Culinary Program

Find culinary inspiration and helpful career information on topics such as cooking with chocolate, French and Greek cuisine, the life of a Chef, and what to expect in culinary school.

Does your sweet tooth lead you straight to your oven? Read how to avoid the pitfalls of cheese cake, bake creative cookies, use fresh fruits in baking, and more.

Catering and Restaurant Management

If you've ever prepared a Thanksgiving dinner, you know that cooking for a group takes planning and skill. Learn more about the art of catering and restaurant management, including specialized catering such as chocolates or high tea and how to prepare for a restaurant career.

Culinary Schools in the United States

With culinary schools in all 50 states and additional culinary education available online, you don't need to relocate unless you want to. Each state has its own special mixture of culture, cuisine, and locally grown agriculture that inspires the chefs and students who work and live there. If you're passionate about Maine lobster dishes, California cuisine, or any dish or state in between, you'll find a culinary school that is where you are or where you'd like to be.

Home | Culinary | Catering and Restaurant Management | Are You Cut Out for Catering?

Are You Cut Out for Catering?

A successful catering career requires many skills and talents--love of cooking, entrepreneurial skills, the ability to work well with people, and solid business expertise. People with these qualities--and the right career training from a culinary arts school--do well in catering.

A combination of experience and formal training may be the surest path to a successful catering career. Many catering and culinary arts schools offer courses in business skills such as planning, budgeting, and staffing. Through education and experience as an intern or employee at a catering company, aspiring caterers can learn a wide variety of other essential skills, such as ordering ingredients and supplies, selecting linen, serving alcoholic beverages legally and safely, and managing the logistics of serving large numbers of people.

Catering Career Outlook

As a caterer, you might own your own business, deliver handmade take-away meals, cater sporting or political events, or provide contract catering services for hospitals, hotels, and schools.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) expects all jobs in the culinary arts to increase by more than 12 percent through 2016. Earnings for catering positions vary widely from city to city and depend heavily on the type of catering. Work hours can be long and include late evenings, holidays, and weekends, but many caterers prefer this schedule to the 9-to-5. For people who love to cook and enjoy satisfying hungry clients, catering may be the perfect career.

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