Chef Shaya Visits Jefferson Elementary

It must have come as a delightful surprise to 3rd grade teacher Lana Nuccio of Jefferson Elementary School when Chef Alon Shaya greeted her and her husband as they were dining at his new restaurant -- and revealed his interest and experience in providing cooking demos for young students.

Shaya, executive chef and partner at Domenica, the latest venture of renowned chef John Besh, has spent much of the last year-and-a-half preparing for the restaurant’s opening – much of that time training in and around Parma, perfecting his understanding of the culture and cuisine of the Italian countryside. Still, he managed to remain involved in New Orleans Outreach, an innovative program dedicated to enriching the quality of the city’s public schools by linking them with volunteers and other community resources. “It’s a great program,” says Shaya, “not only because it gives them instruction, but because it improves their quality of life. For instance, I go into a kindergarten and do a cooking demo, but I’m stressing the importance of being in the kitchen together as a family. It’s how I learned to cook, and it’s the basis of my bond with my mother and grandmother.”

So the following week, Shaya and Felicia Dewey, one of his cooks at Domenica, drove the ten minutes to Jefferson Parish and unloaded their gear: everything necessary to create Lasagne Bolognese and Gianduja Budino, or hazelnut chocolate pudding – plus enough hot, pre-cooked lasagna for the entire third grade – all 55 students.
“When I was growing up in Philadelphia,” recalls Shaya, “kids wanted to be firemen and policemen. I don’t think it even occurred to anyone to want to cook for a living. But I went in and asked them who wanted to be a chef, and all the hands went up! I think it’s thanks to all the cooking shows, the profession is getting so much more visibility. It’s really heartening.”

Shaya showed them how to make the pasta and the meat sauce from scratch, as well as how to assemble all the layers. Then he slid it under the table, “my ‘magic oven!’” pulling out the prepared dish, piping hot and ready to serve. Topped off with a dessert of chocolate pudding [candied hazelnut topping optional] the students had a mighty fine Italian feast, plus a heaping serving of inspiration and encouragement. Who knows? Maybe our next great generation of chefs will be coming out of Jefferson Elementary School….