The competition gets served: St. Clair Culinary claims top honors at state, to represent Alabama in nationals
Published 2:00 pm Thursday, February 11, 2016
- Members of the St. Clair County Culinary Team were offered congratulations on their state victory in-person by St. Clair County Schools Superintendent Jenny Seals. From left: Instructor Melissa Allphin, Autumn Brown of Ashville High, Autumn Herndon of Moody High, Superintendent Seals. Kneeling from left are Jonathan Hartness of Moody High and Christopher Mendez of Asheville High. Photo courtesy of Melissa Allphin.
Two days before the team was set to compete in the state competition, they received troubling news. One of their members couldn’t make the trip.
For a football team, it’s the equivalent of losing a starting quarterback. High school culinary students compete in groups of four, and losing one member sometimes can’t be replaced. If your grill chef is out, does the dessert chef have what it takes to fill in?
“It was wild,” culinary instructor Melissa Allphin said. “We had to change our menu the day before the competition.”
Allphin said the team didn’t panic – it went simple. The original menu called for Beef Tenderloin with Brussel Sprout Slaw and Vegetables in Mediterranean Style Salsa Verde. They switched that to “steak.” Dessert was scheduled as a Blackberry Soufflé with Hand-Cranked Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Suddenly, that was reduced to “ice cream.”
Allphin said she was pleased the students finished in their allotted hour. But, as expected, when students presented their dishes to the judges the first question they fielded was, “Why are there only three members?”
The students explained the situation, and the judges replied that were surprised the team even competed. Allphin was floored by her students’ response.
“Well, sometimes someone doesn’t show up for work,” Allphin said they replied. “You don’t close the restaurant because of it. You just make it work.”
“The judges loved it,” she said.
Last year, in its first year of existence, the St. Clair County Culinary Program defied the odds to place first in the state in the Restaurant Management competition and second place in Culinary.
In 2016, despite their obstacles, they swept the whole thing. That means you just can’t call it a fluke anymore, – two years of competition, two invites to nationals.
“We have remarkable kids,” Allphin said.
These student chefs with be representing the state of Alabama at The National ProStart Invitational® in Grapevine, Texas at the end of April, and to help fund the journey they’re reaching out to the community for help. They hope to raise $8,000 by mid-April through sponsorships and a Go Fund Me page where individuals can contribute.
To learn more or help sponsor the program, call Allphin at (205) 640-5127 email melissa.allphin@sccboe.org. To contribute directly, visit the donations page at gofundme.com/nhnq8y7w.
St. Clair County Culinary Team members are Autumn Brown, Autumn Herndon and Christopher Mendez. Management members are Christopher Mendez, Autumn Brown and Jonathan Hartness.