.: Taste of the Caribbean

Last sunday we arrived to El Conquistador Hotel in Fajardo and we met Ms. Wanda Piña. The work we had to do that day was transforming the Pablo Casals ballroom into a kitchen. The first surprise of the day was finding out that we will work close to Chef Augustos. Pheww!! that man really works :). We helped him to set the tables and cover them with proper lines then plastic. After that we equally distributed all the kitchen equipment into the six kitchen stations.

Monday June 14

After finishing our Food Preparation 2 laboratory in the afternoon, 4 of my classmates went to the competitions. Angel Luis, Enmarie, Maria and me. As soon as we arrived we made sure that everywere was clean and in its place. In the kitchen station they set up all the produce so the competitors get all the seasonings, fruits, flours, dairy products and vegetables.

Chef Bill one of the coordinators of the event gave us a brief of what we were going to do that day.

6 of the UNE (Universidad del Este) were assigned to the six teams, I was very excited to be announced that I was going to be the helper to Puertorican Culinary Team. Not only because it's our country, but most, because 3 of the 5 members are professors from the university. Chef Enrique Piñero, Chef René Olmeda and Chef Kalysh Padró.

We were assigned to help them with any assistance that they required us to do like: cleaning pots, cleaning presentation plates, getting produce and replacing the dirty water. We were not allow to help them with cooking, cutting produce or plating. It was very rush those 4 hours, unfourtunetly I couldnt see most of the cooking preparations but I got to take few pictures.

Madeline Guadalupe - Puerto Rico
Enmarie Torres - British Virgin Island
Angel Diaz - US Virgin Island
Aileen Ortega - Curacao
Maria Morales - Anguila
Ariel Harrigan - Belize

Aqui varias fotos de la actividad.... (las habia perdido pero gracias a Lourdes que estaba jugando con la pc las encontre)

En esta foto aparecen los chefs del team culinario de Puerto Rico 2004
Chef Enrique Pinero, Chef Cynthia, Chef Kalich Padro, Chef Rene Olmeda