The kitchen is bustling. The aroma of pan-seared shrimp swirls around as Chef counts down the seconds until time is up. 

Senior Rowan Rexter remains calm, directing his teammates as they finalize their dish. He plates his shrimp on top of a carrot risotto. Smearing the spicy carrot puree on the plate and laying the pan-seared chicken thigh, he completes the dish.  Rexter raises his hands and looks at his work, ready to present his land and sea-themed dish to Chef Poindexter. 

Rexter’s culinary journey is a testament to his hard work and determination. At 16, his passion for cooking led him to start working at local French restaurant Belle. He began his career as a dishwasher but was soon placed as a prep cook. Today, he is the main sauté cook overseeing dinner and brunch service at Belle.

Rexter believes his love of cooking stems from his siblings. His three older brothers would bake and cook at home, and he would help out. 

His older brother, Tate, started cooking at local restaurants and eventually landed Rowan a job.

“The owner of [Belle] was friends with my brother when they were in high school. They also knew each other from other restaurants they’d worked at,” Rexter said. “My brother was making a joke and said, ‘Hey, do you need someone to work for you?’ A week later, I was hired.”

Rexter’s family is incredibly proud of him and enjoys watching his journey through cooking.

“Now he gets to see how far I’ve come, and he’s proud of that. He’s the one who showed me cooking, and that got me a job. My other brothers were impressed with how high-tech the stuff I was making was and just how much work I was putting in.”

Besides cooking at Belle, he enjoys experimenting at home with different baked goods and recipes to impress his girlfriend and her family. He delights in trying different recipes and works on them repeatedly until he finds the right one. 

Rexter’s girlfriend, senior Victoria Grimes, enjoys tasting his culinary creations. 

“My favorite cuisine would be Classical French, and Belle has helped me learn about it during dinner service. I’m learning how that cooking style works, about flavor profiles and textures.”

Rexter credits his four years in culinary classes for allowing him to experiment with different styles and ingredients. 

Culinary arts teacher chef Malik Pondexter has taught Rexter throughout his time at AHS. “He’s very creative in the kitchen and when it comes to food in general,” he said.

Culinary capstone students frequently participate in challenges involving mystery ingredient boxes in class. These challenges require students to work in groups and use these ingredients to create a unique and appetizing dish. The Mar. 15 mystery box contained chicken thighs, shrimp, bell peppers, basil, and green beans.

“For the mystery box, each person’s interpretation of the ingredients is up to them. I took inspiration from stuff I’ve prepped at Belle,” Rexter said. “The mystery box helps you think of how to incorporate each ingredient properly. I’ve seen many plates that look like cafeteria trays, where food is spread out and separated, whereas I try to ensure that everything is incorporated and works properly together.” 

Not only does the culinary class have mystery box challenges, but also Culinary Capstone events, where the class creates a restaurant-like environment to challenge and expose themselves to the harsh restaurant life. 

“It’s completely student-led. It allows you to be on your own and think about how to do stuff like we did. With the restaurant simulations, we had to come up with a menu and a cost for everything. We had to set up a time for the restaurant to happen and then send out invitations,” Rexter said. “Chef Pointdexter wasn’t involved at all. It’s good for creativity and learning to work individually.”

The culinary capstone class hosted five different dinners this year. Rexter led his team as the executive chef for the French menu on Nov. 4.

Poindexter complimented the food from that evening but noted that the ticket times for the first dinner were a bit long. 

Rexter takes his job and passion for cooking very seriously. He’s always cared deeply about the cleanliness of his station and shows it throughout his time cooking.

“I set up the kitchen all for myself to know exactly where everything is. I can then remember by muscle memory where every single utensil I’m going to need is.” 

However, Rexter is occasionally challenged by overambition, resulting in frustration when working with others in the kitchen.

“Something hard is trying to stay calm even when it gets busy and understanding that you can’t always be the fastest in every situation. You have to take your time and slowly push through a rush. I have to manage that I can’t do all of them simultaneously.” 

Rexter admits that the kitchen isn’t always the calmest environment for everyone. The speed of the industry can cause some anxiety, but there is always someone to help. 

“Kitchens are unforgiving and super stressful but you also have to mix dealing with people. My boss took me on as his own personal project to make me an excellent cook. The cooks there are usually pretty friendly,” Rexter said. 

People wonder why chefs still choose this line of work when it’s so “stressful” and “unforgiving.” Rexter said that there’s just something about it that captivates him. 

“Even after a long shift, you can talk to everyone afterward, and there’s a true sense of community. It’s also just something I love doing. I love being able to cook for people. That makes it all worth it,” he said. 

Next year he plans to attend CNU and major in business. While he considered going to culinary school, experiencing the challenges of the hospitality industry firsthand made him feel like he needed an alternative plan. 

Still, Rexter knows he will want to move around and experience different restaurants. 

“I think there’s a certain point where you plateau and need to go to new restaurants and learn new things. I think I’m going to stay for the summer, and then I’m going to go to a different restaurant,” Rexter said. “I might want to switch cuisines to learn more and incorporate those cuisines. I think Asian food would be cool to learn about.”

Trials and tribulations are common in the restaurant industry every day. Still, the community always comes together in the end, and that’s one of the many reasons Rexter has such a passion for cooking. 

“Even when it gets super stressful, and there’s lots of yelling and cussing going on, everything is forgiven at the end of the day. After service, you can’t hold a grudge against anyone because you’re all a team, and you got to work together,” Rexter said.