The Herald - Lakelse Hotel Supplement WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 1972 ng par excellence _ LAKELSE HOTEL DINING-ROOM MANAGER, Ken Araki with Edith Cowden, owner of the Terrace Health Club, admiring the trophy awarded fall. KEN ARAKI], is an extra-ordinary man doing an -extra-ordinary job as manager of the Lakelse Hotel's exceptional Dining room and restaurant. Ken, you would expect to find in in his dining- room checking on tables, or in the kitchen con- sulting with his Head-Chef Sear Fong and of course this is where you will find him most often. Ken as the Most Valuable Coach during the Kitimat Softball Tournament this However, don’t be a bit surprised, if you are a soft- | ball fantoseehim standing toe to toe with umpires violently protesting a close call made on one of the players.. All this because Ken is an active sport- sman and has capped an already colorful year in 1972 by being named the Most Valuable Coach in this fall’s Kitimat Softball Tournament. — - The restaurant business is first in Ken Araki’s mind most of thetime, however, and he has become as a perfectionist. The remarkable fact is that Ken - has accomplished this in his usual calm soft-spoken manner and has been able to maintain a keen team spirit with his staff both in the kitchen and on the floors of the dining room, and the restaurant-coffee ar, He was born in Cumberland on Vancouver Island of Japanese parents and quickly became interested in restaurants as a career. He gained his original experience as a manager of catering services with B.C. Hydro construction projects and has been with the new Lakelse Hotel since last May. -_ SEAR FONG, Head Chef _at the Lakelse Hotel. | One of the inovations that Ken brought to the . Lakelse Hotel dining room and restaurant was the : ‘institution of the new famous Chinese Food ~ smorgasborg. More and more people are taking” advantage of this service where they can select the: particular dishes that please them and often go back for seconds. ‘While Chinese food is a specialty of the Lakelse ’ Hotel it is only one of several. In fact Ken is con- . sidering adding. Japanese. food to the menu and patrons. can soon expect to savour delicious — Sukiyaki. Lobster and Steaks are also the crowning glory of - the dining-room bill of fare. Qn the week-end customers: have become addicts of the special ; ira rib roast served [by the talented and pleasant sta “Head-Chef Sear Fong was brought to Terrace from Vancouver to take charge of the kitchen, He was- employed at the Lee Belle Restaurant there’ _ when Ken obtained his services and as Ken noted it .' was a great day for’ Terrace gourmets when Sear . came to this.area." - : -Sear.was. born i in Hong Kong coming to Canada a fifteen: years ago. He ‘said that he does ‘not find :. much difference in Chinese food as it is prepared in : Canada’ and the methods employed. in his native «. Hong Kong. In fact Sear makes sure of this as he we obtains all authentic ingredients from import Fi hotises. in Vancouver from. Hong Kong to ensure MRS, MARILYN OMAN and LAURIE- ANN BAKER at the famed Chinese that his customers are able to, enjoy Chinese Food ee at its finest.: ae » One of his masterpieces according to habituees of the Lakelse Hotel dining room is Chinese deep fried: - prawns in tomatoes. Another which is.most called for by a discriminating clientele-is his deep fried oysters with his own special sauce. . Chef Fong is also very particular in preparing Canadian foods and gets all his meat direct from Edmonton to assure the finest cuts and tenderness. Sear is assisted by two other Chinese cooks, Johnnie Chan who has been in Canada six years, and who was also born in Hong Kong. He cooked at. Grand Duke and at.the Rendezvous in Nanaimo. He is single but looking for a wife. The.other,also - from Hong Kong is Don Mah, also single but with 20. years experience as a cook. He is also a qualified bar-man. Ken himself is married and the father of five children. He gives preat credit for the room’s success to his staff, the whole secret, he comments is pleasing.the public and to do-this you have to have superlative - people working with you all along the line. ‘The cooks must prepare the food with excellence to the customers particular taste, it mus be pleasing to the eye on the plate and it~ must be served pleasantly by the plate ‘waitresses. ; In fact Ken himself .is in the process of taking another of many courses, this one sponsored by Manpower involving hospitality in the restaurant’ . business. He is going to try and get a course for waitresses at the Lakelse Hotel at some future date through this same department of povernment. He is of the opinion that no matter how expert you are these courses do a Jot to increase efficiency and hospitality by making the persons involved more conscious of the little things. One of the greatest assets to the Lakelse’ Hotel Dining room is Lil Kenny, who is a perfectionist in setting up the food in a plate. The girls in the dining .room praised Lil for the pains she takes in setting . out the food with such things as cutting tomatoes with a rose effect etc. Lil, who is a graduate of the Terrace Vocational School cookery department tells us that this course was of great value to her. Despite the fact that, she was already a professional cook when she took the: course she credits it with her becoming more - aware of. the fineries of the art of cooking. Lil said that it is so very important to’ make. changes in the way a certain plate is served. She, cannot abide places where a spoonful of cold slaw is’ -: invariably set at the side of the plate day in and day : . out. This plate should be changed daily she advises - and it makes the meal so much more pleasant with © - very llttle * additional effort on the fe part of the cook, core ‘popular. dining-room at -Lakelse Hotel. - smorgasborg, ‘a specilaty’ of ‘the = Vs Te Ets Ait ca. hte. ae hadi edith AER EET 09 it at By Pe Mg BW et te Snipa ; : eae