In this series premiere, we meet the chef instructors and follow the students as they learn basic culinary skills in a lab course called "Mise en Place". MATC Culinary Arts program alumni Joe Bartolotta of the Bartolotta Restaurant Group, Chef Erin Broderick of the Eggs N' Bakin' food truck, and Chef James Golombowski of Western Racquet Club are also featured.
After mastering the basics, the student chefs in MATC's Culinary Arts program move on to more advanced cooking techniques: from transforming flavorful stocks into soups to crafting tasty vegetable dishes, fabricating meat and seafood, learning proper plating techniques, and creating delicious cold foods.
Now that the student chefs know all the cooking techniques, they practice their skills for hungry customers. The students learn to make classic American comfort foods and regional specialties, including Hawaiian food after a quick field trip to Ono Kine Grindz in Wauwatosa for research, and international cuisine from around the globe.
The student chefs enter the final phases of training before they cook in the real world. MATC Culinary Arts program students partner with the Milwaukee Police Department and Messmer High School's Culinary Club to prepare over 300 Thanksgiving meals for the community and it's all hands on deck to prepare and share their culinary creations during MATC's annual Five Star Food & Wine event.