Art Institute of Charlotte Alum To Cook at Famed James Beard House
FEBRUARY 28, 2008
ART INSTITUTE OF CHARLOTTE ALUMNUS
TO COOK AT FAMED JAMES BEARD HOUSE
Eric Ferguson, a Winter 2005 graduate of The Art Institute of Charlotte and former executive chef at Saluté, will be one of the chefs at the James Beard House in New York on Monday evening, March 3.
Ferguson and his fiancé, Carmen Peirano, last January took over a legendary restaurant, Nick’s Italian Cafe, opened by her father 30 years ago in McMinnville in the Oregon wine region.
The Beard House’s notice to members about the dinner Monday states: “Known for its agricultural riches, Oregon’s Willamette Valley is a mecca for those who prize fine food and wine. Tonight’s dinner features the exceptional, limited production wines from lauded producer R. Stuart & Co., which will be complemented by soulful Italian dishes from neighboring eatery Nick’s Italian Café.”
The mission of the James Beard Foundation is “to celebrate, preserve, and nurture America’s culinary heritage and diversity in order to elevate the appreciation of our culinary excellence.” Chefs are invited to “perform” at the Beard House by presenting lunches, brunches, workshops and dinners to Foundation members and the public.
Ferguson received the Young Professional Award from L’Academie Brillat-Savarin, a branch of the international gastronomic society La Chaine de Rotisseurs upon graduating from The Art Institute of Charlotte. As a student, he was sous chef at Saluté for five months before being named Executive Chef, a job he continued to hold for several months after graduation.
Wanting to learn the foundations of Italian cuisine, Ferguson left Saluté for Umbria, Italy, where he worked in the kitchen at Zepplin, a well-known restaurant owned by Chef Lorenzo Polegri, a friend of Chef Joseph Bonaparte. Bonaparte is academic director of The International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Charlotte. Chef Bonaparte assisted Chef Polegri in preparing an Umbrian feast at the Beard House last weekend. It was the second time in two years the pair were invited to cook at the Beard House.
From Umbria, Ferguson began cooking in the kitchen at Quince, a French-Italian restaurant in San Francisco where 20 cooks and four interns split the daily operations for the 40-seat restaurant. He met Peirano, then a student at the culinary school of City College of San Francisco, when she served as an intern at Quince.
The Art Institute of Charlotte is one of The Art Institutes (www.artinstitutes.edu), a system of over 40 education institutions located throughout North America, providing an important source of design, media arts, fashion and culinary arts professionals.
The International Culinary Schools at The Art Institutes is North America’s largest system of culinary programs with over 30 locations and more than 6,000 students.
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CONTACT: Susan Jetton
704-357-5963 or sjetton@aii.edu