The main culinary schools in the world: what, where and how much. Culinary education abroad The best chef school in the world

Students enrolled in culinary arts courses receive, perhaps, the most practice-oriented experience - it is impossible to imagine mastering the culinary arts without constant practical training and experiments. Regardless of your priority area of ​​​​future activity - chef, sommelier, restaurant critic, author of cookbooks - in the best schools you will find a huge number of practical tasks and theoretical knowledge.

Why the USA and Switzerland? Yes, there are culinary schools all over the world - but it is in these particular countries that the culture of high-quality, impeccable service is almost elevated to a cult and is successfully combined with the progressive culinary views of the best specialists. Switzerland and the USA, in addition, are multicultural countries - culinary masters here are open to recipes from cuisines from all over the world, boldly experiment and master the best dishes and professional techniques of different countries.

What specialties and professions can be obtained at the School of Culinary Arts?

Among culinary school students, there are several of the most popular and sought after areas:

• Baking and confectionery
• Hotel management
• General cooking
• Restaurant management
• Catering
• Culinary management.

Each field has its own characteristics and subtleties, its own options for building a career. For example, general cooking includes the work of a chef (don’t forget to develop organizational skills!), and assisting and working as a sous-chef, restaurant management can appear in the form of filling out a wine list, and a diploma in the specialty “Baking and Confectionery” can grow to your own bakery.

Structure of culinary training abroad

In total, students admitted to the “tasty” areas will receive 300-400 theoretical classes in classrooms and as many as 200-300 hours of practical work and internships. Basically, students abroad are offered the following curriculum options:

• Certificate courses or diploma programs (from 1 month to 2 years)
• Academic degree (from 9 months to 2 years)
• Bachelor's degree (average 4 years)
• Master's degree (average 2 years).

Almost all foreign schools require their students to undergo pre-diploma internship: working in a restaurant kitchen, assisting the head sommelier or chef, managing a restaurant, assisting in management, working with guests, etc. Many of the best hospitality schools (especially in Switzerland) have entire hotels and restaurants under their control, which are constantly managed by students and provide ample opportunities for a variety of internships and internships.

Best culinary schools in Switzerland and the USA

• Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Chicago

The famous “blue ribbon” academy (that’s how “le cordon bleu” is translated) is a world-recognized standard of quality: the main school of this corporation was founded in Paris back in 1895 and today is considered the best specialized institution on the planet. This is the world's largest institute of hotel and restaurant business: Le Cordon Bleu has graduated from eminent restaurateurs and legendary chefs, respected critics and culinary authors.

In Chicago, the institute offers primarily certificate courses, associate degrees, and short courses ideal for continuing education. All programs are tested and approved by the parent school in Paris and meet the highest quality standards of Le Cordon Bleu. Specialization can be very different: Italian and Mediterranean cuisine, cake decorating, organizing picnics and catering, etc.

• Kendall College

This college has been named the best by none other than the legendary Michelin Guide. In addition to culinary majors (bachelor's and associate's degrees that can be completed in 2 years), Kendall College also offers other hospitality careers, such as hotel management or business management.

• International Culinary Institute Switzerland (ICI)

Basically, one enters a famous Swiss school to get a bachelor's degree - this will take 3 years. Without fail, students undergo two more than six-month internships (possible in Switzerland, possible in other European countries), which are quite decently paid - on average, students receive 2,200 CHF per month. In addition to the main educational program and diploma, you can receive a prestigious certificate in the field of confectionery art, preparation and work with chocolate.

• Les Roches International School of Hotel Management

Perhaps the most elite and prestigious specialized school in Switzerland has been collaborating with the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts for many years. Here students can receive both a classical culinary education and improve themselves as managers: there is a bachelor’s course in business administration (international hotel business, direction “Culinary Business Management”). This is an ideal option for those students who want to take management positions in the best restaurants in the world, open their own successful establishment (or catering business, etc.), master event management, develop menus and food and wine pairing lists.

The legendary Swiss school of hotel and restaurant management, producing the world's best specialists in the field of tourism and hospitality. Like other Swiss higher schools, it offers students useful and long-term internships: while studying in a three-year undergraduate program, students spend almost a year (2 internships of 6 months each) in the best hotels and restaurants in the country and Europe (paid internship). The main programs in culinary arts are a bachelor's degree, a one-year diploma course, a second higher education and advanced training (will take 1 year).

• Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland (CAA)

The culinary school is part of the prestigious Swiss Education Group, which automatically makes it one of the most elite schools in Switzerland and the world. It has two equivalent campuses - in Lucerne and Le Bouveret. Internships are held in luxury hotels in Switzerland and Europe: The Ritz Carlton, Hilton, Pan Pacific, Sandals, Rosewood) and others. Popular programs include bachelor's and master's degrees, and a certificate course (not only culinary programs are available, but also business management courses).

• La Scuola Internazionale di Cucina Italiana (ALMA)

A leading Italian culinary school, equally dedicated to developing chefs and qualified sommeliers. Internships are mandatory: initial students spend at least 2 months in training kitchens, but graduates have a 5-month internship in the best restaurants and hotels in Italy. Among the training courses, the most popular are bachelor's degree programs and diploma courses (the duration of the latter is 7 months).

The fashion for the ability to cook has really swept over Muscovites. Even my friend, who is very far from the kitchen, who would prefer to dine on kefir and sausage in dough, suddenly said: “There are guests coming on Saturday, can you teach me how to bake some kind of pie?” So I decided to find out where to go to study if you have no idea why there are frying pans in the house, or, like Carey Bradshaw, you store dresses in the oven.

In Moscow you can find culinary schools and master classes for every taste and level of preparedness. Some of them are designed for a serious approach to business (these are all kinds of academies), others are, rather, a way to spend a pleasant and tasty evening or, for example, a Sunday morning.

Culinary school Gastronom

People come to one of the oldest gastronomic schools in Moscow to work seriously. On the 24th floor of the Hydroproject Institute, a mystical action is happening: this is where you can definitely learn how to make six dishes in two hours. Everything is as it should be: the students sit on chairs and listen to the master’s work, writing down all the most difficult moments and nuances - the recipes, of course, will remain as memories, but often they have very little in common with what is happening at the kitchen table. Two girls were very upset that they would not be allowed to repeat everything themselves right here and now and would have to postpone preparing the minestrone until at least the night, so they were the first to volunteer to help with chopping the vegetables. And they won’t trust you with more: here the cook is in charge - with the dexterity of a juggler, he bakes focaccia, fries shrimp, stirs the sauce and cooks the signature vegetable broth in the same minute. There are a lot of ideas, you just have time to wave your pen. Along the way, the chef gives recommendations: how to cut the shrimp so that it can be beautifully placed on the plate, what to add to the pesto to make it more piquant, and to what extent you need to whip the Caesar dressing.

Mission: a serious and thoughtful approach to the cooking process.
Teachers: cooks from the Gastronom school.
Cost of classes: from 2500 rub.

Cooking school We can cook it! at the Sisters Grimm restaurant

This year's culinary school in a restaurant Sisters Grimm accepts only women (although, if you really ask, I myself saw a young man cooking pies...). Don’t think that it’s a matter of chauvinism or the name of the establishment - last season the stronger sex reigned in the local kitchen. I was lucky enough to take a class on “American Pies” with Katya Agronik, owner of Select Cake Studio, Cordon Bleu pastry graduate and cake master. This is where I became convinced that improvisation reigns in the kitchen. Let's say we're baking a pumpkin pie, where we carefully measure out exactly three-quarters of a teaspoon of cinnamon, cardamom, a tablespoon of zest... Oops, no! Cardamom shouldn't be here. Well, that’s okay, let’s add another spoonful of cinnamon and a little more starch so that the pumpkin souffle hardens faster... Voila: the pie turned out, and it’s very beautiful, even with cardamom.

Mission: revive the tradition of visiting with homemade pies.
Teachers: Tatiana, owner of the restaurant. Sometimes culinary stars are invited.
Cost of classes: from 1500 rub.

Academia del Gusto

The first Italian Academy of High Culinary Arts offers not just master classes, but a total immersion in the cooking process - each lesson lasts more than four hours. All this is led by a charming Italian, who will casually tell you why there are no good restaurants in Moscow, what a hangover is in Russian and a corporate party in Chinese.

Here everyone does their part of the work. Products are prepared simultaneously for all dishes - from appetizers to dessert. It is impossible to keep track of what, how and why is cut and cleaned. The main thing is to have time to write down when the cook concentrates all this around himself and begins to pour it into a saucepan/baking tray/frying pan/bowl. The most fun is the pasta. A specially trained food processor will prepare the dough for you, but you will need to make the paste yourself - using a miracle machine. In Italy, of course, every self-respecting housewife has one.

Mission: popularization of haute Italian cuisine.
Teachers: award-winning Italian chefs from Moscow restaurants and consultants.
Cost of classes: 4950 rub.

Kitchen in detail

In the white stone chambers on Spiridonovka, every week a small (7-8 people) Italian/Moroccan/Asian family gathers around a large cutting table: nationality directly depends on the menu. Here they taste cheeses, drink wine, cook everything from pizza to complex fancy dishes (for example, some carpaccio of scallops marinated in smoked paprika with celery and green apple). Denis Krupenya rules the show at all classes - he is both a brand chef, an organizer, and just a big gourmet. Making your way through narrow corridors littered with antiques and designer items, you come to visit him, where they will pour you a glass of something sparkling and perky and, a little later, you will certainly be fed to your heart's content. Over frying pans and sorting thyme, casual conversations take place about the mythology of Italian cuisine and travels to Cannes, Mauritius and grandma's village. This is one of the few educational places where you can learn how to cook quite complex dishes, and get a good understanding of why the lamb is simmered in confit before frying, and why olive oil is poured into a pan of pasta.

Mission: haute cuisine - to the family table.
Teachers: chefs of existing Moscow restaurants and gastronomic observers.
Cost of classes: 3500 rub.

Rozhnikovsky Culinary Academy

Behind the intimidating name lies something between a culinary college and an educational program for those who are not in the know. I took a theoretical class. A specially invited chef, Dmitry, brought all his knives and explained in complex language which ones were needed for what. The second part is practical. Everyone was given an onion, a potato and a carrot, and Dmitry taught us to hold the knife so as not to cut ourselves: “With your right hand, firmly hold the knife by the base, grabbing the blade, and with your left hand, rest your fingertips on the product, as if you already had an apple in your hand.” . You put your middle finger forward so that it rests with a phalanx against the knife and does not allow it to slip onto your hand...” - and at that moment the blade of his knife treacherously cuts his finger. So much for safety precautions. For the rest of the lesson, the cook, courageously refusing the plaster, poured blood on the food, demonstrating what not to do. Well, that’s also quite a lesson.

Mission: nurturing the curious. There are lessons in cooking, oenology, cheeses and theoretical classes.
Teachers: invited chefs from Moscow restaurants, sommeliers and decorators.
Cost of classes: from 1500 rub.

Open kitchen Meet & Greet

Everyone has different reasons for coming here - some are looking for new acquaintances, some love cinema, and some even seek knowledge. For example, one of the students said that he had recently broken up with his girlfriend, and after two weeks he was simply tired of eating sandwiches and reheated pizza. And here it’s all at once - food, entertainment, and communication.

I'm not sure that you can really learn something here - rather, get ideas and hang out. In the kitchen, everyone does their part. And if you, say, cook pasta at the stove, then the rest of the action remains a mystery to you. And you may never know how to sort basil or how to cut mozzarella without it sticking to your knife. After all these ordeals, a film is collectively chosen and the prepared food is no less collectively consumed.

Mission: just have a good rest and meet new people.
Teachers: the organizers of the open kitchen, Albina and Kristina, are sometimes stars.
Cost of classes: from 600 rub.

Cooking school of Massimiliano Montiroli at Osteria Montiroli

Here you can not only learn how to cook, for example, sea bass in three variations in half an hour, but also understand how to distinguish fresh fish from its long-dead brother. A cheerful Italian, cheerfully speaking broken Russian, shows us a smooth and shiny carcass on ice. "Like?" Everyone nods their heads knowingly. “But no: it can be safely thrown into the trash.” It turns out that in order to know the freshness of a fish, you need to look carefully into its eyes (they should be convex and clear), check the color of the blood (the correct one is bright red, not brownish), and the carcass should be elastic and hard. Now you can make it into a sauce for pasta, a stew with potatoes and rosemary, or bake it in salt, fry it in an eggplant envelope or grill it. The atmosphere is just like home. In the center is Massimiliano, who alternately runs up to everyone and controls the process. Students have individual tiles with frying pans in front of them, so there is every chance to prepare any dish on their own and eat it right away. Each lesson is devoted to one topic (desserts, fish, meat), but you can ask about anything - so our educational program on fish and seafood smoothly moved on to chicken breast confit and deep-frying problems.

Mission: organizing free time with pleasure and benefit for the stomach.
Teachers: All classes are taught by Massimiliano himself, the chef of the Osteria Montiroli restaurant.
Cost of classes: monthly course of four lessons - 20,000 rubles.

Cooking is a real art, the training of which is simply necessary, especially if you plan to connect your career with this profession. Among the many culinary schools in different parts of the world below - top five.

Paradoxically, the vast majority of these institutes are located in the USA, a fast food country that nevertheless offers the best education in the field today.

Le Cordon Bleu

This legendary school is by far the leader among the best culinary schools in the world. It is the oldest, the most prestigious, and one of the most expensive. Despite the fact that Le Cordon Bleu has campuses on all continents of the globe, the most important among them was and remains French; it is here that dreamers come about a career as a chef students from different countries.

The main thing that distinguishes Le Cordon Bleu from other educational institutions is not only the training in first-class mastery of the culinary craft, but also the careful instilling in each student of the philosophy of haute French cuisine.

Anyone who has completed such a school will no longer be able to be just a chef, he will be destined to become one of the best.

Admission conditions

Which branch to go to study depends on your level of proficiency in French or English, since upon admission you will have to confirm your knowledge of foreign languages.

Cost of education. The basic cooking course lasts a month, 6 days a week, with a load of 6 to 9 hours a day. The cost of the course is 8,500 euros. The basic culinary course lasts 6 months, the cost of training is 23,000 euros. (prices are specified on the establishment’s website. Select your language in the upper right corner of the site)

Culinary Institute of America (CIA)

Specialization was divided into three categories - chef, pastry chef and nutritionist.

The first 50 graduates paved the way for an endless chain of students who decided to become culinary specialists.

Much has changed since then: the culinary school turned into an Institute, moved to New York, the number of graduates per year exceeded hundreds, modern technologies contributed to teaching methods. Only one thing remains unchanged - highest quality teaching, appreciated all over the world.

Admission conditions

To study at the institute, you must have a bachelor's degree, have at least 6 months of practical experience in cooking, provide letters of recommendation and write an essay about why you chose this particular school.

Cost of education. The full course of training costs $24,360 (check prices on the website). The institute also has a Student Financial Support Fund, which provides various grants for education. All foreign students are automatically included in those who can count on financial support from the Foundation.

San Diego Culinary Institute

The Culinary Institute of San Diego has the fastest and highest start of any culinary school in the world. The educational institution was founded only 11 years ago, and during this short time its founders were able to demonstrate an impeccably high class, firmly taking their place among the leaders.

The peculiarity of this school is that the emphasis here is not on the theoretical knowledge of culinary specialists, but on the methodical honing of cooking techniques. It welcomes both established chefs who want to gain additional knowledge, as well as those who are thinking about changing their education and decided to start training “from scratch.”

Admission conditions

To study at the institute, you will be required to write an essay in which you will have to describe the goals of your studies. You also need to provide 2 letters of recommendation and a resume, if you already have work experience.

Finally, you will be required to pass a simple entrance exam and an interview with one of the school’s teachers.

The level of English must be at least B1.

New England Culinary Institute (NECI)

This small school located in Vermont(USA), became famous throughout the world partly due to her teaching method.

Training takes place in natural conditions for a chef - not on a training ground, but in the real kitchen of one of the successful restaurants, where students, under the guidance of teachers and a chef, cook for real clients of the establishment.

The founders of the school are more than confident: in this way, culinary science is comprehended faster and with the highest quality, and about 500 graduates of the school annually confirm this theory in practice.

Admission conditions

You can enroll in this school by first passing an interview with one of the school’s teachers, also providing an essay, letters of recommendation and a resume confirming your practical experience.

The process of cooking is like a dance: it is a mix of passion, talent, hard work and skill. The latter sometimes has to be learned.

Today, in every district of Moscow you can find culinary schools that teach everyone how to properly use a cast-iron frying pan, cook juicy steaks and more.

KitchenMag shares a selection of the best culinary schools in Moscow, where you can “pump up” your culinary skills and learn how to cook real gastronomic masterpieces.

Chefshows by Novikov

The culinary school Chefshows by Novikov, which was opened by the famous chef Arkady Novikov, offers several areas of training. The school will be able to improve the level of culinary skills for both beginners and amateurs, as well as professionals. For food lovers, Arkady Novikov's restaurants even have a special course - "Hits of Novikov's Restaurants."

Chefshows by Novikov regularly organizes master classes and educational restaurant meetings in which everyone can take part.

Culinary studio of Yulia Vysotskaya

Yulia Vysotskaya's culinary studio is a place where like-minded people meet, united by a passion for food and communication.

Food lovers can find a course that best suits their interests. Most master classes are organized according to geography: Spain, France, Vietnam, Mediterranean. There are classes dedicated to preparing specific dishes: for example, khachapuri or borscht with pampushki. The studio also hosts culinary master classes for children.

Culinary studio CulinaryOn

CulinaryOn is the largest culinary school in Europe. It is located in the very center of the capital and offers its students a light and relaxed atmosphere in which gastronomic talents can easily be revealed.

Master classes are devoted to cooking dishes of different national and regional cuisines: France, Piedmont, Caucasus, Spain, Asia. There are also master classes focused on preparing food for a special occasion: for example, a romantic dinner or Saturday brunch.

Culinary studio "Bread and Food"

Culinary studio "Bread and Food" is a school for everyone. Its main mission is to eliminate the need for a personal chef and teach everyone to cook the most delicious and delicious dishes on their own.

In the culinary studio, students will receive theoretical knowledge that they can immediately apply in practice. Professional chefs will tell and show you how to prepare national dishes from different countries, create confectionery masterpieces and bake aromatic bread.