Master Chef: Kitchen Class

By, Jason Medrano, Food Programs Manager

Summertime is our busiest time of year at The Gathering Place.  With that said, more helping hands are needed and welcomed to help with the increased volume of people. At TGP we have a chore point system in which members get chore points in return for helping out. Chores include clean up in the kitchen, washing windows, or taking out trash. Three times a week we have a “chore cart” where members can cash in their points for small gifts and perfumes.

Along those lines the kitchen at TGP will be creating “Kitchen Class” or “KC” points for the summer. Anytime a member does a kitchen chore during summer they will have the choice to take regular chore points or KC chore points. If the member collects enough KC points they are eligible to sign up for a cooking class that will be held in the TGP kitchen the end of June. This is a good way to motivate members to give a helping hand more in the kitchen and in return they will receive a culinary experience and education they may not receive otherwise.The class will consist of 2-3 course meal that they will help prep and serve. Religious preferences and food allergies will be taken into consideration when planning the meal. Sign up is limited so the class will fill up. To help balance that out, the point requirement for the class will be substantially higher than anything on the chore cart. June will be the trial run on this new program so we anticipate learning how to improve the class experience.

The TGP kitchen staff is looking forward to being able to spread it’s culinary wings and at the same time give the TGP members an experience that they will surely enjoy. Bon Appetit!