Culinary Jew: Avrohom Siegel

By CIA Chef

Student-Athlete Spotlight: Avrohom Siegel ’10
Degree: B.P.S.
Major: Culinary Arts
Intercollegiate Sport: Tennis
Hometown: Virginia Beach, VA

Nothing, not even a chef’s knife, feels more natural in Avrohom’s hands than a tennis racket. He’s been honing his serve, volley, and smash since the tender age of three. His passion for the sport is obvious when you hear him speak.

“Before the CIA, I played a number of tournaments on a USTA (United States Tennis Association) junior circuit throughout the Mid-Atlantic—Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, DC, and parts of North Carolina,” he says.

His history in the kitchen goes back almost as far as his time on the court—to days “playing in the kitchen” with his mother. And that’s all cooking was for him at first—a pastime like tennis.

Avrohom headed first toward a career in diplomacy and, as he studied at Boston University, set his sights on law school. But after earning his bachelor’s degree in history, he found himself reevaluating his career path and looking back at how much fun he had as a youngster in the kitchen.

For the first time, Avrohom seriously considered the benefits of a culinary career and decided to take the plunge—and commit to another few years of college. He chose the CIA because he “made the decision to go for the best.” He was sold on the benefits of a CIA education, but it’s been the welcoming campus community that has mattered most.

As a young father and practicing Jew, Avrohom needed the CIA to support his religious and family life. There have been challenges, such as his kosher diet precluding him from tasting in the kitchens, but he says the college has been nothing but supportive. During his Wine Studies class, CIA instructors researched and provided 25 kosher wines to ensure Avrohom’s participation in the class.

Avrohom has been working to expand the campus’s knowledge of kosher practices by founding the Kosher Korner. His goals have been twofold: “First, to help Jewish students be Jewish. And second, to reach out to the student body and educate.” These activities are honing Avrohom’s skills for what he intends to make his nitch in the industry: kosher dining. After graduation, he plans to work as a consultant, but eventually would prefer to establish his own business. “In this market, I’d rather work for myself than rely on someone else. I can decide my own fate.”

As Avrohom prepares himself to graduate and face all the decisions yet to come, he still finds time for the CIA tennis team. Why? “Besides the obvious physical benefits, it’s a built-in release, a way to not be so drowned by the schedule you’re in,” he explains. “You go out and you wack the fuzzy and it’s all good.”

He was “all good” and then some on the tennis court. “I was the team’s MVP for 2009. The strongest part of my game is my big serve and my quickness around the court. I—as well as any tennis player out there—am constantly working on my footwork and my mental toughness.”

That mental toughness will come in handy after he graduates—whether he’s serving for the match or serving world-class cuisine.

—Siegel is the student president of Chabad Dutchess, NY, which works with students of The CIA (Culinary Institute of America), Directed by Rabbi Hanoch Hecht his wife Tzivie.