In this episode of Schooled Radio, we dish with Mitchell Sjerven, a faculty member at the School of Culinary Arts at Santa Barbara City College, where he teaches restaurant ownership. Santa Barbara loves its food scene (we're huge fans of Sjerven's own restaurant, bouchon)—but running a successful eatery is anything but easy.
A thirty-five year restaurant veteran, Sjerven’s training in the restaurant field is the old-fashioned kind: started as dishwasher at fifteen, then prep cook, followed by line cook, busboy, waiter, maître’d, manager, general manager and, finally, in 1996, owner.
Sjerven is active in promoting tourism to the Santa Barbara region and serves on Board of Directors for Visit Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber of Commerce.
His enthusiasm for the burgeoning Santa Barbara area wine industry is unparalleled in the local restaurant industry, earning him the unofficial title of ‘Ambassador’ of Santa Barbara Wine & Food. Sjerven has lectured on Santa Barbara wine, food and tourism in the UK, Germany, Canada and Australia and has served on the Board of Directors for the World of Pinot Noir.
Sjerven graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a degree in International Relations, Political Science. He completed his studies with a year abroad, interning at the European Parliament in 1990 under the President of the Human Rights Commission while simultaneously honing his passion for language, food and hand-crafted Belgian ale.
With wife, Amy, daughters Madeline and Caroline, Mitchell has been a Santa Barbara resident since 1985.
Bits of Music You May Notice: Yo La Tengo, "Georgia Vs. Yo La Tengo," Coleman Hawkins, "O Pato (The Duck)," The Handsome Family, "The Snow White Diner."
This episode first aired on 91.9 KCSB-FM on February 10, 2022.
