CALIFORNIA CULINARY ACADEMY INSTRUCTOR MEDALS SILVER, INTERNATIONAL ICE SCULPTURE COMPETITION

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – (January 18, 2008) -- California ice carvers brought home a trophy for second place from the International Ice Sculpture Competition, held in Harbin, China. California Culinary Academy’s Chef Mark Davis, and his carving partner, Ed Winslow, returned Wednesday, after winning the Mayor’s Special Award Trophy at this annual competition. This was their second award winning trip having garnered the Creativity Prize at the same competition in 2007.

California Culinary Academy Chef Mark Davis and carving partner, Ed Winslow, created a gracefully intricate ice sculpture for the 2008 International Ice Sculpture Competition in Harbin, China. Davis and Winslow placed second in the competition, for the second year in a row.

Davis, an internationally recognized ice carver, has won numerous medals in world championship ice sculpting competitions over the last 12 years; representing the United States in both the 1998 Nagano Olympics and the 2004 Salt Lake City Olympics. A chef instructor at the California Culinary Academy since 1991, Davis teaches basic skills classes as well as all of the Garde Manger classes at the Academy.

“I am always impressed with the industriousness of the Chinese populace and their embracement of the cold harsh winter. They are out in droves and it’s just three degrees above zero.”

Each year since 1986, Harbin, China, the provincial capitol of Heilong Jiang province, has hosted the world’s premier ice and snow festival -- more than 200-acres of ice and snow fill parks and venues with structures approaching 30 stories tall.

Last year, Chef Davis and the California Culinary Academy presented the Harbin Restaurant Association with a crystal vase engraved with the words “Fellowship in Culinary Excellence” in both English and Chinese script as a token of friendship and cooperation in the world of culinary education.

About California Culinary Academy:
California Culinary Academy (CCA) was established in 1977 in San Francisco and formed a partnership with the world-renowned Le Cordon Bleu in 1998. CCA’s main campus is located in Potrero Hill. The satellite campus boasts the Historic California Hall, and operates a student-run restaurant called the Caręme Room. CCA offers Associate of Occupational Studies degrees in Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts and Le Cordon Bleu Hospitality and Restaurant Management, and a certificate in Le Cordon Bleu Pâtisserie and Baking. CCA is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT). For more information, visit www.baychef.com.

About Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America
Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America is the largest provider of quality culinary arts education. Few institutions possess the distinguished reputation of Le Cordon Bleu, which established its first culinary school in Paris in 1895. For more information about Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America, go to: www.lecordonbleuschoolsusa.com.