The South Carolina ProStart Invitational is the state’s premier competition for high school culinary arts and hospitality students. See the success of our past competitions and learn more about participating next year. You can make a difference by becoming a ProStart educator who provides students with the education they need to enter into a viable career.
The South Carolina ProStart Invitational is an annual competition hosted by the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Foundation (SCRLF). The competition includes Restaurant Management and Culinary divisions. The Culinary Competition requires students to demonstrate knife skills incorporated into cooking a three-course meal in 60 minutes with only two butane burners, two eight-foot tables, and no electricity or running water. In the Management Competition, students develop a brand new restaurant concept to pitch to a panel of industry and post-secondary judges, complete with critical thinking and verbal presentation rounds.
The top five teams from the culinary and management competitions are awarded generous educational scholarships to help further their careers in the restaurant and food service industry. In 2023, more than $1.4 million in scholarships were awarded to students by the NRAEF and leading academic institutions.
Invitational sponsorships go towards supporting our teams at the National ProStart Invitational and the SCRLF Scholarship Program.
SCRLF is a 501(c)3, all donations are tax-deductible as allowable by law. For more information on sponsorship, please email the SCRLA office at info@scrla.org.
Location:
Spartanburg Marriott
299 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306
Competition Schedules
Dish Request Form Due - February 22, 2025
Recipe, Costing, Menu, and Inventory templates (Word docx)
Hotel information:
Spartanburg Marriott, 299 North Church Street, Spartanburg, SC 29306
Single/Double/Triple/Quad: $159 per night plus tax and fees if booked before midnight on February 7, 2025.
Teams are required to stay at the host hotel.
Reserve your overnight accommodations online here.
Hotel Reservation Information, please call 1-888-236-2427 South Carolina ProStart Invitational rate.
Guests may also book their reservations via phone by calling 1-888-236-2427.
Complimentary parking is included in the hotel room rate. Breakfast Not included.
Book your group rate for SCRLA ProStart Invitational
You will find the information for your online reservation link below. If you have questions or need help with the link, please do not hesitate to ask. We appreciate your business and look forward to a successful event.
Student Waiver Form - Due February 20, 2025
Team cancellation/withdrawal by January 22, 2025, 11:59 PM
(Please note if you do not cancel prior to this date there will be a $250.00 per team cancelation fee assessed).
Culinary:
1st place – Anderson Career and Technology Center
2nd place – Daniel Morgan Technology Center Golden Strip
3rd place – Career Center Daniel Morgan Technology Center
4th place – Ninety-Six High School
5th place – Abbeville County Career Center
Restaurant Management:
1st place – Wando High School
2nd place – Golden Strip Career Center
3rd place – Donaldson Career Center
4th place – G. Frank Russell Technology Center
5th place – Abbeville County Career Center
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