Sweet Smell of Success from a Center-Led Culinary Kitchen
November 2014
When is it good to have too many cooks in the kitchen? When they are Aramark chefs working with the Culinary Development team at the Aramark Innovation Center in Philadelphia and they’re collaborating to create standard processes to improve menu performance and recipe consistency across the enterprise. This was not only an opportunity for professional exchange but also for professional development.
Sixteen chefs from Higher Education, Business Dining and Healthcare received “certification” this fall after spending three days with chefs from Aramark’s Culinary Development team. They worked on the disciplined process of recipe development, utilization of PRIMA Web, application of consumer-driven insights, health and wellness priorities and more. The collaboration allowed for an exchange of the very important insights of our field chefs and the development perspective of our chefs on the Culinary Development team.
“These collaborations foster engagement, recognition, development and alignment around the Food Management priorities for the business, and the shared role that the field and the center have in satisfying them,” said Doug Martinides, Vice President, Culinary Development.
The classes not only provide an opportunity to recognize culinary talent within Aramark, but Martinides believes the connectivity established among business unit chefs is significant and leads to better recipe development from the culinary center. “All of this becomes increasingly important as we ‘Master the Menu’ within our Food Framework,” he said.
Added Darryl Mickler, Associate Vice President, Culinary Development, “At the highest level, this is about building a repeatable business model by bringing together the talent of the field chefs to create recipes for a One Aramark solution.”
Business Dining Executive Chef Corby Robbins at HPI Real Estate/AMD in Austin, Texas, concluded, “The biggest thing I got from the class is the importance of menu development, and learning that the process of following Aramark recipes as-written can create a whole chain of events…better yield on menu items, lower cost, time saved for staff and consistency at our café.”
Sixteen culinary chefs from across LOBs collaborated with Aramark's Culinary Development team this fall to help improve menu performance and recipe consistency across the enterprise.
Front row (kneeling, left-right):
Jay Katz, Food Service Director, B&I; Travis Ramsdell, Executive Chef, B&I; Charles Julian, Chef Manager, Healthcare; Justin Mcpherson, Chef Manager, Healthcare
Back row (left-right):
Scott Zahren, Director of Culinary Development, Strategic Assets; Darryl Mickler, AVP, Culinary Development, Strategic Assets; Matthew Fuss, Culinary Development Chef, Strategic Assets; Barry Giordano, Executive Chef, Healthcare; Matthew Thompson, Food Quality & Standards Director; Edward Manacle, Senior Executive Chef, B&I; Erin Schuessler, Food Service Director; Tim Zintz, Sr. Culinary Development Chef, Strategic Assets; Corby Robbins, Food Service Director, B&I; Pinky Varghese, Executive Chef, Higher Education; Mike Coble, Executive Chef, Higher Education; Stacy Wiroll, Executive Chef, Higher Education; Barry Williams, Chef Manager, Healthcare; Glen Pugh, Chef de Cuisine, Higher Education; George Benzinger, Chef de Cuisine, B&I; Kevin Hamer, Director Culinary Development - Canada, Strategic Assets; Charles Schermer, Sr. Culinary Development Chef, Strategic Assets; Doug Martinides, VP Culinary Development, Strategic Assets
