High school wrestler pursues culinary interests

At Naperville North High School, many teachers and students knew graduating senior Michael Albanese as wrestler, but some were more than a little startled to find out he's also a budding chef.

"They don't think of me as a chef," said Albanese, a 285-pound heavyweight wrestler. "It's a big surprise to most people."

Albanese plans to continue pursuing his wrestling interests in college, but his eyes are firmly set on a career in the culinary arts. He's taken every culinary course offered at Naperville North, gained acceptance at a top culinary school and enthuses over his job at North Central College's dining facility.

The college dining hall serves as many as 800 a day, he said.

"Being able to jump in and do that is awesome. It's just so much fun," he said. "Making the food in a fast manner, it's a great experience."

Albanese's part-time job at North Central includes everything from helping in the dish room and taking out the garbage to working on the salad bar and being a show cook who assembles made-to-order dishes in front of the students.

"He'll do anything that is asked of him," said Sidney Levitz, the college's executive chef.

"When somebody shows a desire or wants to learn, it's real easy to teach him stuff," added Bob Chesniak, the dining hall's production manager. "You show him once and he's got it down."

With a family that's three-quarters Italian and one-quarter Assyrian, Albanese said cooking always has been important in his home. He helps his mother, Michele, in the kitchen and often takes over when her working hours prevent her from preparing the family's meals. His sister, Lindsey, is the baker in the family.

"He actually cooks a lot more than my wife cooks. He's always in the kitchen," said his father, Lee. "He does a great job ... not only in preparing, but in cleaning up."

Albanese said his specialty is chicken parmigiana, which he serves with Italian green beans. He uses basic ingredients but makes sure they are fresh and eschews brand-name spices.

"I use spices from places I know are good," he said. "I mostly enjoy cooking Italian or continental foods."

Albanese said he watches some cooking shows on TV, but being a hands-on guy, he prefers preparing the food himself. He began cooking seriously two or three years ago.

"He is completely at ease in the kitchen, and leads and inspires the others around him," said Barbara Brotman, culinary arts teacher at Naperville North.

"I always felt bad for him during wrestling season, since he makes such wonderful creations, but he doesn't eat since he worries about making weight for his meets," Brotman added.

Albanese said he's set a couple wrestling records for his school and the state. He was a regional champ this year, but got bumped in the first round of the sectionals and didn't make it to the state meet.

Still, his wrestling skills helped win him consideration at Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI., a school well-known for its culinary arts program. Albanese said he was accepted but will postpone attending for two years while he takes cooking courses at the College of DuPage. He plans to maintain his wrestling skills by working with coaches at Naperville North to help train new heavyweights because COD does not have a wrestling program.

No doubt, he'll also continue cooking for family and friends.

"I always loved the fine art cuisine of it, not only making it good, but making it a lot," he said. "I think when you're actually able to do it, it's such a great accomplishment to see what you've done."