Cherry Hill, NJ, January 2007-Michael Nicholson, a former executive chef in New York and a long-time corporate chef in the cooking equipment market sector, has now joined AGA's Foodservice Equipment division.

In his new role, Nicholson will be responsible for increasing the market awareness and acceptance of Eloma's combi ovens, Infinity fryers and Stellar steamers. Though he will be based in New York City, Nicholson will work with specifiers, dealers, rep groups and operators across the country in a duel role as corporate executive chef and regional sales manager.

With decades of experience in foodservice operations and cooking equipment sales, Nicholson noted that his role as corporate executive chef is indicative of AGA's commitment to developing a chef-driven culture.

"When you're talking about professional cooking equipment, products in different 'hot-side' categories are just too complicated be bought out of a catalog," Nicholson noted. "Industry members need to see cooking demonstrations, they need to taste the food prepared by qualified chefs who also have the ability to explain the process by which moist heat or dry heat transfers affect specific products. That's where I come in, to answer their questions and help channel partners and end-users recognize the advantages provided by AFE equipment's energy-saving designs and unsurpassed performance."

Nicholson, a native of Long Island, NY, has been a member of the foodservice industry since the early 1980s. A 1984 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and San Jose State University, Nicholson served on the personal culinary staff of Ivana Trump at the Grand Hyatt New York while still an undergraduate. After leaving the CIA, he joined Four Seasons Hotels, starting in San Antonio, TX, as a chef de partie. Nicholson then moved back to New York to work at another Four Seasons property, The Pierre Hotel. His next position was with famed restaurateur Drew Nieporent at Montrachet, a four-star French bistro in Manhattan. This was followed by a stint as executive chef at Sam's Café, one of New York's dining hot spots in the late 1980s.

After holding various other culinary and management positions, including running his own restaurant for several years, Nicholson decided to leave the operations side of the business and its extreme time demands. His first job in the cooking equipment sector was with a European-based combi oven manufacturer, which he served as corporate chef and regional sales manager for the Eastern seaboard. He later worked as a corporate chef for a domestic equipment manufacturer, with similar sales responsibilities. Though he had no selling experience prior to joining the E&S industry, Nicholson quickly learned the ropes, winning sales awards in both of these positions. "It's easier to teach a chef how to sell than to teach a salesperson how to cook," he observed.

Nicholson stressed that his extensive industry experience has helped to make him particularly well-suited to address the concerns of operators in a wide variety of market sectors.

"I'm well-versed in the different types of production programs performed in schools, healthcare, a la carte restaurants, catering halls, resorts and the cruise ship industry," he related. "I've tailored menus for operations in each of these market segments, so I'm able to talk with everyone from chefs at white-tablecloth restaurants to school foodservice directors and consultants, and explain how equipment features can add consistency to food production, as well as create cost savings."