Employee of the week: Ryan ‘the pizza man’ Piekos
Have you dreamt of being a chef since childhood?
No, not really. I’ve always loved to cook. You know, (gesturing to self) obviously. When I was five years old, I was pushing up a stepladder next to my grandma at the stove and
cooking with her. I never knew I would pursue this later in life. I am half Mexican, so I grew
up learning to do all that first-hand. Getting my hands dirty, you know. Cooking is something that I can slip into easily. I love to cook, I feel I’m good at it. I don’t have too many complaints, you know.
What is the funniest thing you see students do while you work?
People tend to take the display plates. I’ve always warned them, you know, don’t take these plates—they will kill you. They’ve been there all day and probably aren’t real healthy
for you. It’s kind of mean, I guess, to think of it as funny. But when you warn ‘em and they
still do it, it’s like, “Hello?”
What is so fantastic about working at Whitman, as opposed to the restaurants you used to cook for?
The interactions! Most places you’re in the back, but we have an open kitchen, so we’re right there in front of you guys preparing your food. At other places you’re behind closed doors and you don’t see anybody. Working with just one other person can get old quick. Most of the students that I talk with are just really down to earth. They are just really open and I love to talk. In fact, I get in trouble for talking. I think that overall most of my students really like to be asked how their day is and how things are going, you know. When it’s finals, I can see when they walk in that it’s finals week because they all have this glazedover look. To give them a little distraction or encouragement goes a long way.
Which dish would even Bobby Flay be scared to challenge you to making?
Probably my barbecue chicken. I mean, when I barbecue, I don’t mess around. I’ve got chicken, steak, pork; I’ve got this monster grill at home. I like to entertain, I like to cook for a lot of people. I don’t like to cook for myself or me and my wife. We have five kids in the house right now, so when I throw stuff on the grill, it’s a pretty good variety so everybody can have a little bit of everything. I would have to say my barbecue.
What did you do before coming to Whitman?
I worked in nursing homes taking care of the elderly. When I was 28, I had a heart attack, and they said the job was too stressful. I am also a foster parent. I do that all year round. I started here in February 2005. Actually, most of my wife’s family works here. I heard of a job opening and I applied for it and slowly moved up from there. I started out just doing the floors and special cleaning and became a dishwasher, cook and now night supervisor.
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