A CHEF’S JOURNEY TO BECOMING

ACF-CERTIFIED

Longtime American Culinary Federation (ACF) member, junior team coach, practical exam evaluator, ACF site-visit evaluator and, more recently, assisting a group of Peruvian chefs in Lima, Peru, with their certifications,

Robert Gregson, CEC®, CCE®, has worn many hats with ACF.

Gregson was born in Manchester, England. In 1961, he started his apprenticeship as a commis chef while also attending the City and Guilds of London Institute. The apprenticeship lasted five years, and at that time, the grand sum of $8 (5 English pounds) was earned weekly, paid in cash every Saturday, “making sure you showed up that day to work,” Gregson explains.

“Working the classical brigade system alongside many chefs, there were no blenders, Kitchen Aids, food processors and the like in those days. My first job, early in the morning, was to light the fire on the stoves. We cooked on flat tops heated by coal briquettes.You had to find the hot spots on the heavy metal rings. This was a great experience.”

Gregson immigrated to the U.S. in 1973 and became a member of ACF with the City of Austin Chefs Association a year later. He worked for the Marriott and DoubleTree companies, then opened a couple of his own restaurants before eventually becoming the executive chef at Chuck & Harold`s, Palm Beach, Florida.

In 1990, he started his teaching career at Florida Culinary Institute (FCI) in Palm Beach. He says, “This was when ACF really started to play such an important role in my career.”

Gregson says the No. 1 benefit of joining ACF is networking with other culinarians. Through networking with chapter members, he was also able to help his son, Gary Gregson, acquire the position of executive chef at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach.

“Chefs at FCI and the ACF Palm Beach County Chefs Association encouraged me to achieve my certifications, first my CEC®, then my CCE®,” Gregson says. He was preapproved for the prestigious Certified Master Chef® (CMC®) exam. Even though he did not succeed in achieving this certification, he believes that the knowledge gained from the many practice sessions and visiting The Culinary Institute of America, Hyde Park, New York, was immeasurable.

In 2001, Gregson founded and became the director of Oregon Coast Culinary Institute (OCCI), Coos Bay, Oregon, which is now a fully ACFEF- accredited program in Culinary Arts and Pastry and Baking. During his time with OCCI, he assisted with the launching of the chefs certification program classes.

Gregson recently retired from Lincoln Culinary Institute in West Palm Beach, Florida, and relocated to Lima in August 2013 to join his Peruvian wife. On completion of Peru–Street Food Y Mas: Coastal Region (Strategic Book Publishing, 2013) on the culture, lifestyles and cooking of Peru, he stopped by the San Ignacio/Paul Bocuse Culinary School to meet some of the chef instructors. He was asked if he could help with their certifications, and gladly offered his time.

The first step was to get the practical exam site approved and a practical exam scheduled. A few obstacles along the way needed to be overcome; for example, there are over 3,000 varieties of potatoes in Peru, but no Yukon gold, so the papa amarillo, yellow potato, was approved as an acceptable substitute. Additionally, several of the candidates did not speak English; however, the global language of culinary arts made communication possible.

May 30, 2014, Gregson administered the first ACF practical exam in South America at the Universidad San Ignacio De Loyola in Lima. Eighteen chefs tested at the CEC®, CCC®, CWPC® and CEPC® levels. Approved practical exam evaluators Michael Rigberg, CEC®, CCA® , Matthew Dennis, CEC®, and Rene Marquis, CEC®, CCE®, CCA®, AAC, proctored the examination, with 17 out of 18 passing. The weekend was a huge success and a learning experience for all involved.

“ACF has opened many doors for me over the years and provided opportunities I never dreamed of,” Gregson says. “As a professional chef for more than 53 years, I have enjoyed every moment. Retirement? Not even a thought. I still have too much to learn.”

Opposite: Robert Gregson, CEC®, CCE®, at Machu Picchu in Peru