On Wednesday, June 13, 2007 two OWATC Culinary Arts students brought home a prestigious award for the Best Entrée from the tenth annual Nicco Cup Challenge.  OWATC’s contestants, Robert Quick and John Berger competed with students from culinary schools across Utah and Idaho in a battle of impromptu culinary prowess.  Pairs of students from each school receive a brown paper bag with ingredients from which to craft an entrée.  They must create a recipe and a meal using those ingredients plus additional staples located on a common table. This year, students were given a piece of fish, a mushroom, an apple, a chicken thigh, a jalapeno pepper, and a banana leaf.  The entrée must be ready to eat in two hours and five minutes. 

Berger and Quick said they knew right away what they wanted to do, and settled on a Southwest theme.  With their ingredients, they whipped up a southwestern fish and chicken, a stuffed jalapeno and Spanish rice with more than 40 minutes to spare.  Ever gregarious, Quick said he used the extra time as a networking opportunity. That fact surprised none of the faculty at OWATC who have learned to start salivating whenever Quick enters a room with a tray of samples.  Vicki Walczak, OWATC Executive Assistant for Instructional Services said, “Oh yeah, whenever Bob comes walking down the hall, we know it’s going to be good.”  

Robert Quick said that having Chef Chris Taggart, OWATC culinary arts instructor, as a mentor and trainer was the reason they did so well.  “We went down there to win and we did.  It was all because we were so well trained by our instructor.  The judges were even impressed by how professionally we cut the meat. Chef Chris is awesome.  It’s just not very often that you meet someone with as much passion as he has.  Really, I am blessed to be in his class.  He’s a super, super instructor.” 

An unlikely pair, Quick is an experienced culinary student who came to OWATC after two strokes and two heart attacks required him to train in a new field.  He found the program after a lifelong ambition to become a chef, but personal challenges left him nearly dead.  Today, Quick is an avid cyclist and recently beat the national arm wrestling champion in Evanston Wyoming.  On the other end of the spectrum, Berger will enter 11th grade at Canyon View High School next fall.  He has never competed before, and has only been in the program a month.  Even so, he rattled off a list of skills he has already picked up including cold food preparation, sanitation skills, hot food preparation, soups and sauces.  “I have learned a tremendous amount, thanks to Chef.  I have to say thanks to him for letting me go since I am so new here.” Both students have plans to go on to advanced chef schools after they complete the Culinary Arts program at OWATC.  

The tenth annual “Nicco Cup Challenge, Battle of the Culinary Schools” was sponsored by Nestle, Simplot and Tyson.  The competition took place at the Nicholas and Company “Tropical Dreams” Food show at the South Towne Expo Center. 

For More information contact:
For information about OWATC, or to schedule a photo shoot, contact Rhonda Boren,
Director of Marketing and Public Relations,
(801) 627-8380
borenr@owatc.edu

Chris Taggart, Culinary Arts Instructor
(801) 627-8357

Robert Quick, OWATC student
(801) 686-1286

John Berger, OWATC student
(801) 663-6170

Nicholas & Company NICCO Cup
Michael Nook
mnook@nicholasandco.com