of many of the vegetables, and provided them with great information about organic urban farming.

The field trip was a great change of scenery for the students. The culinary curriculum they are learning at Kitchen of Champions is focusing on fruits and vegetables right now, so the experience was a practical way to apply what they have been learning in the classroom. They even got some fresh garden produce to take home. We all had a wonderful time down on the farm!

New Beginnings

We are so excited to have a new batch of Kitchen of Champions trainees! The 27th cohort of students started the program on Monday and have been getting acquainted with the kitchen and each other. The highlight of their first week was having the guys from Kitchen on Fire (www.kitchenonfire.com) come teach knife skills to the class. The students became pros at chopping, slicing, dicing, chiffonading, you name it in just a few short hours.


A huge thank you to Chefs Mike C. and Olive from Kitchen on Fire. You guys are welcome in our kitchen ANYTIME!