Students serve up wins
Tararua College students Abbey Gunn, Grace Croasdale, Bailey Rink and Maddison Howell competed in the Ucol Secondary Schools Hospitality Competition on August 30 in Masterton.
The classes the students entered were static classes for cupcakes and white bread loaf; live kitchen classes for Woodhaven-Gardens inspired omelette and pasta dish; live restaurant classes for barista and non-alcoholic mocktails.
Abbey competed in the static class for cupcakes, live kitchen class for pasta dish and live kitchen class alongside Grace for omelettes. Abbey topped all three of her classes, taking home gold and top of class prizes for all three. Grace also topped the live omelette class.
Bailey competed in the live restaurant class for barista, live kitchen class for omelettes, static class for cupcakes and static class for bread loaf. Bailey topped her bread class, taking home gold and top of class prize. She received silver in omelettes and cupcakes and bronze in barista.
Maddison competed in the live kitchen class for pasta, live restaurant class for mocktails and static class for cupcakes. She took home silver in all three classes.
The competition gave the students an insight into what it is like to work in a commercial kitchen under time pressure. The day was a stressful but exciting experience for all of the students involved. Their achievements proved the passion the students have for the art of cooking and inspired them to further their skills in the hospitality industry.