MEDIA RELEASES

US sailors cook up a storm at Café Estrada

Patrons at Hotel Rendezvous’ Café Estrada will be treated to an American meal with a difference today, (14 January) thanks to the culinary skills of two chefs from the visiting USS cruiser, Shiloh.

The chefs have swapped their cramped galley for the wide kitchen spaces at Café Estrada as part of a unique Chef Exchange Program, which allows military chefs and hotel/restaurant chefs to exchange culinary delights and kitchens for a day.  At the same time, chefs from Hotel Rendezvous will cook up an Aussie feast for the Captain and some of his crew on board the USS Shiloh, which is part of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group visiting Fremantle.

During this visit to WA, chefs from both the USS Shiloh and USS Abraham Lincoln have participated in the Chef Exchange Program.  US Navy Chef Martin Mongiello started the Chef Exchange Program in 1984.   Since then, it has been taken up and developed by Paul Graham, Chef Exchange Program Co-ordinator and former HMAS Stirling Petty Officer and Ms Vicki Mayell from the Catering Institute of Western Australia.

Aussie Rules
USS Abraham Lincoln
HMAS Anzac
HMAS Dechaineux
USS Blue Ridge
USS Chicago
USS Constellation CV-64
USS Jefferson City
USS John.C.Stennis
USS Nimitz
FNS Nivose
USS Pasedena
USS Peleliu
USS Pinckney
USS Portsmouth
USS Shiloh

Pictures: GREG ODGER (copyright)

Stirling Times article

The Galley onboard the USS SHILOH at meal time with Rendezvous Hotel chefs Mr Ricky Wallenburg, Miss Victoria Harkup,  PO Paul Graham & MS Grant.

PATRONS at Café Estrada at the Rendezvous Osbservation City Hotel in Scarborough enjoyed meals with a decidedly American flavour last Tuesday, thanks to the culinary skills of three chefs from visiting cruiser USS Shiloh. Edwin Ebreo, George Cruz and Frederick Miranda swapped their galley for the wide open kitchen spaces at Café Estrada as part of a chef exchange program. At the same time, Rendezvous chefs Tim Richardson, Ricky Wallenburg and Victoria Harkup prepared an Aussie feast for the captain and some crew on board USS Shiloh.  

By KARINA GRAHAM

FOR United States Navy Mess Specialist Rahmel Leake, successfully feeding the crew of USS Shiloh is the most important way of upholding moral among fellow comrades.  He said during a ship’s deployment, life onboard could become very routine and mundane, and if meals followed the same pattern, personnel lost spirit.  “Onboard, the style of cooking can become monotonous,” Mr Leake said.  “In order to stop the dishes becoming predictable, the menu is changed every few months and this also keeps moral levels high.  “As cooks, we help build the ship’s moral and in effect, they build ours with positive feedback - it’s like a domino effect.”

A menu review board encourages feedback from the sailors so changes can be made.  “They (personnel) can be very unpredictable, one day they’ll like a dish but the next day they won’t,” he said.  “We don’t get too many complaints, and people mainly comment on our friendliness and willingness to alter the menu.”  Mr Leake, who has visited Cairns, Sydney and Melbourne during his time in the United States Navy, has worked as a Mess Specialist during his four-and-a-half years service.  During USS Shiloh’s January port visit to Fremantle, Mr Leake had the opportunity to work in a civilian restaurant for the first time as part of
the popular Chef’s Exchange Program.  Organised by retired Royal Australian Navy Petty Officer Paul Graham, the program is a joint venture between the US Navy and the WA Catering Institute of Australia.

For a day Mr Leake left the confines of the ship’s kitchen and learned tricks of the trade from chefs at Perth’s internationally acclaimed Rendezvous Observation City Hotel.  Likewise Executive Sous Chef Tim Richardson, 42, of Marangaroo, Commie Chef Ricky Wallenburg, 23, of Innaloo and Demi Chef Victoria Harkup, 20, of Scarborough traded their day jobs at the hotel to experience the confined conditions of USS Shiloh.  Having learned to cook in the navy, Mr Leake said he was excited to learn different techniques and also to see such an involved operation.  “It was astonishing,” he said.  “There were so any different people doing so many different jobs, not just in the kitchen but throughout the entire hotel.”