Restaurant Run by Fourth Graders Entices Celebrity Chefs, VIP Guests
Chefs Patrick Mulvaney and Jeff Clark worked with Oak Park elementary school students on elegant dining experience
It has all the trappings of a great dining experience 鈥 a celebrity chef, a VIP guest list, fine linen, fancy china and a haute cuisine made from fresh local products.
The twist on this 鈥淔ive Star Restaurant鈥 is that it鈥檚 run entirely by fourth graders.
At 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, a group of dedicated elementary school
students will transform the cafeteria of Oak Ridge Elementary
School in Oak Park into a 鈥淔ive Star Restaurant,鈥 an elegant
evening conceived, designed and executed by the students
themselves 鈥 with the help of Patrick Mulvaney of Mulvaney鈥檚
Building and Loan Restaurant and Jeff Clark of Nugget
Markets.
鈥淭he idea is to help kids experience the learning skills of
entrepreneurship,鈥 says Stella Ruiz, of Miracles and Milestones,
the group that organized the 10-week restaurant program for 48
students.
From the first day of the program to Tuesday鈥檚 culmination, the kids were treated like partners in a real business, says Ruiz. Students had to interview for their jobs on the sales, public relations, interior design and finance teams. They held business meetings after school and on Saturdays. They made sales calls to sell tickets at the Capitol, City Hall and other locations around Sacramento.
City Councilman Jay Schenirer, Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, 精品SM在线影片 Superintendent Jonathan Raymond and Vance Raye, presiding justice of the Third District Court of Appeal, are among the local VIPs who purchased $60 tickets to the dinner.
The kids also learned the ins and outs of the restaurant business
from Mulvaney and Clark, including how to plan, cook and serve
gourmet meals.
鈥淭he kids were so excited to be involved that some would show up
at 7:30 a.m. for the 9 a.m. program on Saturdays,鈥 Ruiz said.
Last Sunday, students in the program accompanied four of Mulvaney鈥檚 chefs on a shopping trip to a local farmer鈥檚 market, where they purchased ingredients for Tuesday鈥檚 dinner.
So what鈥檚 on the menu?
Oak Ridge Principal Doug Huscher says that鈥檚 a closely guarded
secret. 鈥淲e鈥檒l find out that night when the students announce the
menu,鈥 he said.
The best part of the experience is that the students themselves
get to decide which field trips to take with the estimated $3,000
to $4,000 profit the restaurant will reap.
鈥淚鈥檓 extremely proud of the kids and extremely grateful to all of the people who participated,鈥 says Huscher. 鈥淭his has been an invaluable real-world experience for students.鈥