The American Culinary Federation, established in 1929, is one of the largest professional chef’s organizations in the U.S. with over 20,000 members. One of the most notable accomplishments by the ACF organization is working with the U.S. Department of Labor to raise the status of an executive chef to a professional category, which attracted many new people to the culinary profession. Every year ACF holds a national convention full of competitions, events, exhibits and more. This year, Chef Uniforms.com exhibited at the 2009 ACF National Convention hosted at the Orlando World Center in the Marriott. However, we did not stop there! We also provide chef coats to the Johnson & Wales University Jr. ACF team who were competing in the ProStart competion. They chose our popular Women’s Chef Jackets style 83113 with fabric covered buttons.
With the ACF being “The Authority on Cooking in America”, it’s easy to see why many flock to this event. There were plenty of laughter and the smell of good food. This event was clearly all about education and development in a fun environment with the culinary demos and exhibitions taking place all around.
Over the course of five days professional chefs, students, and industry experts attended 32 seminars, 24 culinary demos and 8 competitions. One such competition was The Pastry Chef of the Year competition which took place with top chefs from different regions in the U.S. This year’s winner Heather Hurlbert was all smiles in a women’s traditional chef coat with piping similar to our Women’s Traditional Chef Coat featured above.
There was so much more to see and smell at the Sweet Decadence dessert party sponsored by Splenda. The mood was festive with all of the themed deserts, treats and fruit on display. It was amazing to see all of the top chefs and culinary masters dressed in traditional chef clothing, all mingling with each other and sharing tips and advice on being a culinary professional. One can truly see the dedication it takes to become a great chef and how much one can enjoy cooking.
At the 2009 ACF convention, there were many companies present and displaying their services to these culinary leaders. ChefUniforms.com was one of the top uniform companies in attendance presenting our new line of coats and pants for both Men & Women. We didn’t hesitate to outfit many of the professionals who enjoyed the fabric, fit and coolness of our garments. The feedback was positive and inspired us to continue to take interest in providing top quality chef uniforms at an affordable price.
Not only did we have fun but we learned a lot about the culinary arts, all while eating great food. Next year’s ACF National event is in August 2-5, 2010. We hope to see you there!
~ Contributing Editor
Tamara Taylor
Award-winning chef/restaurateur, cookbook author, and host of Mexico—One Plate at a Time on PBS. Chef Bayless will also be holding a culinary showcase on Saturday, May 16 at 12:30 p.m.
Do you notice any resistance to unhealthy dishes? 
Garlic is widely used around the world for its strong flavor as a seasoning or condiment. The challenges for the chefs were to use identical ingredients and a mystery ingredient that they would only discover moments before they were to begin developing their recipes for the competition. The culinary masters have one hour to decide on what their dishes will be, prepare them, cook them and present them to a panel of judges.
