Now this is cool ...

A group of entrepreneurship students at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy have been operating a wood-fired pizza business this year, and they are using some of the revenue to launch a fine-dining concept in our Teaching Kitchen space.

Think four courses, sensory dining, stellar ingredients, intentional plating, and so on.

To reward their hard work and to do some intense market research, we took them to one of the finest restaurants in Cincinnati -- Boca Restaurant

This was also selfish in some part--I've long been a huge fan of Chef David Falk, the brilliant and creative mind behind the entire restaurant group. One could argue that I was also harboring hope that Chef Falk might come introduce himself in person while we were there.

Chef Falk is known for his philosophy of BPA - Blow People Away. Falk says the worst thing a diner could say is the meal was "good." To blow people away, you have to go far beyond their expectations and give them something amazing that they will talk about for days and even weeks to come.

And his staff work diligently to do just this.

From the moment of our arrival, our students were treated like royalty. After I explained our desire to try as much as possible and that our students had promised to be adventurous eaters, the meal began.

And began it did--from the classic "pommes souffles," Rockefeller oysters, and Osetra Caviar to the beet mezzaluna, charred leeks, halibut and beef wellington, we had fourteen courses of mind-blowing flavor and inspired plating that rocked the world of six high school students.

Oh, and Chef Falk? He personally guided us through the meal, introducing the courses and even inviting us into the kitchen to help plate the final preparation.

Every dish was immaculate in preparation and bursting with flavors both bold and subtle, both savory and sweet. Our students declared each dish to be their favorite before the next would arrive and raise the bar even higher.

 

 

 

As we were eating the final bites of our dessert and reflecting on the once-in-a-lifetime experience, I reached out to our waitress for the bill which promised to be the most substantial restaurant bill I had ever laid eyes upon.

"There is no bill," she said, a smile spreading over her face. "Chef Falk has taken care of it--he was thrilled to have your students enjoy the meal so much."

My mouth was hanging open and I turned to the students whose wide eyes indicated that they had heard the news.

No one spoke for several moments until one student simply uttered, "Wow. Oh wow."

And we all agreed--Chef Falk had given us something we would never forget. Something we would talk about for years to come.

Something that truly blew us away.