RACINE, Wis. — Dozens of Case High School seniors put their love of cooking to the test. Wednesday night, they opened up and ran their own food trucks inside the school's cafeteria where they received hands-on experience serving hundreds of hungry customers.
"It's definitely something that none of us have experienced. I would love to open up my own bakery or restaurant one day," said senior Alyson Treu.
At each station a cardboard cutout of a food truck could be seen with the name of each group's restaurant displayed front and center.
Students came up with the names for their food trucks that represented cultures from across the world, including HanoiSub. Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam, where four seniors cooked a Vietnamese staple of pork belly bánh mì.
"We made Greek food," said Treu. "We looked up what the Greek god or goddess of food was and that's where the name Demeter's comes from, who is the goddess of food in Greece."
Culinary instructor at Case High School, Erica Buskirk, says her seniors came up with the idea to host the food truck festival for the first time as their final assignment they needed to pass before graduating in June.
"They've become my kids and watching them and growing with them is unbelievable. And it makes me feel like a proud mom," said Buskirk.
Javier Mendez and Christopher Espinoza have been taking Buskirk's class all four years. They say they're looking forward to the day when they can represent their culture through their love of cooking.
"I grew up eating my grandma's cooking similar to this," said Mendez.
"I want to cook for people and maybe start a business," said Espinoza.
"Food is love. No matter the culture, no matter the color, no matter anything that comes across, food is love," added Buskirk
All the money raised from the food truck festival will be invested in the school's culinary program
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