Renowned chefs to spice up CPS’ cafeteria food with new program
It’s not every day that Chicago Public Schools students find an entree made by a renowned chef in their cafeterias.
But on Tuesday, Chef Josephine “Mother” Wade, of Chatham’s iconic Josephine’s Southern Cooking restaurant, will be serving her famous chicken stew at Deneen Elementary in Greater Grand Crossing with CPS CEO Janice Jackson at her side.
Tuesday’s event marks the launch of CPS’ brand-new Chicago Chef Council — a panel of celebrated chefs who will contribute their culinary passion and creativity toward developing the daily breakfasts, lunches and after-school meals served by CPS’ Nutrition Support Services. They will also promote the CPS Farm to School program and engage students and staff through demonstrations, in-café sampling and take-home recipes.
In addition to Wade, the 12-member council includes stars like Beverly Kim, a 2019 James Beard Award winner and co-owner of Avondale’s Michelin-starred Parachute restaurant; and Bill Kim, the James Beard-nominated cookbook author of BellyQ, formerly in the West Loop.
“My recipe is so simple, because I understand children,” Beverly Kim said of her CPS contribution, a pulogi beef dish with brown rice, fresh kimchi and miso soup.
“Their palettes are still developing, so I just drew on my experience of what my own kids like. The whole idea is giving them something you would find in a school cafeteria in Seoul, Korea. Food is a language. And it’s good to give kids that exposure at an early age, expanding their knowledge beyond pizza and hamburgers.”
Wade, 77, and Jackson will also be honoring Black History Month in announcing the new initiative.
Wade’s restaurant — opened as Captain’s Hard Times in 1986 — has been a fixture in Chicago’s black community for more than three decades, the walls of her East 79th Street eatery filled with photos of heads of state, politicians and celebrities for whom the soul food restaurant is a must-visit. The late Aretha Franklin never missed coming by for the gumbo.
“I’m excited about the council, because our kids are going to school with improper diets, what with working single parents and eating on the run,” said Wade, who was honored by the city with a street sign at 79th and Vernon in 2017.
“Now, when I was a girl, my mother and grandmother made sure we got a wholesome balanced breakfast, then light food for lunch in our lunch boxes. When kids don’t get proper nutrition, it changes their behavior, and they can’t stay focused,” said Wade, who last June opened her eatery’s first satellite for McCormick Place conventiongoers.
Others on the council include Chef Clifford Rome of Rome’s Joy Companies in Bronzeville; Chef Mario Santiago of May St. Café in Pilsen; Chef Ken Polk of Batter & Berries in Lincoln Park; Chef Matthew Jost of PureCircle Food & Beverages; Chef Monica Hayes Jones of Tasteful Manners in Edgewater; and Chef Danielle Murray of Da Real Foodie.
Also on the council are several chefs from food advocacy organizations: Chef Art Smith, whose nonprofit, Common Threads, promotes cooking and nutrition education; Chef Melissa Graham, whose nonprofit Purple Asparagus, promotes access to healthy eating; and Green City Market, the city’s largest year-round sustainable farmers market.