OCC Orchard Ridge Campus Restaurant Profiled on 'Dining in the D'

The (OCC) Orchard Ridge culinary program will be front and center at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in an episode of the WTVS, Channel 56, show Dining in the D.

Susan Baier, director of the Culinary Studies Institute, said the taping was done last winter during the program's Caribbean night dinner.

OCC operates two restaurants on the Farmington Hills campus: Reflections Restaurant, which is open for lunch Thursdays from Sept. 8-Dec. 8, and Ridgewood Cafe & Bakery, open for lunch Tuesdays and Wednesdays from Sept. 13-Dec. 7.

The culinary program also presents special theme dinners, such as the taped event, during the fall and winter.

"They talked to the chefs about the menu and what the guests were going to be served," Baier said. "They also talked to some of the student workers."

The culinary program's retail bakery was also open that evening and is included in the show, she said.

"They did a lot of different shots of what we're all about here," Baier said.

Dining in the D highlights three or four restaurants in each episode, hosted by Tom Keshishian (known as Chef Tom to viewers). He takes viewers from the front of the house to the kitchens and talks with owners and chefs about their restaurants, signature dishes and the interesting stories behind them.

“This has been my first foray in TV, and I’ve really enjoyed talking chef-to-chef with some of the truly remarkable talent in the Detroit area,” said Keshishian, who lives in Walled Lake. “There are so many interesting stories about what goes on in these places, especially the food, that foodies can’t get anywhere else."

A total of 39 restaurants are featured in the series, which was launched in May; 16 are in the city of Detroit. For more information, visit dptv.org.