In early February 2016, Oregon Coast Culinary Institute’s (OCCI) Culinary Competition Team traveled with their coach, Chef Randy Torres, to Reno, Nevada to compete in the American Culinary Federation’s (ACF) Western Regional Culinary Salon. The team, newly formed this year, was proud to place first and win the gold medal after months of practice. Team members are Kirsten Burt, Annie Sargent, Jasmine Howard, Tesia Campbell, Alana Askew. Nathan Haritash and Del Clark are team support members. The OCCI team competed against seven other teams from the western United States and scored the only gold medal for the show. The OCCI team was named Western Regional Student Team Champions and have been invited to an awards ceremony being held in Kona, Hawaii in April to honor their accomplishment. The team also plans on traveling to Phoenix, Arizona in July where they will compete against four other teams for a chance at becoming ACF National Champions. Chef Torres was thrilled with the win stating, “We are excited to see that hard work does pay off and to see the growth of these students in such a short time frame.” Chef Torres and the team plan on hosting several fundraisers in the next few months to help pay for their travel.
