By Jalil '27
What is restaurant cooking all about? How can it be learned and applied to make a successful contribution to the community?
These questions framed the 2026 Restaurant Cooking Intersession course led by teachers David Dell’Isola, Kevin Ford, and Jaclyn Zarrella. Two groups of students alternated between the kitchen and the classroom to develop their cooking skills and ideas, focusing on cooking as a means of serving the community. This course encourages student to take into consideration that although food is something that is necessary for survival and health, not everyone has adequate access to nutritious foods, and sometimes food in general.
Jaclyn says, "Food makes you altruistic and a big part of altruism is caring about the wellbeing of others. Food is a big part of a community, as it brings people together because it is one of the few universal things that are an important part of everyone's life."
To enhance the Restaurant Cooking experience, upper school students took multiple field trips, including one to Cactus Cantina, which is owned by Field alums, and another to DC Central Kitchen (DCCK), where students spoke with the managers and toured the establishment. At DCCK, they even spent time volunteering, cutting fresh vegetables to help the staff prepare for a service later that day to the greater DC community.
The end goal of the course is not only for students to learn to cook, but it is for them to really learn and understand the value of food and service to the community, and use that knowledge to make a greater impact. The class created a menu of pastas, salads, and desserts to serve to Field faculty, and they also prepared handmade lasagna to donate to So Others Might Eat as a way of helping the community. David Dell’Isola believes that “When someone knows how to cook for themselves and others, they are healthier, they are wealthier, and they can spread joy and share that with others through food.”
At Field, we foster a strong community by sharing our stories and giving to others. Opportunities like the Restaurant Cooking course do just that. An added benefit is that students in the course can develop and follow their passions.
