AMERICAN CULINARY FEDERATION PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release: February 4, 2016

Media Contacts: Sarah Roy: (904) 484-0226, [email protected] Jennifer Manley: (904) 484-0247, [email protected]

Western Region Culinary Students Compete for Regional Award at The Academy of Arts in Reno, Nevada St. Augustine, Fla., February 4, 2016—Could you prepare the classical French dish Poulet Sauté SaintLambert under the watchful eye of professional chefs? That’s just what seven teams of culinary students will do during the American Culinary Federation’s (ACF) Western Regional Student Team Championship, Feb. 5-7, at The Academy of Arts, Careers & Technology, Reno, Nevada. The ACF Student Team Championship, sponsored by Vitamix®, is designed to raise the standards of culinary excellence and professionalism among students, promote camaraderie and educational opportunities and act as a staging area for research and development of culinary concepts. To compete at the regional level, teams must first win local and state competitions. The regional competition consists of two phases: skills and cooking. During the skills phase, team members compete in a relay-style format with a total of 80 minutes to complete four skills. During the cooking phase, each team prepares four portions of a fish starter, salad, dessert, and pre-assigned classical entrée, Poulet Sauté Saint-Lambert, as well as two appropriate sides to accompany the entree, from Escoffier: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery (Le Guide Culinaire version). The winning regional team will advance to the national competition at Cook. Craft. Create. Convention & Show, Phoenix, July 15-19. The 2016 Western Region teams are: Arizona Students representing ACF Chefs Association of Southern Arizona Tucson who attend Pima Community College, Tucson, Arizona, will compete. Elizabeth Mikesell, CEC, AAC, is the team coach. California Students representing ACF Southern CA Inland Empire Chefs & Cooks Association who attend The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of California - Inland Empire, San Bernardino, California, will compete. Dennis Vasquez, CEC, CCE, CCA, and William Ramsey, CEC, CCA, are the team’s coaches. Colorado Students representing ACF Colorado Chefs Association who attend Western Colorado Community College, Grand Junction, Colorado, will compete. Wayne Smith, CEC, CCE, and Elizabeth Branscum are the team’s coaches. Hawaii Students representing ACF Honolulu Chapter who attend Kapi‘olani Community College, Honolulu, will compete. Jason Peel and Alan Tsuchiyama, CEC, are the team’s coaches. -more-

Nevada Students representing ACF Chefs Las Vegas who attend Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, Las Vegas, will compete. Cheryl Lewis, CCC, is the team coach. Oregon Students representing ACF Bay Area Chefs Association of Oregon who attend Oregon Coast Culinary Institute, Coos Bay, Oregon, will compete. Randy Torres, CEC, AAC, is the team coach. Utah Students representing ACF Beehive Chefs Chapter Inc who attend Utah Valley University, Orem, Utah, will compete. Troy Wilson, CEC, and Todd Leonard, CEC, are the team’s coaches. ACF Regional Culinary Salon Competitions are a part of ACF’s Signature Series, which provides educational and networking opportunities through ChefConnect events and competitions for culinary industry professionals and students. ACF believes that competitions play a vital role in the development of the culinary craft by testing chefs’ and students’ knowledge and skills in a competitive format. To learn more about ACF competitions, eligibility and rules, visit www.acfchefs.org/competitions. About the American Culinary Federation The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), established in 1929, is the standard of excellence for chefs in North America. With more than 17,500 members spanning nearly 200 chapters nationwide, ACF is the leading culinary association offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and programmatic accreditation. In addition, ACF operates the most comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States, with the Certified Executive Chef®, Certified Sous Chef®, Certified Executive Pastry Chef® and Certified Culinary Educator® designations accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and to the Chef & Child Foundation, founded in 1989 to promote proper nutrition in children and to combat childhood obesity. For more information, visit www.acfchefs.org. Find ACF on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ACFChefs and on Twitter @ACFChefs. ###