Painters and musicians often share their inspirations behind their work- Chefs are no different. There’s a science and creative process behind preparing and presenting different types of foods. Debbie Barnes shared her advice to students at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) to help them work with, and present farm to table foods as they prepare to enter the culinary workforce.
The farm to table movement couples sustainability with quality food. You want to know where your food is coming from, what it’s getting fed and that it’s fresh. Great tasting foods begin with rich soil, dairy farms and pastures. Today’s Chefs need to learn more than just culinary technique; they need to learn how the food is grown, understand where it comes from and how that affects flavor. Party Rental Ltd.’s Debbie Barnes helped tie this together by presenting on the importance of carrying out what farm to table stands for through food presentation.
Our first experience with food is how it looks, how it smells, then finally, how it tastes. Food presentation and styling plays a crucial role in the overall dish’s composition. Once mastered, food presentation can be the perfect vehicle to carry out a story about the food itself. “The essence of that freshness and locality shines thru in your creations” said Debbie, when explaining how the right design can help elevate a farm to table dish. “It’s more than just being able to communicate the concept; it is living the concept, believing in it and having it truly shine through in your menu design and creativity.”
Below are some of the tips Debbie shared during her presentation;
- Incorporate the use of rustic wood tables
- Go easy on the tablecloths, it may be best to skip them altogether unless they have a natural look or texture
- Use of textured, tarnished metals in serving stations or silverware
- When choosing your color palate- think of the colors on a farm; wood tones, soft muted tones of greens and a mix of textures
- Use of pure white china to accent the food
- Stay in season with your décor and choice of colors
- Garnish food stations with fresh produce such as lemons, acorn squash, purple kale or pumpkins
A few sample food stations and tabletop settings were setup for the presentation to show demonstrations of what a farm to table design can look like and really bring the style to life for the students.
At The Culinary Institute of America, students are offered a Farm to Table concentration option in their course of study. “I want students to learn the phrase ‘farm to table’ is not just a tag line or a marketing ploy,” says Chef Larry Forgione, Professor at CIA “I want them to learn it’s a way of life.” With a campus located in the Hudson Valley, there is no shortage of nearby farms making locally grown products very accessible.
While there are literally dozens of reasons why people want to eat farm to table foods, ranging from sustainability to investing in local economy, we are happy to have made an impact in how these foods are presented by the next graduating class of chefs and caterers at CIA. Embracing the food’s simplicity, colors and origin is the key to telling the full story from kitchen to table, which we hope is just another reason why this movement keeps thriving.
To learn more about our farm to table style product offerings visit us at www.partyrentalltd.com