Cooking up a storm
Every Monday, I will share a resident of the South Bay contributing to making our community a better place.
Today’s MCM title belongs to Parhom Niaki who is the head chef for a sorority at USC and is in charge of creating nutritious meals five days a week for the 142 sorority sisters.
Parhom,32, is California born and raised. Growing up, Parhom didn’t know he wanted to be a chef. He did however know he had a love for food and creating dishes since he was a child. “As a kid, I used to make pasta and pizza but I loved making the sauces. I always did it by myself,” he says. Therefore, he decided to pursue culinary arts as a career.
Although his parents are his role models, he says his grandfather was behind his inspiration to cook. “My grandpa was my inspiration because he loved to cook in order to bring the family together. He did it for love of family,” he says.
Parhom a two-year program where he was trained in all basic skills from cutting, making sauces, cooking meats, breakfast cookery, basic baking, charcuterie and meat fabrication cooking. His classes consisted of four hours a day, four times a week.
Similar to other courses, there were many tests involved. In order to graduate from the school, you’re required to prepare a dish with a protein starch, veggie, and sauce in under an hour. “If you are going into this field, all I can tell you is don’t be stagnant, go to different chefs and restaurants to up your game,” Parhom says.
Today, Parhom is the head chef for the prestigious California based university, USC. Parhom says that the USC job just fell into his lap, after an old classmate contacted him about the position and he felt he was the best fit. His schedule consists of working 53 hours a week, Monday through Friday. He begins daily at 8 and ends at 7 p.m. “I serve them lunch and dinner, made fresh every day. My sous chef makes them breakfast in the morning and I have one prep/ dishwasher that has no cooking experience till now,” he says.
As an executive chef, Parhom creates the menu, orders the products, makes an inventory of products, maintains the budget, cooks the sauces and proteins, and also is responsible for making the foods for girls with dietary restrictions. Such as, being aware of any allergies the girls may have. “We have girls with gluten, soy, salt, pepper, nut, etc. allergies. I usually just find ways to make them meals based on those allergies so there is no real way of making it, I just having to adjust it,” he says.
Parhom says, “The best part of the job is getting the gratitude from the girls, it’s not something that happens often in the restaurant industry.”
When Parhom is not cooking up dishes for the girls at USC, he lives a simple life. “I go to the gym, I play with my dogs, see my friends and watch movies,” he says. Parhom’s goal is to start his own food truck business, creating a new genre of food and eventually turning it into a standing restaurant. “With a food truck, it’s a good way to get your name out there without needing a lot of capital,” he says.
Thank you, Parhom, for providing the young girls at USC and our future leaders, nutritious meals to keep them focused during their busy academic days.
“Being a chef isn’t the glamorous career people see on TV. It’s hard work, long hours, and lots of dedication but you have to love the art, not just do it.” – Pahom Niaki