Washington, DC Cooking Schools for Student Chefs and Cooks

Find Culinary Programs

The DC area is about as diverse an area as you can get in the country. Here are diplomats from all over the world and top-level dignitaries. The nation’s number one Executive Chef commandeers the White House kitchen. And in D.C. there is as much an emphasis on hospitality professionals as there is on chefs. The city, due to its huge visitor population, relies on scores of excellent hotels, each with a fine restaurant and dozens of chefs, line cooks and food prep assistants.

Unlike a few other regions of the country the food service and hospitality industries in DC are not slowed in periods of recession. Politicians continue their daily grinds and visiting dignitaries and diplomats are still in town. Celebrities also frequent the area. Demand for good food continues unabated in DC.

A few award-winning celebrity chef-owners have well-established restaurants in D.C., including Todd Gray’s Equinox and Jeffrey Buben’s Vidalia and Bis restaurants.

Growing a Culinary Career in DC

Find out what career opportunities are available to you when your passion for food goes beyond simple enjoyment to the creation of amazing dishes and the drive to cook no matter what. The culinary industry, despite economic hard times elsewhere, continues its uphill climb. The advent of food television has made it possible to recreate the image of a chef, even cast it as a competition that pits wit, skill, and physical endurance—witness the popular Iron Chef programs.

If you imagine yourself the next Iron Chef then find out what it takes to study for a degree in the culinary arts at one of DC’s popular schools.

Local Community Schools

Virginia Community College

The Virginia Community College system offers several culinary arts programs spread out across its many colleges. The school at Reynolds Community College, for instance, offers a comprehensive program spread out over three specializations. The curriculum the system offers develops and polishes the skills students would need to seize career opportunities throughout the food service industry. Northern Virginia Community College, meanwhile, offers a Culinary Arts certificate program.

Virginia Community College System Head Office
300 Arboretum Place, Suite 200
Richmond, VA 23236

(804) 819-4901

info@vccs.edu

Stratford University

The Straford School of Culinary Arts aims to equip students with the skills, experience, and knowledge they need to take on the changing demands of the culinary arts professions. Students can enroll at the advanced diploma and associate degrees at different periods of the school year.

Virginia Community College

3201 Jermantown Road
Fairfax, VA

(703) 721-4126

Prince George's Community College

The Culinary Arts Center at Prince George's Community College gives students access to a spacious community kitchen and three specialist kithcen labs toprovides three specialized kitchen labs. The school's Culinary Arts program prepares learners to meet the professional demands of the modern food service industry and covers a comprehensive set of skills from cooking to management and sanitation.

Prince George's Community College

301 Largo Road
Largo, MD 20774

301-546-7422

enrollmentservices@pgcc.edu

Non-accredited Cooking Schools in the Washington Metropolitan Area

CulinAerie

As the foremost cooking school in the capital, CulinAerie offers lessons for food lovers across several skill levels. The school offers state-of-the-art kitchens and seasoned instructors with at least 15 years of experience behind them. Classes introduce learners to a broad assortment of dishes from a range of culinary traditions.

CulinAerie
1131 14th Street NW

Washington, DC 20005

(202) 587-5674

info@CulinAerie.com

ACF Accredited Programs

Certificate & Job Training Programs

Potomac Job Corps Center
1 Dc Village Ln SW
Att: Finance Department
Washington, DC 20032-5206

Phone: (202) 373-3095
Contact: Paula Lesko - lesko.paula@jobcorps.org