The 6th Street Eatery, located inside NDSCS’s Hektner Student Center, has officially launched its 2025 season, kicking things off on January 21st. This unique restaurant, fully operated by NDSCS Culinary Arts students, provides the perfect opportunity for the public to engage with and support the training of future culinary professionals. Guests can expect a warm, welcoming atmosphere that feels just like family. 

This year’s menu, packed with Cajun flavor, is sure to spice things up from 5-7 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays through March 4th. 

Chefs Benjamin Whitmore and Brooke Thomas commend the Culinary Arts students for their focus and creativity in creating a fantastic menu and exceptional experience for guests. 

"Our students were inspired during their trip to New Orleans to develop an authentic Cajun menu, bringing those bold, warm flavors to the Midwest.” said Chef Brooke Thomas, adding “Over the past few months, they’ve been focused on the details of bringing it all together to complete the Southern feel, and their hard work is shown through the meals they’re preparing each week.” 

The Cajun-inspired main menu includes Southern classics like Crawfish Beignets, Land and Sea Gumbo, Chicken Cassoulet, and Jambalaya. And let’s not forget dessert—guests can indulge in items like King Cake and Praline Peach Cobbler, the perfect sweet endings to a flavorful meal. 

In addition to their always-available main menu, second-year students have created their own specialty menus, showcasing their individual culinary talents. Each week, a featured student chef will take the lead in the kitchen, serving up their personal starter, entrée and dessert creations alongside the main menu, offering diners a fresh experience every visit. 

“I am excited to share the recipes we have tested and worked so hard on and show the skills we have learned this restaurant season to everyone that comes to dine with us," Cody Quakkelaar, one of the featured student chefs. 

Check out the detailed menus and find reservation information at NDSCS.edu/6thStreetEatery.

NDSCS Culinary Arts students and faculty are scheduled to host the program’s 4th annual Scholarship Dinner on Thursday, February 29th in the Hektner Student Center at NDSCS Wahpeton.

The annual Culinary Scholarship Dinner helps raise funds to support scholarship dollars for Culinary Arts students, increasing accessibility for students to attend this program at NDSCS. This dinner is also an excellent opportunity for students to help create and serve a multi-course fine dining experience for guests, teaching important on-the-job skills and benefiting their overall Culinary education.

The schedule of events includes a guest social and multi-course meal. The 6-course dinner with wine pairings is prepared and served by culinary students, faculty, and program alumni and will be followed by a new feature – a wine raffle! Guests can purchase a cork for $25, and each cork matches with a bottle of wine, ranging in value up to $150!

Guest chefs for the 2024 Culinary Scholarship Dinner will include:

• NDSCS Culinary Arts Alumni:
  • Joe Brunner from Mezzaluna in Fargo
  • Alyssa Berger from 84 Steakhouse in Fargo
  • Summer Peterson from BernBaum’s in Fargo
  • Grace Lamberson from the Toasted Frog in Grand Forks
  • Kevin Roller from NDSCS Dining Services
• Friend of the NDSCS Culinary Arts program:
  • Mark Schmidt of Bix Produce

Tickets are available online at NDSCS.edu/Culinary-Dinner for $125 per person. Thanks to the guest chefs and other supportive partners in the Culinary industry, much of the food and supplies are donated for the Scholarship Dinner. That means most of each ticket price goes right back to the program in the Culinary Arts Endowment Fund, and is a tax-deductible donation.

The NDSCS Culinary Arts program has opened its student-operated restaurant for the spring semester. The 6th Street Eatery, formerly known as the River Valley Inn, is now accepting reservations. Dates and hours of operation, as well as weekly menus, can be found online at NDSCS.edu/6thStreetEatery. Reservations can be made by calling 701.671.2405.

The 6th Street Eatery is operated by students in the NDSCS Culinary Arts program, and features a variety of menus with a different theme each week. The restaurant is located in the Red River Valley Room in the Hektner Student Center on the NDSCS campus in Wahpeton, and is open on select Tuesday and Thursday evenings throughout the spring semester.