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Food Network Star Chef Robert Irvine Visits Naval Submarine Base New London
Jan 31, 2012 (DEFENSE DEPARTMENT DOCUMENTS AND PUBLICATIONS/ContentWorks via COMTEX) --
Story Number: NNS120131-08 Release Date: 1/31/2012
From Naval Submarine Base New London Public Affairs
GROTON, Conn. (NNS) -- Former British Royal Navy culinary specialist and current Food Network celebrity chef Robert Irvine visited Naval Submarine Base New London (SUBASE) Jan. 27.
The restaurateur, cookbook author, and television host, broke away from a local food and wine festival where he was headlining, to return to his roots and interact with Sailors and U.S. Navy culinary specialists at the base.
Irvine's visit began at SUBASE's Cross Hall Galley where he and his staff met the base's Executive Officer, Cmdr. Michael Pennington, Command Master Chief Tommy Vatter and the base's food service officer, Lt. j.g. Anthony Martinez, before greeting nearly two dozen Navy culinary specialists who had gathered to meet him.
"I have been looking forward to meeting Chef Irvine ever since I heard that he was coming to the base," said Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Steven Clark, a cook-of-the-watch at the galley. "I think it's really cool to have a high profile guy like the chef visiting us, especially since he was in the Navy himself."
Irvine told those assembled that he has a strong affinity for what Navy cooks do.
"I have nothing but respect for the culinary specialists of the submarine force; they are directly responsible for crew morale," said Irvine. "When I was in the Royal Navy during the Falklands War, the only things we looked forward to were good food and mail."
As Irvine toured the kitchen facilities at the galley, Martinez showed him how ten Navy culinary specialists work as a team to serve approximately 1,000 patrons at each meal service.
"It was a real pleasure to have a celebrity chef like Chef Irvine visit," said Martinez, who presented Irvine with a Cross Hall Galley Chef's jacket. "I invited him to return anytime for a challenge to serve meals here at the galley, a challenge which he accepted."
Irvine noted that such a challenge was similar to the premise of his Food Network series "Dinner: Impossible," and offered to return for a service at the galley in which he and just two other assistants would attempt to match the daily efforts of Cross Hall's ten.
"We are going to have some fun with this," said Irvine, grinning as he told one of his staff to start looking at his schedule for a possible future return date.
But Irvine was already having fun with the Sailors and culinary specialists there, as he took time to sign autographs, pose for pictures, and speak about the importance of what they do. Irvine's personableness and genuine interest impressed those he met.
"I think it's pretty awesome that the chef would take time out of his day to come visit the base and see what we do on a daily basis," said Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Antonio Leroux, about the visit.
Before departing Cross Hall Galley, to visit the attack submarine USS Hartford (SSN 768), Irvine looked in on the construction of a Virginia Class submarine galley mock-up on the premises. The new addition, when complete this spring, will be a fully functioning galley and a great training aid for area culinary specialists. Such training opportunities are invaluable noted Irvine.
On board Hartford, Irvine not only interacted with the Los Angeles-class submarine's culinary specialists and crew, but also personally cooked and served a few hamburgers on the messdecks.
"This is a great opportunity to show off the capabilities of our chefs," said Cmdr. Steven Wilkinson, Hartford's commanding officer. "It is this group of men here who take care of the crew and enable us to operate at sea for weeks at a time."
Irvine said Friday's SUBASE visit left him recharged.
"How great to visit with Sailors, especially young culinary specialists," said Irvine. "It sure makes me think about how far I've come, where I am now, and what may be possible for them. Inspiring them inspires me."
Irvine hosts the Food Network series "Restaurant: Impossible," and has previously hosted and starred in other Food Network programs such as "Dinner: Impossible," "Worst Cooks in America" and "The Next Iron Chef."
The Navy's more than 7,000 culinary specialists (CS), deployed around the globe, feed on average more than 92 million wholesome and nutritious meals per year, ensuring the Navy's fighting forces operate at peak performance and are ready to respond to threats worldwide. Navy commanding officers agree that nothing impacts Sailors on a day-to-day basis more than the food CSs prepare for them; they believe these top quality meals contribute directly to Sailor quality of life and morale. Today's CSs have greater culinary instruction than ever before. With even more advanced training on the way, Sailors, both afloat and ashore, can look forward to even healthier and better-tasting meals in the near future.
For more information, visit www.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/usnavy, or www.twitter.com/usnavy.
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