A teenage chef and cancer survivor who learned some of his culinary skills via a Make-A-Wish gift plans to return the favor next month by cooking for a fundraiser event for the organization at the Vault.
Several years ago, Colton Miller received a trip to Greece from Make-A-Wish Mid-South, where he learned how to prepare Greek food. Now a prep chef at The Vault, Miller will use that cooking knowledge to help others receive their wishes.
"Chef Colton Gives Back" will be held at The Vault, 723 Central Ave., on March 4 to raise money for Make-A-Wish Mid-South. Miller picked the six courses that will be served and will be the head chef at the event.
In 2014, doctors discovered that Miller, now 17, had three brain tumors. When a Make-A-Wish trip became a possibility for Miller, he decided he wanted to go to Europe to learn how to cook and took a seven-day cruise through the islands of Greece, where he got to meet numerous chefs and learn how to make their specialties.
At one of the islands, Miller said he and his mother, Tabatha, got lost while walking around. Not being able to find anybody who spoke English, the two kept wandering around. As Miller had just had chemotherapy and radiation, he quickly got tired while trying to find their way back to the boat. It was a hot day, and none of the restaurants in the town had air conditioning, so they decided to stop at the only restaurant they could find that had a shaded area to sit at, he said.
While sitting at this "mom and pop shop" as Miller called it, they found that the waiter spoke English. After telling the waiter their story and how Miller was in the country to learn how to cook Greek food, the waiter took him to the kitchen, where he was taught how to make baklava.
Baklava has since become Miller's specialty, he said. Over a year ago, he made baklava for a Make-A-Wish Mid-South event hosted by The Vault. At the event, Randy Womack, The Vault's general manager, said he was struck by how much love the Millers have for each other, and by how much love Miller has for food.
Womack then bit into the baklava.
"Oh my gosh, this is genuinely good," Womack said. Womack then started thinking about selling Miller's baklava at the restaurant, but then decided to "take it a step further and hire Colton."
Womack, who survived spinal meningitis when he was younger, said that seeing the love of the Miller family reminded him of the love of his family from when he was going through his illness and helped him decide to hire Miller.
As a prep chef, Miller's duties include making sauces, preparing vegetables, processing shrimp and making calamari. He also works the fryer. "It's awesome," Miller said, adding that this isn't a job to him, but instead a way to express himself creatively.
Womack then told the restaurant's owner, Daron Praetzel, about his plan to add Miller's baklava to the menu, and Praetzel decided to donate the proceeds from those sales to Make-A-Wish. Womack said the amount of baklava sold is enough to pay for a Make-A-Wish trip every year.
After seeing how well the baklava sales have been since Miller started at The Vault a year ago, executive chef Brian Townley came up with a plan to finance a Wish in one day -- "Chef Colton Gives Back."
Dishes that will be served at the meal include avgolemono, spanakopita, moussaka, kolokythokeftedes, Greek salad, caramelized onion cups and a desert of galaktoboureko. Assisting Miller with cooking these dishes will be several chefs, including Townley, Amanda Ivy of Low Ivy Catering, Payne Harding of Cache, Cody Rudd and Casey Copeland of The Avenue Restaurant at The Waters Hotel.
Townley said he looks forward to the event -- "I think it's amazing ... for Colton to be here with us and help give back." He also noted it's an exciting learning experience for all the chefs helping out, as none of them cook a lot of Greek food.
"It's a wonderful experience for him," Tabatha Miller said.
Womack said it is amazing this event is happening because years ago Miller got lost on a hot island in Greece. Miller added that it also wouldn't have happened had Womack not experienced an illness himself years ago.
"Chef Colton Gives Back" will be held at 6:30 p.m. March 4. Tickets are $100 each and can be purchased at https://midsouth.wish.org/.
Local on 02/18/2019