Industry Overview
What was once a small industry has blossomed into a competitive and exciting place for both young and old. Culinary institutes have sprung up all over the U.S. and in particular, where tourism is paramount. No longer do people have to travel to Paris for a gastronome education. There is even a Le Cordon Bleu- a culinary school in Orlando.
Culinary schools not only teach the art of gourmet cooking, but they also teach management techniques, develop creativity in cooking and develop the discipline of mind and stamina to withstand long arduous hours.
The American Culinary Federation provides the student chef with educational information outside of the classroom, recipes, techniques, places to go to seek additional data and more.
There have been many school openings and the best place to find your information would be the local yellowpages.
Industry Trends
People are eating healthier, or at least trying to. Chefs are preparing meals that are not only delicious but nutritionally balanced. Even the finest French cuisine, once the place to find the richest sauces, filled with butter and cream, is now using substitutions that can reduce calories and cholesterol.
New York culinary schools produce some of the finest chefs for the myriad styles and ethnic restaurants found in the City. New York, however, is not alone in fine culinary schools and restaurants. New Orleans culinary schools have some of the most famous chefs in the world guest-teaching and mentoring the newest up-and-comers.
Brand Names
The Culinary Institute of American has been called the finest culinary school in the world. Its main campus is in Hyde Park, NY but has two branches in cities that seem out of the ordinary, San Antonio, Texas and St. Helena, California.