Poplar Bluff, Missouri - A total of 50 reservations were booked at the Mules Café on Wednesday, Feb. 20, for culinary arts students of the Technical Career Center to prepare their first full-service meal.

 

As opposed to serving walk-in customers in a buffet line, orders were selected from a menu and entrees were cooked to order.

 

“Ninety-five percent of jobs [students] will be looking to get into are going to involve cooking to order, serving the public and communication skills,” instructor Brandon Moon explained. “We can’t learn unless we do.”

 

Throughout the lunch shift, 12 students were divided in the kitchen and the front of the house, where they waited tables, grilled and plated meals, plus washed dishes. Moon oversaw the tickets coming in, while his assistant Monica Lewis served as hostess.

 

“We’re blessed that we have customers who know the kids are students, and are patient and giving,” Lewis commented. Tips for the day totaled $90, which will be reinvested into the program.

 

While time management remains a key area of improvement, noted Moon, the chef indicated that he was generally pleased with the service, knowing students obtained real-world experience necessary in the restaurant business. Moon said he looks forward to the next full-service meal, slated to take place on Wednesday, April 24.

 

Pictured: Aleigha Lerma, a junior, serves a table of regular customers.

 

Photo and article submitted by Tim Krakowiak, Communications/Marketing Director, Poplar Bluff R-I School District