Former Calabasas student named 'Almost Famous Chef'
By Stephanie Bertholdo bertholdo@theacorn.com

SOMETHING GOOD- California School of Culinary Arts' student Kristianne Pak displays her winning dish: glazed beef short ribs with stir fried miso spinach and chestnut steamed rice. The Calabasas High School alumna was named San Pellegrino's Almost Famous Chef in a competition that included culinary students from around the country.

Kristianne Pak, a Calabasas High School graduate, has come a long way since cooking up her first dish of macaroni and cheese at the age of 8.

Pak, 26, won the San Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef Competition, beating out the other competitors with her grown-up signature dish of glazed beef short ribs, stir-fried miso spinach and chestnut steamed rice. Pak won $10,000, the chance to work with a nationally recognized chef for a year and the title of "2008 San Pellegrino Almost Famous Chef."

The yearly contest pits student chefs from throughout the United States and Canada against each other in a multifaceted competition. Pak is a student at the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena. The finals were held at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, Calif., from March 7 through 10.

The nine finalists faced three challenges. The young chefs were presented with a "mystery basket" of ingredients, including catfish, pancetta, curly parsley and baby leeks. They had two hours to prepare their menus and finish their dishes, Pak said. The other challenges included the preparation of a "signature dish" and the "People's Choice" competition. Pak won two of the three challenges, conceding the spontaneous mystery basket challenge to another student.

"I was beyond ecstatic," Pak said of winning the Almost Famous title. "I was competing against (some) of the best culinary students in the U.S. and Canada, and really all of them were so talented. I was flattered to just be able to cook with them."

Pak faced a few challenges within the challenges. The 20cup rice cooker for her chestnut steamed rice only cooked the rice halfway, she said. She resolved the issue by placing the rice in a big pot on the stove with boiling water and steaming it to completion.

Each competitor was allowed one assistant. Pak's assistant spent two hours cleaning 25 pounds of spinach. "It was baby spinach so it was really small and tedious," she said.

Pak's culinary specialty is Asian fusion. She cultivated the blending of diverse cultural elements in her food naturally, having been raised by a Korean father and American mother. "I've been eating fusion my whole life without really knowing it," she said.

The competition judges included a who's who in culinary circles- Chef Christoph Leu of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Chef Matthew Levin of Lacroix at the Rittenhouse, Chef Allyson Thurber of The Lobster, Chef Tony Mantuano of Spiaggia, Tara de Lis of Citysearch online lifestyle guide, Jeff Hoyt of Gayot.com, Lena Birnbaum of Bon Appétit, and Rita DeMontis of the Toronto Sun.

Pak hopes the experience will one day transform the "almost famous" moniker into "absolutely famous." Although having a show on the Food Network would lead to fame, she has always dreamed of opening an Asian fusion bistro in California.

To cultivate her specialty, Pak said she'd like to capitalize on her grand prize and begin working with experts in the field. She hopes to work with a chef who has knowledge about AsianAmerican fusion cuisine, she said. She is already fielding offers- Allyson Thurber, the executive chef at "The Lobster" in Santa Monica and one of the local judges in the regional section of the competition, has offered Pak a job.

Pak's aspirations go beyond working in a restaurant. She said she would eventually like to teach cooking and nutrition classes to children.

Angela Goodman, executive chef at California School of Culinary Arts, was pleased that one of her students won the event. She said the events were "very well organized and exciting."

"In all honesty it would be difficult to put into words the wealth of emotions, as well as pride and joy, that I felt rushing forward each time Kristi's name was announced," Goodman said. "Absolutely wonderful feelings of excitement continue to this day. The memories from the competitions and winning announcements will last a lifetime."

Pak currently works as a part-time pastry chef at La Grande Orange Cafe in Pasadena. She said what she loves most about being a chef is seeing the "Oh my God, this is delicious" expression on people's faces when they take a bite of her food. "The best part is that I love it and never get bored of it," she said about cooking for a living.

As for advice for aspiring chefs, Pak said to be prepared to work long hours including holidays, weekends and late nights. "If you love it, put 100 percent of yourself into it because it will pay off."