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Published: February 19th 2006
Well, I suppose its time that I write a blog about my school, since that’s why we’re here. I’ve been in school for two weeks now, and I would have written about it earlier, but in all honesty we are only getting into the more interesting parts of it now. The first week was spent primarily with paperwork and requirements, and we talked about the layout of the school and got a tour, etc. I have taken a few pics, but they don’t really do the place justice. (the camera, however, isn’t working, so you don’t get to see them).
The Natural Gourmet takes up the entire second floor of a 10 story building on the border of Chelsea and the outskirts of Midtown. It really isn’t that big of a place, but has a number of professional kitchens, a classroom/kitchen, and every gadget you can imagine. Everyone that works here is easy to get along with, outgoing, and very nice (its probably a byproduct of being healthy!). On Friday nights they use every table/bench in the place to put on a dinner for the public, which is $35 for a five course gourmet vegi meal—one of the best in New York—for about $50-$70 less than you would find anywhere else in the city…which is nice.
My class is the most diverse of any I have been a part of. Of the 16 students, at least 5 are from another country and only here for the school, all but probably 5 were born in another country but live in the tri-state area, and I think only 1 was born/raised in Manhattan or nearby. Its really interesting. We have a Portuguese guy named Diogo, four Indian girls, a German lady, an Israeli girl, etc. Everyone seems pretty nice, and some are turning out to be very interesting people, but, unfortunately, I’m not sure that everyone is on the same learning curve. I think that many of the students have struggled in “student” situations before, maybe didn’t do well in school, and might be trying to get some sort of education through vocational institutions. The school makes sure to baby everyone, as everyone seems petrified of the quizzes that we have. Students request the exact questions that will be on the tests, as well as the answers, before the test is administered (ridiculous). It all seems pretty silly. Questions will be asked at inappropriate times, and the same (ridiculous) question will be asked over, and over, and over again by different people, until finally the instructor gets frustrated and snaps at someone. I actually snapped at one girl the other day--she just wouldn’t give it a rest with her silliness! But, besides this small but constant irritation, the class is good.
Our schedule for the upcoming months gets more and more interesting as time progresses. Right now it is all basic cooking techniques and proper French and Japanese knife skills, but we soon begin with food theory, macrobiotics, food combining, alternative remedies to degenerative diseases, and more ideas that pertain to my interests. I will try to include updates about anything I learn along the way. Thus far, working with identifying/understanding/cooking both grains and beans, we have made (as a class): soups, stews, spreads, salads, hummus, bruschetta (properly pronounced “brus-ketta,” with no “shhhh” sound in the middle), risotto, braises, millet balls, baked/fried corn-grits, etc. We have been pretty busy these last few days, actually. We’ve even done some deep frying! Who would have thought?!
As classes get more involved, and we begin cooking more difficult and creative dishes, I will make an effort to take pictures and keep everyone updated. Some of the girls are already doing that, and may set up a website for everyone in our class, with pictures of students, teachers, and the food we make. In the meantime, the blog will have to get it done. Hope everyone is eating their veggies (its becoming clearer than ever that you will probably get sick and die if you don’t 😉 ). I would also like to post info that I learn about, but it’s really tough to address all of the issues we talk about in class. I may try a few times, but you might have to wait until I get back to find out why what you are probably eating is bad for you (not that many of you would care anyway. Its only your body, after all.)
Finally, I have been talking to a guy named Tolga—a private chef—about maybe working with him for the next few months to learn how to run a successful program. I think at this point that I might want to go in that direction, but with a few educational twists, since it teaches people about heath, and I would be able to do it on the side. So we might be working together soon. He sounds excited about having an assistant. (Tolga was the private east-coast chef for the guy who started MySpace.com for a while).
Ok, well Linds and I are going out to dinner at a place called Gobo in Greenwich Village (you can Google it if you are bored). Hope everyone is doing well. Look for blogs with pics to come.
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Caitie
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Food for degenerative diseases
Sounds like you are learning/or will be learning a lot. The bit you said about how eating well may provide cures and solutions to degenerative diseases really hit close to home recently. I know someone who has just been diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gerick's Disease). His family is really into trying to extend his life as long as possible with the help of a healthier diet. They learned about someone who was diagnosed with the disease 14 years ago and about how he was able to control the spread of the disease by making dramatic changes towards a very healthy lifestyle and eating habits. They are very optimistic about the effects these changes may have and are already making changes in the way they buy, cook, and eat food. It just reminded me of all the stuff you used to tell me and why we should all eat as healthy as possible. Now if I can just convince Will to give up eating so much meat! I'll try to give you a call before I head back to London. Still no word on the visa so wish me luck!- Cait