A select group of students and a few teachers were lucky enough today to sniff, and wolf down, cooking much better than typical cafeteria fare. The group took part in a cooking demonstration by Belgian chef Fabrice de Backer.

De Backer, who is the Executive Chef for Club House Electrabel in Brussels, Belgium, came to East as part of Aramark's International Guest Chef 2005 program. He spoke almost entirely in French to a group of approximately thirty students taking the various level French classes at East.

He prepared two dishes: beef strips with forest mushroom and preserved shallots and Belgian chocolate cake. Samples of both dishes were made available to students and staff to try.

After the cooking presentation, de Backer fielded questions, in French, from students about topics ranging from his profession and Belgian food to his impressions of the United States.