South Caldwell Culinary Team wins NC Prostart competition

LENOIR, NC (March 22, 2017)…While cooking in the heat of competition, the South Caldwell High School ProStart Culinary team placed first at the 2017 North Carolina ProStart Invitational held over the weekend in Morrisville.

“This win is a tremendous accomplishment for our students,” said Dona Rudicil, Family and Consumer Science teacher. “This competition is composed of creating a three-course meal on two butane burners in an hour. The students were amazing under pressure and showed humility and respect throughout the competition.”

The North Carolina ProStart invitational is a two-day secondary school competition focused on restaurant management and culinary arts. The culinary competition highlights each team’s creative cooking abilities without access to running water or electricity, and there is no room for error as they are evaluated on taste, skill, teamwork, safety and sanitation.

South Caldwell culinary team members included Ben Byerly, Aaron Lambert, Kailee Spake, Landon Powell, and Brandon Milam. Each student was awarded approximately $20,000 in scholarships and a Mercer chef’s knife. As state winners, the team will move to the national level of competition next month in Charleston, South Carolina. Golden Corral will be the corporate sponsor for the South Caldwell (Team NC) providing transportation, lodging, uniforms, and products.

“Our student competitors put their skills to the test in front of industry leaders,” said South Caldwell principal Chad Smith, “and they give it their all, winning the championship trophy that they that can wave in the air now and a coveted scholarship that they will fully appreciate in the near future.”