Culinary arts students at Madison open coffee shop at high school

MADISON TOWNSHIP — Kyleigh Reiter has quickly learned to be a barista.

"Before we started, I didn't know anything about it," said Reiter, a junior at Madison Comprehensive High School.

Now, she has even started drinking coffee.

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Reiter and her junior and senior classmates celebrated the official opening Wednesday of Common Grounds, a coffee bar inside the Ramble Inn, which is Madison's culinary arts restaurant.

Reiter said her personal favorite drinks are the strawberry-raspberry smoothies and the Ram Rumble, a shaken espresso.

The culinary arts program was brought back last year. It has been a most welcome addition.

"The kids are super excited," said culinary arts teacher Nikki Mosiychuk, better known as Chef Mo. "Last year, it was in the works. This year, we got everything in line.

"The kids got to pick out the decor. They're little entrepreneurs."

Common Grounds features 10 tables, eight of them circular, and soft lighting. A small tree adorned with Valentine's decorations adds to the mood.

A total of 13 seniors and 16 juniors are part of the operation. The seniors sported chef's jackets for the grand opening, while the juniors wore black T-shirts.

Common Grounds offers smoothies, coolers and baked goods

Common Grounds offers coffee, smoothies and coolers, among other drinks, along with baked goods such as scones and brownies. The seniors do their own baking on Mondays.

Last Friday, Madison held a professional development day. Five of the students came in on a day off from school to work at Common Grounds.

"The teachers absolutely loved it," Mosiychuk said.

The students do, too. They gathered around the coffee bar for a group photo before Sam the Ram, the school's mascot, cut the ribbon to signify the grand opening.

Andrew Ditlevson, assistant principal at the high school, ordered a regular coffee "with just a little cream" and a mango muffin.

"It was per the recommendation of the chef," he said of the mango muffin. "All the desserts are just so good. The thing that I appreciate about all their baked goods is they make them right here. Nothing is thawed out."

Jake Grove is the director of career technical education at Madison.

"This is a great opportunity for our students," he said. "It's been a long time coming. We've had some hoops we've had to jump through."

School hopes to open Common Grounds for events

Grove said both Common Grounds and the Ramble Inn are certified. He hopes to open the coffee bar for events and athletic contests at the school.

For now, it is open from 7 to 7:30 a.m. and during the lunch periods, from 10:41 a.m. to 12:11 p.m.

Senior citizens currently come to the Ramble Inn once a month. Common Grounds will make the trip even more appealing.

"I want it to be self-sustainable," Mosiychuk said.

The students don't earn money at Common Grounds, but they get credit hours and, more importantly, valuable job experience.

A couple of the culinary arts students are working at Hudson and Essex, an upscale restaurant in downtown Mansfield.

Kenzie Niemiec started as a dishwasher in May before moving to the baking side in January. She is the assistant to the pastry chef.

She said she has learned the value of teamwork while studying culinary arts. Niemiec looks forward to adding Common Grounds to her resume.

"I'm happy that it's open," she said. "We were trying to get it junior year, but the planning took a little longer."

Owen McGregor, another senior, also works at Hudson and Essex as a grill cook. He has been there for four months.

"A lot of the skills that I use there are ones that I learned here," McGregor said.

He plans to major in food science at Ohio State after graduation. He said Common Grounds will help his fellow students.

"I think it's a good experience for the younger kids," McGregor said. "It gives them a fast-paced environment."

mcaudill@gannett.com

419-521-7219

Twitter: @MNJCaudill

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Madison Comprehensive High School opens student coffee shop