Monday, April 28, 2008 Three of a kind By Jigs Arquiza
PEOPLE love to eat, and while we do eat, we tend to forget the ones behind the scenes: the people who come up with the dishes that make us swoon, the ones who toil over hot stovetops, the ones who make the dishes look like works of art, the chefs.
More and more people are finding a fascination for the art of cooking fine food, and it being one of the most highly-paid positions in the hospitality industry, the attraction of being a chef becomes doubly so.
The International Culinary Arts Academy of Cebu (ICAAC), just across the street from the University of San Carlos -Girls’ High School, is one place where such people can be found. With the help of academy director Jeremy Young, we discover three of ICAAC’s rising stars.
Erik Enecio
Erik considers himself a fun person who’s also fond of nightlife. Already an Associate in Information Technology, his fondness for cooking and eating drove him to pursue the culinary arts. According to him, his inspiration to become a chef is his mother, who happens to own a restaurant and pastry shop in Ormoc.
Erik specializes in main courses and pasta, and is looking forward to working at the Ritz Carlton in Boston, Massachusetts.
Jordan Jacob Dico Jr.
For Jordan, since being fond of eating wasn’t enough, taking a culinary course seemed the logical step for him to take. He credits his grandmother for giving him the courage to pursue his goal of being a chef. He advises aspiring cooks and chefs to “taste, taste, taste!” and not to be afraid to experiment with different ingredients.
Italian and English dishes are his main area of expertise, and at present, Jordan is scheduled to work in Australia.
Michael Yniesta
Like Erik and Jacob, Michael is also fond of eating, and he cites his parents as the two people who drive him to be the best that he can be.
Aside from cooking, he also expresses an interest to travel around the world.
For him, a good chef should always love and enjoy his work, otherwise, the food that he cooks would not taste as well as it should.
Michael’s specialty is Asian cuisine, although he does dabble a bit with some European dishes. He is headed for the Old Thorns Golf Country Estate in Hampshire, England.
