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Culinary Currents
November 2005
Chef Manuel Catamaxa: Chocolatier Celebrates Essence of New
Orleans
By Peter Langlois
 As an
important component of its annual customer appreciation night, Martin
Preferred Foods always features an open exhibit of pastry chefs from the
Texas market, with chefs and their respective teams demonstrating their
craft through showpieces representing a theme that changes each year. I
find this the highlight of the night, as it brings forward the best of the
best, including not just the chefs themselves but their students and
employees-the next generation of culinary artists.
Held at the Marriott Westchase on Oct. 10, 2005, a New
Orleans theme was appropriately chosen for the Exhibition, based not just
upon Katrina and its aftermath, but the lengthy history of Houston (the
Bayou City) and New Orleans (The Big Easy) as sister cities sharing so
much in common along the Gulf Coast, both being port-driven and havens for
hospitality. In both cities, openness to global influences melds with
distinct characteristics of the local scene, then showing itself in the
cuisine of each city.
As a colleague of Chef Manuel Catamaxa at The Art
Institute of Houston Culinary, where we both teach, I had an opportunity
to track the chef as he took the theme, created a vision, chose a team of
pastry and baking students, and executed the vision to perfection. Of
course an artistic vision is the essential element in all this, and I feel
this is indeed where Chef “Cat” thrives. He researched to identify what
symbols personified the essence of New Orleans.
Weeks before he even started to work with materials, he
told me how he felt five strong elements could be merged to tell a story
in Chocolate (and pulled sugar). The five are highly recognized as being
associated with Mardi Gras, the ultimate New Orleans experience: Masks,
Hats, Street Lamps, Feathers, and Strands of Beads. Chef felt these
afforded opportunities to demonstrate not just pieces themselves but to
tie in color patterns (through the beads and feathers) that would heighten
and accent the pieces, thus creating more drama.
He proceeded to gather those elements as pieces to
eventually emulate in chocolate. He explained to me: “The planning process
is so critical--Not just the vision, but how to do the show prep in a way
that facilitates pulling it altogether on site and adding finishing
touches. Also, planning for potential problems, such as the dropping of a
piece during assembly and the need to be able to make seamless repairs on
the spot. Things will go wrong, so making contingency plans is vital.”
The afternoon of the event, I was on site as Chef “Cat”
and his minions, along with about 10 other teams, started pulling pieces
together. It seemed Chef “Cat” and his student crew didn’t face the
emergencies he anticipated, but other teams did. In my mind, as I toured
the exhibits, I felt these were the best I had seen over the years, and a
Gold for Chef “Cat” and his team was by no means a certainty. Yet in the
end, he and his team were recognized as the best. The Silver medal went to
Glenna Artripe, executive pastry chef at the Hilton Americas in Houston,
and the Bronze medal went to Adam Heath, sous chef at the River Oaks
Country Club.
As in so many things that may look easy at first glance,
knowing the story behind the story, made me appreciate the efforts of all
the teams who truly dare to put their reputations out in front of the
public for scrutiny. While I was thrilled that my colleague and his team
walked away with the Gold, it was even more exciting to see the level of
talent rising throughout the Exhibit. The promise these students/mentees
hold for future Exhibits is simply amazing. As an instructor, I’ve got to
believe that’s the “Cat’s” meow!
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Peter Langlois is founder of
www.RestaurantU.com: Tools of the Trade for Business, for School, for
Free!,co-editor of
Weekly Restaurant Connections (e-Newsletter), Culinary Instructor,
The Art Institute of Houston-Culinary, and Management, Marketing
and e-business Facilitator at The University of
Phoenix (Houston). Langlois is also a Malcolm
Baldrige 2005 Ambassador. He has a Political Science degree
from Michigan State University (Modern International Chinese Relations)
and an M.B.A from the University of Houston (Marketing and Business
Strategies). If you enjoyed this feature, you’ll probably enjoy his free
newsletter available on
www.RestaurantU.com.
Contact information: 832.860.5595 or
peter@restaurantu.com
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