Florentine Appetites Take On JBF Capstone Dinner
By Kimberlee Preish
Photos by Isabela Elizondo
The moment we have all been waiting for has finally arrived; after a month of prepping, studying, and double checking every small detail, we finally had the chance to prove ourselves at the James Beard Foundation Dinner. The James Beard Lunch was a crucial rehearsal for our final capstone event, and we most importantly learned that we could count of the house waitstaff to help provide the finest service possible to our diners.
When the guests began to arrive on Saturday evening, TuttoToscana was ready.
The staff had set up all the tables already, we had reviewed each dish with the kitchen brigade, and Mayte and I practiced our wine introductions repeatedly. All the prepping paid off because there was not a single hiccup throughout the night or a question that I could not answer for our guests.
I was pleasantly surprised by how many guests had come to the TuttoToscana event for multiple editions. For one guest in particular, it was his fifth year joining us for this event; I asked him what kept bringing him back and he said that our program was “the only one of its kind to bring students to such a well-known Foundation and perform on such a high quality level.” So many of the tables were genuinely interested in the backgrounds of the wines and production methods of the food, which gave us an interactive opportunity to demonstrate all that we have learned. I loved communicating with all of the diverse guests and this event proved to myself that the event industry, especially for a catering or food related company, is where I am meant to end up.
I have learned more in these few weeks than I have in all my years of schooling, so I would like to give a special thanks to Nora Takacs, Grace Joh, Massimo Coppetti, and Andrea Trapani. All of these instructors have taught me more than just the basics. They have also opened up a window into new, amazing cultures waiting to be discovered and shared. This truly was a life-altering experience that I will hold closely to my heart.