American prisoners threw a dinner party (7 photos + 1 video)

At the Grafton Correctional Facility in Ohio, inmates harvested the prison garden and showed off their culinary skills. They prepared five dishes and served visitors for the first time.





As part of the EDWINS program, inmates completed six months of culinary training and even received certifications to work in fine dining establishments.

According to the founder of the program and chef Brandon Krostowski, he believes that every person, regardless of their past, has the right to a fair and dignified future.



"They don't look at me as a number. They see me as a person," said 40-year-old inmate Greg Siegelmier.





A long rectangular table with a snow-white linen tablecloth and bouquets of flowers was set right in the garden. Sixty people attended the dinner.



First, the guests were served beetroot salad with goat cheese and greens, as well as a cabbage envelope with farmer's cheese.

Then they were treated to baked salmon with Béarnaise sauce and stewed greens. Next came roast lamb with Provencal tomatoes. For dessert - corn cake with blueberry compote and Chantilly cream.

Each dish was served with a drink. One of them was called "botinique" - soda with honey syrup on thyme and lemon.



"Cooking together and then sharing food is wonderful. You should see the faces of these kids when they eat the simple chicken noodle soup that everyone worked so hard to make. It's incredible," says Efrain Paniagua-Villa, 28.

Before his incarceration, Efrain cooked regularly with his mother and sister. The EDWINS cooking classes have become a solace and a hobby for him. After his release, he will be able to work in many restaurants in Cleveland.



"These guys, when they get out, they come home and become our neighbors. We want them to be law-abiding citizens. That's what our program is all about. We teach them not only how to cook, but we give them skills so they can be successful in life," said Warden Jerry Spatney.