The Auburn Room Restaurant at Auburn Career Center in Concord Township is a “coming-in-hot” training ground for area high school juniors and seniors seeking a culinary career.
The Auburn Room Restaurant at Auburn Career Center in Concord Township is a “coming-in-hot” training ground for area high school juniors and seniors seeking a culinary career.
The restaurant, open to the public by reservation, is fully run by ACC’s culinary arts program students, who gain real-world experience, industry credentials and the freedom to fully create their own recipes and get feedback from the public.
They impressed this reporter, as did their menu, presentation and food during ACC’s third annual fall menu-tasting event Oct. 15 at the restaurant, located at 8140 Auburn Road.
ACC’s culinary arts program teaches students about catering and restaurant operations, including food safety, preparation, presentation, sanitation and other critical skills, such as decision-making, time management, communication and organization.
About two dozen people at the menu-tasting event were invited guests, including donors, staff and media. No one went home hungry.
Attendees offered compliments and asked questions after each course, which included an appetizer, soups, a salad, entrees and desserts.
Students played different roles showcasing their varied goals. Some dream of becoming a head chef or a restaurant owner, while others haven’t decided their career path.
For the tasting, the seniors created their own recipes, said Amy Ryan, culinary arts program instructor.
Ryan said the juniors did most of the prep work and the recipes chosen to be featured at the event will be added to the menu at the Auburn Room Restaurant through the fall season.
In addition to the dishes served, the event showcased students’ ability to work as a team in the kitchen and dining room, and give diners a smooth, enjoyable experience from start to finish.
Every dish served was delicious and had creative ingredient twists, and the hostesses and servers contributed to the experience with an atmosphere of elegance and professionalism.
Ryan was watchful and ready with guidance during the tasting as students smoothly passed each other between kitchen doors and the dining room.
After the event, Ryan lauded the 20 seniors’ and 24 juniors’ prep work and personal creations, as did those who sampled the dishes.
“The dishes are their creations, their babies. They go from the basics, all the way to running the (Auburn Room) Restaurant,” Ryan explained.
One such young man was senior Luis Hernandez, who made the Swedish meatballs, which were tender and flavorful, and carried a smile throughout the event.
The 17-year-old said he has been cooking with his mom since he was 10, giving him a jumpstart in his culinary career.
He is a line cook at a golf course, currently, he said, adding he’s worked at three different restaurants as a cook, server and caterer.
Luis’ enthusiasm for cooking was apparent as he spoke about his future in the industry.
“I really love the Italian culture, the food. I can see opening an Italian restaurant,” he said. “We’re Hispanic, but my mom and dad really love my cooking.”
He said he made his special dish for them and they loved it.
“I always make too much and we invite the whole family,” he said.
Senior Josh Vail’s moist German chocolate recipe was also well received.
While he drew inspiration from the internet, Vail added the chocolate drizzle and coconut pecan frosting for something “slightly different but really good,” he said.
Senior Emilee Rosario drew from her experiences cooking with her parents when creating the recipe for her maple apple blondies.
“Me and my mom used to make brownies all the time and me and my dad made apple pies, so I decided to mix them and created maple apple blondies,” she said.
Senior Tanner Sokolowski’s inspiration for his appetizer came from a dish made where he works, at the Chagrin Valley Country Club.
“We do a similar but different tomato comfit at work, so I made something off that,” he said.
As the event ended, Ryan was still paying compliments as her white-clad students quickly cleared the tables, asking Ryan if there was anything else they could do to help.
Ryan and her students’ rapport of mutual respect was apparent and while this is no “Hell’s Kitchen” experience for the students, it’s not “gravy work” either.
“They’re working the line, serving the tables, running the cash registers. They’re working the pantry, doing the dishes. Everybody has a roll. Then, one day, they’re running their own restaurant or business,” Ryan said. “The program experience is designed to launch them into a career, whether it’s as a chef, restaurateur, a dietician, nutritionist or some other aspect of the restaurant or related business.”
Ryan said two of her students have won state and national cooking contests, and one of her first students is now the head chef at a local restaurant.
As the menu-tasting event wrapped, Ryan touched on how it evolved over the past three years.
The brainchild of Dawn Bubonic, marketing and public relations spokesperson for ACC, the event began as a media day, Ryan said, adding it has since evolved to include sponsors with monies raised to help pay for shirts for the students.
“Our numbers were low, post COVID and we wanted to promote the students and the restaurant, and that’s when the sponsors came in,” she said, adding Bubonic also did a lion’s share of organizing the event.
This year’s fall menu at the Auburn Room Restaurant includes:
- Burrata with slow-roasted cherry tomato confit and fresh mozzarella burrata with crostini;
- Chicken gnocchi soup with sundried tomatoes, shredded chicken and carrots;
- Turkey noodle soup with egg noodles, carrots and celery;
- Bacon Ceasar wedge salad available with seared chicken breast;
- Creamy Swedish meatballs served with mashed potatoes and garlic buttered green beans;
- Chicken pot pie offering a flaky crust with gravy, chicken and a variety of veggies;
- Pork chops paired with sweet baked cinnamon apples, roasted carrots and mashed potatoes;
- Fall harvest carbonara – a fall twist on pasta with a hint of pumpkin;
- Maple apple blondie, topped with vanilla ice cream and caramelized sugar
- German chocolate cake with chocolate drizzle;
- Oatmeal cookie flight, a shareable dessert of three oatmeal cookies, each topped differently with pumpkin mousse, apple caramel crunch and a maple pecan frosting.
All menu items costs $10 or less. Reservations are required, hours and dates vary. Call 440-357-7542 for information or visit auburncc.org.
