C-CAP’s Captivating Culinary Feast Benefits Student Chefs

The 18^th annual Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) Grand Tasting raised nearly $1,000,000 to support scholarships as well as educational and career opportunities for disadvantaged youth pursuing careers in the restaurant and foodservice industry. 

The event showcased cuisine from an all-star lineup of New York City’s hottest chefs and restaurateurs, including Michael Anthony, C-CAP Board Co-Chair and chef Marcus Samuelsson, C-CAP Board Member and restaurateur Michael Stillman, 2016 Michelin Star Chefs, Abram Bissell, Daniel Boulud and Aaron Bludorn, John Fraser, Markus Glocker, Alfred Portale, Michael White; and Javi Estévez of La Tasquería de Javier Estévez (Madrid); as well as C-CAP alumni Giovanna Delli Compagni of Asiate, Cesar Gutierrez of Café Boulud, Betty Peña of Pig and Khao,  Swainson Brown of The Writing Room, and Yvan Lemoine of Union Fare. More than 60 New York City C-CAP high school students and alumni, eager to put their mark on the culinary world, assisted the chefs.

“The benefit is our most powerful way in one evening to make a huge difference in the lives of so many young students, C-CAP changes lives by arming at-risk youth with the skills they need to succeed in culinary arts,” said Samuelsson. “As a chef and longtime supporter of C-CAP’s work, this is an extraordinary program that benefits both its remarkable recipients, and the growing market and demand for skilled talent. C-CAP continues to help thousands of qualified students across the country through culinary education opportunities in high school to career placement assistance upon graduation.”

Funds raised at the event will support the national not-for-profit’s mission of providing job training, internships, competitions for culinary scholarships, college advising, college and career opportunities, lifetime career support, teacher training and curriculum enrichment in the culinary arts for disadvantaged youth. Richard Grausman, C-CAP’s Founder & Chairman Emeritus, launched the organization in 1990 to teach French cooking in 12 New York City public schools. There are now thousands of C-CAP alumni around the globe and the non-profit manages the largest independent culinary scholarship program in the nation and has awarded more than $50 million in scholarships.

Michael Anthony, Executive Chef of Gramercy Tavern, Untitled, and Studio Café at the Whitney Museum of American Art, received the C-CAP Honors Award, which is granted to individuals within the culinary industry for exceptional leadership and achievements. Samuelsson presented the C-CAP Honors Award, an original stainless steel sculpture by Philip Grausman, of a germinating fava bean, symbolizing C-CAP’s budding culinary students.  Chefs all over the world know that there is a lot of delicate care and handling that goes into the preparation of fava beans, and C-CAP recognized the care and interest Chef Anthony has in the mentoring of C-CAP students.

Past recipients of the C-CAP Honors Award include: Daniel Humm, Richard Parsons and Alexander Smalls, Michael White, Tony May, Michael McCarty, Michael Lomonaco, Marcus Samuelsson, Drew Nieporent, Alfred Portale, Lidia Bastianich, Thomas Keller, Charlie Palmer, Danny Meyer and Michael Romano, Daniel Boulud, Jacques Pepin, Egidiana and Sirio Maccioni, Nina and Tim Zagat, and Saul and Stanley Zabar.