Chef Anthony Pino has had a significant impact on his students in his first year as a culinary instructor at Portsmouth High School, but how did he enter into this career path?

Born in 1982, Pino was surrounded by his loving family, consisting of his mother, father, and brother. As a child, his family had a fresh garden to make locally sourced dishes. Every Sunday, Pino and his family would come to his grandparents house to have dinner. 

As a child, Pino always enjoyed food, because he felt as if he was sharing it with his family and the rest of the community. By age 13, Pino worked at his uncle’s pizza restaurant, Italian Joe´s, as he wanted to continue on with his passion for food. 

Pino chose to attend Boston University as a Biochemistry major, which he then realized was not the path for him. Ultimately, he decided to transfer to Johnson and Wales, because he missed that connection to food. Upon graduation, he received a degree in Culinary Arts and Food Management. 

In 2020, Pino was invited to participate in the hit show, ¨Chopped¨. Elated, he said yes, because it was an opportunity to get his name and restaurant, Cunard Tavern, on the map. He also was excited as he enjoyed sports as a child, and now got to combine the rush of sports with his love of food. He placed third, but would definitely do it again if given the opportunity. 

Over the years, Pino wanted to be with his family more instead of working in the kitchen. There were many times when Pino would get home at one or two in the morning, and never really got to see his children. A solution to this he thought was to become a teacher. So, last year, Pino applied to be the new Culinary Instructor at Portsmouth High School.

Courtney Ritchings, the director of Careers in Technical Education, has been thoroughly impressed with Chef Pino´s commitment to his job. She is impressed with his confidence, as well as his appreciation towards helping the community, 

“Mr. Pino showed such knowledge and passion for the subject matter and a huge commitment to serving the community,” said Ritchings. “We don’t have the final say in the hiring process; however, we knew this was the candidate that we wanted to put forward.”

Shaye McGrath, a sophomore at PHS, is in the first year of the Culinary Program. She has had many hands-on experiences with Pino, especially when preparing for a baking competition, and has enjoyed having him as a teacher. 

“Working in the kitchen, I learned about different food competitions that I could do. This year, I did Skills USA, and that was a really fun experience because I hadn’t known about any of that before,” said McGrath. 

Jaclyn Chisholm, the curriculum coordinator at PHS, commented on how well Pino has adapted to switching to a teaching position.

“Honestly, it has been so impressive to me. Being in his classroom, working with him in my role, you would never have known that he left a career as a professional chef and jumped into the classroom. He seems like a natural with students. He’s always working on giving students feedback and helping them improve their craft, and I think that mentorship is something that he’s probably displayed in his career his whole life, and now he’s putting it to full use as a teacher,” said Chisholm.

Pino has said that he is happy with his decision to switch from a professional chef to a culinary arts instructor. When he comes to school every day, he has a smile, as wide as the horizon. Many students say that working with Chef Pino is hands on, interactive, and an enjoyable experience. 

At PHS, Pino is having a good time training the next generation of chefs. He said that he likes teaching a class where kids can make money because of what he taught them. He has appreciated inspiring students to do what they want with their passion. 

“I feel like I have connected pretty well with a lot of the students. I get along great with 99.9% of the students and am able to find some common ground to talk about with each of them, and I think that this school has a really talented group of kids. Going to sporting events, and art shows, and plays and stuff, you see a lot of the different talents the kids put on display,” said Pino. 

We are very lucky to have Chef Anthony Pino with us at PHS, and we look forward to what he does next for the culinary department.