Serve It Up Safe recently had the privilege of joining the American Culinary Federation (ACF) Caxambas Chapter of Southwest Florida for a chapter meeting at Kensington Country Club in Naples. It was an outstanding evening of connecting with the chefs, operators, educators, and culinary professionals who keep Southwest Florida’s hospitality scene running at a high level.
For a Florida-based hospitality compliance training company, there is no better room to be in. The conversations that night reinforced something we see across every market we serve: operators want compliance to be simple, fast, and done right the first time.
About the ACF Caxambas Chapter of Southwest Florida
The ACF Caxambas Chapter of Southwest Florida – serving the Naples and Marco Island area – is one of the most active American Culinary Federation chapters in the state. The chapter brings together executive chefs, pastry chefs, culinary educators, students, and industry partners through general meetings, certification support, competitions, and networking events across Collier County and the surrounding region.
Being welcomed into that community of culinary professionals was a genuine honor, and it underscored how much the Southwest Florida market values training, credentials, and doing things by the book.
Why Food Safety and Alcohol Compliance Matter in Southwest Florida
From the fine-dining rooms of Naples to the resorts and clubs along the Gulf, Southwest Florida runs on hospitality – and Florida law sets clear training expectations for the teams behind it.
A few of the requirements that came up in conversation:
Food protection manager certification. Under Florida Statute 509.039, DBPR-licensed food service establishments with four or more employees must have a Certified Food Protection Manager. Certification is valid for five years.
Food handler training. Per Florida Statute Chapter 509.049, hourly back-of-house and front-of-house food employees must complete state-approved food handler training appropriate to their job duties.
Responsible alcohol service. Florida Statute 561.706 gives real protection to establishments whose staff complete a state-approved Responsible Vendor of Alcohol program – a meaningful safeguard against suspension, fines, and liability tied to alcohol-related violations.
These are not just boxes to check. They protect licenses, reduce liability, and build a more confident, capable team.
What Serve It Up Safe Brought to the Table
Our setup at the meeting featured the full lineup operators ask us about most:
Food Manager (CPFM) certification. Our exam preparation and proctoring help managers pass with confidence – Serve It Up Safe maintains a 90%+ first-time pass rate on the Food Manager certification exam. Sam Steck attended as a Certified ServSafe Instructor and Registered ServSafe Examination Proctor.
Florida Food Handler training. A fully state-approved program (DBPR Food Safety First, Program #1238060), valid for three years. Options include $7 per certificate when a manager trains the team in-house with the guidebook, $15 per person fully online and self-paced, or a $399 flat private on-site session plus $7 per certificate for teams that want hands-on instruction.
Responsible Vendor of Alcohol training. Available online at $29 per person, or as a $599 flat private on-site session that covers an entire team at one establishment with no per-person charges – including two refresher trainings and a year of online access. Note that programs like TIPS are no longer state-approved in Florida, so choosing a current Florida RVA program matters.
We also offer Sexual Harassment Prevention, Allergen Awareness, and Human Trafficking Prevention training, with public classes across more than fifteen Florida cities, private on-site sessions, and online options nationwide.
A Growing Partnership Across Florida’s Culinary Community
This meeting was more than a single evening in Naples. It reflects a broader effort to partner with ACF chapters and culinary organizations across Florida – meeting operators where they are and making compliant, professional training easy to access in every market we serve, from Tampa and Orlando to Fort Myers, Sarasota, and the Naples and Marco Island area.
Thank you to the ACF Caxambas Chapter of Southwest Florida for the warm welcome, and to Kensington Country Club for hosting.
Bring Compliant Training to Your Team
If you operate a restaurant, hotel, club, or catering business in Naples, Marco Island, or anywhere in Southwest Florida, Serve It Up Safe makes Food Manager, Food Handler, and Responsible Vendor of Alcohol training simple – public, private on-site, or online.
Have a team that needs to get certified? Contact us, email info@serveitupsafe.com, or call (813) 781-8884 to schedule your training or request more information. You can also explore our Food Handler training, Food Manager certification, and Responsible Vendor of Alcohol training pages to learn more.