Every year the S. Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef Competition scours the kitchens of America's culinary institutes for talented students ready to compete for the title of Almost Famous Chef. The ten most talented young chefs, as determined by regional competitions, converge on Napa, California's Culinary Institute of America for three days of intense battling, and the victor emerges much richer.Even as we speak, South Florida's own Francisco Lopez Jr., a Palm Beach County culinary student who wor
Jacob KatelScallop Ceviche Juan Carlos Lopategui is the private chef and caterer behind the Ceviche Parlor brand. He's also a sales rep for Mozzarita, the maker of New Times' Best Mozzarella 2008. "I do corporate events, and I specialize in hordeurves parties. I went to the Culinary Institute of America at 19 years old, then I moved to Spain and cooked at a Michelin 3 star rated restaurant, after that I moved to Napa Valley and studied oenology and lived there for a few years and worked for Ster
​Looking for work? The National Restaurant Association estimates a record $566 billion in food and beverage sales for 2009 (more than $1.5 billion per day). The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in Hyde Park, NY, will be holding an Admissions reception at Ocean Prime (Aventura Mall) on Sunday, November 8 at 6 p.m. This is an opportunity for aspiring culinarians to meet CIA agents -- er, representatives, and to learn about the college's bachelor's and associate degree programs in culinary art
The question was this:Only two people currently working in the
South Florida food industry graduated The Culinary Institute of America
with the highest honor accorded: The Francis B. Roth Award for
Outstanding Performance. Can you name them? Most folks guessed Tim Andriola correctly. Neal Cooper eventually felt he had triumphed with Alfred Portale as the second Roth winner. But...Portale graduated top of his class in grade point average, but we haven't found any evidence that he copped the Outst
Chef John Critchley​Executive chef John Critchley of Area 31 at Epic seems to be a man of few words--as is evidenced by his interview below--but perhaps that's because his focus is more on action, nowadays. As a matter of fact, on November 20, he'll present a donation check to the Marine Mammal Conservancy in Key Largo reflecting profits from his restaurant's pre-fixe menu featuring locally caught, sustainable seafood. (Did you know the restaurant was named for Fishing Area 31, a region o
Tim Andriola​No use rehashing all of Chef Tim Andriola's background info, since Katel did a fine job of that in his blog post, so let's just remind everyone that this popular guy is and has been co-owner of Timó in Sunny Isles Beach since its inception in 2003. He previously kept diners happy for five years as chef de cuisine at Chef Allen's, then as executive chef at Mark's South Beach. He also sliced and diced at Charlie Trotter's and Chez Panisse.His Mediterranean/Italian eats have been la
