Teaching the Next Generation
Chef Lance Nitahara ’08, CIA associate professor of culinary arts, has returned to Kapiʻolani Community College (CC), the main campus of the Culinary Institute of the Pacific (CIP), to teach as part of its culinary workforce development program created with CIA, the University of Hawai’i News reported. Nitahara graduated from Kapiʻolani CC in 2005 before attending CIA.
A New Horizons of Southwest Florida fundraiser featured “one of the most prestigious” live-auction items: a private dinner for 10 donated by Chef Victor Bock ’87. The event raised funds for “academic tutoring, mentoring, and character-building programs that serve more than 500 students annually across 10 locations in Southwest Florida.”
The San Antonio Report highlighted former CIA Chef-Instructor Geronimo Lopez’s effect on San Antonio’s culinary industry. The article named many of Lopez’s former students who are making waves in the community, including Nicola Blaque ’16, Jesse “Chef Kirk” Kuykendall ’15, and Aaron Juvera ’13.
Brandon Chrostowski’s ’06 EDWINS, the award-winning project that trains formerly incarcerated individuals in the culinary arts, announced that he is a 2025 CIA Leadership Awards honoree.
Profiles and Features
Matthew Calidonna ’13, CIA lecturing instructor of Hospitality and Service Management, was interviewed for a Pizza Today article about how local pizza restaurants can increase dine-in traffic.
Jose Frade, CIA’s associate dean of degree programs, spoke with The San Antonio Report for an article about CIA’s pop-up bakery café at Savor. The reporter also quoted James Beard-nominated Chef Sofia Tejeda ’18, the Texas Chefs Association’s 2022 and 2023 Pastry Chef of the Year. Other bakery alumni mentioned were Grecia Ramos ’20, Felicia Miranda ’17, and Diana Nadira ’17.
A profile of Robbie Felice ’11 in NorthJersey.com detailed his career, from his CIA days to the opening of his latest restaurant, Bar Mutz, in Westwood, NJ.
In a Q&A with Forks Over Knives, Dora Ramírez ’06 talked about her career and new cookbook, Comida Casera, including its distinct structure. The book is organized around key culinary traditions and highlights indigenous cooks who uphold the plant-forward traditions of their Mexican ancestors.
A San Antonio Report profile of Andrew Weissman ’96, four-time James Beard nominee and owner of burger restaurant Mr. Juicy, revealed how the “celebrated French chef now derives pleasure in creating the most succulent burger in town.”
Biz New Orleans announced the April 1 book launch dinner for Nina Compton’s ’01 Kwéyòl/Creole: Recipes Stories and Tings from a St. Lucian’s Chef Journey, held at her signature restaurant, Compère Lapin. Compton was a 2023 CIA Leadership Awards honoree.
An article about the Summit House discussed the Summit, NJ, restaurant’s new food and beverage menus, which highlight Executive Chef AJ Capella’s ’10 expertise in blending global influences with locally sourced ingredients.
Celebrating Diversity
Food & Wine magazine announced the details of Kwame Onwuachi’s ’13 fifth Family Reunion, a celebration of diversity in hospitality, including the participation of Gregory Gourdet ’00 among other superstar chefs. The food festival will take place August 14–17 at the Salamander Middleburg resort in Virginia.
The new dessert program at Dalida, Laura Ozyilmaz ’14 and Sayat Ozyilmaz’s ’15 Eastern Mediterranean restaurant inside Presidio, San Francisco’s National Park Site, is now under the direction of Deirdre Balao Rieutort-Louis ’14. As Eater San Francisco explained, the program includes “six intricate dishes that marry Balao’s signature style with chefs Laura and Sayat Ozyilmaz’s commitment to regional flavors of Turkey and beyond.” Balao and the Ozyilmazes met while attending CIA together.
Openings and New Beginnings
David Matias’s ’00 new Oaxacan-leaning Tucson restaurant, Victoria Cocina Mexicana, was featured in the Arizona Daily Star and other local publications. The article discussed Matias’s history working alongside his mother at Teresa’s Mosaic Café before branching out on his own.
CIA Chancellor Dr. Tim Ryan ’77 was elected to the board of trustees of Rich Products Corporation.
Mayflower Café, a 90-year-old establishment in Jackson, MS, now under the direction of Co-Owner and Executive Chef Hunter Evans ’14, was featured in Garden & Gun, a lifestyle magazine about the richness of the South.
Adam Kay ’85 and his son Zach shared their plans to open an American comfort-food restaurant, called Adam’s Table, in their hometown of Milton, VT, with Vermont publication Seven Days.
William White ’16 and wife Danielle announced the opening of The Dough Crazy Café in Eureka, MO, serving locals breakfast and lunch.
Ed Kowalski ’98 revealed his plans for his third Lola’s Café location in the Eastdale Village development in Poughkeepsie, NY, not far from CIA’s New York campus.
New West Village French restaurant, Le Petit Village, and its Executive Chef Mehjabin Ahmed ’15 were highlighted in Gotham Magazine.
Tano, a popup by Isaac Taitano ’21 offering experimental pastries inside the downtown Paper Son Coffee café, was featured in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Chef Antonio Carballo ’19 will helm the kitchen of Meximodo in Jersey City, NJ, the Mexican restaurant and tequila bar’s second location coming soon.
Gregory Joseph ’00 has been named executive chef at Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado Sante Fe. He will oversee all culinary operations, including Terra, the resort’s restaurant.
Ted Deptula ’07 has been named director of culinary operations at La Vida Hospitality, a management company in the hospitality industry.
Gerry Klaskala ’76 is retiring from his role as chef and owner of Aria. Klaskala is a 2025 James Beard Award semifinalist for Outstanding Hospitality, and Aria is one of Eater Atlanta’s 38 best restaurants. In his new free time, Klaskala plans to focus on drawing and painting.