Stanford Eating Clubs

Staff

Christina Cruz Managing Director Born and raised in Northern California Christina has been the Executive Chef at the Eating Clubs for the past three years. Before her time at the Eating Clubs, Christina has worked in several upscale restaurants throughout the Peninsula, San Francisco and Napa, including One Market, Julia's Kitchen, Town Restaurant and Zibbibo. Christina strives to bring her background in fine dining to the Eating Clubs table by emphasizing the use of fresh and organic products whenever possible. Christina spends most of her free time cultivating her physical, mental and spiritual health through various means and the rest dodging The Man. Christina holds a BA degree in English from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo ('02) and a Culinary Arts degree from the California Culinary Academy ('04). Her office is located to the right of the Terrace Café so please stop by and say hi.
Elijah Gentry Los Arcos Executive Chef Hailing from the great state of Alaska, Chef Elijah is also a new addition to the Eating Clubs. Along with a hard-working mentality, Chef Elijah brings with him a versatile range of culinary skill. "I've worked everywhere. I have done everything from greasy-spoon truckstop diners in the Arctic to fine dining quality country clubs in the Peninsula," says Chef Elijah. His specialties include southeast Asian food and a fusion of Indian and Thai "with a hint of the islands." Chef Elijah likes to spend his free time conducting research and development of the malt liquor variety, throwing backyard BBQ's at his house and "chilling with my great wife, Farzeena."	Brian Kelly El Toro Executive Chef Chef Brian is a new and welcome addition to the Eating Clubs. Originally from New York City, Brian made the cross-country drive to California last spring to "get away from the East Coast weather." Chef Brian collaborates with Chef Elijah to create diverse cuisines for your eating pleasure. Chef Brian studied at the esteemed Culinary Institute of America and specializes in Northern Italian cuisine. He creates most of his sauces from scratch using the best products available. Chef Brian resides in Sunnyvale, CA, and his hobbies include skydiving, painting, playing music, and having fun — because hey, life is too short.
Guadalupe "Lupita" Salazar Terrace Chef Originally from Saloa, Mexico, Chef Lupita now resides in Redwood City with her husband and three children. Lupita is one half of the great baking team in the Terrace Café (her sister Maricela is the second half). She has been baking cookies and pastries for the Eating Clubs for the past eleven years and "disfruto mi trabajo mucho" (enjoys her job very much). Chef Lupita enjoys cooking as well as baking and counts tamales, posole, and enchiladas as her specialty. She likes to spend her free time with her adorable children, watching movies, and listening to her favorite Banda artists.	Maricela Huelgas Terrace Chef Whether it's baking cookies, muffins, or "pan dulce", it's apparent that Chef Maricela puts her heart and soul into making delicious pastries for the Terrace Café. Chef Maricela has been baking for the Eating Clubs for the past 8 years (that's a lot of cookies) and loves the fact that she is able to work with family. Like her sister Lupita, Maricela is also from Sinaloa, Mexico and now resides in Redwood City. She likes to spend her free time taking walks, watching televsion and "peliculas de Cantinflas".
Alma Rodriguez Zamora Los Arcos Prep Cook Originally from Culiacan in Sinaloa, Mexico, Alma lives in San Mateo, CA with her three children. Always a helping hand, Alma ensures the freshness and cleanliness of the Eating Clubs fruits and veggies and assists Chef Elijah with the preparation of daily meals. Alma adopts the work hard, play hard mentality as she counts dancing, exercising, writing, playing sports, learning about computers, and going to the beauty salon with her children as her favorite activities.	Sylvia Banda El Toro Prep Cook Although Sylvia has been working for the Eating Clubs for a short time, her bright smile and pleasant attitude has made her an Eating Clubs favorite. Along with Alma, Sylvia ensures the freshness and cleanliness of the Eating Clubs fruits and veggies and assists Chef Brian with the preparation of daily meals. Originally from Mexico City, Mexico, Sylvia now resides in San Jose, CA, and enjoys spending her free time chilling with her family and throwing back an occasional cervesa with her homies.
The Nova Boys Dishwashers, Repairmen, Goundskeepers, Gardeners, Lifters of Heavy Things…. The backbone of SEC and pride of Guatemala, Erasmo and Filiberto Nova can be seen wearing a variety of hats (although both prefer baseball caps) around the Eating Clubs. Whether it be washing dishes, repairing broken equipment, or tending to the SEC herb garden, the Nova boys are on the job. The two brothers' helpful and cheerful attitudes have made them a favorite among Eating Clubs managers past and present. Erasmo likes to spend his free time fishing and drinking the occasional cervesa and Filiberto likes to cook his favorite pasta dish and catch a flick.

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