Sam Turner, Hospitality and Catering lecturer, reports back on the poignant final service in the Gallery restaurant before the staff and students move out and over to the sparkling new kitchens in the new College building.
Part of the experience we offer our second year level 2 learners is a practical assignment task which gives them the opportunity to employ and demonstrate the skills that they have acquired during the course so far. The assignment asks them to plan, organise and host a themed event that focuses on a particular country or region from around the world. They are strongly encouraged to broaden their cultural awareness and fix their attention beyond Europe and the students decided to base their event on Mexico.
As it turned out, this themed event was immensely successful and also very emotional, as it bade a final farewell to the Gallery restaurant. The stage was set for the Gallery’s ‘swan song’ and the evening did not disappoint - it did justice to and proved worthy of the restaurant’s grand finale.
This themed evening was one of those experiences that will live long in the memory of all those who took part in it. All credit is due to those who contributed to organising and marketing the event. In fact it was so well organised that I had the easiest of tasks in supervising them.
The group were being assessed on all aspects of the planning, preparation and execution of the task, and were supported and guided throughout by both Sarah Hogben (their tutor) and myself.
The evening was a huge success. The menu was perfectly balanced in flavour, colour and texture, and combined authenticity with simplicity. The dishes were fresh, honest and unpretentious, cleanly and beautifully presented and revealed a virtuoso of depth and flavour. The service was smooth and seamless, which was an incredible achievement in itself, as the Gallery restaurant was packed to capacity.
The ambience and mood of the evening was reminiscent of an eatery in down-town Monterrey or Guadalajara, and had a distinct atmosphere of a ‘fiesta’ (but also intermingled with a little melancholy and an air of finality). As one diner concluded, it was “a fantastic way for the Gallery restaurant to end.”
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