The Thomas Cuisine team has a passion for serving in the community and teaching youth about real food. Led by Foodservice Director and Chef Taani Maama, the Thomas Cuisine culinary team in Texas is building community skillsets by teaching culinary arts programs to Grapevine and Colleyville High School students. They also have plans of expanding educational offerings to include the local Boys and Girl’s Club of Fort Worth, Texas to ensure children from all backgrounds are able to learn about cooking, wellness, and nutrition.
The culinary programs offered to Grapevine and Colleyville High Schools are structured, credited classes held twice weekly that incrementally build each student’s cooking acumen. This prepares the students for advanced classes that offer exciting opportunities — such as attending culinary competitions like the National ProStart Invitational, the country’s premier secondary school competition focused on restaurant management and culinary arts.
Taani Maama, who leads the program, has been teaching culinary arts in many capacities since 2015. In addition to leading Thomas Cuisine’s exceptional dining team in service to Senior Living, Taani currently teaches 46 students in his culinary program. The students will gain culinary skills while learning to locally source ingredients, use ingredients seasonally, and create nutritious and flavorful meals that will encourage their lifelong journey toward wellness.
“Capturing the attention of teens through dining has proven to be an enriching journey for us all, culminating in valuable employable skills for these young individuals as they approach graduation,” reports Taani. “Our students demonstrate a keen interest in the art of forging connections through food, which as many professional chefs know, is one of the most rewarding aspects of being a culinarian. I look forward to seeing their culinary skills flourish.”
Tanni and his students continue to build upon their skills and prepare for the National ProStart Invitational culinary competition, which should be available in Spring of 2023.
