WSU Executive Chef Michael Amore works to express himself through his cooking.

Amore, who is the executive chef of University Catering, arrived in Pullman last June with 30 years of food service experience.

Amore has owned and operated two restaurants, manufactured his own marinara sauce, became a certified wine sommelier, and co-hosted a cooking radio show.

One of Amore’s biggest accomplishments was becoming a certified executive chef. The tests to attain this honor include a knowledge test and a four-hour cooking test. Amore said the experience of having a master chef judge his work for four hours was humbling.

Past working experiences also prepared him for his job, he said. Being a chef at a university involves a considerable amount of negative feedback, but Amore felt prepared for the environment after working at an assisted living facility.

Tenants would come to him with their diaries and describe all the ways they were dissatisfied with the food, Amore said.

“I don’t get defensive anymore,” he said.

WSU Dining Services wanted Amore for his people skills as well as his wide range of cooking abilities.

“We were looking for an individual who would go out and greet people and make them feel at ease, and Michael was the perfect fit for us,” Director of Dining Services Gary Coyle said. “Michael is very, very creative, and he has helped us add some new twists and angles to our catering.”

Amore’s job requires him to work in several kitchens all across campus, which is a handful to manage.

“Just learning the names of all the buildings I only accomplished about a month ago,” he said.

After Amore gets a firm grasp on his administrative duties, he is looking forward to making personal connections with his clients.

“Once these things start becoming a little easier, then I can start going out and engaging groups more because that is a component of what a chef does,” Amore said. “They don’t teach that in school, but that is one of the things we do, we try to put a face to the food.”

As a chef new to the area, Amore said he is interested in learning the culinary idiosyncrasies of the Palouse.

The opportunity to test limits and discover the community’s palate when it comes to catering is exciting, Amore said.

Amore’s co-workers appreciate his commitment to staying fresh and creative, especially when he caters for the President’s house.

“Every single one of those events, he crafts a new menu,” Catering Manager Nathan Child said. “It’s not a cyclical menu. He tries to craft something truly unique every time he goes to the President’s house.”

In his first eight months in Pullman, Amore said he has been grateful for his staff and the other chefs he works with.

“This is a great campus to work on and for,” he said. “Just getting to work with all the other dining hall chefs is a true honor, and I look forward to coming to work every day.”