Some of the best culinary colleges in the country are located in the heart of New York, just a short distance from Staten Island. The French Culinary Institute (frenchculinary.com) is located in downtown Manhattan, less than 30 minutes from Staten Island. Teaching contemporary French cuisine, The French Culinary Institute has more than 25 years of experience training top chefs and has a wide variety of training programs. Another top-rated culinary college near Staten Island is the Institute of Culinary Education (iceculinary.com). An award-winning training program, the Institute of Culinary Education offers small and hands-on classes to ensure their training is personalized to each student.
Do you love Italian, gourmet or all-natural cooking? If so, you may be looking for a specialized culinary education in your interest area. The Italian Culinary Academy (italianculinaryacademy.com) is located in New York City just a short distance from Staten Island and trains aspiring Italian chefs. This program gives students the opportunity to get their education training in both New York as well as several weeks in Italy. Another specialized program is the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health & Culinary Arts (naturalgourmetinstitute.com) located in the heart of Manhattan just a short distance from Staten Island. The Natural Gourmet Institute is a training ground for chefs that value health-supportive cooking.
Certificate programs are available at many colleges in the area of Staten Island, and if you are looking for a more generalized education that won't take as long to complete, this may be a good option. The Art Institute of New York City (artinstitutes.edu) offers a certificate program in culinary arts. The Art Institute's culinary program teaches international cooking and diverse cooking techniques. The Star Career Academy (culinaryacademy.edu) is also located in New York City and offers a certificate program. This certificate program teaches the fundamentals of food prep in a hands-on environment. Graduates of the certificate program are trained to work as chef's assistants, line cooks, sous chefs and catering assistants.
If you are looking for some cooking training but are not in need of a full educational program, consider looking into cooking classes at some top dining and training establishments. Carol's Café (carolscafe.com) was top rated by Zagat in 2011 and offers cooking classes at its location in Staten Island on Monday and Tuesday evenings. Another option for cooking classes is the Miette Culinary Studio (mietteculinarystudio.com) in Greenwich Village in Manhattan. The studio offers recreational cooking classes for individuals or groups.