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Cooking was never something I thought I’d be interested in when I was younger. It wasn’t until I was about 19 that it really became apparent that I enjoyed partaking in the culinary arts. Of course back then I was working at Swiss Chalet, which was creatively stifling, to say the least. Although everything in a chain restaurant is expected to be cooked to a set of exact specifications, I found solace in using the ingredients to build my own private creations. That is when cooking actually began to interest me.

Unfortunately there is only so far one can go whilst cooking at the Swiss Chalet and it became clear to me that I needed to try something new. I started at an East Side Mario’s in hopes of expanding my knowledge, which surprisingly paid off, in a couple of important ways. First of all, I became quite aware of the fact that I hate working in chain restaurants, which prompted my enrolment into this program, and secondly, I started cooking steaks, seafood and pastas, and greatly improved my knowledge of building flavours. Although there are still certain specifications that I was required to work inside, I felt like I was expressing myself with food more than I ever had before.

 These two experiences have led to a sustained interest in cooking which I intend to continue nurturing. I love cooking and I frequently cook my family’s meals while I am home. I’m hoping to take cooking classes, get a summer job at a more admirable establishment, or go back to school for Culinary Arts after I graduate from Professional Writing. I’ve even played with the notion of authoring a vegetarian cookbook.