CAB® Education & Culinary Center Grand Opening

The Certified Angus Beef® Education & Culinary Center first opened its doors on Feb. 16 for a local open house in Wooster, OH. The 7,000-sq.-ft. facility offers an economy-scale kitchen and meat-fabrication area, as well as classrooms and meeting space.

The official grand opening of the Certified Angus Beef® Education & Culinary Center in Wooster, OH, was held May 4-5. Officially opened in February 2012, it’s a business-to-business, hands-on educational facility for the CAB® brand and its 14,000 partners across the globe.

The CAB® Education & Culinary Center is based in CAB’s global headquarters in Wooster, OH, and is designed to allow brand partners – from retailers to food service distributors to chefs and restaurateurs – to experience premium beef from gate to plate and develop strategies for continued business growth.

Prominently displayed in the CAB® Education & Culinary Center is the program’s mission statement: “To increase demand for registered Angus cattle through a specification-based, branded beef program to identify consistent, high-quality beef with superior taste.”

Scott Popovic has served as corporate chef, Certified Angus Beef® brand, since 2006. He educates cooks of all types about premium beef and sharing preparation tips, recipes and product information.

This image of USDA Select was among a display depicting the visual differences between USDA Select, USDA Choice, CAB®, and CAB® Prime. A set of 10, science-based quality standards ensure CAB’s premium quality and flavor, CAB® says. The standards address marbling, flavor, tenderness, consistency and appearance.

This image of USDA Choice was among a display depicting the visual differences between USDA Select, USDA Choice, CAB®, and CAB® Prime. A set of 10, science-based quality standards ensure CAB’s premium quality and flavor, CAB® says. The standards address marbling, flavor, tenderness, consistency and appearance.

This image of CAB® was among a display depicting the visual differences between USDA Select, USDA Choice, CAB®, and CAB® Prime. A set of 10, science-based quality standards ensure CAB’s premium quality and flavor, CAB® says. The standards address marbling, flavor, tenderness, consistency and appearance.

This image of CAB ®Prime was among a display depicting the visual differences between USDA Select, USDA Choice, CAB®, and CAB® Prime. A set of 10, science-based quality standards ensure CAB’s premium quality and flavor, CAB® says. The standards address marbling, flavor, tenderness, consistency and appearance.

Prior to a custom butchery session for 20 food and livestock media members, Phil Bass, corporate meat scientist for the CAB® brand, provided an introduction to the beef carcass and its various primal and subprimals. In the background is John Stika, CAB® brand president.

Clint Walenciak, director of packing for CAB LLC, helps guide livestock editor Belinda Ary through the nuances of separating the rib section. Four teams of about six food and livestock industry writers were led through the butchery process by CAB® specialists.

A table full of tomahawk steaks fashioned from a CAB® carcass.

An East Coast food editor proudly displays the tomahawk steak she fashioned from the rib section her team worked on.

During the grand opening’s five-course dinner on May 5, attendees were treated to appetizers, four beef courses and a fifth course of a multitude of desserts created by top U.S. chefs. Among the appetizers was this CAB® tartare with quail egg on chive-tip toast point.

Chef Michelle Brown provided the third course, which was a morel-encrusted CAB® spinalis topped with bourbon carmelized onions and mushrooms, gourmet cheese blend and veal jus, accompanied with handmade wild mushroom ravioli with sherry cream and iced spinach.

Chef Rory Schepesi, Boot Hill Saloon & Grill, Vega, TX, created this CAB® ribeye filet topped with smoked salmon over creamy herb couscous and pesto sautéed summer squash, drizzled with a lemon-infused beurre blanc.

Following the dinner, all the chefs took a bow and described their creations and culinary philosophies, followed by questions from the audience. Among the chefs were, from left, CAB’s Scott Popovic; Howie Kleinberg, executive chef, bulldog Barbecue, Miami; Michelle Brown, executive chef, Jag’s Steak & Seafood, West Chester, OH; Rory Schepisi, executive chef, Boot Hill Saloon & Grill, Vega, TX; and Michael Ollier, corporate chef, CAB® brand.

This Tennessee vanity license plate from 1994 is on display in the CAB® Education & Culinary Center’s refreshment area. The CAB® brand was created 34 years ago (1978) and is the world’s oldest and largest brand of beef. The product is found in nearly 14,000 retailers and restaurants in 43 countries. CAB® is a non-profit owned by the farmers and ranchers of the American Angus Association, and its mission is to increase the number of registered Angus cattle in the U.S. through a premium branded beef program.