Kitchen of Champions Culinary Training Program

Field Trip to Berkeley Bowl

2011-08-24T14:53:00.000-07:00

Every Friday, the Kitchen of Champions students have a two-hour class put on by the wonderful non-profit organization Cooking Matters (www.cookingmatters.org). A volunteer chef, nutritionist, and class assistant come in every week to provide one hour of nutrition instruction and one hour of hands-on healthy cooking. Each session, Cooking Matters volunteers take our class on a field trip to the Berkeley Bowl grocery store. The students partake in a grocery scavenger hunt and are then given ten dollars each to buy one food from each food group that will collectively make a meal for four people. Every class enjoys this field trip, and this time was no exception!

Volunteer Nutritionist Morgan leads the students through the incredible produce section

Corn vs. wheat tortillas: Which is healthier?

Jo and Nayah

Thanks Cooking Matters for taking us on this awesome field trip, and thanks for everything you do for Kitchen of Champions!

Fremont Thrift Store Event

2011-08-24T14:24:00.000-07:00

One of our biggest events of the year, the Eat Real Festival (www.eatrealfest.com), is coming up at the end of September. To prepare for the event and get the students well-versed on the use of our food trailer, we spent last Thursday at the Fremont St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store cooking and serving food to customers. The menu was very similar to our offerings at Eat Real (Monte Cristo sandwiches and jambalaya... yum), and was a great trial run for the big event!

James and Nique flippin' the Monte Cristos

The menu!

Mike Mike and Kim

Robert and David hanging out in the food trailer

Our new Head Chef Harold LeBlanc and the students

David serving up food to hungry customers

Jonathan and Rubelet: Marketing superstars!

It was great for the students to sell their homemade food to the public. Everyone enjoyed the lunch, and the students feel ready for the Eat Real Fest!

Field Trip to Mission Pie

2011-06-27T10:53:00.000-07:00

The day after graduation, we celebrated with the students by taking a field trip to Mission Pie in San Francisco (www.missionpie.com). During the last month of the program, the students participated in baking workshops led by Karoline Boehm-Goodnick and Ben Goodnick. Karoline is the General Manager of Mission Pie, and Ben is the Executive Sous Chef at Epic Roasthouse (www.epicroasthouse.com). It was such a privilege to have these two spend so much time with the students and teach them everything from cookies to pie crust to homemade bread. We couldn't possibly finish the class without taking a trip to Karoline's pie shop! We took a tour of the kitchen facilities, and then shared a mixed berry pie and a banana cream pie together at the cafe. It was such a nice way to end the class.

Karoline showing off Mission Pie's huge oven

Theresa and Mike Mike in the Mission Pie kitchen

Yummy peaches being prepped... everything at Mission Pie is local and seasonal except the bananas!

The boys

Hanging out in the cafe

Mike Mike servin' up pies for all the students

The whole crew!

Cohort 27 Graduates!!

2011-06-27T09:57:00.001-07:00

The 27th Kitchen of Champions class graduated on Thursday, June 23rd, and it was quite a joyous occasion. The graduates' friends and family packed the SVdP Dining Room to the brim. After walking out to "Lovely Day" by Bill Withers, keynote speaker Judge Stuart Hing gave an inspiring speech to all the students about how lucrative the food industry is and how many opportunities are out there for them. Each student then received their new knife sets, certificates, and were then given the chance to say a few words. The graduates' speeches were heartfelt, and just about everyone in the audience shed a few tears! The ceremony concluded with a huge feast that the students prepared all week long for their families. It was a great day.

Roland and Taccara prepping the Strawberry Shortcake for graduation

The finished product!

Big John mixing up a LOT of salad

Avocados for homemade California Rolls... yum

Liza's beautiful fruit platter

The grads getting into their seats

Whitney giving some words of wisdom

Proud Culinary Services Coordinator Diana with students Antonio and Arthur

All of the students from this class will be missed, but all of us at SVdP are so proud of them. They are all going really big places!

Alumni Club Picnic

2011-05-11T10:53:00.000-07:00

The Kitchen of Champions and Champion Workforce staff teamed up to host an Alumni Club event for alumni and current students of both programs. The picnic was held at Mosswood Park on May 7th. Despite the wind, we had a good turn-out of students, past students, and their families. Everyone enjoyed pizza, watermelon, and some football and frisbee. We had enough prizes during our raffle that no one went home empty handed.

Matt and Mike Mike!

The boys

LeVon and Zack

SVdP family

Thanks to everyone who helped out and attended!

Livermore Food and Wine Festival

2011-05-11T09:52:00.001-07:00

The Kitchen of Champions team spent the weekend of April 30th at the Livermore Food and Wine Fest cooking up brisket sliders and coleslaw for the public. We brought the SVdP food trailer down for a weekend of good food and informing the public about our program. The current Kitchen of Champions trainees got a chance to try their hand at working in a mobile kitchen. The customers loved the sliders and the students!

The menu!

Charlotte and Randy preparing the meat

The ladies of KofC

Randy, Charlotte, and Whitney... KofC rockstar students

Randy practicing his sales pitch

Charlotte and Randy awaiting the customers

Arthur slingin' those sliders

The event was a great way to raise awareness for Kitchen of Champions, and the students were able to practically apply their culinary knowledge they've learned in the program thus far. Win-win!

Down on the Farm

2011-04-13T09:21:00.000-07:00

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

2011-04-08T09:42:00.000-07:00

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!

Farewell KofC Cohort 26!

2011-03-28T13:40:00.000-07:00

Long time no post! Thanks for being so patient, Kitchen of Champions blog followers. We have had a lot of activity within the KofC program the past couple weeks. Here is a taste of what we have been up to:

Last week, the students of Cohort 26 prepared an extravagant graduation feast with the help of Guest Chef Elka Gilmore. They did a trial run of the meal at the beginning of the week to practice both the cooking techniques and ServSafe practices involved.

The actual graduation ceremony was on Thursday evening, March 24th. The keynote speaker was Mark Everton, General Manager of the Waterfront Hotel at Jack London Square. The students and culinary staff went all out to serve what may have been the best graduation meal in the history of all SVDP graduations! Each student prepared their signature dish, and no guest left with an empty stomach.

For the final day of class, the students and staff took a field trip to Holy Names University in Oakland. The students got a grand tour of the kitchen and dining hall facilities, and everyone was treated to lunch. It was a great way to spend the last day together as a class.

Congratulations Cohort 26, you guys are great!

We are almost finished recruiting the next class which will start April 4th. Stay tuned for updates!

Kitchen of Champions Update

2011-02-04T13:04:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the infrequent blog updates, folks! We will be keeping the blog alive but please head over to our Facebook page to hear a more steady stream of consciousness from the Kitchen of Champions Culinary Training Program. Thanks for the continued support!
Kitchen of Champions on Facebook!

The Culinary Scoop Covers the Kitchen of Champions

2010-12-22T14:33:00.001-08:00

http://www.theculinaryscoop.com/2010/12/kitchen-of-champions-culinary-training-program-serves-up-success/

Kitchen of Champions on NPR

2010-12-21T20:30:00.000-08:00

Cy Musiker of KQED came to SVdP today to take a gander at our culinary job training program. Here is that gander:

Guest Chef with Luka's Taproom

2010-12-14T08:51:00.000-08:00

Chef Jacob Alioto of Luka's Taproom worked with our Kitchen of Champions trainees last week to prepare what some have said is our finest meal yet. We raised a bit of money to offset the large cost of our program and gave Culinary Cohort 25 another Guest Chef experience.

Dig the 5 course menu:

Bresaola w/Arugula & Parmesan
Persimmon & Chicory Salad w/Citrus, fromage blanc & pomegranate vinaigrette
Cioppino w/Dungeness Crab, Squid, Clams, Mussels & Shrimp
Braised Short Ribs w/Mashed Yams, Brussels Sprouts & Orange Gremolata
Orange-Cardamom Creme Brulee w/Chocolate Dipped Short Dough Cookies

*some photos courtesy of ferronlandia

Mock Interviews

2010-12-09T14:55:00.000-08:00

Last week we hosted 18 of our closest employers, community partners, friends, board members and colleagues to participate in...

MOCK INTERVIEWS !!!1!1!!

It was an excellent session where each trainee was interviewed for 15 minutes by 4 consecutive interviewers. Interviewers were given the same template but each had their own twist based on professional and personal experiences. Trainees were evaluated and we had a group discussion afterwards. It was one of those experiences that led to trainees talking about it during their breaks and even after they were released for the day, and that's what it's all about people!

Field Trip: Epicurean Group at Holy Names University

2010-12-03T15:47:00.000-08:00

Today we ventured out to the Oakland hills for a tour of the Epicurean Group's kitchen operation at Holy Names University. Epicurean prides themselves in using the freshest ingredients, highest quality foods, making everything from scratch and providing an excellent customer experience with every meal. We look forward to kicking it with Chef David and Chef Rafa again very, very soon!

Community Mural Project

2010-12-03T15:35:00.000-08:00

Last week we got some local residents, clients and artists together to paint 3 gigantic murals that will be mounted on our building here at San Pablo and 23rd. Here are some shots from the Kitchen of Champions-catered event.

"You & Your Criminal Record" and Homeless Court with Judge Hing

2010-11-29T16:29:00.000-08:00

Our main man Judge Stuart Hing came by for a Q&A on "You and Your Criminal Record." It is eye-opening to see just how many people have easily manageable issues looming, creating a barrier for employment. Judge Hing also helped set up our Homeless Court program in 2004, which is held quarterly on our premises for low income individuals to clear up court fines and fees, misdemeanors, moving violations and more. Clients show that they are on a more positive path than they were when these hardships came to be and just about everyone is taken care of in a real-life courtroom right here at St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County. For more information on the Homeless Court, visit our web page: http://www.svdp-alameda.org/homelesscourt.php

Nana’s Famous Peanut Butter Chews

2010-11-19T10:04:00.001-08:00

Nana’s Famous Peanut Butter Chews

2/3 cup shortening (butter or margarine)

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups sugar

1 cup peanut butter

4 eggs

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

1 cup oatmeal

Combine shortening, sugar, peanut butter, eggs and vanilla. Blend at low speed. Combine flour, baking powder, salt. Add to first mixture. Add oatmeal – mix well.

Spread onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. DO NOT OVERCOOK.

Icing

1/2 cup powdered sugar + 1 tsp. milk

Mix together. Spread on warm chews – cut when warm, remove from pan when cool. You may need more or less icing, depending on your like.

-submitted by Chef Michael Stamm, the Executive Chef Instructor for the Kitchen of Champions, a Culinary Training Program of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County, and a 3-time Olympic medal winner (Swimming, 1974)

Pasta Demo/Cooking Matters Goes to Berkeley Bowl

2010-11-16T10:29:00.000-08:00

We have a bit of catching up to do. It's just been really busy. It's me, not you.

The past week was an action-packed one. We learned to make homemade pasta, which resulted in a delicious Tomato Concasse a la Chef Michael. Some photos of that are below. Later in the week we hooked up the trainees with Gmail accounts. Look out, world, the search for employment is about to start! Fun fact: 19 of our 20 graduates from the last class are employed.

In our penultimate Cooking Matters (formerly Operation Frontline) session, the trainees each got $10 and a ride to Berkeley Bowl. There was a scavenger hunt and everyone left with some delicious and nutritious food. We discussed their choices and shared some goodies.

This week: egg cookery, garde manger, baking with the world famous Cheryl Lew of Montclair Baking (winner of a huge Halloween Food Network Challenge [beating the Ace of Cakes!]), a healthy dose of ServSafe and a few hours in the computer lab. Phew. Oh, we'll also serve 5,000+ meals for the homeless and hungry. Forgot to mention that.

Alumni Club Cookout at Mosswood Park

2010-11-08T11:54:00.000-08:00

Alumni Club is an event for the graduates, by the graduates. This past weekend we went to Mosswood Park for some delicious food prepared by our culinary staff and cooked by some of our current trainees. There was football and Frisbee involvement, raffles, prizes and a good time for our grads and their families.

Alumni Club provides an opportunity to leverage peer support in employment placement and retention. We hold four to six Alumni Club meetings each year to help support program graduates build their capacities, expand their networks and continue to pursue opportunities. Enjoy some shots!

Laney College Culinary Program

2010-10-26T10:32:00.000-07:00

We once again harassed Chef David Jones at Laney into giving us a full blown tour of Laney College's brand spankin' new culinary facility. Chef Jones also gave a detailed culinary career trajectories talk and handed out some literature to a few of our particularly inspired trainees. We also ran into one of our favorite graduates, now in her last year of Laney's program. In other news, Hon found a wig in one of the drivers' cars. The driver insists it is for Halloween purposes but it is rumored that he might be impersonating Lady Gaga on the weekends.

Chicken!

2010-10-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

Chef Michael gives a chicken fabrication demonstration and showed trainees how to cook chicken 5 ways!

Cockadoodle booya!

Field Trip: Berkeley Bowl West

2010-10-14T08:45:00.000-07:00

This week we took another trip to Berkeley Bowl West to LITERALLY submerge ourselves in fruits and vegetables. Well, almost. Bev Hop took us on a fruits and vegetables vs. snacks demonstration and Caesar the produce buyer answered some very difficult questions pertaining to dragon fruit, butternut squash and very small potatoes. We then took a tour of this amazing marketplace and even ran into a Kitchen of Champions alumni who was recently promoted to supervisor of her department. Enjoy some photos!

First Day: Cohort 25 (Knife Skills w/Kitchen on Fire and more!)

2010-10-05T09:42:00.000-07:00

The 25th group of culinary trainees has begun another 12 week session here at the St. Vincent de Paul "Kitchen of Champions." We have started with an incredibly diverse group of 22 people this go-around.

How many will need to drop out because of homelessness?
How many will leave early because of the intensity of the Kitchen?
How many will leave early due to employment?
How many will graduate?

It is a team effort to maximize the potential of our trainees, and our bff's Kitchen on Fire swung by for another informative knife skills demo and we are on our way. Enjoy some pictures from the first day of class.

Graduation Day!

2010-09-27T09:08:00.000-07:00

We proudly graduated our 24th Cohort of the Kitchen of Champions on Thursday. Chef Mike C. from Kitchen on Fire gave an emotional keynote speech and we ate 20 different amazing appetizers until the janitorial staff rolled us into the parking lot.

Operation Frontline

2010-09-17T15:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday! To us, Friday means, well, more of the same with the addition of a gloriously approaching weekend and... Operation Frontline!

For those of you unfamiliar with this wonderful program, Operation Frontline is a groundbreaking cooking based nutrition education program that teaches families how to prepare healthy, tasty meals on a limited budget. We get to host a nutritionist and chef who guide our trainees through their own fun, hands-on curriculum. Then we get to eat. Win/win.

Some photos!

Meet a Few From the Next Graduating Class

2010-09-16T09:04:00.000-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/51803098@N03/sets/72157624969234596/

Eat Real Fest 2010

2010-08-31T10:49:00.000-07:00

The Kitchen of Champions served up delicious slow-cooked beef brisket sliders with a horseradish aioli and caramelized onions on a soft challah roll with house made slaw on the slide for the meat-eaters and polenta with a wild mushroom ragout and house made fire roasted tomato marinara topped with shredded parmesan for the veggies at the latest Eat Real Festival. We sold over 1500 of these dishes over the course of the 3-day festival at Jack London Square. During the fiasco, news heartthrob Jana Katsuyama covered our program in a brief segment on KTVU channel 2!

Enjoy the slideshow:

Kitchen of Champions Get an Intern!

2010-08-24T15:19:00.000-07:00

Molly Aigner has signed on to work with the Kitchen of Champions staff through the Lutheran Volunteer Corps. Hailing from Seattle, Molly will be doing many different things including BLOG and FACEBOOK updates. We are excited to have her on board!

The first of many possibly embarrassing photos

Fish with Kitchen on Fire

2010-08-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday our great friends and supporters Chef Mike C. and Oliveman of Kitchen on Fire came by to cut up 13 pounds of whole fish. Trout, snapper and milkfish were involved. In the end, 20 of our finest Kitchen of Champions trainees left with the ability to carve up a fish... along with to-go containers of freshly made Herb Roasted White Fish with fennel, corn, red onion and arugula relish and Mediterranean Seafood Stew. I have had very few seafood dishes in my life better than that seafood stew. Need the recipe? Email me!

KofC Marinara Sauce Pilot and a... Film Crew?

2010-08-17T09:57:00.000-07:00

In the not-so-distant future, the Kitchen of Champions will be making its very own shelf-stable canned goods. Our good friends at Terra Bella Family Farm are supplying us with some of their surplus vegetables this summer and we will make all sorts of delicious goods moving forward. Farmer Joe stopped by yesterday with boxes of tomatoes, eggplants, herbs and more, and 4 hours later we had our very first batch of sauce-- a roasted tomato and eggplant marinara with savory, rosemary, chives, basil, marjoram and tarragon. Not too shabby! In the next few weeks we will be processing over 600 jars of this for distribution in their CSA, so be sure to subscribe to their delicious basket of fresh, local produce!

So while this was happening in the kitchen, a supporter of SVDP called REDF came by with a large film crew to interview one of our trainees named Son. Then I went home and ate a bunch of pasta with delicious marinara sauce.

Field Trip! City Slicker Farms' "Secret Garden"

2010-08-11T09:51:00.000-07:00

The group took a field trip to the Santa Fe neighborhood of Oakland to City Slicker Farms' "Secret Garden." This garden produces most of CSF's produce that is sold at their neighborhood market at 16th and Center in West Oakland.

Wells Fargo Check Presentation

2010-08-06T10:22:00.000-07:00

Wells Fargo, a supporter of the Kitchen of Champions Culinary Training Program, dropped by to present our class with a $10,000 check this morning. Thanks Wells Fargo for your support!!

Guest Chef Dinner With The Grand Tavern

2010-08-03T12:59:00.000-07:00

The Grand Tavern's Kay Eskind came with a couple of her wonderful staff members to produce a delectable 4-course meal for our Guest Chef fundraiser on July 21st. She, along with a little help from our Kitchen of Champions culinary trainees, prepared the following for our program supporters:

Beef Dumpling dish over yogurt sauce with fresh tomato, onion & pea reduction
Roasted Eggplant with garlic sour cream sauce & Acme bread
One-Half Chicken Slow Roasted with Lemon, basmati rice with carrots & raisins in a lamb broth
Flan

Please support our local contributing restaurants! The Grand Tavern is on Grand Ave, north of the theater:
3601 Grand Avenue
Oakland, CA 94610
(510) 444-4644

Enjoy some photos by Brian Espinosa (www.brianespinosa.net), a fabulous photographer who donates hours of time for a fantastic cause!

Here's a link to our set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/51803098@N03/sets/72157624647132458/

Here's the slideshow:

SVdP: Kitchen of Champions - 7/21/2010 - Images by Brian Espinosa

Laney College Culinary Tour

2010-07-29T11:52:00.000-07:00

The gang headed to meet with head chef Laurence Jackson of Laney College today, where he gave our trainees a tour of their top notch facility and spoke of culinary career trajectories.

In all of her glory

Chef Jackson and the gang.

Fruit Carving Demo by Chef Jimmy (www.artchef.com)

2010-07-16T15:16:00.000-07:00

Award-winning fruit and vegetable carver Chef Jimmy (www.artchef.com) dropped by to give a demo/lesson on the basics of carving exquisite food sculptures. Trainees were mesmerized-- there has never been so many ooooohs, ahhhhhhs and applause in any kitchen ever. Thanks Chef Jimmy!

Check out some photos (more to come!):

Final product(s)!

3 hour watermelon

5 minute melon

10 minute melon

watch the birdie...

Chef Jimmy with a daikon radish...

Chef Jimmy takes a leek and does with it things we'd never seen before.

Curling the leek...

Pictured (from left to right): Deric, leek.

Field Trip!! Berkeley Bowl West

2010-07-13T15:11:00.000-07:00

The kind people of Berkeley Bowl West had us over for a lecture/discussion/demo on fruits/vegetables/herbs today just 2 miles up the road. Produce supervisor Caesar and general manager Bev Hop took turns enlightening trainees on the ins and outs of local produce.

Pictures!

Chef Michael with former Kitchen graduate Shamate, who was conveniently celebrating her 1 year anniversary with Berkeley Bowl West. She was recently promoted to a supervisor role in the bulk produce section.

Trainees surround Shamate during our tour of the floor.

Caesar lectures/trainees listen

Obligatory group photo

"How about them apples," ponders Ricardo.

Kitchen on Fire Knife Skills Demo

2010-07-06T17:21:00.000-07:00

Our good friends Chef Mike C. and Gilad of Kitchen on Fire came to give our trainees an epic 3 hour knife skills demo that resulted in no casualties!!!(!) We look forward to working with them again very soon. Here are some sweet pics of the affair.

Graduation of Cohort 23/Intro to our first SUPER COHORT

2010-07-06T17:15:00.000-07:00

We graduated more culinary trainees this past Friday and welcomed a supergroup (no, not Them Crooked Vultures) to the SVDP family yesterday. Here are some pictures of the graduation, featuring Deacon Jacobs from Healthy Oakland, an organization dedicated to decreasing violence and promoting health within communities of color.

Pictures!

Seamstress Program Instructor Grace with recent grads

Culinary Cohort 23!

Deacon Jacobs of Healthy Oakland giving an inspiring keynote speech

Executive Director Philip Arca introducing Deacon Jacobs

SUPER COHORT (#24)

Farms!

2010-06-21T13:23:00.000-07:00

Staff of the Kitchen of Champions represented SVDP and its WasteNot Electronics Recycling program at the Jack London Square Farmers' Market this past weekend. We have a booth there where you can drop off e-waste and get information about some of the wonderful programs at St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County. Please visit their web site for more info: http://www.svdp-alameda.org/wastenotse.php

We are also currently doing some information gathering to work much closer with local farms. Here is a photo from the Terre Bella Family Farm in Sunol. Headquartered in Pleasanton, most of their produce is grown in Sunol.

SVdP Welcomes Moreau Catholic to the Campus

2010-06-15T14:42:00.000-07:00

Moreau High spent the day volunteering in our Free Dining Room, working alongside our culinary trainees and long-term volunteers. We look forward to the next time they share their enthusiasm and great work ethic! Hayward in the house!

Fiscal Impact of Kitchen of Champions

2010-06-15T12:54:00.001-07:00

Fun facts:
-75% of ex-felons go back to prison within 2 years
-Incarceration costs $51,000/year per prisoner for California taxpayers
-60 ex-felons going back to prison would cost California taxpayers $3,050,820/year
-60 ex-felons who go through the Kitchen of Champions and gain employment pay $252,000 in taxes/year
-The net impact for California taxpayers for 60 Kitchen of Champions trainees gaining employment after graduation is $3,302,820 million dollars every year and counting.
-We have placed 62 graduates in the past year.

More Photos, From the Lovely and Talented Nicole Jones

2010-05-25T09:03:00.000-07:00

Nicole Jones is our Vincential Service Core Volunteer for the year and in addition to managing our Champion Workforce Program she takes fabulous photographs.

One a Side Note, SVDP Has a Homeless Soccer Team!!

2010-05-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

Lungs and legs are getting stronger as Spring training has hit its 4th month in our Homeless Soccer League. So far we've played a few inter-squad games and a group of mechanics, but we are open to going up against any and all challengers! Contact jnratti(at)svdp-alameda.org if you're feelin' up to it.

Graduation of Cohort 22

2010-05-21T15:14:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to these Elite 8 who graduated at this past SVdP Graduation Ceremony. Michael LeBlanc started one of our very best graduations to date with an inspiring speech about breaking through the limitations we've set for ourselves and the rest is delicious final culinary project history. Here are some pictures of that meal along with the graduates who are on a steeper angle of trajectory that ever before. 7 of 9 total graduates are *already* employed. We are very, very proud and inspired. EDITOR'S NOTE: food photos were taken after the judges demoralized each dish. Apologies for missing the "before" photos.

Panorama

2010-05-13T17:07:00.000-07:00

Some amazing artwork is created in Oakland, especially in the downtown area. Across the street from the Free Dining Room lies a handful of artist studios and down the block is this wonderful panorama, which speaks for itself. Enjoy.

Operation Frontline (Farmer's Market) Nutrition Class: Breakfast Burritos!

2010-04-19T14:25:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday, some local folks gathered for another delicious lesson in using local organic produce and other nutritious items to create simple, tasty meals. Breakfast burritos and mixed greens anybody?

Graduation of Cohort 21

2010-04-14T10:31:00.000-07:00

Our 21st Cohort graduated on Friday April 9th. They made some of the best final project meals we've ever had. Congratulations Cohort 21!

Field Trip! City Slicker Farms

2010-04-14T10:18:00.000-07:00

We are elated to partner with City Slicker Farms in their farm tours program. Bringing each Kitchen of Champions class to these wonderful urban farms just around the corner adds so much value to our program. Trainees (many from West Oakland) gain access to local, organic, sustainable produce but also learn about the compost cycle, native produce, worm farms and how they can grow their own vegetables. Teaching our trainees where food comes from is a very important part of the program and we look forward to continued work with City Slicker Farms, for ever and ever.

Here are some photos from our field trip to CSF last week. Enjoy!

Bee Hive!

Field Trip! East Bay Restaurant Supply

2010-04-07T14:02:00.000-07:00

Cohort #22 made a stop at East Bay Restaurant Supply. Here, they got a taste of the equipment used across many different levels of culinary operations. They saw everything from a gigantic Polar Bear to how we are invoiced by this wonderful establishment.

Cooking Classes from Operation Frontline/ Pacific Coast Farmers' Market Association

2010-03-24T16:15:00.000-07:00

SVdP has teamed up with the great people of the Pacific Coast Farmers' Market Association in conjunction with Operation Frontline to bring cooking classes to our neighbors here in Downtown/ West Oakland. Operation Frontline and PCFMA provide a nutritionist, professional chef and organic groceries and we provide hungry cooks and a great facility.

Today was our first class together we look forward to using our kitchen to spread the word (and the access) of nutritious, sustainable, organic foods throughout the community. Here are a couple pictures from today; students made a vegan carrot soup with roasted corn and a spring greens salad with mandarin oranges. Please contact bforeman@svdp-alameda.org if you are interested in participating in a future 6 week (one day per week) culinary adventure, usually from 2:30pm-4:30pm and completely separate from the Kitchen of Champions Culinary Job Training Program.

Catching Up: Guest Chef w/ Jonathan Luce of Bellanico

2010-03-24T14:20:00.000-07:00

Chef Jonothan Luce of Bellanico in Oakland came to cook with, inspire and ultimately hire our Kitchen of Champions students in late 2009. Here are some pictures taken by the talented Brian Espinosa.

Chef Jonathan Luce briefs the FOH crew on the evening's menu

Kitchen of Champions graduate Obie speaks about his experience with SVdP and subsequent successes in the workforce as a kitchen manager.

Students prepare the first course

A standing ovation for another wonderful Guest Chef

Sous Chef instruction

Chef Luce poses with the front of the house staff, which is mostly comprised of KOC graduates coming back in support of the program

Looks like sage to me

Malfatti!

Chef Luce praises the staff

Success!

FOH briefing

A look at our Free Dining Room's conversion

Chef-Instructor Michael Stamm lends a hand

Chef Stamm

Even staff roll up their sleeves for the night

In the Media: For grads in chef hats, one last nerve-wracking test…

2010-03-24T13:47:00.001-07:00

For grads in chef hats, one last nerve-wracking test… (from Oaklandnorth.net)

Guest Chef

2010-03-24T13:45:00.000-07:00

Every couple months we invite a local "celebrity" chef to entertain roughly 120 customers with a 4-course meal prepared with a little help from our dedicated culinary students.

Oaklandnorth.net (a project of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism) covered our September, 2009 event where Kitchen of Champions students had the opportunity to train with Matt Colgan, head chef at Rockridge’s À Côté French-Italian restaurant.

In this video you will meet Serina Elliott, a Kitchen of Champions student from North Oakland’s Golden Gate neighborhood. Just four weeks into her program, Elliott aspires to one day become “a Food Network star.” She has since maintained an A average in Laney College's culinary program.

Kitchen of Champions from Oakland North on Vimeo.

Mobile Food Trailer

2010-03-05T16:19:00.000-08:00

Every now and again we will bring out our food trailer Chef Michael likes to call "St. Vinnie's Taste of Home." We are able to pay a rotation of 10 Kitchen of Champion graduates to staff our trailer and are constantly looking for opportunities to showcase our program and its delicious eats.

At last year's Eat Real Festival in Oakland we prepared a beef brisket sandwich with potato salad for the meat-eaters and polenta with a mushroom ragu and marinara sauce for the veggies.With our very own POM Julep to wash it down we completely sold out each day. As warmer weather rapidly approaches stay tuned for some more Bay Area appearances.

Sponsor a Student

2010-02-09T09:27:00.000-08:00

Kitchen of Champions is serving more students than ever before. In 2009 our enrollment numbers reached record highs and we expect to see this steady stream of applicants continue each week. Your support makes it possible for us to offer Kitchen of Champions students life skills training, job training, and employment in the food service industry.

We encourage you to help pave the way for student success through monetary contributions. Sponsoring a student will ensure the continued success of our wonderful program.

Support our Restaurant Partners

2010-02-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

Kitchen of Champions is grateful for the support of food industry professionals who hire our graduates or volunteer for Guest Chef Night. When you're choosing a place to dine, please consider supporting one of the many wonderful restaurants that make our community a better place.

Aramark
Bakesale Betty
Bellanico
Berkeley Bowl
Berkeley Food & Housing
Berkeley Youth Alternatives
Boundary Oaks Golf Course
Castlewood Country Club
Covenant House California
Denny’s
Emma’s Seafood & Poultry
Golden Gate Fields
Hotel Shattuck Plaza
Lake Chalet Seafood Bar & Grill
Laney College
LeBonne Cuisine
Levy Restaurants
Mandela Food Cooperative
Market Hall
Miss Pearl’s Jam House
Nation’s Giant Hamburgers
Revolution Foods
Ribs N Things
Soul’s Restaurant
Specialty’s Café & Bakery
Spice Monkey Cafe
Sugar Bowl Bakery
The Bellevue Club

Skills Upon Graduation

2010-02-09T09:17:00.000-08:00

Demonstrated Employability Assets

Each Kitchen of Champions graduate has completed our intensive 12 week training program. Each individual is prescreened for employability assets including:

Current track record of reliability and stability
Current references and support network
Timely, organized and efficient
Good communications and team focus
Working “clean, neat and complete”
Working with the sense of urgency
Maintaining high customer service standards
Asking questions and checking for understanding

Solid, Comprehensive Training

Kitchen of Champions graduates are qualified at and above entry-level for the food service industry. Each graduate has been extensively trained for food handling, safety and sanitation and are comfortable in multiple food service situations.

Kitchen of Champions students have worked and trained alongside a professional chef producing up to 1000 nutritious bulk meals each day in the Kitchen of Champions kitchen. They have also worked for St. Vincent de Paul catering and up to 128 three course gourmet meals each quarter at Kitchen of Champions' Guest Chef Night event.

Back-of-the-House Training Includes:

Proper food storage
Safe food handling
Team work
Knife skills
Kitchen safety
Quantity cooking
Serving skills
Kitchen vocabulary
Prep work
Kitchen math
Inventory procedures
Specialty cuisine
Soups, Sauces, Salads
Catering
Quality Control
Consistency
Leadership
Line cooking

To consider a Kitchen of Champions graduate for current or future job openings, please contact our Employment Specialist at bforeman@svdp-alameda.org or 510.877.9212.

Student Stories

2010-02-09T09:10:00.000-08:00

KC and her family have visited the St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County Free Dining Room to get a hot meal when times are tight. She knew about the Dining Room because she remembered visiting as a child – her mom was raising a family of eight on her own and when times were tough, the family would eat at the Dining Room. The Dining Room offers a hot noon meal every day, and also serves as the gateway to other services for those in need. Through the Dining Room, KC originally heard about SVdP’s Visitation Center for Women & Children. She would visit the Center to do her laundry or get clothes and gifts for her kids at holidays.

One day last year, KC was eating lunch in the Dining Room and asked someone about all the people in the kitchen wearing white chef’s coats. When she learned they were students in SVdP’s Kitchen of Champions Culinary Training Academy, KC made an appointment to find out about the program. She enrolled in the 12-week training program and gained confidence in her cooking abilities and a measure of self esteem. And she gained a pathway forward.

After graduation from the program, KC applied for and was admitted into the Culinary Arts program at Laney College – the first of her family to attend college. It all started with a hot meal ... and people who care.

Patrick, who is 32, is a recent graduate of the Kitchen of Champions. During his time in the program, his brother died and he had a baby girl.

“What made me come all the way to the end is I’m serious,” he says. “It’s always easy to be on the corner, slanging or doing whatever, but if you really got a passion for something, you should go ahead and put your 100 percent in and get what you want up out of it.”

Before Kitchen of Champions, Jerkins had trouble finding work in food service. He is sure he came close to getting a cooking job, but lacked very basic cooking knowledge. After his 12 weeks in the Kitchen of Champions, he is now prepared. Patrick was hired as a full-time employee with full benefits at the Safeway deli in Rockridge in November. He is now able to provide for his family and will build a career in food services.

Rayma was born and raised in Oakland, CA. A single mother of four, Rayma always kept her mind on working hard, caring for her children and staying out of the system. She acknowledges the need for public assistance but has always made the effort to stay away from “hand outs.” Living life on her own terms, Rayma was volunteering at Alta Bates Medical Center for many years before thinking about changing her vocational path.

She applied to the Kitchen of Champions in late 2008 and started the program in January of 2009. Through the SVdP network Rayma got information on the opening of Mandela Foods Cooperative and started taking various business classes there. After graduating from KOC, Rayma worked the grand opening of Mandela Foods Cooperative on June 6^th, where she is still currently a worker-owner. Now, staying true to her Oakland co-op roots, Rayma is involved in a new clothing venture opening in January where she will also be a worker-owner. She also learned about this opportunity through the SVDP network. “It’s all because of your guys,” she says. “You ought to be real proud of yourselves.”

Program Overview

2010-02-09T08:58:00.000-08:00

The Kitchen of Champions offers a highly structured environment in which students learn and practice professional work skills and attitudes that will serve them for a lifetime. We balance compassion and support with expectations for professional behavior that meet the demands of the workplace.

There are four main ingredients to the program:

Culinary Training at The Kitchen of Champions is taught through hands-on, real-world experience in the St. Vincent de Paul kitchen. Students work and train alongside our own staff of chefs, producing a total of up to 1,000 meals a day.

Individual Case Management helps students with the complexities of day-to-day life. Employment Specialists work with students on an individual basis, adapting to each student's particular needs and advising students on a variety of issues, including how to organize and manage daily issues such as transportation, health care, and housing.

Life Skills Training teaches students how to set goals, work as part of a team, and make positive choices for themselves. Training focuses on workplace essentials, such as conflict resolution, stress and anger management, timeliness, and personal presentation.

Job Placement and Retention Services means finding the right jobs for students and continuing to work with them after they've graduated to ensure that they retain their jobs and realize adequate wage progression.

Hire a Kitchen of Champions Graduate

2010-02-09T08:55:00.000-08:00

Kitchen of Champions graduates are well-trained and ready to go to work! With your help, more than 70% of Kitchen of Champions graduates have gained employment after program completion. Kitchen of Champions graduates are pre-screened and have current referrals. Core competencies have been demonstrated and evaluated through intensive classroom and on-the-job training and experience.

To consider a Kitchen of Champions graduate for current or future job openings, please contact an Employment Specialist at kitchenofchampions@svdp-alameda.org or 510/877-8212.

Do you have a job available for a Kitchen of Champions Graduate? Please send us the details and one of our Employment Specialist will get in touch with you!

Become a Kitchen of Champions Student

2010-02-09T08:50:00.000-08:00

Our Mission:

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Alameda County’s Kitchen of Champions provides a community that transforms lives by empowering men, women, and families to achieve self-sufficiency through life skills, job training, and employment in the food service industry.

To APPLY:

Turn in an application to our Community Center or Dining Room Office on the corner of San Pablo & 23rd in downtown Oakland, CA.

DOWNLOAD THE APPLICATION

675 23rd St.

Oakland, CA 94612

View the application form here (link). You are welcome to print, fill out this application, and drop it off at the St. Vincent de Paul in downtown Oakland.

For more information about the program or for information about eligibility, call 510/877-9212.

What is the Kitchen of Champions?

A 12 week hands-on Job Training program in the Culinary Arts (Cooking and Foodservice prep)
Coaching to develop strong, successful work habits.
Case Management and Support Services to address personal needs and challenges
Employment Services to help participants achieve employment

Requirements (Eligible people are):

Candidate must be at least 18 years of age
Must be drug and alcohol free
English skills sufficient to read and communicate in English
Either unemployed or under employed
Reading at a middle school level (or above) and in possession of basic math skills
Be willing to work with a team
Available to be in class from 8am to 12pm and 10:30 am to 2:30 pm, Mon-Fri
Curious, ready to learn, and willing to do homework
Must be capable of standing and walking for four hours at a time
Must be capable of lifting 50 lb.
Willing to spend one shift volunteering at SVdP Dining Room prior to start of class
Must be interested in a career in food service

This training is provided at no cost.