Exciting Cooking School Opps in Florida

Sunshine, beaches, resorts, and hot Miami Beach all add up to one smoking hot location for new chefs to make a mark. Peninsular Florida is certainly perfect for seafood-based cuisine. But the diversity of the state provides additional flavor. Miami has a distinctly Latin/Cuban flavor, while more northern Florida retains a bit of its southern culinary roots.

Florida Culinary Scene

Sampling a generous portion of the regional cuisine should be a matter of course, an integral part of your culinary education. Each locale has a slightly unique specialty, a native dish, regional ingredients, a fantastic farmers market, a crop of distinguished chefs, and creative and eclectic restaurants and eateries.

Professional Organizations

Check out the available professional chapters for culinary pros. Most offer discounted student memberships, scholarships, discounted admission to national and regional conferences and educational support and seminars.

• ACF Gulf to Lakes Chefs Association
• Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association
• Florida Suncoast Cook’s Association

Food Festivals

Festivals are in the business of showcasing the area’s bounty, both in natural resource and in the food and beverage industry. Common pairs are wine and food. Any wine festival is usually accompanied by great chefs and complementary gourmet dishes; and vice versa on food festivals. Use the local festivals to find fresh foods, regional chefs, free samples, wine tastings, brushing elbows with celeb chefs, and even chef competitions.

• Florida Wine Festival
• WineQuest
• Florida Restaurant and Lodging Show
• Florida Keys Seafood Festival
• South Beach Wine and Food Festival

Compete for a Good Chef’s Job in Florida

You better bet the competition for good chef and restaurant cook jobs is stiff, especially in the major metro areas like Miami, Orlando, and Tampa-St. Pete. How can you get an edge? Enroll in a high-quality chef training school and learn your craft. Have passion. Make sure the culinary school you ultimately choose offers you internship opportunities, a student-run open-to-the-public restaurant, well-equipped training kitchens, knowledgeable and professional chef/faculty, and career placement assistance.

Florida Cooking Schools and Culinary Arts Programs

International Culinary Schools at the Art Institutes of Fort Lauderdale is one of 32 campuses offering this excellent culinary curriculum—emphasis on international cookery, starting with classic French—the keystone to all other Western cuisines. Degree programs in Ft. Lauderdale include: Bachelors Culinary Management, Associates Culinary Art, Associates Baking and Pastry, and Diploma Art of Cooking.

International Culinary Schools at the Art Institutes of Jacksonville continues the excellent chef training available on 32 campuses across the U.S. You learn classic French cooking and culinary methods, which lays the groundwork for other major international cuisines. Degree programs include: Bachelors Culinary Management, Associates Culinary Arts, and Diploma Culinary Arts Skills.

International Culinary Schools at the Art Institutes of Tampa is one of 32 campus locations that features the dynamic culinary arts school. Emphasis is on international cuisines under the guidance of experienced chef/instructors. Programs in Tampa include: Bachelors Culinary Management, Bachelors Food and Beverage Management, Associates Culinary Arts, Associates Wine, Spirits and Beverage Management, Diploma Baking and Pastry.

Orlando Culinary Academy is home to the world-class Le Cordon Bleu curriculum. You are steeped in intensive classic French cuisine and culinary theology. Faculty are masters themselves and you graduate with a highly respected education. Orlando is crammed to the gills with dynamic restaurants and world-class resorts, all of which crave well-trained and ambitious new chefs. Degree programs include: Associates Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts, Associates Le Cordon Bleu Patisserie and Baking, and Diploma Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts.

Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts – Miami is a hot campus location for tomorrow’s new chefs. This city is colorful and flavored with some of the best new cuisine in the state. Imagine: you could be interning at one of Miami’s hot restaurants in just a few months. Degree programs on the Miami campus include: Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts, Le Cordon Bleu Patisserie and Baking.

Florida Culinary Institute – West Palm Beach provides budding chefs and restaurant managers with a top-notch education that puts you on the fast-track to a fully realize career. Degree programs are available in Culinary Arts, International Baking and Pastry, Culinary Management, and Food and Beverage Management.

Johnson and Wales University – North Miami is a career-centric liberal arts college that has a long reputation for turning out award-winning chefs and culinary professionals. The school’s alumni reads like an industry Who’s Who. Degrees in North Miami include: Associates Culinary Arts, Associates Baking and Pastry Arts, Bachelors Culinary Arts and Food Service Management, and Bachelors Baking and Pastry and Food Service Management.

Florida State Colleges, Community and Technical Colleges Offering Culinary, Restaurant Management, and/or Hospitality Degrees

Atlantic Vocational Technical Center - Coconut Creek
Bethune Cookman College - Daytona Beach
Brevard Community College - Cocoa Campus
Brewster Technical Center – Tampa
Broward Community College - Ft Lauderdale
Central Florida Community College – Ocala
Charlotte Vocational Technical Center - Port Charlotte
Chipola Junior College – Marianna
City College - South Miami
Daytona Beach Community College - Daytona Beach
Edison Community College - Ft Myers
Erwin Technical Center – Tampa
First Coast Technical Institute - St Augustine
Florida Community College – Jacksonville
Florida International University – Miami
Florida Memorial College – Miami
Florida National College – Hialeah
Florida Southern College – Lakeland
Florida State University – Tallahassee
George Stone Area Vocational Technical Center – Pensacola
Gulf Coast Community College - Panama City
Hillsborough Community College – Tampa
Indian River Community College - Ft Pierce
Keiser College - Ft Lauderdale
Lake-Sumter Community College – Leesburg
Lake Technical Center – Eustis
Lee County High Tech Center - Cape Coral
Lindsey Hopkins Technical Education Center – Miami
Locklin Technical Center – Milton
Lorenzo Walker Institute of Technology – Naples
Lynn University - Boca Raton
Manatee Technical Institute – Bradenton
McFatter Technical Center – Davie
Miami-Dade Community College – Miami
Miami Lakes Educational Center - Miami Lakes
Mid-Florida Tech – Orlando
North Technical Education Center - Riviera Beach
Northwood University - West Palm Beach
Nova Southeastern University - Ft Lauderdale
Okaloosa Applied Technology Center - Ft Walton Beach
Okaloosa-Walton Community College – Niceville
Orlando College – Melbourne
Palm Beach Community College - Lake Worth
Pensacola Junior College - Pensacola
Pinellas Technical Education Center – Clearwater, St. Petersburg
Ridge Technical Center - Winter Haven
Robert Morgan Vocational Technical Institute – Miami
Saint Petersburg Junior College - Pinellas Park
Saint Thomas University – Miami
Sarasota County Technical Institute – Sarasota
Schiller International University – Dunedin
Sheridan Vocational Center – Hollywood
Southeastern Academy – Kissimmee
South Florida Community College - Avon Park
South Technical Education Center - Boynton Beach
Southwest Florida College of Business - Ft Myers
Suwannee-Hamilton Technical Center - Live Oak
Technical Education Center – Kissimmee
Washington-Holmes Technical Center – Chipley
Webber College - Babson Park
Webster College – Holiday, Ocala
Webster Tech – Tampa
Valencia Community College - Orlando
University of Central Florida - Orlando