Unhappy with the tough restaurant era, students are lined up for this college cooking course

It’s a cruel range for Los Angeles restaurants. Since 2023, hundreds of famous attractions have been closed due to escalating costs of food and labor and weakening the economy.

Recently, local scenes have also been burned down by January wildfires, resulting in temporary closures and displaced workers. Then, this summer, federal immigration enforcement attacks caused many undocumented workers to leave their posts for fear of being detained.

This is a difficult environment to start a career in the catering industry. But the culinary program at the Los Angeles Institute of Trade and Technology tells a different story—the number of enrollments increased by 13% in the last school year, and that story has increased by nearly 30% since 2019.

The growth of the program has also been closed over the past decade, with the development of the program being: Le Cordon Bleu closed universities across the country in 2017, including Pasadena branches; and in 1920, several other famous people closed down during the 1920 pandemic.

Recent trade technology culinary graduates and lecturers taught them – said they were not surprised by the success of the school and explained that the program was in some way attractive as it taught useful real-world skills in new modern architecture.

“Going to school is very important – I tell the young chefs we have,” said Katya Shastova, a chef partner at Vin Folk, a carefully reviewed Hermosa Beach restaurant that opened last year. “Some people think you can learn in the kitchen. Yes, you can. But when you go into a kitchen with technology that has been embedded in you…it puts you on a different level.”

Robert Wemischner is a long-time lecturer at the Los Angeles Trade Technology Cooking School.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Longtime lecturer Robert Wemischner said the program emphasizes “giving students a real perspective on what they are going to do in the field.”

“Even when the landscape is bleak or uncertain…students want to find a career and pursue passion,” he said. “And they find that teachers will cheer on it.”

There are other factors. Department Chairman Jerry Vachon said the program could benefit from the bumps that came after the 19th as people rethink their careers. The Los Angeles College’s Commitment Initiative was also helpful, launched by the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Los Angeles Community College District about a decade ago. It offers two years of tuition to nine schools in the district, offering a selection of high school students from the School of Trade Technology for their nine schools.

Vachon predicts future growth of culinary schools by creating new research topics, which offer certificates and associate degrees. Starting this fall, Trade-Tech will begin awarding plant-based food certificates. The program also aims to provide food trucks and mobility sales certificates by 2026. Both of these increasingly popular areas have lower entry barriers than restaurants.

Why Students Register

The approximately $50 million culinary arts building, which opened in the summer of 2021, is a display facility that changed the plan, Vulcan said. On a recent tour, he showed off a new class of green technology gardens, as well as a sponge-like room that includes 12 mini kitchens, equipped with gleaming stainless steel appliances.

He said many students “really haven’t experienced it” using high-end equipment provided by the school.

The building’s large main kitchen can accommodate multiple courses, including production baking and slaughterhouses. Vachon, who has long taught a class at Charcuterie – “We do pâtés, terrines,” he said – is especially proud of the dry fridge that hangs from Salami. It is near the campus coffee bar and its supply is prepared and sold by students.

Three years ago, Raul Gonzalez rotated from math to culinary programs for trade technology in Los Angeles. This spring, he received an associate degree in culinary arts.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Students who recently completed the program said the facilities were amazed by them. Raul Gonzalez, 26, said he was studying mathematics at the School of Trade Technology but left after an epiphany during a calculus exam: “I don’t want to do this in my life.” Three years ago, he was pivoted to culinary school and earned an associate’s degree in culinary arts this spring.

“I’ve always been passionate about cooking. It’s finally excited for me. He wants to open a restaurant in Guatemala where his parents are from.

Sandy Hernandez, 19, said baking has always been a hobby in high school – but she wants to develop her skills. She participated in the school’s baking program in 2023. Hernandez, who received his certificate this spring, has found work to prepare egg ust and other items for cafes and catering providers.

For many students, the program is relatively affordable: Vachon says students can earn about $3,500 to $5,000 in certificates or degrees based on the route they choose. By comparison, attending the U.S. outpost in St. Helena, California costs $22,105 per semester.

What do you say about a graduate

Graduates of the Trade-Tech cooking program said it was ready for their careers.

Ricardo Mora, 34, stayed behind sales jobs about a decade ago and enrolled in Trade Technology with the goal of becoming a pastry chef. He received certificates in baking and cooking programs in 2017 and 2018 and worked at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills for about three years.

Sandy Hernandez is the latest graduate of Trade Technical Cooking School. She has found work to prepare egg ust and other items for cafes and catering providers.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Eventually, though, he got tired of it and revealed food photography in 2020. What he learned at Trade-Tech helped him with this new career.

“I spent years working with food and knowing how to show people food,” said Mora from South Gate. “I can help [clients] Make sure the food looks great for the photos. ”

Another graduate, Eric Warren, 72, also used his experience in trading technology to start his cooking career in the late 1950s. After graduating in 2011, he made his debut in Ooo-we! The sauce is a “sweet, spicy, spicy glaze” and he said it’s good from eggs to pork tenderloin. His path is unique, but he believes the cooking program proves versatile graduates.

“You might start flipping the hamburger, but you might end up being an expert in caviar,” Warren said. “Everyone has to eat it.”

Jerry Vachon, chairman of the LA Trade-Tech cooking program, also teaches there.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Shastova, 34, is a chef at Vin Folk, and The Times said last month it was “the most exciting restaurant to open in South Bay recently” and one of the program’s most obvious graduates.

Shastova was a Russian immigrant who came to the United States in 2011, settled in New York and eventually moved to Los Angeles. She thought about her next move and thought of her mother’s bakery going home.

“I think I already know what to do,” she said with a smile. “Then I found the trade technology.”

She graduated with a Cooking Studies Certificate in 2017.

To further demonstrate the value of business education, two other graduates Shastova went to school with them to find jobs at a good Los Angeles-area restaurant.

They are Vin Folk’s chefs.