There is a special kind of energy in a kitchen when young talent first picks up a knife or pours a drink for a guest. Next Thursday, the professional team at Sandbar steps back to let local students run the show. It is a chance to see our community’s future stars in action while enjoying a serious meal.
The kitchen and front of house at Huskisson’s Sandbar Restaurant will become the classroom for local high school students who will take over the running of the venue for a special dinner on Thursday 7 May. Tickets are now available for $85 to support the Gaining Through Training program as part of this year’s Autumn Celebration of Food.
The annual Autumn Celebration of Food is not only a chance for foodies to discover and indulge in our region’s very best produce, venues and dining events, it’s also an exceptional opportunity for our young adults to experience a career in hospitality, thanks to the Gaining Through Training Program.
Dinner at Huskisson’s Sandbar Restaurant next Thursday 7 May is the cornerstone of the program this season, with Chef Jason Wilkinson offering up his venue for a student take-over, alongside the guidance of their teachers, Daniel Fulginiti from Vincentia High School and Kim Knowles from Nowra Anglican College.
Jason explained to us why this is such an important event. “My approach and motivation for supporting Gaining through Training and hosting this event is very simple. As an industry and a small community we need to ensure we capture the minds of the industry’s future… the kids.
“So many people, adults and kids alike have a misconception of what working in a restaurant is like and the skills and experiences it offers, the teamwork is teaches and the confidence that is built from being part of a well-run professional restaurant team.
“My goal is to create an environment where the kids can come and experience what we do on a daily basis and hopefully ignite some passion and for them to pursue a future in the industry,” says Chef Jason Wilkinson.
These sentiments are backed up by Di Laver, the head of the Shoalhaven Food Network (organiser of the Autumn Celebration of Food) and the driving force behind this extraordinary training program.
“We are trying to show students all the possibilities of what it is to work in hospitality and that there’s something for everybody in hospitality, whether you want to be a chef or a pastry chef or you want to be front of house or in a bar.”
The program has been going for five years, and every year Di and her team try to add another layer of experience into the mix.
“We start with a famil and then we give them lunch in a nice restaurant. We have an industry panel and we have examples of our members of the Shoalhaven Food Network – we have artisan bakers and butchers, we have top chefs and caterers, we have distillers and fermenters as well as the cafes and restaurants.
“This year we took about 110 kids from year 10, 11 and some year 12 from the seven high schools in the Shoalhaven on this experience.”
The service will be complete for the students, who will also be operating a non-alcoholic bar – with specially created mocktails too – so they can experience the full service of a restaurant.
Jason says: “The event is 100% alcohol free, including zero alcohol cocktails, beer and wine so that the kids can gain experience in preparing and serving drinks and essentially get to run the entire service.”
There will be three students in the kitchen and five front-of-house who will be working under the supervision of Jason and the GTT mentors.
The Gaining Through Training Program is generously supported by Bendigo Bank Sanctuary Point, along with REIP, the Regional Employment Industry Program, and TAFE.
Tickets are available for $85 per person and doors open at 6pm at Sandbar Restaurant on Hawke Street Huskisson.
