American Culinary Federation Press Release
For Immediate Release:
March 17, 2016
Media Contacts:
Sarah Roy: (904) 484-0226, [email protected]
Jennifer Manley: (904) 484-0247, [email protected]
Northeast and Southeast Chefs, Foodservice Professionals and Culinary
Students Honored at American Culinary Federation Conference
Award winners from Northeast and Southeast regions announced at ChefConnect: Atlanta March 13-15.
March 17, 2016, St. Augustine, Florida— Chefs, students and foodservice professionals from the American
Culinary Federation’s (ACF) Northeast and Southeast regions gathered for professional development and culinary
trend seminars at ChefConnect: Atlanta. The conference took place at Hyatt Regency Atlanta, March 13-15.
Conference topics included food pairings, beef trends, Southern cooking, French pastry techniques and molecular
gastronomy. Attendees enjoyed hands-on workshops, culinary demonstrations and networking opportunities.
Presenters included Hugh Acheson, James Beard award-winning chef, local food advocate, author and judge on
Bravo's Top Chef; Linton Hopkins, James Beard award-winning chef and local restauranteur; and Patrice Caillot,
pastry chef instructor, The French Pastry School of Kennedy-King College at City Colleges of Chicago. For a full list
of presenters, visit www.acfchefs.org/EventSeries.
Regional awards were presented to Northeast and Southeast region chefs and students during the conference. The
following ACF award winners have the opportunity to earn their respective national titles at Cook. Craft. Create.
Convention & Show, Phoenix, July 15-19.
ACF Northeast Region Chef Educator of the Year
Gerard Prevost, CEC, CCE, chef instructor, St. Johnsbury Academy, St. Johnsbury, Vermont; White Mountain
Chapter of the ACF
ACF Southeast Region Chef Educator of the Year
Kathleen Vossenberg, CCC, CCE, lead chef instructor, Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Orlando, Florida;
ACF Central Florida Chapter
ACF Northeast Region Hermann G. Rusch Chef’s Achievement Award
James Taylor, CEC, AAC, MBA, professor, Columbus State Community College, Columbus, Ohio; ACF Columbus
Chapter
ACF Southeast Region Hermann G. Rusch Chef’s Achievement Award
Howard Cooper, Ph.D., retired, Decatur, Georgia; ACF Atlanta Chefs Association, Inc.
ACF Northeast Region Dr. L.J. Minor Chef Professionalism Award, sponsored by Minor’s®
Timothy Recher, CEC, executive chef/assistant general manager, Army Navy Country Club, Arlington, Virginia; ACF
Nation’s Capital Chefs Association
ACF Southeast Region Dr. L.J. Minor Chef Professionalism Award, sponsored by Minor’s®
Dominick Laudia, CEC, AAC, executive chef, Boca Grove Golf and Tennis Club, Boca Raton, Florida; ACF Palm
Beach County Chefs Association
-more-
ACF Northeast Region Baron H. Galand Culinary Knowledge Bowl, sponsored by American Technical
Publishers
Students representing ACF Eastern Long Island Chefs Chapter, Riverhead, New York
ACF Southeast Region Baron H. Galand Culinary Knowledge Bowl, sponsored by American Technical
Publishers
Students representing ACF Middle Tennessee Chapter; La Vergne, Tennessee
ACF Northeast Region Chef of the Year, sponsored by Unilever Food Solutions
Gary Davis Jr., executive chef, Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati, Cincinnati; ACF Greater Cincinnati Chapter
ACF Southeast Region Chef of the Year, sponsored by Unilever Food Solutions
Ted Polfelt, CEC, CCA, executive chef, Jefferson Street Management Group, Roanoke, Virginia; ACF Southwestern
Virginia Chapter
ACF Northeast Region Pastry Chef of the Year, sponsored by Plugrá® European-Style Butter
Cher Harris, CEPC, executive pastry chef at The Hotel Hershey, Hershey, Pennsylvania; ACF Harrisburg Chapter
ACF Southeast Region Pastry Chef of the Year, sponsored by Plugrá® European-Style Butter
Kelly Bellmore, CEPC, executive pastry chef, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina; ACF North
Carolina Chapter
ACF Northeast Region Student Chef of the Year, sponsored by Custom Culinary®
Denise Aguayo, student/lab assistant, The Culinary Institute of New York at Monroe College, New Rochelle, New
York; ACF Long Island Chapter
ACF Southeast Region Student Chef of the Year, sponsored by Custom Culinary®
Ruth Solis, garde manger cook, Cherokee Town and Country Club, Atlanta; ACF Atlanta Chefs Association, Inc.
ACF Northeast Region Student Team Regional Championship, sponsored by Vitamix
Students representing ACF Long Island Chapter that attend The Culinary Institute of New York at Monroe College,
New Rochelle, New York
ACF Southeast Region Student Team Regional Championship, sponsored by Vitamix
Students representing ACF North Carolina Chapter that attend Alamance Community College, Graham, North
Carolina
ChefConnect: Atlanta award recipients in ACF’s Northeast and Southeast regions listed below were recognized for
their outstanding contributions to ACF, goodwill in their communities and/or culinary excellence.
ACF Northeast Region Chapter of the Year
ACF Nation’s Capital Chefs Association; Washington, D.C.
ACF Southeast Region Chapter of the Year
ACF Central Florida Chapter; Orlando, Florida
ACF Northeast Region Chapter Achievement Awards
ACF Nation’s Capital Chefs Association; Washington, D.C.
ACF Epicurean Club of Boston; Boston
ACF Columbus Chapter; Columbus, Ohio
ACF Harrisburg Chapter; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
ACF Southeast Region Chapter Achievement Awards
ACF Central Florida Chapter; Orlando, Florida
ACF Tampa Bay Culinary Association, Inc.; Tampa, Florida
ACF Atlanta Chefs Association, Inc.; Atlanta
ACF Southwestern Virginia Chapter; Roanoke, Virginia
ACF World of Thanks
ACF Atlanta Chefs Association, Inc.; Atlanta
-more-
ACF Northeast Region President’s Medallions
Douglas Patten, CEC, CCA, AAC, corporate executive chef, FLIK Hospitality Group, Rye Brook, New York; ACF
Epicurean Club of Boston
Jason Knapp, CEC, chef instructor, Hocking College, Nelsonville, Ohio; ACF Columbus Chapter
ACF Southeast Region President’s Medallions
Clyde Christmas, CEC, AAC, executive chef, Bermuda Run Country Club, Bermuda Run, North Carolina; ACF North
Carolina Chapter
Rocco Paradiso, corporate chef, US Foods, Fort Mill, South Carolina; Chefs & Culinary Professionals of
Chicagoland
Joseph Randall, chef/owner, Chef Joe Randall’s Cooking School, Savannah, Georgia; ACF Savannah Chefs
Association
ACF Northeast Region Cutting Edge Awards, sponsored by Friedr. Dick Corp.
Lawrence Alexander Jr., CCC, executive chef, Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack, Wheeling, West Virginia;
Chefs & Culinary Professionals of Chicagoland
Shawn Culp, CEC, MBA, culinary arts department chair, The Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh; ACF Pittsburgh
Chapter
ACF Southeast Region Cutting Edge Awards, sponsored by Friedr. Dick Corp.
John Bell, CEC, executive chef, Leesburg High School, Leesburg, Florida; ACF Gulf to Lake Chefs & Cooks
Association, Inc.
Timothy Recher, CEC, executive chef/assistant general manager, Army Navy Country Club, Arlington, Virginia; ACF
Nation’s Capital Chefs Association
ACF Southeast Region Achievement of Excellence Awards
Army Navy Country Club; Arlington, Virginia
Café Calderón; San Juan, Puerto Rico
More than 450 chefs, students and foodservice professionals attended ChefConnect: Atlanta. The conference was
part of ACF’s Signature Series, which provides educational and networking opportunities for culinary industry
professionals and students. Learn more about the conference at www.acfchefs.org/EventSeries, on Twitter
@ACFChefs, #ChefConnect or on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ACFChefs.
Sponsors of ChefConnect: Atlanta were: Custom Culinary®; Minor’s®; Unilever Food Solutions; NEWCHEF
Fashion Inc; Plugrá® European-Style Butter; Vitamix; Ecolab; Allen Brothers; Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board;
Atlantic Veal & Lamb; American Technical Publishers; Par-Way Tryson Company; The Beef Checkoff; Irinox USA;
Jones Dairy Farm; Sysco Atlanta; National Turkey Federation; US Foods; Alouette Cheese USA; Performance
Foodservice; S&D Coffee & Tea; Friedr. Dick Corp. and Valrhona.
About the American Culinary Federation
The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), established in 1929, is the standard of excellence for chefs in North
America. With more than 17,500 members spanning nearly 200 chapters nationwide, ACF is the leading culinary
association offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and programmatic accreditation. In addition,
ACF operates the most comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States, with the Certified
Executive Chef®, Certified Sous Chef®, Certified Executive Pastry Chef® and Certified Culinary Educator®
designations accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team
USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and to the Chef &
Child Foundation, founded in 1989 to promote proper nutrition in children and to combat childhood obesity. For more
information, visit www.acfchefs.org. Find ACF on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ACFChefs and on Twitter
@ACFChefs.
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