Costa Rica Study Abroad- From Providence to San Jose Day #1

From Providence, RI to San Jose Costa Rica (with a layover in Charlotte, NC

Bright and early on Monday July 1, 2013 I departed from Providence, RI for my one month adventure in Costa Rica.  Today is the official start of the program and myself along with 26 students are scheduled to arrive in San Jose Costa Rica today.  My Co-Program Advisor Donna Faria arrived at our destination yesterday.

My layover in Charolette was a quick one and it seemed as though I got off one plane and onto another.  The flight was to be 3 hours and 45 minutes from Charolette to San Jose, it was by all acounts a smooth jorney.  

The lunch I purchased (as there is no such thing as a free meal) was a chicken wrap, bag of chips and a few cookies.  Credit card was the only means of purchase and all in all it was ok....

I watched Life of PI for the first few hours of the flight, but there is something to be said about watching a movie where a guy is floating around hopelessly on a raft while flying over the ocean....

Arrival in San Jose airport when fast, in fact I think I cleared customs quicker than any other country I have visited.    Once I picked up my luggage and headed outside I saw a sign that said Johnson & Wales University. There I was kindly welcomed and off we went to the Double Tree hotel.

Once at the hotel I was greeted by Professor Donna Faria and our tour guide for the entire trip Ricardo Howell as well as some of the students that had already arrived to the hotel.  Most students had arrived by 4pm, but one student was going to be late because of the bad storms on the East Cost of the USA.

Although cloudy and rainy, the pool area is still a tropical paradise.

The schedule for the evening was low key, we had time to rest until 5:30 when we all gathered together for the program welcome by Ricardo.  Then it was time for dinner at 7:00 and then off to bed so we can get a good nights rest before the 5:00 am breakfast call.


Lecture/Welcome in the outdoor classroom

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS https://www.facebook.com/douglas.stuchel/media_set?set=a.10200977984905568.1073741826.1044914656&type=3

Costa Rica Study Abroad Classroom: Pre Departure

I have the great fortune of taking a group of JWU students to Costa Rica for the month of July as part of a summer abroad program.

 

Here is a summary of this great program

Eco, Nature-based, Adventure, and Sustainable Tourism:

Satisfactory completion of the Costa Rica program fulfills all requirements for a concentration in Adventure, Sport and Nature Based Tourism. 

This is a physically active and comprehensive program. 

After meeting in the capital city of San José, travel to Tortuguero in the northeast of the country for a unique experience with nature, then spend weeks studying at the Tirimbina Rainforest Center, hiking the rainforest and studying both eco and sustainable tourism with JWU faculty and local Costa Rican professors.

Field work and excursions include pineapple, coffee, and black pepper tours as well as horseback riding and river rafting adventures. 

Lectures include carbon offsetting/Leave No Trace workshop earning certifications in Leave No Trace & Sustainable Tourism. 

The group then embarks on a magnificent journey visiting three different regions: Arenal Volcano, Monteverde, and Jaco. 

Academic excursions range from learning the intricate relationships of Ecofarms to building sustainable businesses around volcanic hot springs and the rich rainforest canopies.

While in Costa Rica, learn about the heritage of Sarchi’s oxcart factory. Try zip-lining, watch humming birds, and walk along hanging bridges. 

Basic Costa Rica Information on the Republic of Costa Rica

Geography

This Central American country lies between Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. Its area slightly exceeds that of Vermont and New Hampshire combined. It has a narrow Pacific coastal region. Cocos Island (10 sq mi; 26 sq km), about 300 mi (483 km) off the Pacific Coast, is under Costa Rican sovereignty


President: Laura Chinchilla (2010)

Land area: 19,560 sq mi (50,660 sq km); total area: 19,730 sq mi (51,100 sq km)

Population (2012 est.): 4,636,348 (growth rate: 1.29%); birth rate: 16.4/1000; infant mortality rate: 9.2/1000; life expectancy: 77.89; density per sq km: 82

Capital and largest city (2009 est.): San José, 1,416,

Monetary unit: Colón

History

Costa Rica was inhabited by an estimated 400,000 Indians when Columbus explored it in 1502. The Spanish conquest began in 1524. The region grew slowly and was administered as a Spanish province. Costa Rica achieved independence in 1821 but was absorbed for two years by Agustín de Iturbide in his Mexican empire. It became a republic in 1848. Except for the military dictatorship of Tomás Guardia from 1870 to 1882, Costa Rica has enjoyed one of the most democratic governments in Latin America.

In the 1970s, rising oil prices, falling international commodity prices, and inflation hurt the economy. Efforts have since been made to reduce reliance on coffee, banana, and beef exports. Tourism is now a major business. Óscar Arias Sánchez worked to simultaneously heal his country's economic woes and foster peace in Central America.

José Maria Figueres Olsen of the National Liberation Party became president in 1994. He opposed economic suggestions made by the International Monetary Fund, instead favoring greater government intervention in the economy. The World Bank subsequently withheld $100 million of financing. In 1998, Miguel Angel Rodríguez of the Social Christian Unity Party became president, pledging economic reforms, such as privatization. In 2000, Costa Rica and Nicaragua resolved a long-standing dispute over navigation of the San Juan River, which forms their shared border. A psychiatrist, Abel Pacheco, also of the Social Christian Unity Party, won the presidency in elections held in April 2002. In May 2003, several national strikes took place, by energy and telecommunications workers over

Nobel Peace Prize Winner Again Gains Presidency

 
Costa Rica has a reputation as one of the most stable, prosperous, and least corrupt Latin American countries. But in fall 2004, three former Costa Rican presidents (José Maria Figueres Olsen, Miguel Angel Rodríguez, and Rafael Angel Calderon) were investigated on corruption charges. In 2006, Óscar Arias Sánchez was elected president. Arias, who had served as president once before (1986–1990), won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for fostering peace talks that eventually ended the civil wars in El Salvador and Nicaragua.

The Costa Rican government voted in November 2008 to implement the Central American Free Trade Agreement that voters had approved in October 2007.

In February 2010, Laura Chinchilla became the country's first woman to be elected president, taking 47% of the vote. She's a protegé of outgoing centrist president Oscar Arias.


Read more: Costa Rica: Maps, History, Geography, Government, Culture, Facts, Guide & Travel/Holidays/Cities | Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/country/costa-rica.html#ixzz2XSAkGizA

NOMADIC CHEF: Above the Fold Restaurant Marketing

NOMADIC CHEF: Above the Fold Restaurant Marketing: Above the Fold restaurant marketing by DOUGLAS D. STUCHEL | ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT THE CENTER FOR FOOD & BEVERAGE MANAGEMENT IN THE HOSP...

RADISH—The Farmer's Food Truck

RADISH, a food truck serving locally grown and organic menu items, was created to promote healthy eating and creativity in Providence, Rhode Island. The food truck was the brainchild of a few passionate students at Johnson & Wales University, the Rhode Island School of Design and Brown University. The students were looking to put their exciting and progressive ideas to good use. In addition to offering organic, farm-fresh food, the RADISH team promotes artists, musicians, cooks and adventurers every month via its truck and website.

After winning the grand prize in the Johnson & Wales Shark Tank Competition (modeled after the ABC television series), CEO and 2011 JWU graduate Tim Silva and his team used the social networking website known as Kickstarter to fund their mobile restaurant. Kickstarter is an entrepreneurial social media outlet that serves as a funding platform for creative projects. Through Kickstarter, cutting-edge ideas are brought to life as people all over the world donate money to support the development of innovative products and services. Since its launch, Kickstarter supporters have brought to life more than 30,000 creative projects in the fields of music, art, technology, film, gaming and food services. To date, monetary support of Kickstarter projects totals over $350 million, with pledges from more than 2.5 million individuals.

By April 5, 2012, RADISH had received financial support from 95 supporters. With pledges totaling nearly $10,000, the RADISH team had reached its Kickstarter goal. The team used some of the cash to refurbish a truck to comply with health code requirements and other state regulations, while the remaining funds went toward a commercial hood system, a flat top grill, plumbing and wiring costs, a commercial refrigerator and decorating materials.

According to a recent Forbes article, the cost of starting a food truck business can range from $50,000 to $200,000, with $60,000 being the expected cost of a reasonably priced and reliable truck. An additional $10,000 is needed to cover start-up costs including fuel, maintenance, permits, kitchen equipment purchases or rentals, food supplies, insurance, advertising dollars and employee expenses.
The costs of a food truck are far lower than those of a traditional restaurant with a physical space in one location. Start-up costs for a traditional restaurant typically range from $100,000 to $300,000, depending on its size and location. Both the mobile food truck and the fixed location restaurant have a niche in the food service industry, and each caters to the unique needs of its respective clientele. In fact, many restaurateurs in Providence now have both a fixed location restaurant and a mobile food truck.

The founders of RADISH wanted their truck to be a hub for artists, musicians and adventurers in their community. Imagine a mobile gallery space that also serves delicious, feel-good food you can eat with your hands. Shortly after winning the competition, the RADISH team conducted a guerilla marketing campaign by posting black and red stickers all over Providence; the stickers featured an image of a radish and the slogan: “RADISH - the farmer’s food truck.” They also created “Where is Radish?” accounts on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, and even posted pictures of future menu items on Pinterest.
To learn more about RADISH, visit http://whereisradish.com/.

by DOUGLAS D. STUCHEL | ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT THE CENTER FOR FOOD & BEVERAGE MANAGEMENT IN THE HOSPITALITY COLLEGE

 AT JOHNSON & WALES UNIVERSITY

Above the Fold Restaurant Marketing

Above the Fold restaurant marketing

by DOUGLAS D. STUCHEL | ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT THE CENTER FOR FOOD & BEVERAGE MANAGEMENT IN THE HOSPITALITY COLLEGE

 AT JOHNSON & WALES UNIVERSITY

The restaurant business has traditionally relied on word-of-mouth advertising as a method of marketing and to drive repeat business. Historically, this exchange has resulted directly from conversations amongst friends and acquaintances who have recently dined at a particular restaurant.

The advancement of technology, though, has prompted modern society to rely more and more on such mobile applications as Urbanspoon, Foodspotting, and OpenTable to guide them in their quest for dining options. It used to be said that if you had a bad meal at a restaurant, you’d tell approximately ten friends about your experience. Today, one bad online review can reach hundreds of potential customers in real-time, thereby influencing their dining decisions and immediately impacting a restaurant’s bottom line.

Recognizing this growing trend, technologically savvy restaurateurs have begun to promote and market themselves instantaneously through the use of social media, blogs and smartphone applications. Capitalizing on new advances in technology, current and future restaurateurs alike are challenging preconceived notions of what it takes to establish, promote and operate a restaurant. If your customers aren’t tweeting about their experience, liking your restaurant on Facebook, or posting photos of menu items on Pinterest, you are losing a valuable market segment comprised of young, tech-savvy customers with an ever-increasing desire to eat out and socialize with their friends.

Customer preferences are changing. Virtual menus adopted by such establishments as the Grand Met restaurant at the Grand Hyatt Dallas Fort Worth offer guests an interactive, touch-screen tour of the menu, detailed food descriptions and chef-recommended food and beverage pairings.  The virtual menus are available for dinner service only and do not at all infringe on the first-class service provided to patrons by the Grand Met’s wait staff. Rather, the virtual menus are simply a new option intended to enhance the overall dining experience of Grand Met’s guests. After a guest completes their virtual menu tour, a personal server is on-hand to offer further recommendations and answer any questions.

Another innovation is the use of Twitter by mobile restaurants, whose teams will broadcast their next location to their online followers. Food trucks sell niche menu items ranging from cupcakes and sushi to vegan dishes and everything in between. Food & Beverage Management seniors at the Johnson & Wales North Miami campus responded to the food truck trend for their capstone project, operating their own mobile restaurant for a day. The introduction of food trucks on campus was so successful that several trucks now drive through campus every Thursday, offering unique cuisines to students and the community.

Pop-up restaurants, yet another restaurant trend, rely almost exclusively on social media for promotion, as they will only be at a specific location for an evening or two. In the pop-up environment, chefs set up temporary kitchens and serve hip, locally-sourced meals in any location deemed safe to cook and serve food. Menus are typically prix fixe and offer few or no substitutions to customers. Some chefs see pop-up restaurants as an opportunity to generate the revenue necessary to open their dream restaurant, while others simply like the challenge of offering completely different menus in exciting locations for a short period of time.

Doug Weiler, a 2009 JWU graduate and one of the chefs and owners of Lost and Found, a pop-up restaurant located in the Long Island area of New York, focuses on menus that offer healthy, Long Island-grown and locally foraged ingredients. Chef Weiler and his partners use Facebook, Twitter and its website to build buzz about their food and the unique, exciting and innovative locations in which they serve it. One recent stand-out location was the Lali Lali Salon Gallery in New York City, where Lost and Found was part of a book launch for famed photographer Denis Piel in October 2012.

The restaurant trends discussed here suggest that physical structure and location are no longer as important to a restaurant as is its ability to promote good food through both traditional and innovative methods. But what’s next? What are some future trends in restaurant marketing?  

Look for restaurants, especially high-end ones, to start promoting smartphone applications and websites that allow the customer to order from an online menu, like the very successful tracker website introduced by Domino’s Pizza. However, unlike the pizza giant’s menu options, expect your gourmet items to be packaged in eco-friendly, reheatable containers.

Also look for new and creative apps that incorporate social media into the marketing mix. “Gratafy” is one such smartphone/social media application; recently launched, it lets you buy and pay for a round of drinks, food items, a game of pool or even comedy tickets for your friends over the web. This online service is sure to entice customers to visit a restaurant or venue that they otherwise may not have considered going to before. Think about it—would you pass up a free meal?

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To view the Grand Met’s virtual menu description, please visitwww.hyatt.com/hyatt/images/hotels/dfwgh/TheVirtualMenu.pdf.

To locate Lost and Found, like them on Facebook:facebook.com/LostAndFoundPopup, follow them on Twitter:@lostandfoundpop, or go to their website: www.lostandfoundpopup.com.

New York Produce Show and Conference 2012

 THE NATIONAL PRODUCE SHOW & CONFERENCE, NYC DECEMBER 4-6 2012

http://www.nyproduceshow.com/about.html

For the second year in a row I had the great honor of taking four Johnson & Wales University, Culinary Foodservice Management Students with me to NYC for the National Produce Show & Conference.

Prior to the event opening up to the public the students and I got a chance to forage from all of the fresh produce on the trade show floor.  This to many may seem to be a chefs dream, but as soon as you start foraging you don't know where to begin.  Do I want unique and new to the market produce such as the finger limes, or produce that have yet to hit the market such as the micro greens that taste like granny smith apple, or the one that taste like cheese?  Do I want to use product that I have never seen before or really have never cooked with? Do I want to use a product my students coined "culinary pop-rocks"? These Herb Crystals & Flower Crystals from  Fresh Origins were my personal favorite of the show.

Herb Crystals™ and Flower Crystals™ are an innovative original concept from Fresh Origins!  With dazzling, all-natural colors, an exciting crunch and incredible flavors of fresh flowers and herbs, these are spectacular new flavor ingredients.  We are developing a full spectrum of flavors and colors to be introduced over the coming months.  

Currently they have four flavors Mint, Basil, Fennel and Rose.  I added these to several of the dishes we prepared, they were great for both a pop of flavor and for a garnish.

The students had the great opportunity to assist Chef Ben Pollinger

 and Chef Michael Giletto with their chef demonstrations: 

Executive Chef Ben Pollinger from New York City's Oceana 

Chef Michael C. Giletto, Executive Chef for Bayonne Golf Club

"The students from JW helped me with my demos , they all performed fantastic !"

Chef Stuchel and his team

Until I blog again:  Eat Well, Live Life and Be Safe

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4612378101199.179684.1044914656&type=1&l=342759b6c1

http://www.freshorigins.com

The urban chicken roost movement hits Rhode Island - This Just In

Providence Phoenix article where I am quoted in about the Urban Chicken Movement
The urban chicken roost movement hits Rhode Island - This Just In

The urban chicken roost movement hits Rhode Island

Good Eggs

By JOHN LARRABEE  |  November 21, 2012

Ernest and Linda Lambert, retirees living in a shaded suburban cul-de-sac just off Woonsocket's Mendon Road, have an unusual backyard project.

There, in a series of plywood coop houses, sit more than three dozen chickens — Rhode Island Reds, Guinea Hens, and other pedestrian breeds. And some that are more exotic, like Araucana, known for their turquoise eggs, and Silkies, covered with fluffy plumage to the tips of their toes.

A wire fence surrounds the hen house, but during the day the gate is open and the birds run about the yard. They've scratched small pits into the earth where they sit and rub their feathers in the dust, a behavior said to ward off mites. They also pursue any squirrel that tries to mooch some feed.

Linda collects 10 or 12 eggs a day. "They taste better than the ones you get in a supermarket," she says. "Buy them in a store, and you have no idea how old they are."

As it turns out, breakfast eggs that fresh can be a rarity, in Rhode Island and elsewhere. The Lamberts' flock is tolerated in Woonsocket only because their coop is older than a zoning ordinance that bans farm livestock from the city. Other families in the old mill town have been ordered to bid their birds goodbye. Many communities in America's urbanized areas — yes, the Blue States — have similar laws, adopted in an age when anything that smacked of Old MacDonald was viewed as a dirty, stinky nuisance.

But these days a revolution's brewing. Foodies and locavores across the country are pushing to end local restrictions, and a half dozen websites now advise urbanites on how to raise "pets with benefits." The argument: backyard eggs are cheaper, tastier, and healthier, with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids. Sustainability is an issue, too. Grow your own and you eliminate the energy consumption and carbon emissions that go with transporting food. What's more, chicken shit is a great fertilizer for your organic garden plot.

In just a few years grassroots activists have overturned ordinances in more than 30 major cities, including Los Angeles, Houston, Ann Arbor, Madison, and Missoula. They've gained ground in the Ocean State, too. Providence, West Warwick, and even snooty Barrington have all revised their laws, allowing residents to keep hens in limited numbers, so long as there are no crowing roosters in their coops. And in Cranston and Warwick, city council members are now reviewing proposed changes.

"It's definitely a national movement, and I think the Internet has a lot to do with it," says Douglas Stuchel, a professional chef who now teaches at the Hospitality College at Johnson & Wales University. "People can research and learn how agriculture has become big business. They know it's not simply about feeding the world."

Stuchel has taken up the banner himself. He's constructing a coop behind his West Warwick home where he plans to keep some Rhode Island Reds. "As a chef, I know the food your raise yourself is better," he says. "Pesticides are one concern, but taste is an issue, too."

Chicken fancier Sam Abram believes snobbery fuels anti-avian sentiments in some Rhode Island suburbs. The real estate manager raised hens while living in New Hampshire and never heard any complaints. Shortly after he moved to Barrington, he built a backyard hen house. A few days later an animal control officer told him it had to go.

He fought back, lobbying town officials to change the law. Today residents are allowed to keep up to six hens, and the town has a dozen coops. Abram says he's won over some neighbors by sharing eggs and letting their kids visit and observe his flock. "I guess some people thought Barrington would be less elite with chickens," he says. "One member of the zoning board told me it would change the character of the town."

The movement has some opposition. Sanitation is a common concern: manure piles can stink, and rats are attracted to food scraps left for hens. Critics also fret some newbie chicken enthusiasts will neglect their animals once the novelty wears off. In a recent Slate article, vegan journalist James McWilliams ridiculed urbanites who raise chickens as naive hipsters looking for a bandwagon to climb aboard. He emphasized the point by posting an audio file of a bleating goat; the animal was dying, sickened after eating something careless left around by a wannabe urban farmer.

Back in Woonsocket, the Lamberts are largely unaware of the national debate. They began raising hens almost two decades ago, when their children were young and there was nothing trendy about homegrown eggs. Today they enjoy their pets chiefly for the entertainment they provide.

"It's a great hobby," Ernest says. "But not in this city. There's a law against it on the books. We happen to be grandfathered."

Read more: http://providence.thephoenix.com/news/147912-urban-chicken-roost-movement-hits-rhode-island/#ixzz2DfHeZHKv