YONGSAN GARRISON, South Korea -- The faces of the cooks serving the food at Camp Coiner Feb. 17 were likely familiar to "chow hall" patrons around the peninsula. With a menu containing words like "choux", "puree", "reduction" and "infused" though, the food served at the Eighth Army Culinary Team's End of Course Meal was anything but standard dining facility fare.
Twelve Army cooks, who normally work at dining facilities throughout Korea, prepared and served the meal to a handful of unit command teams to show off what they'd learned since joining the Eighth Army Culinary Team in December.
The End of Course Meal marked the culmination of a two-month train-up in preparation for North America's largest military cooking competition, the Military Culinary Arts Competitive Event at Fort Lee, Va., March 5 through March 10.
"Their hard work and commitment has truly paid off," said Eighth Army Food Advisor, Chief Warrant Officer Arnetra Hughes. Hughes oversaw the formation of the team. "I've seen the team work hard and grow and I am so proud of their accomplishments."
The menu served at the End of Course Meal, which included choux of shrimp, filet of beef tenderloin and tiramisu with strawberry sauce, is the same menu the team plans to serve at the MCACE. While it in no resembles anything a dining facility diner might expect to see, Hughes said the training and experience culinary team members gain pay off for everyone.
"It reflects in their daily work. The training event provides an opportunity to raise culinary excellence and professionalism," Hughes said. "The more we expose these cooks to culinary arts, the more they put into what they prepare."
She said team members also have the skills to travel across the peninsula and train their fellow cooks in critical areas such as food safety, dining facility management and basic culinary skills, which may allow all Army cooks in Korea to earn civilian certifications and credentials.
Team members said so far, their time on the team has been valuable.
"This is one of the best experiences I've had," said Pfc. Desiree Patrick, 304th Expeditionary Signal Battalion, 1st Signal Brigade. "I didn't know there was so much to cooking."
Patrick said she's learned a lot about food preparation, presentation and consistency since joining the culinary team.
"It was good training from the beginning," added Sgt. Alexander Santacruz, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Infantry Division. "I'm glad I got the opportunity to be on the team."
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