MARQUETTE – Northern Michigan University’s Food Service Operations & Hospitality Leadership Program has opened its teaching kitchen, the North Fork, which will offer a fine dining experience that is entirely student created.

Residents have until April 22 to find a reservation or be served as a walk in.

“My job is to support them with anything they need,” said Teaching Assistant and North Fork reservation manager Ainsley Bonevelle. “So that they can have that extra time to get what they need done. You can also see me wandering around picking up dishes, sitting guests carrying rays basically wherever they need me.”

This is the pinnacle of NMU’s hospitality program this year, said Bonevelle. Those who attended the North Fork last year or the three mini-events held by the hospitality program will recognize a familiar face working in the kitchen, Orion Ingmire. Ingmire was the lead chef last year during the events and has returned this year as a TA and his distinct vegan culinary style can still be found in the current North Fork Menu.

“He has definitely helped them piece together recipes here and there,” said Bonevelle. “This semester started with HM120 kids giving us their big ideas with what they would like to put on and Chef Alden and Chef Orion helped them put on those things.”

The first course is the appetizer or amuse bouche changes week by week and is never the same. The second course is soup or salad, with options such as a lemon caesar salad, a blood orange blackberry salad, gazpacho, clear soup and whitefish chowder. The third course is the entree with options such as maple-smoked duck, filet mignon, gnocchi, cauliflower cutlet and shrimp scampi pasta. The fourth and final course was dessert and it included such items as chaga-late cake, strawberry entremet, panna cotta and profiterole beehives.

“The fine dining experience was incredible,” said NMU student and event attendee Daniel Powers. “I have not had the opportunity to go to such an attentive service place and to finally do it at my own college was incredible. And to see students in other areas of study, but the same year as me, give me this experience that I have only seen in movies is insane.”

The dinner comes to $55 per guest, in two steps: there is a $15 per person reservation deposit, and then at the end of the dinner the cost comes to $40 plus the cost of any dry bar items. Parties may not exceed more than six guests. Beginning this month walk-in guests are welcome to sit at the bar. Walk-in guests must arrive no later than 6:30 p.m., and service is first-come first-served. Walk-in guests will be served a full menu at a one-time charge of $55 plus the cost of any dry bar items. Reservations can be made at nmu.universitytickets.com. For those who enjoy the Hospitality Program and who are always looking forward to their events, in the next few years the Hospitality Program may yet return to hosting its main event series.

“I think in the next year or two we are going to try and get back into that,” said Bonevelle.