Teaching Restaurant

Project Culinary Edgecombe Teaching Restaurant – in Service – to Career Connected Learning, Entrepreneurial Opportunities and Community Development Vision

Partnership with Edgecombe Community College to provide career connected learning for the culinary professions using a teaching restaurant.

WHY?

Edgecombe County is uniquely positioned to be a talent powerhouse for culinary professions due to its roots in southern cuisine, agribusiness economics, innovative educational programs, and the need for future adaptive careers.

Potential Culinary Career Pathways

Food Service Management
Restaurant manager
Executive chef
Personal chef
Head chef or cook
Pastry chef
Food media (print, broadcast or digital)
Marketing or public relations
Specialty food retailing

Catering
Environmental Health Specialists (food)
Food policy or non-profit and association work
Special events and events management
Food writer
Food stylist
Research, development, and test kitchens
Product sourcing
Purchasing

Farming/Food Producer
Nutritionist
Molecular Gastronomist
Food Sustainability Technician (future career)
Agroecologist (future career)
Holistic Resource Management (future career)
Farm to Table Researcher (future career)
Food Technologist (future career)

301 TARBORO ST

The Tarboro Street property would be transformed into a teaching restaurant. This means the kitchen would be designed for learning and include glass windows for customers to observe and experience more intimately how their food lands curated on their plate. The decor would also include the invisible elements of our communities relationship to food artistically. For example, visualizing the farm to table journey. Most importantly students will gain real experience running a business, obtaining relevant certifications such as food handling, or even quickbooks (depending on the students track).

Chef Jerome Brown has expressed interest in being an instructor. He has 30+ years of experience nationally and internationally with clients ranging from the King of Sweden Carl Gustaf to Colin Powell to Shaquille O’ Neal; however, Rocky Mount is his home. Other relationships will be harnessed as well to create experiential learning opportunities within the teaching restaurant and beyond. Due to the range of potential culinary career pathways, this hands-on, educational track would include existing ECC classes and/or syllabi content in areas such as business administration, nutrition, entrepreneurship, technology, science and supply chain management. It also opens up new content areas that positions students with mindsets and skills for jobs that have yet to be created. Students would be exposed to cutting-edge food futurists and have mentorship opportunities with local, regional, and national professionals. There are also scholarship opportunities for students within the Beverage & Food Industry. An exciting component to Project Culinary Edgecombe is a doc-reality TV show which students would be integral to producing alongside Walk the Talk, LLC and its Emmy winning production partner M2 Media m2nyc. tv

Charles Roberson

Real Estate

In less then 2 years, Charles has renovated over 20 doors and acquired 50 more in his hometown of Rocky Mount, NC. He is committed to developing affordable living options for Rocky Mount citizens. Charles has successfully worked with the City of Rocky Mount, investors, and community residents to revitalize commercial and residential properties.

Video

Charles has been integral to several projects that were nominated and have won numerous Emmy Awards. He founded Walk The Talk LLC which has been responsible for over a million dollars of worldwide content. His projects include productions for US Open, World Series, VH1, MTV, BET, Showtime, ABC, and even the privilege to travel to a couple of US cities during the 2008 presidential campaign to capture interviews with Senator Barack Obama for Black Enterprise TV.