Category Archives: student association

Gastronomy Student Association Gets Cracking with a New England Clambake

by Rob Haley

The message was clear when we sat down at the long table protected by sheets of brown paper tablecloth – this meal was going to get messy. On Thursday, January 31^st, Boston University’s Gastronomy Student Association (GSA) marked the beginning of a new semester by visiting Jasper White’s Summer Shack in downtown Boston. Our mission was to take part in their version of the traditional New England clambake. For those born and raised in the region the menu seemed familiar, but for many this was a chance to experience for the first time one of the Commonwealth’s most revered gastronomic celebrations. While the restaurant interior could not entirely replicate the experience of an ocean beach bake during the dog days of summer, the food that was shared by the fifteen students in attendance did not disappoint.

photo by Rob Haley

The dinner began with a couple pitchers of PBR along with two bottles of white wine, followed quickly by a choice between Bermuda Fish and Crab Chowder or the Boston Clam Chowder. Lobster crackers and bibs were handed out to the party: a sure sign that we would have to earn this evening’s meal. As soon as the soup bowls were cleared, platters of steamed lobsters and snow crab legs drew the attention of our hungry crowd. This was accompanied by the obligatory corn on the cob, roasted potatoes, and cole slaw. Corn bread was delivered to take up the few empty spots on an already crowded table, and we were left to fill our own plates with the generous feast.

Seasoned veterans were quick to demonstrate to the rookies the process of cracking crustacean shells to ensure the maximum yield of sweet morsels locked inside. Technique is truly an art form when holstering the cracker, and the willingness to dive right in with both hands is also essential with a lobster bake. Arms, legs, tails, and torso were twisted and torn with large chunks of salt-steamed meat as the reward. Forks and picks were used like a mad surgeon’s tool to ensure no scrap was wasted. Empty shells piled up in the large community waste buckets, and everyone was satisfied with the work they had done to claim their undersea cuisine.

photo by Rob Haley

By the end of the meal, with serving plates empty and stomachs full, the GSA celebrated another successful group outing. The gathering also marked the passing of the torch, as recent MLA Gastronomy graduate Natalie Shmulik turned her GSA Presidency over to Elizabeth Bada, a current Gastronomy student. Appropriately initiated, Liz will no doubt lead the association towards more great events and nights such as this during the 2013 school year. With a bit of luck, this may just include a summer seaside clambake somewhere along the Massachusetts coastline.

Rob Haley is in his last semester (hopefully) pursuing his MLA in Gastronomy. He is also the Senior Media Producer at the Office of Distance Education at Boston University. He can be reached at rthaley@bu.edu, or you might find him at your favorite neighborhood watering hole.

For more information on the Gastronomy Student Association, visit http://gastronomyatbu.com or email gastrmla@bu.edu

How to Publish Personality: Gastronomy students’ inside look into the publishing industry in Boston’s Harvard Common Press

3 Replies

by Natalie Shmulik

photo by Amy Young

There is an unforgettable scene in the film, “Babette’s Feast”: A religiously devout group of townspeople hesitantly gather together for a momentous meal following the loss of their beloved pastor. After dinning on turtle soup, chocolate figs, and copious amounts of wine, the worried and aged faces of the distraught diners begin to transform. Fear and doubt wash away with every sip of luscious liqueur and peaceful smiles begin to appear as new and exciting flavors brush against the lips of each enlightened guest. The foods fuel a delightful conversation as memories and speeches are progressively shared around the table. Finally, towards the end of this sensational feast, the respected general, Lorens, stands and proclaims that this meal has betrayed their simple wisdom. They are now and forever inspired.

On Saturday, December 1^st inspiration came in another form. BU Gastronomy Graduate Students made their way through the cozy and eclectic halls of the Harvard Common Press (H.C.P.), one of the Nation’s leading independently owned cookbook publishers. Bruce Shaw, owner of H.C.P., invited twenty-five students into his wife’s neighboring art-studio, to feast on knowledge and experience. Yes, there was real food too: a carb-centered spread of sweet and savory pastries from Flour Bakery. The “sticky buns” are a whole other kind of inspiration.

photo by Katherine Hysmith

Organized by BU’s Gastronomy Students’ Association, this meaningful event successfully merged the world of academia with real-world exposure to the ever-changing field of food-related publishing and writing. Joined by BU Gastronomy Alumni and Program Director Rachel Black, students gathered around cookbook-centered round tables to laugh, listen and learn. The discussion began with invited guest, Ilene Bezahler, Publisher and Editor of Edible Boston, the most successful magazine within the Edible community. Bezahler, a powerful advocate of the local food movement, whom I first had the pleasure of listening to at Northeastern’s Open Classroom Series, captivated our attention with a description of her own journey towards food and the magazine industry. Students couldn’t help but admire Ilene as she recounted the moment when she received her first published issues of Edible Boston and had to hand deliver each and every magazine that arrived at her Brookline home. After offering students a plethora of honest and essential advice on pitching stories, Bezahler reminded us that dreams are ultimately hard work, but worth every effort.

photo by Amy Young

Complementing Ilene Bezahler’s inspiring talk, Associate Publisher at H.C.P., Adam Salomone, offered students a series of key techniques needed to ensure these dreams materialize. Barely taking a breath during the two-hour speech he gave, Salomone covered nearly every aspect of cookbook publishing, marketing and the ever-evolving, yet crucial domain of social media, while putting repeated emphasis on the importance of Personal Branding. Even as he gave students this priceless industry knowledge, he stated adamantly that one must always keep learning and listening, because in the publishing world, something new and game-changing is always around the corner.

Personally, one of the most important lessons learned is that there is no such thing as a story that begins or ends on the page. Whether it’s doing your due-diligence to ensure that the company you are writing about is prepared to meet incoming demands once your article is published, or testing a recipe you wish to feature in a cookbook for which you will be held liable for as the author, one must always be prepared to research, adapt and rearrange. Mr. Salomone reminded us that the food world is a community and that the authors you follow on twitter, the books you read and the blogs you connect with are all just as important as your own writing.

After a final push to keep our eyes open and ears peeled, students quickly collected handshakes and business cards as they worked their way out into the snowy weather. Every lucky participant left with a satiated tummy full of baked goods, a copy of his or her very own H.C.P. cookbook and- as encouraged by Bezahler and Salomone- all the motivation needed to “go forth in the direction of their dreams!”

Thank you to the Harvard Common Press team and Ilene Bezahler for an unforgettable experience.

Natalie is a Gastronomy student and President of the BU Gastronomy Students’ Association.

Save the Date: End of the Semester/Graduation Celebration

Leave a reply

As some of us stress to finish our papers and study for final exams, others of us are counting down the days to life after Gastronomy.

Please join us to celebrate both the end of the semester and the largest graduating class (thus far!) from the Boston University Gastronomy program.

Who: Current and graduating Gastronomy students, alumni, and faculty
When: Friday, May 11, 6:00-8:00 pm
Where: 808 Commonwealth Ave, Demonstration Room (117)
What: Cake and drinks

Feel free to bring a potluck appetizer, but don’t worry, this is optional. Bringing yourself is most important.

Now Available: BU Gastronomy Tote Bags and Aprons

Leave a reply

The results are in – you’ve voted “Think Good Food” as the winning design for your BU Gastronomy swag! Thanks to all who submitted an entry and participated in the poll. The winning design was created by Gastronomy student and graduate assistant, Lucia Austria.

You can purchase your tote bag through our own BU Gastronomy store hosted by Zazzle. Choose to show off your swag from:

Seven different tote styles
Three different apron styles

Remember, a portion of the proceeds for each bag will go toward Gastronomy Student Association events.

Support BU Gastronomy!

Gastronomy Student Association Takes on Fireside Chats

Leave a reply

by Jane Armstrong

Saturday afternoon isn’t a particularly busy time for the average restaurant, but The Fireplace in Brookline has found the perfect antidote for pre-twilight slump: Fireside Chats. Twice a month the venue holds food and alcohol tastings, accompanied by an informative discussion of where the featured offerings originated, and how they were produced.

With great gratitude to Jim Solomon, who was instrumental in helping us organize our attendance, the Boston University Gastronomy Student Association attended their first Fireside Chat on March 31. The event was Syrah and Petite Syrah, and officially included tastings of six delicious wines – four Syrah, and two Petite Syrah. Served in groups of two, the wines formed a series of courses, along side small servings of complementary dishes. It was an event that exhibited the wonderful fare of The Fireplace as well as it showcased their wines.

Each participant was first provided with a generously sized, warm, fresh, buttery bun. A quick glance around the room proved most of them to have been devoured within a matter of minutes.

For the first round of tasting, we were each provided with a glass of both the Qupe Syrah and Kinton Syrah – alright, perhaps I’m being a little generous in describing the serving size as a glass, but certainly not by much. These were paired with Plymouth Cheddar and Great Hill Blue Cheese, served on crisp garlic crackers, with a healthy portion of Fig and Cherry Compote. The fruit greatly enhanced the bold berry and cherry notes of the wines.

The second offering was Boom Boom Syrah and 6^th Sense Syrah. These were coupled with a tender and juicy Bavette steak, served beside fingerling potatoes, atop a Jicama Salad. The dish was bathed with The Fireplace’s signature steak sauce, but steak sauce is really an oversimplification of this complex and wonderful liquid.

Dessert featured Renwood Petite Syrah and David Bruce Petite Syrah, paired with a moist chocolate cake with coffee cream, topped with blackberry whipped cream. This was a really elegant example of how to pair a red wine with a sweet dish.

This is where the tasting officially ended, but wine specialist – and host for the evening – Christopher Reed had something else in store for the Gastronomy Students. He gave us each a sample of two international wines, which were an interesting contrast to the previous six North American offerings. We sampled La Baronne, from the Notre-Dame region of France, and Yangarra, originating in McLaren Vale of Southern Australia.

The event was wonderfully interesting, not to mention an hour and a quarter of gastronomic bliss! If this blog post is a little short on descriptive detail, please remember that there were several glasses of wine consumed by all present.

Jane is a gastronomy student from Sydney, Australia with a bachelor’s degree from Monash University. She is graduating this May, and will continue her studies as a student in Boston College’s Master of Arts program in history.

Gastronomy Student Association Meets over Wine and Cheese

Leave a reply

by Annu Ross

On Monday, February 26, the newly official Gastronomy Student Association met for its first, well, official event—a wine and cheese pairing in a private room at Eastern Standard.

Molly Hopper, who heads up Eastern Standard’s cheese program, selected two cheeses from the Loire Valley of France, and Colleen Hein, who runs the restaurant’s wine program, paired a Burgundy Chardonnay with each cheese. The first plate arrived with a fresh goat’s milk cheese called Petit Billy, a reference to the town in which it is produced, as well as to the male goat. An apple and raisin compote and baguette slices accompanied the chevre. The Petit Billy was creamy and earthy with a nice tang. Colleen paired a 2009 Domaine de la Cadette Bourgogne Vézelay la Châtelaine Chardonnay with this first plate. The 100% Chardonnay, un-oaked Domaine de la Cadette is grown in limestone and clay soils close to Chablis. It was crisp and refreshing with a pleasant tartness and notes of citrus. The wine brought out some fruity notes in the cheese, for a bright and Springy pairing.

The second pairing was a pungent Brie Fermier de Jouvence and a 2008 Benjamin Leroux, Auxey- Dresses Chardonnay. The cow’s milk brie is aged 6 weeks and thermalized, which is an alternative pasteurization process that results in a cheese that is as close to a raw milk cheese as we will get in the United States, due to FDA regulations. The brie’s bloomy rind imparted a strong, complexity of flavor with notes of white pepper, hay, garlic, and truffle. The Benjamin Leroux wine, also made with 100% Chardonnay grapes, was oaky and full bodied and made an excellent match for the intense flavor of the brie. The honey comb paired with the brie and Chardonnay completed the trifecta of flavor.

Molly and Colleen were gracious and informed hosts who were eager to create this experience and share their knowledge with Gastronomy students. Molly gets all of Eastern Standard’s cheeses from Murray’s in New York and Formaggio Kitchen here, in Boston.

Following the delectable and enlightening tasting, students brainstormed future events and activities for the Gastronomy Student Association. Stay tuned for exciting lectures, gardening club, and more delicious tasting events—next up is a Syrah/Petit Syrah themed evening as part of the Fireside Chats series at The Fireplace on Saturday, March 31. The event is available to Gastronomy students at a special discounted rate of $25. To confirm a seat for this event, please contact Natalie Shmulik at natalie_shh[at]hotmail[dot]com.

Gastronomy Design Contest

Leave a reply

The Gastronomy program may be a relatively small one at Boston University, but our growing community is strong, and our students are passionate about food, cooking, culture, sustainability, and eating locally.

As a way to bring our group closer together, we’ve decided to launch a canvas tote bag design contest, just for Gastronomy students and alumni!

Here’s how this will work:

Students can submit as many designs as they like to lucia.austria[at]gmail[dot]com, until Tuesday, March 20, 2012.
We’ll select our favorites from the submissions, and then post them to this blog, where everyone will be able to vote for their favorite.
Whichever designer gets the most votes will get his or her design printed on a canvas tote bag—and receive a free tote!

We’ll setup an online store through zazzle.com where you can decide on what size tote bag to purchase to show off your swag around campus. There’s no purchase deadline, and your bag will be sent directly to you. A portion of the proceeds for each bag will go toward Gastronomy Student Association events.

Here are the rules for submissions:

BU has specified that we can use any design, as long as it doesn’t make use of any Boston University logos. Feel free to be creative!
Your design must include
- “BU Gastronomy” or
- “Gastronomy @ BU” or
- “Boston University Gastronomy”

File specifications:

Resolution should be 150 pixels/inch (ppi)
Color mode should be sRGB or RGB
PNG preferred, JPG accepted
Available space is 2375 x 2375 pixels, or 16 x 16 inches

Do you design better with a pencil than a mouse? No problem! Submissions of scanned artwork are accepted, just as long as the file follows these guidelines as best as possible. Entries up for vote will be converted to these exact specifications.

Good luck!

Holiday Potluck

Leave a reply

Take a deep breath – the fall 2011 semester is almost over.

I’m sure for some of you, this semester has just flown by – for others, it’s been full of struggles that have seemed to drag on and on. I’m wrapping up my thesis project, and have managed to experienced both sensations throughout these past few months – and I’m sure I’m not the only one. But wherever you are in your final papers, exam preparation, or holiday baking, take a break and celebrate your successes this semester at our Holiday Potluck on December 16th. Join us from 6-9pm in the Demonstration Room, Fuller 117, for an evening of food, relaxation, and celebration.

How can you help? Contact Emily Olson and let her know what you’ll be bringing – appetizer, entree, dessert, side dish, or whatever else strikes your fancy. And try to relax! You’re almost finished.

On another note – if you’re a current Gastronomy student, have a GPA of 3.0 or higher, and thinking blogging, editing, and being creative is the most fun you can have outside a kitchen, consider applying for the Communications Graduate Assistant position for Spring 2012. Check out the requirements and responsibilities in the PDF file below, and if you’re interested in applying send your resume, CV, and cover letter to gastrmla@bu.edu by December 9th.

Communications GA

Notes from What’s Next?: Life After MLA Gastronomy

Leave a reply

If you couldn’t make it to our fantastic workshop several weeks ago, What’s Next?: Life After MLA Gastronomy, you’re in luck – we’ve got overviews and notes from each session, as well as links to several presentations to help you out. This workshop was designed to give students a bit of reassurance – there are a number of potential career paths available after graduation, and our alumni panel, career coach, and e-portfolio experts helped attendees learn more about how to market themselves, expand job searches, and even develop a stronger online presence.

The first section of our workshop featured three alumni members: Julia Grimaldi, Program Coordinator for the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources Dairy Promotion Board, Peter Kelly, culinary instructor at Johnson & Wales in Rhode Island, and Kimberly Kuborn, Director of Graduate Operations at the Metropolitan College, Boston University. Each of them told their personal stories, which varied greatly both in terms of how they found the MLA Gastronomy program as well as where they’ve traveled since then, and also answered student questions regarding career choices, opportunities, and advice on how to get started with the job hunt. Some of the best advice we heard:
-Whenever possible, don’t say no! Seek out and take as many opportunities as you can, because you never know when a volunteer position, one-day event, or contact could turn into your next career move.
-Stay open to new options. Consider all possibilities, combinations of your skills, and potential positions when searching for jobs – don’t limit yourself to only a few possible careers. Check every job site you can find, and stay in touch with old employers, professors, fellow students, and contacts within the industry.
-Find a mentor. Chat with them about your options and your dreams, get them to look at your resume (and take a look at theirs!), and make as many connections as possible through them.

Our middle session was a presentation by career coach Matt Casey, going through resumes, CVs, and cover letters. We only had an hour, and Matt was incredibly patient with our group, answering questions and showing us a number of examples. One of the biggest things he stressed was that everything you’ve done is marketable – most people drastically underestimate what they’ve done, so take time to write down all of your experience and ideas before applying for jobs and going for interviews. Matt had a ton of great information, but here are the highlights:
-Identify key points for yourself: what do you want to do every day? What are you good at? What do you want to accomplish? What holes can you fill? What are your skills? And, perhaps most importantly, what does your perfect, regular day look like? How much control do you want over time and money? What kind of work/life balance do you want? Do you want to lead, manage, advise, or champion?
-Ignore the one-page resume model. This is a product of past generations – now we have more jobs, change careers more often, and submit resumes online, so they can be as long as they need to be.
-Redo your resume to tell your personal story. Doesn’t need to be chronological – try organizing it by skill. Include the title you want at the top – only 20% of resumes include this, and it’s a great way to catch a potential employer’s eye. Make it creative and express your personal style – make it bold and memorable. Avoid photos.
-Build a network. Contact people in the industries you’re interested in – have meetings and ask questions without an agenda, just to learn more about them and their job. Hold informational interviews to learn more about potential positions. Find networking events and hand out your business card. Volunteer. Listen – a lot. And stay in touch with the connections you make – you never know when they’ll come in handy.
-Find someone you admire and read their resume, ask questions about their career history, and find a niche for yourself. Figure out how you can make yourself indispensable in your industry.
-Keep cover letters short. Be bold and persuasive, and use strong phrases – “I am,” “I can,” “I will,” “I have.”

Click here to download a copy of Matt’s Powerpoint presentation: Resume Planning and Development – November 5, 2011 (v2)

The third and final session was with Colby Young, a digital portfolio scholar and research assistant. All Boston University students are able to create free, online e-portfolios through Digication, though there are plenty of other services available if you’d prefer to go through someone else. These portfolios are a snap to set up – in an hour, Colby set up most of a portfolio and talked us through creating our own. And best of all, these won’t disappear after you graduate, so you can put the link on your business cards, resume, and LinkedIn page. Make it public or private, depending on its use. Include your education, experience, thesis projects, internships, awards, videos, photographs, and whatever else you want. This program keeps things very organized, and is easy to make even if you have no programming skills whatsoever.
-Use your BU Kerberos login and password to create a new account on Digication.
-Create different sections and module to organize the portfolio however you like – experiment with different looks. Include as much or as little information as you like to enhance your online presence.

Click here to download a detailed how-to PDF guide for setting up your e-portfolio: DigicationQuickstart.pdf

From all of us in the Gastronomy program, I’d love to give another big thank you to all of our participants! The workshop was fun and incredibly helpful, and the information we received was invaluable. Thanks to everyone who was able to come, and good luck with your end-of-semester papers and projects!

Gastronomy Student Association

Leave a reply

Whether this is your very first semester or you’re finishing up your thesis, the Gastronomy program is all about maintaining a strong community. One of the best ways to get involved and stay connected is through the Gastronomy Student Association, a group of current students who help put together events and lectures for each semester. This group, coordinated by Emily Olson and Dan Remar, was started this past spring to give students more input into program events, lectures and social gatherings.

The Boston University Gastronomy program is experiencing an explosion of interest, and the growth in student enrollment has reached new highs. Because of this notable increase in students, we hope that this association will allow students to get to know each other, encourage networking, and build a solid community of alumni. We encourage the planning and participation of social and educational events and gatherings, and are planning some notable get togethers for this semester.

The first meeting for the 2011-2012 school year was held in late September, and meeting notes are available in PDF form below for your convenience. Anyone who is interested in contributing program ideas or suggestions, please contact Emily Olson (emilyolson80@gmail.com) or Dan Remar (danremar@gmail.com).

Gastronomy Student Association Minutes – 9.28.11