Last night, five ICE students competed head-to-head in the 17th Annual Calvados Nouvelle Vogue International Trophies. Hailing from the Culinary and Hospitality Management programs, the students were given the unique opportunity to train with Anthony Caporale, renown beverage expert and ICE Mixologist and Beverage Instructor.

Craig Joseph, Carol Arciniegas, Anthony Caporale, Edward Dickman, Anthony Causi and Ellen Richards

The competition was held at the Intercontinental New York Hotel’s Barclay Bar, the first Calvados bar in the country, boasting more than thirty types of this traditional French brandy. From cream to chocolate, thai basil to jalapenos, the range of cocktails presented by the students truly demonstrated the spirit’s fruit-driven versatility.

Professionals from the New York Chapter of the US Bartenders’ Guild competed alongside the students, vying for the chance to compete in the Calvados Cocktail finals this April in Normandy, France.

Craig Joseph pours his winning Calvados cocktail.

Culinary Management student Craig Joseph took home the prize with “The Normandy”. We look forward to seeing Craig at the finals in France and congratulate all the competitors on their impressive bartending skills!

“The Normandy”

The Normandy

By Craig Joseph

Every issue of The Main Course, ICE’s school newsletter, includes a glimpse at the life of students in ICE’s career-training programs. We’re sharing the interviews from the most recent issue here on DICED. Rebecca Blair Roth is a student in ICE’s newest program, Hospitality Management. You may have seen some of her blog posts about the program’s curriculum, field trips and instructors.

Rebecca Blair Roth
Hospitality Management
Originally from Long Island, New York, Rebecca Roth has already lived nine lives. After receiving her B.A. from Emerson College in 2000, Rebecca, a self-proclaimed “people person”, worked in publishing and law, lived in Belgium and the Netherlands and taught English in Slovakia. Her education at ICE complements her previous work experience as a hotel concierge at New York’s famed Algonquin Hotel and as a concierge for private clients. Rebecca, who also has a theater background, is open to a wide range of opportunities — from public relations to banquet catering to event planning. She is currently interning with William Curran at the Liberty Theater, a 24,000 square foot event space in Times Square.

Every issue of our school newsletter, The Main Course, includes a slice of life at ICE with a variety of interviews, articles and profiles. In the Winter 2012 issue, we looked at the bios of three current students, including Manuel Pastrana, a current student in our Hospitality Management career training program who is exploring his enthusiasm for good service and the future of a career in the hospitality industry at ICE.

Manuel Pastrana
Hospitality Management

Manuel Pastrana comes naturally to the hospitality world after spending more than 12 years working in customer service, including 10 years as assistant manager, of a Sprint/Nextel retail location. He hopes to launch a career that will see him become the general manager of a hotel — anything but being stuck in a cubicle, he says. Pastrana obtained an associate’s degree in hospitality management from Kingsborough Community College in 2003, but took a break from further studies after the birth of his now six-year-old daughter and one-year-old son. Pastrana, whose parents are from Puerto Rico, was born and raised in Brooklyn.  He likes to play softball and football when not at ICE.

Get an inside look at ICE with more student profiles on our website.

Last week, ICE’s Hospitality Management class went on a unique field trip to one of New York’s busiest hotels, the Hilton Times Square. As these students prepare for exciting new careers in the tourism industry, they are learning all the ins and outs of running a hotel, including cleaning guest rooms and managing staff.

After speaking with Ed Staniszewski, the General Manager of Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel about the different departments in a hotel last month, this was an incredibly useful chance to peer inside a huge hotel operation in one of the busiest locations in America. The students visited the Hilton Times Square on Tuesday and Thursday to see the often overlooked aspect of managing housekeeping in such a massive hotel. After being welcomed in the main lobby, the students were briefed on the hotel occupancy status and various policies and practices that make the operation run seamlessly. More…

Students in ICE’s Hospitality Management program are gaining the skills they need to be on the fast track to successful careers in the hospitality and hotel industry. As part of their training, they benefit from industry guest lectures giving them first-hand exposure to the industry and offering them a variety of perspectives from the industry. For example, this week the class heard from Ed Staniszewski, the General Manager of Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel. Staniszewski manages 180 rooms and 15 banquet and meeting halls in the 15,000 square feet hotel in Flushing, Queens.

With over 20 years of industry experience, he has incredible insight into how to run a hotel successfully. He emphasized that the hotel industry is like a tree with lots of branches that students could follow on their career paths. According to Staniszewski, there are many opportunities for personal growth and satisfaction in the industry. He advised the students to let things develop and come to them, telling them to be open to taking diversions and taking new opportunities’ when presented with them. More…

Since 1975, ICE has been training students for successful careers in the culinary world. In those 36 years, ICE has seen incredible talent pass through our kitchens and classrooms who then go on to become leaders in their chosen art. We are continually amazed by the passion and dedication of our students as they set out on new careers in the food industry, and are impressed by where their newly learned skills and hard-work takes them. Now, ICE is proud to announce the launch of the ICE Student Awards Program to publicly recognize our amazing students in the Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts, Culinary Management and Hospitality Management programs.

In each graduating career training class at ICE, three students will be recognized for their accomplishment with an award given out at their class’ senior reception. The awards are meant to recognize students who have displayed exceptional dedication and commitment to their education. More…

Rebecca Blair Roth is a student in ICE’s Hospitality Management Program. Her class is learning about the business of the travel and tourism industry. During their studies, the students take part in a variety of field trips to explore different aspects of the hospitality industry. Last week, they were able to see inside the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at JFK and take a peek at the world of luxury travel.

With all the recent advertisements for the new TV show Pan Am, I keep remembering a different era of flying. An era when it actually meant something to go on a plane and have chic stewardesses and handsome pilots take you around the world. Also, very Catch Me if You Can. However, for most of the average population flying nowadays seems a lot less glamorous and more like being a sardine stuck in a can for the next several hours.

Last Wednesday, our class had the pleasure of living the good life for an afternoon on a field trip to the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at JFK Airport; and got to experience a little bit of luxury first hand. This field trip was possible thanks to Marco Hejazi, our food and beverage instructor, who has years of experience running food and beverage departments in hotels. Currently, Hejazi is the Regional Manager for Virgin and oversees the Clubhouse. His job consists of making sure that the Clubhouse runs as smoothly as possible. From overseeing purchasing orders for the kitchen to greeting VIP clientele curbside; Marco assures us that there is never a dull moment at JFK. Like working in a hotel, he deals with day-to-day operations but, with a bit more ambience from the all the planes and travelers passing through. More…

As we approach the back-to-school season, it may be time to consider studying at the Institute of Culinary Education. If you have a passion for food, it may be time to turn your enthusiasm for the culinary arts into a career.

This August, join ICE for a special culinary career presentation and open house. The evening will afford prospective students the chance to hear more about ICE’s 8- to 13-month career training programs in Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts and Culinary Management . You’ll have the unique opportunity to see live culinary and pastry demos and hear from Chef Instructors and staff as they share their thoughts on ICE’s culinary programs, career opportunities and its success in the industry. This is a unique chance to experience ICE’s award-winning programs and take the first step towards a new career.

Following are the details:

Date: Saturday, August 27
Time: 10:00 a.m.
The Open House scheduled for August 27 has been cancelled due to weather-related circumstances. Our Admissions team will be here from 9am-12pm to give tours and answer questions.
Place: The Institute of Culinary Education, 50 W 23rd St., New York, NY
R.S.V.P.: Abbey Florence at aflorence@iceculinary.com or 212-847-0700

Seating for the event is limited. Don’t miss this opportunity to sneak a peak behind the scenes at ICE and learn more about our culinary career training programs!

Rebecca Blair Roth is a student in ICE’s Hospitality Management Program. Her class is learning about the business of the travel and tourism industry. The program is directed by Tom Voss, whose experience in hotels across the world is invaluable for the students. He is a great teacher and the students are grateful for the opportunity to learn from a true professional.

This summer I have two Toms in my life, the incredibly comfortable shoes (that I can’t seem to take off) and my Hospitality Management Department Director and instructor, Tom Voss. Just like the shoes, he gives back to his students via personal stories and hospitality industry knowledge. Tom has been in charge of the department since before its inception last year and has been our fearless leader throughout the program. His work résumé speaks for itself and having been everything from a general manager to a college professor shows us all how much time and dedication he has devoted to his craft.

Back in January, on one of those snowy mornings that kept on reoccurring, I visited ICE and sat in on a Front Office Management class that Voss was teaching and after only about ten minutes into the lesson, I was totally sold on pursuing the program. Having been an English teacher in Slovakia last year, coming into the classroom on the opposite side was jarring at first. But I knew that under Voss’s care I would learn more than just what the book was providing. I would learn real stories from someone who has succeeded in the industry and wasn’t going to sugarcoat everything for his students. More…

Rebecca Blair Roth is a student in ICE’s Hospitality Management Program. Her class is learning about the business of the travel and tourism industry. The class is frequently visited by industry experts, helping guide students on the track to culinary careers in the industry.

With the song “Walcott,” by Vampire Weekend still playing in my head, (and it has ever since I found out where my field trip was taking place) I approached The Hotel Wolcott for a two-day excursion to assume the role of a housekeeping attendant. The Wolcott, fashioned in big, bold, Beaux-Arts style, opened its doors in 1904 on 31st Street and is just a hop, skip and a jump away from the Empire State Building — making it a popular place to stay for many tourists.

After speaking to our class a few weeks ago, Evelyn Chun, the Executive Housekeeper of the Wolcott, was our fearless leader for all our hands-on housekeeping training. She started off her career at the Affinia Hotel and even worked at the (now infamous) Sofitel where she was a floor supervisor. Evelyn has been overseeing the housekeeping department at the Wolcott for the past five years. The Wolcott is a privately owned hotel and getting to work in this type of environment is very different from your typical corporate structure. All the little perks that Evelyn enjoys, such as directly purchasing supplies to doing something as she sees fit, are very rewarding. Evelyn, with the help of her two assistants schedules all the workers, controls the budget, orders supplies, and handles any maintenance issue or guest problem that needs immediate attention. On a side note, The Wolcott still uses an in-house laundry service, a rarity these days as most properties tend to outsource to cut costs. This process makes it much easier for Evelyn to be in command of linen inventory. More…