BOYNE CITY — Students in the Boyne City High School hospitality class partnered with Cafe Santé for their 13th annual job shadow dinner. The event allowed students to cook and serve a three-course menu to the public while working alongside professional restaurant staff.
Taught by Chef Cole Thornton, the dinner served as a culmination of the class’s work-based learning curriculum, providing students with real-world experience in the culinary industry. Each year, students select a specific European country to study its food culture and traditions before designing a professional menu based on their findings.
For this year’s dinner, the students selected the region of Lyon, France. The class spent approximately a month and a half researching French recipes through websites and old cookbooks to develop the final menu. Students tested various dishes to ensure the items were traditional to the region and aesthetically pleasing for restaurant service.
The hospitality program is designed to provide students with the skills necessary to work in Northern Michigan’s local dining scene. In addition to the annual job shadow dinner, the class participates in other work-based learning opportunities, including catering and restaurant-style service. Officials noted that these experiences are intended to help students be successful in professional environments.
Student motivations for joining the hospitality program vary. One student, Nathan Debrosky, joined the class after being taught to cook at home by their father, who served 23 years in the military. His father spent 17 of those years as a cook in the U.S. Coast Guard.
Another student, Brodey Peplinski, entered the hospitality track during their second year of culinary studies. A scheduling conflict prevented him from taking the introductory culinary course as a freshman. Peplinski noted that while the hospitality class previously utilized a two-hour time block, the school changed the schedule for the current academic year.
Students involved in the project described the process of preparing and serving food to the community as a way to find commonality. Many participants expressed that the experience of feeding people is a calming process that brings the community together over a meal.