麻豆原创

It has all the trappings of a great dining experience 鈥� a celebrity chef, a VIP guest list, fine linen, fancy china and a haute cuisine made from fresh local products.

The twist on this 鈥淔ive Star Restaurant鈥� is that it鈥檚 run entirely by fourth graders.

At 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, a group of dedicated elementary school students will transform the cafeteria of Oak Ridge Elementary School in Oak Park into a 鈥淔ive Star Restaurant,鈥� an elegant evening conceived, designed and executed by the students themselves 鈥� with the help of Patrick Mulvaney of Mulvaney鈥檚 Building and Loan Restaurant and Jeff Clark of Nugget Markets.
鈥淭he idea is to help kids experience the learning skills of entrepreneurship,鈥� says Stella Ruiz, of Miracles and Milestones, the group that organized the 10-week restaurant program for 48 students.

From the first day of the program to Tuesday鈥檚 culmination, the kids were treated like partners in a real business, says Ruiz. Students had to interview for their jobs on the sales, public relations, interior design and finance teams. They held business meetings after school and on Saturdays. They made sales calls to sell tickets at the Capitol, City Hall and other locations around Sacramento.

City Councilman Jay Schenirer, Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, 麻豆原创 Superintendent Jonathan Raymond and Vance Raye, presiding justice of the Third District Court of Appeal, are among the local VIPs who purchased $60 tickets to the dinner.

The kids also learned the ins and outs of the restaurant business from Mulvaney and Clark, including how to plan, cook and serve gourmet meals.
鈥淭he kids were so excited to be involved that some would show up at 7:30 a.m. for the 9 a.m. program on Saturdays,鈥� Ruiz said.

Last Sunday, students in the program accompanied four of Mulvaney鈥檚 chefs on a shopping trip to a local farmer鈥檚 market, where they purchased ingredients for Tuesday鈥檚 dinner.

So what鈥檚 on the menu?

Oak Ridge Principal Doug Huscher says that鈥檚 a closely guarded secret. 鈥淲e鈥檒l find out that night when the students announce the menu,鈥� he said.
The best part of the experience is that the students themselves get to decide which field trips to take with the estimated $3,000 to $4,000 profit the restaurant will reap.

鈥淚鈥檓 extremely proud of the kids and extremely grateful to all of the people who participated,鈥� says Huscher. 鈥淭his has been an invaluable real-world experience for students.鈥�