Robbert Bouman

A Tasteful Education

Robbert Bouman
Professor of Culinary Arts, North Campus

Chef Robbert Bouman enjoys opening students’ eyes and palates to the world of wine and culinary arts. He has worked in the hospitality industry for 25 years, mainly as an executive chef but also as a foodservice manager. He was born and raised in the Netherlands, and in 1986 he graduated from the Heerlen Hotel and Catering College. Chef Bouman interned at the renowned Villa Rozenrust, a Michelin-starred restaurant, before leaving for an internship in the United States, the first graduate of his school to do so.

After completing his internship, Bouman was chef of the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel’s “1913 Room” in Michigan, and then executive chef for Warner Foods, Inc. in Pennsylvania. He arrived in Jacksonville in 1986 to work first as executive chef of the Jacksonville Marriott Hotel, and then as executive chef for Barnett Bank’s executive dining room.

Chef Bouman is certified as an Executive Chef through the American Culinary Federation, the largest and most prestigious professional organization of chefs in the United States. He has traveled to Germany as part of an international guest chef exchange, and has been featured on Home and Garden Television (HGTV), the Sunshine Network and National Public Radio. He specializes in Indonesian food, and teaches a multitude of classes including baking, buffet and catering management, garde manger and food production.

The perfect complement to fine dining is wine, and Chef Bouman is equally knowledgeable in both. He’s certified as a sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers in London. A sommelier is a wine expert; he or she advises restaurant patrons on appropriate selections to go with each course of a meal. Chef Bouman first developed an interest while working in a wine shop as a teenager and has maintained that interest by incorporating it into the classroom. “I really enjoy teaching about wine and how it relates to and interacts with food,” he says. “I love to see culinarians develop an interest and appreciation for wine.”

“Most rewarding is to be able to involve culinary arts students in ‘real world’ community projects through upscale fund raisers,” he says. “All of a sudden everything comes together in a real live setting: lecture, lab, time restraints, obstacles, creativity, team work and satisfied guests.”

“We have done catering projects at the Jacksonville Museum of Modern Art (JMOMA), the College’s 40th Anniversary Gala and the one I am most proud of, an Indonesian Tsunami relief banquet in which we were able to raise enough money to build and equip six fishing boats that were lost in the storm.”

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