Brian Capoferri is a 22 year old elementary school custodian who resides in Winslow, New Jersey. Aside from full time work Brian Attends Farleigh Dickinson University and is trying to achieve a Bachelors in Individualized studies with a focus in business. In his free time he enjoys going for hikes with his girlfriend Kate and 10 month old German Shepherd Keira. Sometimes the days are tiring from work, Brian is still happy to finally be independent from his parents. He reaches this happiness by being able to afford his own place. With much more responsibilities, he finds being able to cook and clean after himself a huge help in his daily routine. He now sees the importance of being able to cook for his family as well as himself. He is grateful to his parents for giving him his skills needed to do well in life.
It has been over thirty years that my father Brian Michael Capoferri Sr. has spent working in the food industry. During that time he has accumulated a wealth of knowledge to aid his culinary skill. Through his time cooking he was able to start a family and begin passing his own love and passion along with some of his culinary knowledge to his children, my brother and myself. Cooking became a big part of our family and it gave us something to bond over. Let’s start with a trip to understand just who Brian Michael Capoferri Sr. and how he has helped share his passions with his family.
My father grew up in a small house in Winslow, NJ. His family was anything but affluent and due to this was unable to go to college. Without many other choices he found himself looking for a career, down the street and around the corner was “Ancora Psychiatric Hospital a division of mental health services in Winslow New Jersey.” In 1977 my father acquired a job in the food service department of Ancora. This early point in his career he got to experience the basics of how a kitchen works, his responsibilities included washing pots and pans, overall maintenance of the kitchen as well as assisting in some basic cooking. A few years later in 1979 he was promoted as an Ancora cooking apprentice program where he was able to experience butchering, baking, and storeroom management.
With the skills and experience he gained during that time he started to look for other avenues to try his skill at. In 1980, he found a job at the Golden Nugget Casino in Atlantic City, now known as the Hilton Casino. Here he started working as a buffet line carver, from a buffet carver he became a cornucopia cook, promoted to a main kitchen cook. From a main kitchen cook he then moved to a banquet relief cook which is the position that he has kept to this day. Not only did he move from different positions but also moved around working in different restaurants in the casino if he was needed. My father said when asked which he liked better cooking for the buffet or individuals, “I enjoy cooking individual meals but the buffet work has taught me to cook on a very large scale adding a lot of experience, if you can cook for 100 people you can cook for one.”
My father’s cooking has been influenced by global cuisine. Since he usually works banquets and buffets he was able to experience cooking a wide array of food types. Also he points to prior chefs that he has worked with that allowed him to gain more experience and education in different cuisine. These executive chefs that he worked with had “culinary backgrounds in German, Italian and Austrian cuisines.” He also points to the fact that he was always allowed to use top notch and the freshest food when cooking, which added a lot in aiding to develop his talents. It is safe to say not only with the experience and knowledge but the years he spent in the food industry as well, that he has eclectic taste.
During my father’s time working at the Hilton, he was able to start a family; although being in this career he was not able to be around as much because he had to work nights and weekends in order to support his family. All of his experience in cooking especially with Italian cuisine, since we are a large Italian family, greatly influenced our home life
My father enjoyed cooking for all kinds of family events as well as just for his wife and two sons, he considered this time his bonding time with us. During this bonding time my brother and I were able to learn a great deal about cooking and from that we learned life lessons that I find myself using still today. We spent a lot of time together in the morning since my father worked nights and weekends, this lead to us cooking a lot of breakfast foods like eggs and bacon, or waffles and pancakes. Brian Michael Capoferri Senior showed us proper etiquette when handling knives as well as proper ways to safely use the machines of the kitchen such as the blender, mixer, stove top and ovens.Learning to cook and clean up for myself was a huge assistance in my life now that I am out of the house.
My father showed me a great deal about the culinary arts and through those teaching he was able to also prepare me for life by showing me how important safety is also the importance of patience. Though this was applied to cooking when he taught me it helped me greatly with everyday life and more importantly allowed me to gain more independence. Through my father’s cooking my family was able to try many different food types, this allowed for new experiences and opened our minds to different ethnic cuisines that made us better rounded not only in the pallet but in culture as well.
Looking back my father has given me skills to better aid me in my life to support my own family; although he said “Sometimes I wish that I could have chosen a different career like following my love and hobby of music. But then I think of my future and it would be amazing to own a restaurant of my own, it is kind of a double edge sword. I like what I do and enjoy it but there is always that question of what else could I have done well in and would have allowed me to spend more time with my family” (Capoferri 2013). But overall he believed he has gained a great deal of skill that has fueled him to pass it on to his children and allowed them to become better people. Looking as an outsider it is easy to see the skill and knowledge that he has gained throughout his career in the culinary arts, knowledge that will be cherished and pass on to my family one day.
It has been over thirty years that my father Brian Michael Capoferri Sr. has spent working in the food industry. During that time he has accumulated a wealth of knowledge to aid his culinary skill. Through his time cooking he was able to start a family and begin passing his own love and passion along with some of his culinary knowledge to his children, my brother and myself. Cooking became a big part of our family and it gave us something to bond over. Let’s start with a trip to understand just who Brian Michael Capoferri Sr. and how he has helped share his passions with his family.
My father grew up in a small house in Winslow, NJ. His family was anything but affluent and due to this was unable to go to college. Without many other choices he found himself looking for a career, down the street and around the corner was “Ancora Psychiatric Hospital a division of mental health services in Winslow New Jersey.” In 1977 my father acquired a job in the food service department of Ancora. This early point in his career he got to experience the basics of how a kitchen works, his responsibilities included washing pots and pans, overall maintenance of the kitchen as well as assisting in some basic cooking. A few years later in 1979 he was promoted as an Ancora cooking apprentice program where he was able to experience butchering, baking, and storeroom management.
With the skills and experience he gained during that time he started to look for other avenues to try his skill at. In 1980, he found a job at the Golden Nugget Casino in Atlantic City, now known as the Hilton Casino. Here he started working as a buffet line carver, from a buffet carver he became a cornucopia cook, promoted to a main kitchen cook. From a main kitchen cook he then moved to a banquet relief cook which is the position that he has kept to this day. Not only did he move from different positions but also moved around working in different restaurants in the casino if he was needed. My father said when asked which he liked better cooking for the buffet or individuals, “I enjoy cooking individual meals but the buffet work has taught me to cook on a very large scale adding a lot of experience, if you can cook for 100 people you can cook for one.”
My father’s cooking has been influenced by global cuisine. Since he usually works banquets and buffets he was able to experience cooking a wide array of food types. Also he points to prior chefs that he has worked with that allowed him to gain more experience and education in different cuisine. These executive chefs that he worked with had “culinary backgrounds in German, Italian and Austrian cuisines.” He also points to the fact that he was always allowed to use top notch and the freshest food when cooking, which added a lot in aiding to develop his talents. It is safe to say not only with the experience and knowledge but the years he spent in the food industry as well, that he has eclectic taste.
During my father’s time working at the Hilton, he was able to start a family; although being in this career he was not able to be around as much because he had to work nights and weekends in order to support his family. All of his experience in cooking especially with Italian cuisine, since we are a large Italian family, greatly influenced our home life
My father enjoyed cooking for all kinds of family events as well as just for his wife and two sons, he considered this time his bonding time with us. During this bonding time my brother and I were able to learn a great deal about cooking and from that we learned life lessons that I find myself using still today. We spent a lot of time together in the morning since my father worked nights and weekends, this lead to us cooking a lot of breakfast foods like eggs and bacon, or waffles and pancakes. Brian Michael Capoferri Senior showed us proper etiquette when handling knives as well as proper ways to safely use the machines of the kitchen such as the blender, mixer, stove top and ovens.Learning to cook and clean up for myself was a huge assistance in my life now that I am out of the house.
My father showed me a great deal about the culinary arts and through those teaching he was able to also prepare me for life by showing me how important safety is also the importance of patience. Though this was applied to cooking when he taught me it helped me greatly with everyday life and more importantly allowed me to gain more independence. Through my father’s cooking my family was able to try many different food types, this allowed for new experiences and opened our minds to different ethnic cuisines that made us better rounded not only in the pallet but in culture as well.
Looking back my father has given me skills to better aid me in my life to support my own family; although he said “Sometimes I wish that I could have chosen a different career like following my love and hobby of music. But then I think of my future and it would be amazing to own a restaurant of my own, it is kind of a double edge sword. I like what I do and enjoy it but there is always that question of what else could I have done well in and would have allowed me to spend more time with my family” (Capoferri 2013). But overall he believed he has gained a great deal of skill that has fueled him to pass it on to his children and allowed them to become better people. Looking as an outsider it is easy to see the skill and knowledge that he has gained throughout his career in the culinary arts, knowledge that will be cherished and pass on to my family one day.
Brian this story is so touching. I can pretty much hear the admiration that you have for your father. Your bio also shows that, although you probably didn't think it as a child, your father taught you a life skill that you can pass down to you children someday
ReplyDeleteI just want to say this story brought tears to my eyes. The fact that you think of your father so highly says a lot about what you learned for him and the respect you have for him. I am happy he helped you with learning safety and patience. Although you said he wasn't there are a lot, it sure seems like you really look up to him for the sacrafices he made to support your family.
ReplyDeleteBrian,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog because it reminded me so much of own my father. This is a difficult time of year for me because my father died on Holy Thursday and we were preparing to bury him on Easter Sunday in the year he died. We bonded cooking and playing music together. I always think of an old song by Dan Fogelberg called Leader of the Band "his blood runs through my instrument and his song is in my soul". I believe the best gift a parent can give to their child is spending time with them and teaching them what they know since it is the one thing that lasts in one's memory.
Awesome story Brian. Children do better in life better when they spend quality time with their parent(s). I wish I had another opportunity. My father worked all the time and died at a young age. I did not get to spend a great deal of time with him, but I admired him the same.
ReplyDeleteBrian,
ReplyDeleteThis story is amazing. It shows the touching love and compassion you have for your father. I love that you have taken the skill set that he instilled in you from a youngster and use it now that you are on your own. Good for you.