Skip to Main Content
Back to New Releases

Executive chefs from parks and resorts business come together for professional development

A group of executive chefs from throughout Delaware North’s parks and resorts business came together last month for a chef summit at The Ridgeline Hotel Estes Park, the Delaware North-owned-and-operated lodging property near Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.

The action-packed week kicked off Feb. 20 with a casual dinner at Latitude 105 Alehouse, Delaware North’s popular restaurant at The Ridgeline. The programming officially got underway the following morning, when Vice President of Food and Beverage Percy Whatley and Regional Executive Chef Pascal Beaute looked back on 2017 and set the stage for the balance of 2018.

Among other topics covered, tackling food waste was top-of-mind during the first full day, with the group breaking into subgroups to commit to three deliverables for each participant’s respective Delaware North location. The Delaware North chefs also participated in hands-on workshops, including breaking up into teams of four to prepare a family-style buffet lunch.

Sweets took center stage on Day 2. Corporate Pastry Chef Paul Padua kicked things off with a demonstration on cutting pastry products, setting the tone for a day focused on dessert. Padua also led a pair of hands-on demonstrations that covered topics such as dessert garnishment, kitchen-made desserts, plated dessert presentation and dessert buffet presentation.

On Day 3, the group spent a majority of the morning in a workshop focused on flavor trends and better understanding plant-forward foods. Later in the day, subgroups prepared items for a dinner showcase, using product from one of the visiting vendors.

The week also featured a variety of demonstrations and presentations by vendors such as Sysco, Cuisine Solutions, Sugar Foods, Urban Cultivator, National Food Group and Minor’s.

PHOTO CAPTION: From left to right at a chef summit at The Ridgeline Hotel Estes Park are Paul Padua (corporate pastry chef) and Executive Chefs Justin Warnat, Grand Canyon; Dewayne Iston, Peaks
of Otter Lodge; Jeff Wasnesky, Skyland Resort; William Taylor, Big Meadows Lodge; Ashley Miller, The Lodge at Geneva-on-the-Lake; Luca Brunelle, The Gideon Putnam; Dan Thorington, Niagara Falls State Park; Brandon Bollanbacher, Kings Canyon National Park; Glenn Macnayr, Sea Crest Beach Hotel; Jacob Tew, The Ridgeline; Fred Clabaugh, Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite; Kevin Proper, Holiday Inn West Yellowstone; Efren Gonzalez, Sequoia National Park; John Adams, Kalaloch Lodge; and Alex Beltran, Honey Creek Resort. Pictured second from right and far right are Vice President of Food and Beverage Percy Whatley and Regional Executive Chef Pascal Beaute, both of whom hosted the event.