Young chefs serve up connection

A NINE-WEEK hospitality training program supporting young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds has culminated in a vibrant community dinner.

The Norlane Community Centre was transformed into a pop-up restaurant last month as 15 students from the Geelong English Language School cooked and served a celebratory meal to the community, showcasing the skills they developed through the CALD Community Kitchen Project.

Program co-ordinator Nestor Estampa said the initiative aimed to build confidence, belonging and connection to culture for its participants, while boosting their career prospects.

The grand dinner itself is designed to give these students, who have been in Australia for less than two years, the opportunity to show off their new cooking and barista skills and share their culture with the broader community through food
and storytelling.

“[The grand dinner is] a celebration of the achievements and skills of these students who have been in the country for less than two years, and an affirmation of how they have transformed from being isolated in the first week – because they don’t know the other people in the program – to being thriving individuals who are confident to serve coffee and food during the community dinner,” Mr Estampa said.

“Inviting the community to the community dinner, it’s a deliberate plan to bring them in to witness the talents and the aspirations of the kids.

“It’s about raising awareness that we have these resilient, these brave, these talented people in our community.”

The CALD Community Kitchen is a key initiative of the Settle Well program, run locally by social services provider CatholicCare Victoria, which supports young refugee and asylum seekers living in Geelong’s northern suburbs.