There are many ways to be artistic in one’s work. And Torrance Memorial
Medical Center chefs Jun Peña and Sam Sellona have found an outlet
that’s as delicious as it is imaginative: food sculpture. Johanna
Johnson-Gilman, director of food and nutrition services, says Chef Peña
brings out his skill (which he realized during his culinary training)
particularly on special occasions.
“He uses his ability to create art on our plates all of the time,”
Johnson-Gilman says. “Then on special occasions, such as board luncheons,
donor luncheons, nicer dinners, he will create something amazing that
usually goes along with the theme of the event. He’ll make birds
out of sweet potatoes or roses out of watermelons and beets. For a recent
Honda Evening Under the Stars gala, he created a tropical sculpture that
mirrored the evening’s Hawaiian theme. I don’t know what he
sees in these vegetables, but it’s quite beautiful.”
Peña, who is Torrance Memorial’s catering chef, formerly worked
on cruise ships, according to Johnson-Gilman, and that’s where he
developed his expertise at food sculpture. He and executive chef Sellona
work side-by-side creating the bigger structures.
“And humble as they both are, I think they really like seeing the
reaction they get—how much people love it. They get a lot of satisfaction.
They are both quite artistic. Chef Jun has even entered and won competitions,
but we usually hear about it afterwards. He’s very shy.”
Visitors rarely get to see the sculptures, but they often are on display
during the Holiday Festival events. Also, she shares, “During April,
which is National Nutrition month, we’ll have a booth set up outside
each of our cafeterias, and we try to dress them up. And we often get
a sculpture for National Cancer Survivors’ Day.” •