Tired of pasta, hamburgers, or fried chicken for dinner? Chef Louie Maya hopes he can help.

Maya wants people to avoid what he calls the &uot;same-old-same-old&uot; routine when they cook this summer.

Maya, a student nearing graduation from the Culinary Institute of Virginia College in Homewood, is part of Bruno’s Secrets of the Chefs program.

&uot;We design meals with a gourmet flair that you can make in 30 minutes or less,&uot; Maya said.

&uot;You don’t have to be a chef to make these meals. Just use basic techniques and take a recipe card home with you.&uot;

The new program features local chefs demonstrating meal ideas that are &uot;quick, simple and easy to prepare&uot; according to Bruno’s representatives.

Four local Bruno’s grocery stores are participating. They are the stores at Riverchase Village, Highway 31 at Lorna Road, Highway 150 at South Shades Crest and Inverness Corners.

Demonstrations are on weekends.

Friday demonstrations are at 3, 5 and 6 p.m. with a complimentary wine tasting. Saturday and Sunday demonstrations are at 1, 3 and 5 p.m.

All demonstrations include sampling and recipe cards. The chefs also give hints on how to select the right side dish or choose the correct wine.

This past Sunday afternoon, Chef Maya prepared chicken breasts stuffed with goat cheese and thyme at the Inverness store in North Shelby County.

Maya prepared the meal at his chef station as several grocery shoppers curiously watched while quizzing him for tips on preparation.

&uot;The ingredients are nothing exotic. You can buy everything here at the store,&uot; Maya said pointing to a stick of Land O’ Lakes butter.

&uot;I help people get familiar with the ingredients. I’m here to educate them.&uot;

The chef is assisted by

two, sometimes three Bruno’s employees. Last weekend Stephanie Hogg helped Maya prepare the ingredients before he cooked them.

&uot;It’s a lot of fun. I’ve learned a lot helping him out,&uot; she said admirably.

Gerald Simon, a North Shelby resident, smiled as he tried a sample of the chicken breasts.

&uot;That was good. We are going to have that for dinner next week,&uot; he said with a laugh.

That is the kind of reaction that pleases Maya.

&uot;The best part of this for me is the reaction from the customers,&uot; Maya said. &uot;When they put it in their mouth and its just an explosion of flavor.&uot;