SOUTH HADLEY — A student-run bistro at South Hadley High School is so popular for its $6 lunches that students line up out the door to chow down on food prepared by their classmates.
Those fledgling chefs, along with school officials and local politicians, all took time out of their day Tuesday to officially open The Tigers’ Den with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The new kitchen and restaurant are part of a broader effort by South Hadley public schools to expand vocational opportunities for students, Superintendent Nicholas Young said.
“A couple of years ago, we surveyed middle school students and found that there’s growing interest in vocational opportunities,” Young said. “We saw student interest and wanted to provide them those opportunities.”
In addition to an expanded culinary arts program, South Hadley High has also added courses in carpentry and hospitality management in recent years.
The Tigers’ Den was constructed over the summer in what was formerly a history classroom, and is complete with industry-standard culinary equipment, according to Ezra Bleau, the school’s culinary arts instructor.
The bulk of the funding for the bistro came out of the state budget and was secured by state Rep. John Scibak and Sen. Stanley Rosenberg, who both spoke at a reception in the library before the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“The range of programs and new vocational opportunities are a demonstration that the school system in this community is looking forward,” Rosenberg said.
Scibak, who lives in South Hadley, became emotional when talking about the opportunities the new programs will provide to students, pausing his speech for a moment to fight back tears.
“The obligation of a school system and a community is to provide students with as many opportunities as possible, regardless of GPA, race, gender or anything else,” Scibak said.
South Hadley alumni Andy Yee, who owns eight restaurants in the area, served as an adviser on The Tigers’ Den project and also spoke at the reception.
“You have a world class kitchen at your fingertips,” Yee said, encouraging students on hand to take advantage of the school’s new resources. He added that he will be making internship and co-op positions available in his restaurants for students seeking extra experience.
There are currently 18 students who work with Bleau to the run The Tigers’ Den. The students, dressed in their choice of orange or white chef uniforms, work in the bistro for four hours every school day, preparing the day’s lunch items and cleaning and organizing the restaurant.
While many of the students in Bleau’s course hope to pursuit a career in culinary arts, others such as Courtney and Kerryan Torres, Caleb Thomas and Kelynn Vasquez said they’re mainly participating in the program for fun and to learn more about cooking.
The Tigers’ Den was originally only open to teachers at the start of the school year, but has recently expanded to accommodate students as well. The bistro’s menu rotates about twice a month to keep options fresh, Bleau said.
Meals typically cost about $6, according to Bleau, who explained that prices are set with the goal to break even on the cost of food, not make a profit.
While meals at The Tigers’ Den are a bit more expensive than in the school’s cafeteria, Bleau said the bistro has been wildly popular with students since its opening.
“There’s a line out the door every day,” he said.
Young said the next step for the program is the construction of a greenhouse on the high school grounds, which he hopes will be completed before the start of school next year. The greenhouse will allow the school to grow its own vegetables that can be used in The Tigers’ Den as part of the “farm to table” initiative, he explained.
“We’re trying to go bigger and really take our program out into the community,” Young said.