Chef Ernest Fernandez

Ernest grew up in Stamford, Texas, near Abilene, and after graduating high school in 1979 he went on to Angelo State University. His original plan as a business major was to eventually wind up working in education. Though education is where he landed, Ernest never dreamed it would be in a school cafeteria.

“I started by working in the cafeteria washing pots and then offered to help the cooks,” says Ernest. “Then I wanted to learn more about food service since that’s a career that would always be there.”

Ernest quickly went from doing dishes to floor supervisor and eventually manager over the university cafeteria, and thus began his 20-plus-year career with Compass Group, the umbrella food service company that manages Chartwells School Dining Services. Ernest went on to other college campuses in Kansas and Wisconsin before settling in for five years as the K-12 Chef Director for Uvalde Independent School District. Then, in June 2009, Ernest accepted the Executive Chef position with Amarillo ISD. He and his staff serve more than 30,000 meals to students in 53 Amarillo schools. Ernest recently began participating in the district’s mentoring program.

“My role is to make sure our concept – to eat, learn and live – is carried out in every school,” says Ernest. “What I tell children in nutrition classes is that there’s nothing like being disturbed by a hungry belly. They need to be alert and well-fed.”

Recently the USDA guidelines have become stricter, requiring foods that are served to students have no saturated fat and nothing deep-fried. (Chartwells removed all deep fryers from Amarillo ISD cafeterias two years ago.) All bread products, from hamburger buns to pizza crusts, are multi-grain, and each cafeteria is able to accommodate children with food allergies.

“I wouldn’t have been with this company if I didn’t believe in what they do,” says Ernest. “Even though the laws and regulations are getting stricter, we’re excited because it’s an opportunity to do better for our kids.”

Ernest and his wife, Mary, have three children, Melissa, Ernest, and Joe, and two grandchildren, Airriona and Isabella.

When I get in my car, the first thing I listen to is… the Eagle radio station.

My friends and family call me… by my name.

My favorite meal to make from scratch is… pasta dishes.

In an alternate life, I would’ve been a… movie star.

The most famous or interesting person I’ve ever met is… Selena from los Dinos.

If I had an open plane ticket to anywhere, I would go to… Spain.

After a long, hard day, I love to… relax in front of the fireplace with my family and read to my granddaughters.

One of my favorite childhood toys was… my football.

One movie I could watch over and over again is… "The Titans."

If I were a character in a book, I would be… a lion.

The greatest piece of advice I’ve ever received is… "When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Let’s make it happen."

When my children grow up, the one thing I want them to always remember is… to never give up on anything worth fighting for.

You may be surprised to know that I… grew up the hard way!

One habit I wish I could break is… eating sweets.

My guilty pleasure is… chocolate.

I know every word to the song… "You Ain’t Nothing but a Hound Dog" by Elvis Presley.

If I had the time, I would… volunteer and visit the elderly.

My favorite bad-for-me-food is… fried eggs with bacon.

When I get online, I always go to… look for different recipes.

The most unique place I’ve ever traveled to is… Cancun.

The thing I love the most about living in Amarillo is… the people are very friendly.

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