Navy Culinary Specialists Learn from Palace Casino Resort Chef
October 22, 2013 — Palace Casino Resort is proud to announce its participation in the United States Navy “Adopt a Ship” program. Since 1998, the program has strived to connect naval Culinary Specialists with restaurant industry professionals from around the world. The voluntary program is intended as a means of continuing education and training for those who may otherwise have not had the opportunity to experience restaurant industry practices.
Two Culinary Specialists, Petty Officer Second Class Gideon Cofie and Petty Officer Second Class Kenny Lee from Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, MS, were teamed together with Chef Sandy Rogers at the Palace Casino Resort for a week of cooking lessons and preparation. These experiences in restaurant management will help these sailors in future endeavors, as they both expressed interest in restaurant ownership.
The cooking lessons included regional food and flavors not typically available while a ship is in service. The meals they created, which included crab cakes with remoulade sauce and braised short ribs with wine sauce, were dishes the sailors said they would not normally have the time to prepare, given the time constraints of cooking aboard a ship.
The training also focused on banquet-style catering, including the setup and presentation of a live cooking event at CONTACT Lounge & Sports Bar, featuring a carving station and pasta station.
“These guys came here with really strong fundamental cooking ability, and they deserve all the credit for the food we produced tonight for this dining experience,” said Chef Sandy during the service in CONTACT.
This collaboration between the Palace Casino Resort and the “Adopt a Ship” program was just the first phase in a partnership that will extend through the end of the year. At least two more rotations of Culinary Specialists will be mentored by Chef Sandy at the Palace, before she joins the crew of the USS America (LHA-6) aboard their ship for a cooking demonstration.
Palace Casino Resort, which features the award winning Mignon’s Steaks and Seafood and STACKED Grill, is located at 158 Howard Avenue in Biloxi, Mississippi. Chef Sandy Rogers has worked at the Palace Casino since April 2009. Additional information on the resort is available at www.PalaceCasinoResort.com and www.facebook.com/PalaceBiloxi
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