In a Texas-based restaurant and catering management program, you'll explore the area's regional foods in depth, and you'll prepare for a wide range of catering or food service jobs.
A Big Taste of Texas: Culinary Education in the Lone Star State
by Jessica Santina
At your next summer barbecue, drink a toast to Texas. While its name and the idea of cooking over an open fire come from the Spanish barbacoa, that juicy, slow-cooked, sauce-soused meat that literally falls off the bone is all Texas.
Texas cuisine offers a blend of flavors with more than 20 influences, including Spanish, Native American, Mexican, African, and even German.
As for barbecue, it's just part of what Frommer's Travel Guide calls "the holy trinity," of Texas cooking which also includes Tex-Mex cuisine and chili (the original, no-bean kind), the official state dish. Chili was born in San Antonio and was first introduced to the world at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. And of course, you'll find the tastiest, juiciest chicken fried steaks in the country right in Texas; nearly 800,000 orders are served in the state on a daily basis.
An in-depth history of Texan fare is just a small part of the culinary education you'll receive in a restaurant and catering management program in Texas.
Everything's Big in Texas
According to the Texas Department of Economic Development, Texas played host to more than 203 million visitors last year, among whom dining out was the most popular activity. And thanks to these visitors, Texas employs more than 143,800 people in food services jobs. So if you want to know where to get the biggest bang out of your culinary education, look no further than Texas.
Why a Restaurant and Catering Management Degree?
In a restaurant and catering management program, your culinary education will not only provide you with skills in food preparation and food service, but you'll be trained in personnel management, marketing, human resources, accounting, and financial management.
Your restaurant and catering management program will include the fundamentals in culinary skills, such as knife work and basic cooking techniques, but you'll also learn many other skills: Sanitation and safety, regional cuisine especially from Texas and along the Gulf Coast, menu planning and pricing, facilities design and layout, conflict resolution, nutrition, and even computer literacy.
Your culinary education will prepare you for a career as a food and beverage or restaurant manager, or a variety of catering jobs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) groups these professionals under the heading of "Lodging Manager," a career that in 2004 saw median annual earnings of $37,660.
So add some spice to your career, and begin your restaurant and catering management degree in Texas today.
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Sources
BLS
Texas Department of Economic Development
Traveltex.com
About the Author
Jessica Santina is a freelance writer with a background in media and marketing. She also teaches first-year college writing.