Culinary Arts Museum

What's new at the CAM this weekend?

2012-02-03T16:11:00.000-05:00

We're glad you asked! We have two items to report:

First up:
There is a new wedding cake on display in our bakery case, and it was made by our very own
Student Assistant, Emmalee Santioni.

According to Emmalee, "this Wildflower Wedding Cake was made for a bride who is a 'lil bit country.' It is decorated with leather bands, lace, and the classic cowboy necktie - the bolo tie. The Keith Anderson song 'Pickin Wildflowers' was the inspiration for the cake design."

All decorative elements on this cake are crafted with edible material.

And the next bit of news:
It's ICC (Intra-collegiate Culinary Competition) time! On Saturday, February 4, the Denver, Miami, and Charlotte campus teams will come to Providence to compete against one another for the coveted ICC trophy. Museum Student Assistant, Courtney Staiano, is a competitor on the ICC Pastry team. Join us in wishing all teams the best of luck. But because we're a bit partial here, let's focus most of that luck on the Providence team. After all, we have been looking at a mere photo of the trophy here in the museum since 2009.

The Ever Ready gets a neon name tag

2012-01-11T11:58:00.000-05:00

On Wednesday, December 21, 2011 the Dexter Sign Co. was at the museum, installing a replica neon sign for the Ever Ready. Museum Operations Manager (and photographer extraordinaire), Stephen Spencer, shot some photos of the action.

Gingerbread Habitats for Humanity

2011-12-21T11:51:00.002-05:00

On Friday, December 16, 2011, the JWU Chapter of Habitat for Humanity hosted a gingerbread competition and silent auction here at the Culinary Arts Museum. All proceeds went to benefit Habitat for Humanity.

Nineteen gingerbread houses were on display, and were built by members of the Johnson & Wales community, employees and students alike. Below are the fantastic creations that were made for the contest. You may even recognize some of the buildings!

The Culinary Arts Museum will be closed for the holiday break

2011-12-20T10:37:00.001-05:00

Holiday Hours:

The museum will be closed from Friday, December 23, 2011 - Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Regular hours will resume on Wednesday January 4, 2012

We wish you all a very happy holiday and a safe and happy new year!!

And the butter lives on

2011-08-12T11:06:00.002-04:00

On Sunday, June 26 Norma "Duffy" Lyon passed away in Marshalltown, IA. If the name doesn't ring a cow bell to you, perhaps you have heard of the "Butter-Cow Lady" of the Iowa State Fair. Ms. Lyon studied animal science at Iowa State University in the late 1940s. Her artistic talent was discovered by an artist-in-residence there after he saw an ice sculpture that she had made for the university's winter festival. In 1960, she became the official sculptor of the life-sized Butter Cow, the dairy industry's symbol at the Iowa State Fair since 1911. Ms. Lyon also made sculptures of celebrities, comic-strip characters, and themes from well-known works of art. Her most ambitious sculpture was a recreation of "The Last Supper," made in 1999.

Although we never had the privilege of having her at our own country fair midway (if you've never been here before, yes, we do have our very own scaled-down version of a midway - smack dab in the center of the museum - as part of our "Country Fair to Culinary Olympics" exhibit), she certainly was a presence known at many fairs across the country. She was such a well-known and influential force in Iowa that Barack Obama asked for her endorsement during his election campaign there in 2007. Ms. Lyon appeared on several television shows, including "Today," "The Tonight Show," and on "Late Night With David Letterman." She retired from butter sculpting at the Iowa State Fair in 2006.

In butter-related news, the Iowa state fair kicked off this week. And, of course, Duffy was mentioned in this New York Times article about the 100 year legacy of the state fair. Chef Gary Welling of Johnson & Wales also weighed in on the history of the dairy sculpture. Here's to all the deep-fried food on a stick that you can eat!

Bruce Newbury is bringing his broadcast back to the museum!

2011-08-06T11:24:00.000-04:00

Local radio host Bruce Newbury will broadcast his show, "The Tasting Room," live from the Culinary Arts Museum on Sunday, August 7, 2011. "The Tasting Room" airs Sundays from 11:00 am - 12:00 noon.

If you can't make it to the museum on Sunday, tune in to your local radio station: AM790 in the Providence - Newport, RI - New Bedford - Cape Cod MA area, 830AM in the Boston - Worcester MA - NH - ME - VT area or 980 AM in the New London - Eastern CT region.

What does it take to get a cup of coffee around here?

2011-07-29T11:31:00.001-04:00

Every summer, the Johnson & Wales Admissions department hosts a Career Explorations program for high school sophomores and juniors. Essentially, students have the opportunity to spend time at Johnson & Wales immersed in what it would be like to live and go to school here in the field of choice.

Registration for the culinary program is held here at the museum, and it always packs the house! Today we got some great shots from inside the Ever Ready diner.

Hopefully these people aren't waiting to order breakfast, they'll be waiting a while...

"What a cowinkidink!" - Bugs Bunny

2011-07-26T16:05:00.001-04:00

Some of you may know that we tweeted for the first time today. Some of you may also know that we constantly field all sorts of requests from people who want to donate to the museum. Our most recent acquisition, a donation from a JWU staff member, is a collection of menus from restaurants in Rhode Island and Colorado. As we were going through the collection this morning, we came across this menu. Now if that isn't a coincidence, I don't know what is!

Upon some further research, it seems like Tweet's Balzano's Family Restaurant in Bristol, RI is a place of special significance for those who grew up in the Bristol area.

Follow culinarymuseum on Twitter!

Fruit Cakes: Not just for Christmas anymore (or at least they weren't in 1891)

2011-07-21T14:07:00.001-04:00

In this, the season of weddings, what better recipe to share than one for wedding cake?
(And don't forget the Harries' Baking Powder! The advertisement for Harries' was found on the page facing recipe below).

Do any of you bakers out there have any idea how many people a recipe like this would feed?

Wedding Fruit Cake
Six pounds of raisins, six pounds of currants, one pound of chopped fine blanched almonds, three pounds of citron, orange and lemon peel, three pounds of dark-brown sugar, two and a quarter pounds of butter, three pounds of sifted flour, one and a half ounces of mace, three teaspoonfuls of rose water, three wine-glassfuls of brandy, three of wine, and thirty fresh eggs, beaten very light. Mix these ingredients well together and take the cake to the bakery, making the engagement beforehand to have it baked.

-from Palatable Dishes: A Practical Guide to Good Living, arranged and compiled by Sarah J. Cutter, 1891.

culinary.org wins again!

2011-07-06T11:52:00.004-04:00

As some of you may know, back in March the museum's website was awarded the Best in Class award for museum websites by the Interactive Media Awards. Well, we've done it again (thanks to the design team at (add)ventures, of course)!

Every year, the New England Museum Association hosts a Publication Award Competition for all member museums. Eligible categories include books, invitations, promotional materials and websites, to name a few. This year, our site won the Judges Choice award for museums with an operating budget of under $500,000. This year, there were 206 publications from 64 museums entered in sixteen different categories.

A huge thank you is also due to our staff for the hard work and many hours that were devoted to compiling visual and written content for the web, and for their collaboration with the (add)ventures team throughout the site's development process. We here at the museum look forward to a long partnership with (add)ventures as we continue to add new features and content to our website.

To see the complete list of winners, click here.

Cheers to all winners and competitors!

"Found in Collection"

2011-06-17T11:54:00.001-04:00

As you can imagine, we here at the Culinary Arts Museum uncover all sorts of treasures, eccentricities and/or things that provoke the question "what is that?" on a daily basis. The latest is a Cunard Line menu from a Feb 7, 1967 cruise to the West Indies. On the right side of the menu is a category labeled "Farinaceous" (otherwise known as starches) - not something you see everyday. There is one menu item listed in this category: Delmonico Rarebits. For those of you who have not heard of the delicious, savory treat that is Welsh Rarebits, it is essentially toast topped with a cheese sauce made with ale (similar to fondue). Often times it is put under a broiler to create a fantastic cheesy crust over the top. There seems to be no recipe for "Delmonico Rarebits," so it is possible that the rarebits listed on this menu were made in the style of those at Delmonico's Restaurant. It is also possible that the chef used the term Delmonico to add credibility to the dish, because Delmonico's Restaurant - the country's first restaurant, which opened its doors in Manhattan in 1837 - was synonymous with fine dining.

Here is the Delmonico's restaurant recipe for Welsh Rarebits. Try it at home and see what you think!

Welsh Rarebit - Take one pound of American cheese; cut up in small pieces. Place them in a sautoire, adding half a glassful of good ale. Season with half a teaspoonful of red pepper. Stir it continually with a wooden spoon until the mass is well melted, which will take about ten minutes. Have six nice, fresh, large pieces of toast; arrange them on a very hot dish, and distribute the preparation equally over, serving the rarebit very hot.

-from The Delmonico Cook Book, by Alessandro Filippini

The museum will be closed for the Fourth of July weekend

2011-06-15T16:27:00.000-04:00

The museum will close at 1:00 pm on Friday, July 1st and will remain closed through Monday, July 4th.

Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, July 5 at 10:00 am.

Have a safe and happy Fourth of July!

This menu is from our collection of Cunard Line Fourth of July menus from 1950-1989

Wisconsin cheese and Boston beer, a match made in Rhode Island!

2011-04-27T15:31:00.003-04:00

On Tuesday, April 19, 2011, the Culinary Arts Museum hosted a beer and cheese tasting, sponsored by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board and The Boston Beer Company, brewers of Samuel Adams. We would like to thank Sara Hill, Culinary Manager of Cheese Education for the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, and Bert Boyce, brewer for the Boston Beer Company for their educational and entertaining presentations. Of course, we would also like to thank all of those in attendance.

Pictured left to right: Sara Hill and Bert Boyce

Attendees tasting the beer and cheese pairings. It looks as though the pairing being tasted here is the Samuel Adams Latitude 48, an IPA and the Carr Valley Casa Bolo, a mixed milk cheese.

Here are a couple of interesting points from the evening:

Samuel Adams is the largest seller of craft beer in the United States, however, its sales account for just under one percent of the country's beer market.

Raw milk cheeses (cheeses made with unpasteurized milk) are allowed to be sold in the United States as long as they have been aged for at least 60 days. After this time period, the acids and salts in the cheese will have eliminated any harmful pathogens potentially existing in the cheese.

The pairings:
Samuel Adams Summer Ale ~ Holland's Family Marieke Gouda
Samuel Adams Light ~ Wisconsin 2 year Cheddar
Samuel Adams Boston Lager ~ Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve
Samuel Adams Latitude 48 IPA ~ Carr Valley Casa Bolo
Samuel Adams Black Lager ~ Montforte Gorgonzola
Samuel Adams Wee Heavy ~ Emmi Roth Moody Blue

To learn more about these beers and cheeses, you can visit the following websites:
www.samueladams.com
www.eatwisconsincheese.com

Bruce Newbury broadcasts live from the museum this Sunday!

2011-04-07T20:33:00.000-04:00

Local radio host Bruce Newbury will broadcast his show, "The Tasting Room," live from the Culinary Arts Museum on Sunday, April 10, 2011. "The Tasting Room" airs Sundays from 11:00 am - 12:00 noon.

If you can't make it to the museum on Sunday, tune in to your local radio station: AM790 in the Providence - Newport, RI - New Bedford - Cape Cod MA area, 830AM in the Boston - Worcester MA - NH - ME - VT area or 980 AM in the New London - Eastern CT region.

Special promotion for the Culinary Arts Museum

2011-03-22T11:47:00.002-04:00

Eversave.com has chosen the Culinary Arts Museum as the featured save for the Providence area, starting today. The promotion, which runs through Thursday, offers buyers two admissions for the price of one ($7 for a $14 value). Click the link below for more details.

http://www.eversave.com/providence

We hope to see you here soon!

From the Midway to the Runway

2011-02-02T15:32:00.001-05:00

If you've been to the museum, this piece of fashion art may look familiar to you. This dress, constructed with laminated vintage string bean can labels and cellophane tape, was made by fifteen-year-old Monica Hofstadter. She designed the dress expressly for the museum's "Country Fair to Culinary Olympics" exhibit, which was installed in 2007. Monica's inspiration came from a 1964 creation made of butter cartons for Princess Kay of the Milky Way, the ambassador to the Minnesota State Fair, who is responsible for the promotion of the dairy industry.

Now in her second year of the Fashion Design program at Parsons The New School for Design in New York City, Monica has recently won the Student Prize in the Vogue Knitting "Magic of Mohair" design competition, sponsored by Mohair South Africa. As a finalist in the competition, her mohair dress was showcased January 21-23 at Vogue Knitting LIVE in New York City. On January 22, it was announced that she was the student winner. As a result, her dress, along with instructions for knitting, will be featured in Vogue Knitting magazine, on the Mohair South Africa website and in other Mohair South Africa media.

Please join us in congratulating Monica for this great accomplishment!!

The Culinary Arts Museum will be closed during the holiday break

2010-12-15T15:33:00.006-05:00

The winter break at Johnson & Wales begins at the conclusion of the work day on Friday, December17, 2010 and runs through Monday, January 3, 2011. We will be closed for business during that time.

The staff here at the Culinary Arts Museum wishes you a safe and happy holiday season.

See you in 2011!

The "Merry Christmas" and "Happy New Year" postcards pictured above are from the collection of the Culinary Arts Museum

Local harvest at the Culinary Arts Museum

2010-12-07T14:09:00.008-05:00

Local foods were on the table and consumed with relish when The Southside Community Land Trust held their annual Harvesting Hope Breakfast at the Culinary Arts Museum on November 10, 2010.

The SCLT will be celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2011 - three decades of partnership with community gardeners and neighbors who are committed to transforming unused urban areas into productive food gardens in Providence's Southside and West End.

750 families are now growing, eating and preserving food at over 50 community gardens across the city (including the 13 that SCLT owns and manages), the group's three-quarter acre City Farm and a larger program, the Urban Edge Farm, on 35 acres in Cranston.

At this year's Harvest Breakfast, Pranzi Catering of Providence served Rhode Island johnnycakes, along with local honey, Narragansett Creamery spreads and chutney from Marcia's Chutneys of Warwick, Barden Family Orchard apples, Zephyr Farm eggs (just gathered from the Urban Edge Farm), homemade granola from The Providence Granola Project, fresh juices, other fruit, baked goodies, and more. Pranzi Catering is a certified green caterer, and they buy all of their produce from local farmers markets.

In honor of the breakfast, the museum mounted a temporary display of vintage seed packets, a USDA bulletin from 1930 on "The City Home Garden" and a 1911 story of the children's school farm in Thomas Jefferson Park in New York City, where a thousand children planted 7,000 seeds on the opening day of the season.

The program included tributes to the joys of growing your own food by two Providence immigrants from Liberia, Garmai Mawalo and Gbassy Brown, who also did a song and dance.

Teenage gardener Eugenio DaSilva is pictured at left, sharing his story of husk cherries. Eugenio is a student at The Met School in Providence.

Rhode Island...Small State, Big Taste! featured on NBC 10

2010-11-16T11:28:00.000-05:00

Rhode Island...Small State, Big Taste!

2010-09-17T09:42:00.001-04:00

On exhibit from October 4, 2010 - July 1, 2011

Our newest exhibit here at the Culinary Arts Museum is set to open in just a few weeks!
Come and explore the diversity and quirkiness that is Rhode Island food culture, where dynamites are more than just explosives, where New York System does not refer to a mode of transportation, and where quahog is not a town.

The exhibit highlights thirteen local businesses, along with the Rhode Island foods that they are known for serving. Don't miss your chance to indulge in the eccentricities that are Rhode Island foods!!

It's that time of year again...

2010-08-21T12:56:00.004-04:00

The salty air at the JWU Harborside Campus seems just a tad less humid these days, the mornings are cool, and the student activity around campus is beginning to pick up again. In just a few short weeks, classes will be in session once again. Before we know it, the sidewalks and hallways will be filled with students and instructors alike hurrying between classes and labs, perhaps with a Starbucks cup in hand to get them through the day (or at least the morning). Yes, folks, there is a new Starbucks in town. It's located in the Harborside Academic Center where the Culinary Events offices once were.

As for new developments at the Culinary Arts Museum, staff and student assistants here have been busy working on a brand new temporary exhibit which will open over Family Weekend in October. "Rhode Island...Small State, Big Taste!" will open to the public on October 9, 2010. Check our blog for more updates and details as the date gets closer!

4th of July Weekend Hours

2010-06-23T15:26:00.000-04:00

The museum will close at 1:00 pm on

Friday, July 2nd.

We will also be closed Saturday, July 3rd through Monday, July 5th.

Regular business hours will resume on

Tuesday, July 6th.

Have a safe and happy Independence Day!!

A Tasty Cinco de Mayo Celebration at the Culinary Arts Museum

2010-05-29T14:48:00.004-04:00

On Wednesday May 13, 2010, Chef Elaine Cwynar's Vegetarian Cuisine class hosted and served a Cinco de Mayo-themed buffet in the diner area of the museum.

The class consisted of Juniors who are pursuing their degrees in Nutrition. Vegetarian Cuisine was the first lab class for these students, and the dinner was a fantastic success.

Around forty-five guests were served a wide variety of Mexican foods, all prepared with a vegetarian spin. Below are the menu and photos from the evening.

WARNING: Do not read on with an empty stomach!!

Vegetarian Cuisine Cinco de Mayo Buffet

Gazpacho (pictured below, left)

A mild cold vegetable soup made with tomatoes, peppers and a Mexican spice blend

Plantain Soup (pictured below, right)

Puree of fresh plantains served hot with Mexican spices

Ensalada de Naranjas

Refreshing tropical citrus fruit salad with fresh oranges, grapefruits, and starfruit

Stuffed Poblano Peppers (pictured below, left)

Mild poblano peppers stuffed with fresh herbs and summer vegetables

Vegan Tamales with Chili Sauce (pictured below, right)

A vegetarian version of the Mexican classic, served wrapped in corn husks with a spicy chile sauce

Mexican Pizza

Grilled pizzas with a cornbread style crust, assorted toppings, and a black bean mole

Mexican Quinoa (pictured below, left)

Quinoa prepared with fresh peppers and other summer vegetables and Monterey Jack cheese

Roasted Sweet Potato, Squash, and Garlic Mash (pictured below, right)

Mashed sweet potato and butternut squash, with garlic and cayenne pepper

Jicama-Cactus Slaw (pictured below, left)

A refreshing slaw made with jicama and cactus leaves

Mexican Ratatouille (pictured below, right)

Fresh summer vegetables stewed with Mexican herbs and spices

Spicy Black Bean Cakes

Miniature black bean cakes with a kick

Healthy Dark Chocolate Mousse

Rich dark chocolate mousse with fresh made orange cayenne whipped cream and a cayenne cookie

New exhibition to open in April

2010-03-25T15:41:00.024-04:00

The Culinary Arts Museum and the graduate students of the John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Cultural Heritage at Brown University are pleased to present "Food on the Move: America's Traveling Tastes."

A meal on the Pocahontas, on the Norfolk & Western Railway, 1950s. Image courtesy of Norfolk Southern Corporation.

This new exhibit examines changes in travel food from the late 1800s to the present. Cruise ship, rail, automobile, and airplane dining will all be highlighted. How have these foods transformed over the years? What do these types of travel meals tell us about American culture? How did travel and tourism influence the American taste for international cuisine?

Service aboard the Matson Lines, 1947.

These questions and more will be answered through this highly anticipated exhibit, so join us as we travel through over a century of eating on the go.

This exhibit opens to the public on Friday, April 16th, 2010.

Culinary Arts Museum hours:

Tuesday - Sunday: 10:00 - 5:00

Closed Mondays and major holidays

We will be closed on Easter Sunday, April 4, 2010.

Image of a Pan Am flight bag, back from France in 1958.

Howard Johnson's Simple Simon and the Pieman, Neon sign from Reading, PA. Circa 1963. On loan from the Dave & Lynn Waller Collection.

Easter Holiday Hours

2010-03-23T16:24:00.011-04:00

The Culinary Arts Museum will be closed on Easter Sunday, April 4, 2010.

We will reopen on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 10:00 am for regular business hours.

Enjoy the holiday!

The menu pictured is on loan to the Culinary Arts Museum courtesy of Chef David Greeman.

It will be featured in the upcoming exhibit, "Food on the Move: America's Traveling Tastes," a collaboration between the graduate students at The John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Cultural Heritage at Brown University and the Culinary Arts Museum at Johnson & Wales.

Is the Culinary Arts Museum your favorite museum in Providence, RI?

2010-03-03T16:28:00.003-05:00

If so, vote for us in The Phoenix Best Readers Poll 2010!

Simply follow the link below and type
"Culinary Arts Museum at Johnson & Wales" in the space provided.

http://thephoenix.com/thebest/providence/vote/museum/

A vegetarian all-American diner! Why not?

2010-02-19T14:35:00.014-05:00

Diners have always served the kind of food people want to eat, and there are always vegetarian options on the bill of fare.

Pictured Above: Culinary students Saul A. Hernandez and Meredith Luecker about to deliver their Vegetarian Mini Sliders to their guests.

On February 16, 2010, a group of ten Johnson & Wales culinary students in Chef Elaine Cwynar's class, Vegetarian Cuisine, took on the assignment to prepare a lacto ovo dinner (a vegetarian meal that includes dairy and eggs) for six, using high-quality food presented attractively on the plate.

The menu was to comply with the following parameters: calories between 800 and 1000; protein, 10-35%; fat: 20-35%, with less than 10% saturated fat; carbohydrates, 45-65%.

The students - Jennifer Danaux, Lei Ding, Justin M. Hall, Saul A. Hernandez, Hannah Kimanthi, Stephanie Lip, Meredith Luecker, Ashley R. McCormack, Jacquelyn R. Murphy and Kaitlin M. Russell - came up with the concept of a diner theme, using whole grains and fresh, sustainable and seasonal ingredients in all the dishes.

The Culinary Arts Museum, with its diner exhibit and vast supply of artifacts, supplied authentic mugs, glassware, paper placemats, napkin holders and more to set the stage for an outstanding meal:

BEVERAGE

Cucumber Lemonade

Fresh, crisp ice-cold lemonade with cucumber juice

APPETIZER

Vegetarian Mini Sliders

Black bean and chickpea patties topped with slices of tomato and red onion and arugula, in a toasted whole grain bun, served with avocado sauce

SOUP

Tomato Soup with Popcorn Parmesan Crisp

Fresh ripe tomatoes, stewed, simmered and pureed, served with an arugula emulsion

SALAD

Potato Slaw

Shredded potato and carrots, tossed with sprouts and herbs, served with an arugula emulsion

ENTREE

Fried "Chicken"

Crispy oven-baked seasoned tofu, breaded in nuts, seeds and oats

WHOLE GRAIN

Wild Rice Pilaf

A trio of brown rice, wild rice and barley, simmered in vegetable stock, white wine and herbs

VEGETABLES

Pea Puree and Sauteed Baby Carrots

A smooth and creamy puree of green peas and cream; Sweet baby carrots sauteed with butter and fresh herbs

DESSERT

Cherry-Apricot Yogurt Sundae

Poached dried apricots tossed with fresh cherries, served with sweetened Greek yogurt

Diner food in a diner setting at diner prices!

2010-01-23T10:27:00.003-05:00

Johnson & Wales University's Bridging Culinary Arts Club will be hosting "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives: A Night of Burgers, Fries, and Archives" on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 in the Diner area of the museum.

The fee is $3 per person, and this includes the following: a plate of three gourmet mini-burgers served with a side of fries and a beverage, as well as a tour of the Culinary Arts Museum. In addition, guests will have the opportunity to talk diners with director/curator Richard J.S. Gutman.

All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Haitian Relief Fund.

The event runs from 8:00pm-9:30pm

Space is limited and will be reserved on a first-come, first-serve basis

Please call 401-598-2805 to RSVP

The BCA Student Chapter is a multicultural food service and hospitality organization that desires to improve the respective industries, decrease the negative image and increase exposure of resources and networking to the multicultural community. We aim to do this by: culture education, networking, mentoring, and community service.

*The image shown is the cover of our new diner brochure

Chef Marcus Samuelsson visits JWU

2009-12-10T15:54:00.013-05:00

This week at JWU, Chef Marcus Samuelsson was honored as the University's 158th Distinguished Visiting Chef. He paid a visit to the Culinary Arts Museum on Monday, December 7th, and spent about an hour here. The chef had many questions for our director, Richard J.S. Gutman, about saloon, tavern, and diner culture, but he also showed a genuine enthusiasm for the students' work that is showcased here at the museum. On Tuesday December 8th, Samuelsson presented a cooking demonstration in the Amphitheater at the Harborside Academic Center. Lasting two hours, the demo was much more rousing than purely instructive -- "Chop this, measure this, stir this." While he was cooking, he shared his story: where he grew up, where he studied, where he's traveled, what he's eaten, and most importantly, what he's learned from these experiences.

Born in Ethiopia and raised in Sweden, Samuelsson was drawn to the kitchen at a young age by spending time with his grandmother, who was a professional chef. Samuelsson is a true inspiration, not only because of his level of success, but because of his sincere passion for food: eating it, cooking it, learning and teaching others through it. When he meets people, he asks them about their food stories, their dreams and their journeys. These stories are important to him as a means of understanding the cultural experience of these individuals and they are a source of inspiration in his work. Samuelsson thereby gains his knowledge and awareness of global culture through the palette.

Known for bringing disparate flavors together on one plate, Samuelsson continually learns from others about experimenting with cross-cultural ingredients. For example, while working on a cruise ship alongside chefs from the Philippines, the chefs there taught him that he could add coconut milk to collard greens in order to sweeten them and make them creamy. As a chef of African origins, one of his goals is to bring modern African food to Americans, just as Nobu did for Japanese cuisine. He wants to inspire those who eat his food to learn about culture through food, and to then perhaps gain an understanding and tolerance of the unfamiliar.

Samuelsson graduated from the Culinary Institute in Goteborg. He apprenticed in Switzerland, Austria, France and the US, and in 1995, at the age of 24, he was made the executive chef of Aquavit in Manhattan. Only three months later, the restaurant received a three-star review from The New York Times. Samuelsson was named 'Rising Star Chef' in 1999 and 'Best Chef, New York' in 2003 by the James Beard Foundation. The Culinary Institute of America also honored him as one of 'The Great Chefs of America.'

In addition to being the executive chef at Aquavit, he is the co-founder and chief creative director of Townhouse Restaurant Group, a restaurant management and consulting company with projects in the US and Europe. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Careers Through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP), a non-profit organization that provides inner-city high school students with training, scholarships and jobs in the restaurant and food service industry and is an ambassador for the US Fund for UNICEF. In 2007, he became the first chef to collarborate with Starbucks Coffee, delivering bakery items and coffee blends.

Chef Samuelsson is also the author of several successful cookbooks, including Aquavit and the New Scandinavian Cuisine (2003), Aquavit c/o New York (2004), En Smakresa med Marcus Samuelsson (2002), Street Food (2004), and The Soul of a New Cuisine - Discovery of the Foods and Flavors of Africa (2006) which received accolades from publications such as The New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, and the Washington Post. It was also awarded 'Best International Cookbook' by the James Beard Foundation in 2007. His latest cookbook, New American Table was released in October of 2009.

In 2005, Samuelsson was appointed Visiting Professor of International Culinary Science at the Umea University School of Restaurant and Culinary Arts in Sweden, and he received an honorary degree from Johnson & Wales University as Doctor of Culinary Arts in 2006. Most recently, aside from being named Distinguished Visiting Chef at JWU, he was invited by the Obama family to join White House Executive Chef Cristeta Comerford in the kitchen for the State Dinner on November 24, 2009.

This is the plate of food that everyone in attendance got to taste:

Fried Yellowtail Poke with Wasabi Rouille and a Miso Ginger Vinaigrette

Here we see Baking and Pastry student Hedeline Benjamin of St. Albans, NY
learning how to filet a fish.

CAM Director and Curator, Richard J.S. Gutman accepts award on behalf of hall-of-famer Walter Scott

2009-12-08T13:19:00.009-05:00

The Rhode Island entrepreneur was inducted into the RI Heritage Hall of Fame on November 15, 2009.

In 1852, at the age of 11, Rhode Island native Walter Scott got his start in the food business in Providence. He peddled newspapers, fruit, and homemade candy as a means of supporting his family. After some time, Scott realized that late-night newspaper workers had nowhere to go out to eat after their shifts, and so he began to sell sandwiches and coffee to these men and other night owls.

Eventually, Scott built himself a hand cart so that he could carry more items with him. In 1872, Scott replaced his hand cart with a horse hooked up to a small freight wagon and parked it in front of the Providence Journal office.

Only homemade items were served from the cart: sliced chicken, ham sandwiches, boiled eggs and buttered bread, and pie. And yes, Scott did bake his own bread and pie. Except for the chicken, which cost thirty cents, customers could get anything on the menu for a nickel.

Now, if you've ever been out on the streets of Providence (or any city street for that matter) between dusk and four AM, you'll know that you are guaranteed to encounter some unruly folk. Things were not so different in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Scott came up with a plan to ensure that he was paid for every meal he served: if a suspicious-looking individual approached, he would take their hat as collateral for payment. In addition, he kept a hickory club in the wagon "in case of emergency." As a result, his slogan became: "Get a hat, or give a sore head." He did amass quite the collection of stolen hats, all the result of unpaid bills.

As other businessmen caught on to Scott's lunch cart idea, his profits dwindled as food costs rose. Additionally, his competitors started offering free fixings such as onion slices, ketchup and mustard, which also ate away at Scott's bottom line as he tried to keep up with these new demands. Scott retired from the lunch cart business in 1917, stating: "I guess I've done my share in putting the night lunch on the map, and I'm perfectly willing to step back and let others do the scratching for the dollars that came pretty easy in the old days."

On November 15, 2009, Walter Scott, the Providence entrepreneur whose 1872 horse-drawn lunch wagon became the forerunner of the classic American diner and inspired a new American industry, was posthumously inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in a ceremony at the Conley Conference Center in Providence.

Richard J.S. Gutman, director and curator of the Culinary Arts Museum, accepted the award on behalf of Scott, who is featured in the museum's signature exhibition, "Diners: Still Cookin' in the 21st Century."

Also inducted into the Heritage Hall of Fame: Major Gen. Zenas R. Bliss (1835-1900), Dr. Charles Carroll (1876-1936), Rev. John B. Diman (1863-1949), Chief Justice Thomas Durfee (1826-1901), Amasa Eaton (1841-1914), Col. Robert Hale Ives Goddard (1837-1916), John Gorham (1810-1898), Dr. Ramon Guiteras (1858-1917), Dr. John William Keefe (1863-1935), Annie Smith Peck (1850-1935) and Bishop William Stang (1854-1907).

The above information about Walter Scott was taken from Richard J.S. Gutman's book, American Diner Then and Now.

By the 1890s, Walter Scott's lunch wagon idea had spread as far west as Chicago and Denver.

From the Culinary Arts Museum Collection

Drawing by H.G. Maratta

Chicago's "Levee District" at Night

Culinary Arts Museum on the road

2009-11-24T16:09:00.009-05:00

On Tuesday, November 17th our Event and Program Coordinator, Kristin Zosa Puleo, traveled to the Newport Public Library to talk to a group of 5-12 year old children (and their parents) about the origins of Thanksgiving.

Did you know...

The Pilgrims did not make their first landing at Plymouth Rock. When the English Separatists set sail from Holland (they were exiled to Holland when they decided to split from the Church of England), they were aiming for the New York area. The sea winds instead led them to the tip of Cape Cod, and the Mayflower landed in Provincetown. From there, some men left to explore the area in smaller boats, and they decided that Plymouth would make a better area to build a settlement.

The English Settlers and the Wampanoags did not actually plan to sit down together for his harvest celebration. As part of the the festivities, the English were practicing their military drills. The Wampanoags heard the gunfire, and Massasoit showed up with 90 of his men to find out what was happening. When the Native Americans saw that the English were simply celebrating their harvest, Massasoit sent his men out to gather deer to add to the meal (the Settlers had already gathered enough wild fowl to last them a week!). Wampanoag women and children joined the feast later on, and the entire celebration lasted for three days!!

Turkey was probably not the centerpiece of the meal in 1621. In fact, there were a variety of proteins on the table during those three days. In addition to venison and various wild birds, there was also lobster, clams, eel, and cod. There was no pumpkin pie, no cranberry sauce, and no sweet potato casserole. Since there was no sugar, flour, wheat, or butter available it would have been impossible to make any of these sweet treats. As for the sweet potatoes, well, those didn't exist in New England at the time. Those were an addition that came much later, from the folks who celebrated the holiday in the southern half of the country.

And finally...Thanksgiving was not made an official holiday until 1863, as proclaimed by President Lincoln. A woman by the name of Sarah Josepha Hale, editor for Godey's Lady's Book, began a one-woman campaign to nationalize the holiday. In addition to including this petition in the magazine year after year, she began writing letters to the White House in 1846 requesting that the holiday become nationalized. It was Lincoln that finally heeded to Hale's request. He believed that the new national holiday would serve to unify the country under the stress of the Civil War.

OK, one more fun fact. When Lincoln issued his Thanksgiving Proclamation, he set the day to be the last Thursday of November. In the 1930s, in the midst of the depression, retailers sent a request to the Federal Government requesting that the holiday be moved back one week to give shoppers an extra week between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Their argument was that the majority of people did not start Christmas shopping until after Thanksgiving, and when the holiday fell on the last day of the month, sales suffered. FDR agreed to the change, and this put America in an uproar. Some states flat out refused to recognize the change (the change was made in August of 1939 for November of the same year), and others (such as Texas) held two holidays. Calendars had to be changed, and travel plans rescheduled. Because of the upheaval, and because of the confusion the change caused, this date change was made into law in December of 1941.

HAPPY HARVEST EVERYONE!

And remember...we will be closed for Thanksgiving break. See our holiday hours below.

Museum Hours for Thanksgiving Break

2009-11-19T11:14:00.007-05:00

The Culinary Arts Museum will be closing at 1:00 pm on Wednesday, November 25th.

We will be closed on Thanksgiving Day (November 26th) through Monday, November 30th.

Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, December 1st.

Have a happy holiday!

From our collection:

Collier's Magazine Cover

Thanksgiving Turkey Raffle

Thanksgiving Issue: November 25, 1939.

This past weekend at JWU's Harborside Campus...

2009-11-10T15:32:00.048-05:00

Donald Wressel, Corporate Pastry Chef for Guittard Chocolate, visited Johnson & Wales this past Saturday.

In a demo for the faculty of the International Baking & Pastry Institute, he created a beautiful chocolate showpiece over the course of a day, as seen in the pictures below.

About Guittard Chocolate Company:
Guittard Chocolate Company is the oldest family owned chocolate operation in the United States. Founded by Etienne Guittard in 1868, the company was originally located in San Francisco and was relocated to Burlingame in 1955. Not only does Guittard Chocolate work closely with growers, but the company is also one of the few remaining bean-to-bar chocolate makers in the United States. The process of transformation from dried cacao beans to chocolate occurs in Guittard's Burlingame facility.

A bit about Chef Donald Wressell:
In 1985, Donald Wressell worked as the Assistant Pastry Chef for the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia, and in 1987 he moved to Los Angeles where he was the Executive Pastry Chef for the Four Seasons until 2006. He was named one of the "Top Ten Best Pastry Chefs" by Chocolatier-Pastry Art & Design in 1998 and 1999, and in 2003 he was named Southern California's Restaurant Writers "Pastry Chef of the Year." The Organizing Committee of the National Pastry Team Championships gave Wressell the title of "Pastry Chef of the Year" in 2005. Chef Wressell was the recipient of Silver and Gold medals in the Grand Salon Culinaire, and he was the second place winner in Les Masters du Chocolat competition in 1995. He has represented the United States four times in Le Coupe du Monde de la Patisserie (the World Cup of Pastry). In 1995 and 2005, as team captain, Wressell led the team to winning Bronze medals. The USA won their first Gold medal in 2001 with Donald as their team coach and manager.

Donald Wressell was Johnson & Wales 152nd Distinguished Visiting Chef, honored on Wednesday, January 30th, 2008.

The Culinary Arts Museum connection...
If you've been to the museum, you may remember that in our Pantheon of Chefs exhibit, we have a display case dedicated to Julia Child. Among the items in that case are an autographed chef coat signed by chefs that attended and/or cooked for one of her many 80th birthday celebrations, as well as a photo from the event that shows Julia being presented with a birthday cake. Not only did Chef Wressell sign the chef coat, but he can be seen standing next to Julia as she is presented with the cake that he baked for her!

Culinary Arts Museum in the news!

2009-10-29T14:18:00.002-04:00

Our stove exhibit was featured as part of an article in the Boston Globe on October 25, 2009.

Click on the link below to check it out!

The way we cooked - The Boston Globe

Coming up next week...

2009-10-14T09:47:00.005-04:00

Johnson & Wales Campus Art Exhibit:
Tuesday, October 20-Thursday, October 22

JWU students, faculty, and staff are invited to submit their artwork for the Providence Campus Art Exhibit. Submissions are due on Sunday, October 18 for those interested. Media accepted range from photography to culinary art. The show will be juried; first place wins $100, and second and third place will receive $75 each.

October 2009 Weekend of Fire: the recap

2009-10-07T15:13:00.003-04:00

"I've seen fire and I've seen rain..."

--James Taylor

Despite the rainy conditions on Saturday, this year's Weekend of Fire was a success. Mystic Seaport Blacksmith Bill Scheer was unable to operate his forge; however, he did bring along a fine display of his work. Bill graciously stayed with us for the duration of the event and was available for questions and conversation.

Right on schedule, the wood-fired oven was lit and ready to go for 11 am. The chefs and culinary students braved the windy, wet weather to feed hundreds of hungry parents and students who were sheltered under a tent. In total, more than 240 pizzas were served in just three hours - meaning that over 1,920 slices of pizza were consumed!

Inside the museum, our visitation numbers reached record highs. Close to 800 guests took the opportunity to browse through our exhibits while drying off and warming up. After stopping in during the afternoon, over 500 students and their family members returned to the museum in the evening for Casino Night, part of Johnson & Wales' Family Weekend festivities.

What's brewing at JWU this week?

2009-09-27T15:22:00.008-04:00

Sam Calagione, founder and head brewer of
Dogfish Head Brewery to visit Johnson & Wales

One of the country's most successful entrepreneurs, Sam Calagione, will speak at Johnson & Wales University this Friday, October 2, 2009 at 1:00 PM. Though Calagione's beer is now distributed to 29 states and four countries, Dogfish Head continues to work with local farmers and merchants. Among the brewery's many honors, Slow Food USA honored Dogfish Head in October 2005, at its "Urban Harvest," a festive tribute to farmers and food artisans who provide New York and the surrounding region with foods that are delicious, ecologically sustainable and humanely produced. In addition, Dogfish Head's initiative to recycle all of its spent barley grain into cow feed has earned the company recognition from the Environmental Protection Agency's Waste Water Program.

The talk is open to all JWU students, faculty, and staff. A tasting will follow, and is open only to those 21 and over. A valid Johnson & Wales ID is required for entry. For more information, contact your local JbreW member.

Do your homework!
To read up on one of Dogfish Head's most exotic brews, click on the link to the New York Times article below. Chew It Up, Spit It Out, Then Brew. Cheers!

Happenings at the Culinary Arts Museum

2009-09-23T09:44:00.034-04:00

Keep an eye out and an ear open for announcements about upcoming exhibitions and additions to the museum this Fall/Winter:

"Seasons of Sweets: The Timberlake Mould Collection"

This temporary exhibit will highlight an assortment of ice cream and chocolate moulds from the Dorothy N. & Dr. William H. Timberlake Culinary Collection. Over 100 moulds are set to go on display, organized according to holiday and sports seasons.

"Culinary Beginnings" - Objects from the Culinary Arts Museum's Collection Our "Culinary Beginnings" gallery, currently a display of Ancient Chinese and Korean artifacts on long-term loan from the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, will be enhanced this Autumn with cooking vessels and utensils from the Culinary Arts Museum's collection of Roman, Greek, and Egyptian antiquities.

"Diners, Still Cookin' in the 21st Century" - The Hesperus Diner

The museum is preparing for the installation of a unique video theater as part of the 4,000 square-foot diner exhibit. It will be housed in the bullet-shaped end of the Hesperus Diner, a 1940 Streamliner originally located in Gloucester, MA.

As always, if you have any questions, you can reach the museum by phone at 401-598-2805, or by email at museum@jwu.edu

Upcoming Events

2009-09-20T11:55:00.006-04:00

October 2-4th, 2009.

Family Weekend at Johnson & Wales University

Featuring the Museum's Weekend of Fire

On Saturday, October 3rd, the Culinary Arts Museum will host the Weekend of Fire between the hours of 11am-2pm, featuring baking demonstrations in a wood-fired brick oven, tours of a Swiss Military Mobile bread-baking truck and blacksmithing demos of culinary tools. The event is free to museum guests and will be held in the tent area adjacent to the museum. Call 401-598-2805 for additional information.
This event is happening rain or shine! We will have a tent with ample seating.