Programs - Hospitality

When the going gets tough… our students get cooking!

VET - It has been a challenging year again for our VET students to manage, serve and cook in the Graduates’ training restaurant, but we still managed to be able to host a few ‘Christmas in June’ services, with students and staff not holding back on effort and enthusiasm!

Government restrictions are continuously changing, and like most hospitality venues, we too keep opening and shutting our doors.  The support from our community and teachers has been rewarding.  Returning customers who have been lucky to attend their booked evening enjoyed a fine meal and service, and we would like to think those who were unable to attend, will try booking again next year.  We hope to be able to host our final bookings for the last few months of the year and assist our students in practicing their skills and meet their learning outcomes. 

Whilst attending their classes, students were able to practice their skills in the kitchen and Restaurant; Ms Taylor hosted the RSA Course and students can cook a simple three-course meal and practice their Barista and excellent customer service skills (as presented in the Restaurant).

The Patisserie team has been busy practicing their skills too, and pastries, cakes and breads have been created by students in the course.  During the remote learning sessions, students attend their VET classes via the Teams platform, and plenty of theory has been studied.

Food Technology - Ms Jeffree has been busy as well, teaching her junior Food Technology classes, making adjustments as needed to give students the best opportunities for learning, with the limited on-campus time we have had. 

Students have been attending the Community Gardens and have enjoyed the fruits of their labour in the (garden’s) outdoor teaching spaces. Ms Jeffree offers variety in her classes, student benefiting from a range of cookery methods, healthy eating habits and meals containing good nutritional value.

Ms Jeffree and the team have also been working very hard on the 2022 Year 7 & 8 STEM program: Healthy Life. We look forward to introducing this program next year, with some emphasis on hands-on learning included.

The Teen Chef Team (under the leadership of Ms Jeffree and Ms Thomas) has developed competition dishes worthy of winning, with students working hard to perfect their creations.  Unfortunately, this competition has been cancelled for the second year in a row, much to the disappointment of students and teachers.  We will try again next year.

Year 8 students have also been doing a refresher on their Safe Food Handling, combined with knife-skills: both important and necessary life-skills not only for class and at home, but also in preparation for the Year 9 Café Program, with Chef Kirsty and Chef KC.  This program has been running successfully for three years now, with Mr Laing organising the program (and sampling the product!).

We all look forward to getting back to the College and continue students’ journeys into discovery, curiosity, creativity and innovation – something we never stop doing, even as teachers!