Chef cooks up ideas for Davenport
Campus Times
May 15, 1998
Executive chef Frank Crescenzo prepares an Oriental shrimp dish for
a ULV student. Crescenzo plans to offer a broader food selection for next
year's menu. He is also proud that Davenport has recently received a grade
"A" inspection by the Department of Health.
For Frank Crescenzo, executive chef of the University of La Verne's
Davenport Dining Services, gourmet entrees have become more than a specialty
-- they have become a form of expression and personal artistry.
When he was initially introduced to the food industry during his early
teenage years, Crescenzo, now 28, was simply helping his family with their
business.
His father had opened "Il Duomo" (Italian for "The Man"),
an authentic Italian restaurant in his hometown in Connecticut. Earning
his merit in the family, Crescenzo wanted to assist his family through his
own efforts.
"I started doing cooking at 14, but I also always wanted to be
like my dad and go into the military," he said.
With that perspective at-hand, Crescenzo was determined to be a part
of the military service as well. After all, his father was an "infantry
man" who had served in the Vietnam War for five years.
Therefore, at 17, Crescenzo decided to pursue a college education at
a later time, and instead met with an army recruiter.
"I kind of threw myself on them," Crescenzo said, "because
they knew I was willing to start anywhere."
Crescenzo was accepted to begin ranger training and completed the task
successfully. On Sept. 8, 1989, he was admitted into the United States Army,
where the dream of reflecting his father had at last become a reality.
"My older brother and sister also went, but neither of them stayed
in the military," he said. "I wanted to stay."
In 1990, Crescenzo said he was directed toward the Middle East, where
he served as an integral part of the Persian Gulf War in Saudi Arabia. By
this point in his service, he had been promoted to serve as a specialist
in the war, taking responsibility for a squadron of eight other soldiers.
His squadron, with the accompaniment of several other military forces,
were the first to enter Kuwait City.
Upon completion of their operation, Crescenzo's squadron concluded successfully.
Each of the men in his squadron returned home with an absence of any wounds,
fatalities or illnesses. As a result, Crescenzo was awarded the Brown Star
award for managing his group successfully. The award is one of the most-recognized
merits of the service.
During a return charter flight to the States in 1991, Crescenzo met
his wife, MariaElena, aboard the plane. He admits that she has served a
significant part of his life as a whole.
"She is the greatest gift of all," he said, "more than
any medals."
The couple wed that year and has since been married, now parenting two
daughters, Valeria, 6, and Marcia, 5.
Crescenzo agrees his experience in the military has, in a sense, given
him an edge in life. The self-discipline he attained through training and
operations has taught him to take things one-at-a-time, as they arrive,
and to deal with the challenges of life little by little.
Among those challenges, Crenscenzo said that "being a father is
a great challenge.
"It's a challenge every day, teaching kids to do the right thing,
making sure of what they watch, explaining what's real and what's not,"
he said.
With success in mind, Crescenzo decided to tackle yet another goal within
his life -- to obtain a college education. At the time he left the Army
Reserves in 1995, Crescenzo began pursuing culinary arts at the California
Culinary Academy in San Francisco.
The interest and skills he had developed in the food industry as a teenager
would be expanded and developed further with this opportunity, as of February
of 1997 he graduated from the Culinary Academy.
As of April 12 of this year, Crescenzo had become a part of the University
of La Verne community, as he serves as a chef and adviser to the current
crew of the dining hall. Crescenzo said that, inclusive in goals at the
University, he plans to reorganize and create a series of new menus for
students, each revolving on the produce which is seasonal during each period
of the year.
In addition, as an individual who likes to flavor his meals, Crescenzo
hopes to teach the current crew more recipes and entrees made from scratch.
He wants to help students develop a taste for variety of entrees, desserts
and salads, but is open to the concerns of the students, as well.
"I like the challenge of cooking new things for students,"
Crescenzo said. "I want to start here for now, but if students don't
like it [a new recipe], I can change it back to what it was before."
