Opportunity Knocked, Yaritza Castro Answered
February 14, 2011
•Le Cordon Bleu
•General, Orlando
• 0 Comments
Opportunities, no matter how big or small, are sometimes too good to pass up! A few weeks ago, Yaritza Castro, Culinary Arts student graduating in September 2011, was offered the opportunity to work side by side with Certified Master Chef Ken Arnone on a special project for Olive Garden. Yaritza first met Chef Arnone last year in March while working at the Tavistock Cup event held at Isleworth Country Club in Windermere, Florida. Chef Arnone contacted Instructor Chef Rosado with a need for a student assistant for his project. “Normally I use chefs from Isleworth to assist me with projects like this, but I met Yaritza last year and I knew she was very dedicated, serious and focused. It’s my way of giving back to the culinary community”, said Chef Arnone. When Chef Rosado approached Yaritza about the opportunity, she didn’t know what she had agreed to, but it didn’t matter. It was an opportunity Yaritza knew she couldn’t shy away from! Since she has no prior industry experience, she takes nothing for granted. “It’s important to give those passionate about the industry the opportunity to see another facet of it”, said Chef Arnone.
After speaking with Chef Arnone about the details, the special project was to present an ideation menu for 2013 to Olive Garden representatives. Yaritza spent two days assisting Chef Arnone in preparing each of the eight dishes. “It was fun and exciting, but intense and stressful; you never know what might go wrong, and you have to be ready to adjust. Our protein truck was late, so we had to adjust our plan and prep other items in the meantime”, said Yaritza. Yaritza helped with anything she could, such as wiping plates, grilling, marinating, setting up mise en place, and much more. It was all about just “getting it done, and not over-thinking it”. On day two, they had about 90 minutes to assemble each dish before presenting to the representatives. While Chef Arnone presented one dish to the group, Yaritza helped plate the next dish, and so on. Once the presentation was finished, Chef Arnone invited Yaritza to meet the group. “I felt a little out of place, because I didn’t want to take any credit for all of Chef Arnone’s hard work in creating these dishes. It was amazing to see that it all paid off in the end!” said Yaritza. That’s what it’s all about for Yaritza, the reaction of people after they taste food. “I was very happy with the results, and Yaritza did a fantastic job”, said Chef Arnone.
Working with Chef Arnone and seeing what he was able to create confirmed Yaritza’s passion for this industry and her chosen career path. “She was very organized and a pleasure to work with”. Not only did Yaritza get to work with Master Chef Arnone, but she was also offered freelance work by a photographer, and the Chef de Cuisine of the Olive Garden test kitchen gave her an “open door” for future opportunities. If an opportunity comes knocking on your door, are you going to take the challenge and answer it?
