Inside Furman is published monthly during the school year by the Furman University Department of Marketing and Public Relations. For story ideas, e-mail John Roberts, editor.
Culinary Challenge
Students and employees wandering into the Dining Hall earlier this month might have wondered if they had stumbled upon the set of the Iron Chef.
The popular television show, which airs on the cable “food network” channel, was used as a model for the Furman Chef Challenge. Facing off in a match of culinary skill were Rodney Friedank, the head chef at O's Restaurant in downtown Greenville and JJ Tramontana, the catering chef at Furman.
The rules of the chef challenge are simple. Each contestant is given a mystery basket, the contents of which are kept secret until the contest begins. Using the contents of the basket, a nearby salad bar, and common “pantry” table, the chefs rely on their imagination and culinary skill to create an appetizer and entrée plate in 45 minutes.
Four judges grade the dishes in the areas of appearance, temperature, flavor, taste and texture. The chef receiving the highest overall grade is the winner.
The mystery basket for the competition contained crabmeat, chicken breast and bacon. Judges for the Furman Chef Challenge included Jim Hudson of Administrative Services and students Patrick Kerley, George Booth and Kaleb McMichen. Scott Director of Student Service served as the master of ceremony.
For his main entrée, Friedank prepared chicken on bed of cous cous while Tramantana served up stuffed chicken.
Susan Presto, director of dining services, said contests like the Chef Challenge help spice up the lunch period and improve customer relations. And they're fun too.
Although many in the audience were pulling for home-court favorite Tramontana, students applauded and laughed as Derrick awarded the “gold” medal to JJ Tramontana.
As for the judges, they were happy to have received a delicious free meal.
“I was so glad that I was selected to be a judge,” says Hudson . “So much food to eat, so little time.”