Chefs, students and foodservice professionals gathered for professional development and culinary trend seminars at the 2014 American Culinary Federation (ACF) Western Regional Conference. The conference took place at the Oakland Marriott City Center, Oakland, Calif., March 2-5.
More than 25 chefs, students, chapters and foodservice professionals were presented with American Culinary Federation awards during the conference. Award competitions took place to determine ACF Western Region Chef of the Year, Pastry Chef of the Year, Student Chef of the Year, Student Team Championship and Baron H. Galand Culinary Knowledge Bowl.
The conference theme was “Embracing a Sustainable Future,” and many of the demonstrations and seminars focused on how to incorporate green and sustainable cooking concepts into restaurant kitchens and onto menus. Attendees enjoyed culinary demonstrations from Martin Yan, HAAC, HHOF, executive chef/owner of M.Y. China, San Francisco, Ben Vaughn from Food Network’s “Health Inspectors,” Chris Jones, director of culinary innovation, Hampton Creek Foods, and Sebastien Canonne, MOF, cofounder, The French Pastry School of Kennedy-King College at City Colleges of Chicago, Chicago.
The following ACF Western Region competition award winners will compete for their respective national titles at the 2014 ACF National Convention in Kansas City, Mo., July 25-29.
ACF Western Region Chef of the Year, sponsored by Unilever Food Solutions
Jinkuk Lee, chef de cuisine, The Chef’s Table, Orem, Utah, ACF Beehive Chefs Chapter Inc.
ACF Western Region Pastry Chef of the Year, sponsored by Plugrá European-Style Butter
Chris Cwierz, chef instructor/faculty development liaison, The Art Institute of Phoenix, Phoenix, ACF Chef’s Association of Arizona, Inc.
ACF Western Region Chef Educator of the Year
Noel G. Ridsdale, CEC, CCE, AAC, academic director, The Art Institute of Tucson, Tucson, Ariz., ACF Chefs Association of Southern Arizona Tucson
ACF Western Region Hermann G. Rusch Chef’s Achievement Award
Walter Leible, CMC, AAC, senior culinary instructor/assistant professor, The Art Institute of Phoenix, Phoenix, ACF Chef’s Association of Arizona, Inc.
ACF Western Region Dr. L.J. Minor Chef Professionalism Award, sponsored by MINOR’S
Melody Money, CEC, executive chef, Quaker Ridge Camp & Conference Center, Woodland Park, Colo., ACF Pikes Peak Chapter, Inc.
ACF Western Region Student Chef of the Year, sponsored by Custom Culinary, Inc.
Victor Perez Ruiz, student, Culinary Arts Institute at Utah Valley University, Orem, Utah, ACF Beehive Chefs Chapter Inc.
ACF Western Region Baron H. Galand Culinary Knowledge Bowl, sponsored by American Technical Publishers
Students representing Lake Washington Institute of Technology, Kirkland, Wash.
ACF Western Region Student Team Regional Championship, sponsored by R.L. Schreiber, Inc.
Students representing Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Los Angeles, Los Angeles
The 2014 ACF Western Regional Conference award recipients listed below were recognized for their outstanding contributions to ACF, goodwill in their communities and/or culinary excellence.
- ACF Western Region Chapter of the Year
- ACF Monterey Bay Chapter, Monterey, Calif.
- ACF Western Region Chapter Achievement Award
- ACF Chefs de Cuisine Society of Oregon, Portland., Ore.
- ACF High Sierra Chefs Association, Reno, Nev.
- ACF Idaho Chefs de Cuisine, Boise, Idaho
- ACF Monterey Bay Chapter, Monterey, Calif.
- ACF World of Thanks
- ACF San Francisco Chapter
ACF Western Region Cutting Edge Award
- Joseph Eidem, CEC, AAC, director/executive chef, Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, Colton, Calif., ACF High Sierra Chefs Association
- Paul Lee, CEC, director, Drummond Culinary Academy, Salinas, Calif., ACF Monterey Bay Chapter
- Jon “Mike” Lodi, chef instructor, Rescue Mission Alliance, Oxnard, Calif., Ventura Chefs Association
- Ken Love,executive director, Master Food Preservers, Captain Cook, Hawaii, ACF Kona-Kohala Chefs Association
- Thomas Rosenberger, CEC, CHE, FMP, CFPM, department chair, College of Southern Nevada, North Las Vegas, Nev., ACF Chefs Las Vegas
ACF Western Region President’s Medallion
- John Fisher, CEC, CCE, AAC, senior chef arts instructor, Renton Technical College, Renton, Wash., ACF Washington State Chefs Association
- Gary Fuller, CEC, CCE, AAC, president, Two Snooty Chefs/Seattle Seasonings LLC, Port Orchard, Wash., ACF Washington State Chefs Association
- Cynthia Grace Gregorio, professor, American Hospitality Academy, Makati City, Philippines, ACF Philippines
- Jean Hull, CCE, AAC, owner, Hospitality Consulting by Jean, Kailua Kona, Hawaii, ACF Kona-Kohala Chefs Association
- Reilly Meehan, line cook, Parallel 37 at The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco, ACF San Francisco Chapter
- Garry Waldie, CEC, CEPC, CCE, AAC, lead instructor, Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Scottsdale, Scottsdale, Ariz., ACF San Francisco Chapter
ACF Western Region Achievement of Excellence Awards
- Alan Wong’s Restaurants, Honolulu
- The Inventing Room, Denver
- Willowstone Catering & Events, Concord, Calif.
The 2014 ACF Western Regional Conference, hosted by ACF San Francisco Chapter, provided attendees with opportunities to advance their professional development and enhance their culinary skills through business seminars, cooking demonstrations featuring the latest trends and techniques, culinary competitions and awards.
Regional and national sponsors of the 2014 ACF events series are: Alabama Gulf Seafood; Allen Brothers; American Technical Publishers; Barilla Foodservice; Barry Callebaut; BelGioioso Cheese, Inc.; California Avocado Commission; Campbell’s Culinary & Baking Institute; Central Region State Beef Councils; Custom Culinary, Inc.; Dexter-Russell, Inc / Chef Revival; Ecolab; Evo, Inc.; Fabbri USA 1905, LLC.; Fortune Fish Company; Ghirardelli Chocolate Company; Gordon Food Service; Idaho Potato Commission; J.R. Simplot Company; JTM Food Group; Johnson & Wales University; Jones Dairy Farm; Kern Meat Co., Inc.; Lactalis Foodservice; Maines Paper & Food Service, Inc.; Mercer Cutlery; MINOR’S; Monini North America, Inc.; Mooney Farms; National Pasteurized Eggs, Inc.; NEWCHEF Fashion Inc.; Par-Way Tryson, makers of Vegalene; Performance Foodservice; Plugrá European-Style Butter; Publix Super Markets; RC Fine Foods; R.L. Schreiber, Inc.; Rosenthal Sambonet USA Ltd; S&D Coffee; Saint Louis Chefs de Cuisine Education Foundation; Sartori Company; Sysco; The Beef Checkoff; Tyson Food Service; Unilever Food Solutions; US Foods; Valrhona; Villeroy & Boch; Vitamix Corporation; Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.
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 nearly 20,000 members spanning 200 chapters nationwide, ACF is the culinary leader in 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 and Certified Executive Pastry Chef designations the only culinary credentials 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 and on Twitter.
