Culinary School Student Spotlight: Jeff Lewandowski

October 23, 2018

Students who step into the kitchen of The Culinary School come from all different walks of life. Jeff Lewandowski worked as a truck driver and equipment operator for more than 20 years. He recently lost his job as a dock worker and found The Culinary School through CareerTeam.

For students like Jeff who are in career transition, The Culinary School is exactly what he needed to improve his skills in order to obtain employment in the food service industry.

“I like to cook,” Jeff said. But he knew he’d have an easier time finding a job if he had credentials, especially ServSafe certification.

Jeff was still a teenager when he worked as a line cook in a restaurant and admits “cooks were still smoking and cooking at the same time.”

In today’s food service industry, food safety is paramount, and it’s something the chefs at the Food Bank of Delaware take seriously. In fact, each day is spent covering information related to the ServSafe examination.

Now in week eight of class, Jeff and his classmates are learning about the five mother sauces, proper knife handling skills, and much more.

The final two weeks of the 14-week training program will be spent in the field for a work experience. Jeff would love to intern at the Charcoal Pit on Route 202 in Wilmington.

“I’ve been going there since I was a kid,” he said. “It’s a perfect place for an internship, that’s the kind of food I like to cook.”

While some students aspire to work in a five-star restaurant, this is not Jeff’s career goal. He sees himself running a kitchen in a diner, “a shady diner out in the middle of nowhere, but with good food,” he joked.

Interested in a career in the food service industry? Click here to learn more about The Culinary School! 

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