If you want to drop $86K for a bachelor's degree just to sit through professors reading PowerPoints…read moreand taking attendance like you're back in high school, this is the place for you. The "campus" is a joke -- you share a breakroom with the custodian, it's tucked in the middle of the ghetto, and there's nothing inspiring about being there. Most of the "chefs" are rude, condescending, and clearly not trained to teach. Just because you can cook doesn't mean you should be in front of a classroom -- but here, that's apparently all it takes. One chef actually got mad because I didn't know how to make puff pastry -- like, isn't that literally why I'm here paying you to teach me? Level 5 was the biggest waste of money and time. After Level 1, all you really do is follow a recipe and plate the food. There's hardly any focus on technique or real culinary growth. If you expect to leave here with polished skills and industry-level training, prepare to be disappointed. Graduation ceremonies? Don't get your hopes up -- they're not really about the students. They spend way too much time handing out awards to guests, faculty, and even random employees, instead of recognizing the people who paid tens of thousands of dollars to be there. Bottom line: this school is about profit, not students. They care about your tuition check, your attendance sheet, and that's about it. The degree isn't respected in the industry, and most restaurants don't take graduates from here seriously. CIA, ICE, and other real culinary schools are 100x better -- they actually focus on technique, education, and setting you up for a real career. Before you sign up and get buried in debt, really think about what you're paying for. This place is a culinary clown show. Save your money, save your sanity, and go somewhere that will actually invest in your success

This is a phenomenal culinary school with passionate chefs eager and willing to teach the new…read moregeneration of chefs!

During the beginning of the pandemic, I did a LOT of virtual cooking classes. This kept me…read moreconnected to others and helped me to feed my family, who all came home, a variety of international and local flavors. So happy to see a virtual cooking class on the Weekly Savor from Central Market. So easy to invite several of my friends who I met cooking virtually at many, many Yelp cooking events. The free live online class and discussion with Chef and Restaurateur Einat Admony, who is known for her fresh, sophisticated Mediterranean palate, was fabulous. So interesting to learn about Chef Admony's journey and challenges as a chef and then cook along with her using chicken, lemons, herbs, onions and olives in Braised Chicken with Olives and Citrus. She also did a bonus Tahdig recipe. The food turned out amazing!! Chef Admony was one of the first chefs to introduce Israeli cuisine to Americans. I would love to eat at her flagship New York eatery, Balaboosta. She sold her Taim franchise to Chipotle, the Mexican fast-food chain. She has competed on the Food Network's reality television show Chopped and won twice. She is also a comedian and is a great teacher. Her passion really shined during this virtual class. Thanks to Chef and Restaurateur Einat Admony for sharing your wonderful story as a chef and your cooking tips. You are an inspiration. Thanks also Central Market Cooking School for offering this great class virtually. Thanks for the recipe and the recording. Braised Chicken with Olives and Citrus. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Put the chicken, olives, onion, preserved lemon, dried limes, lemon slices, oil, honey, salt, cilantro, garlic, turmeric, cumin, paprika, and red pepper flakes in a large bowl. Using your hands, mix everything thoroughly, making sure the chicken pieces are well coated with the spices and herbs. Arrange the chicken pieces skin-side down in a deep baking dish in a single snug layer. Arrange the rest of the mixture over the chicken. Whisk the stock with the orange juice in a measuring cup and pour over the chicken.

Tres magnifique! The hubs and I had the pleasure of joining Chef Mike and company for the "French…read moreSteakhouse" couples cooking class and man, it was a real, 3-course success! Salad of Frisee, Bacon Lardons & Poached Egg Steak au Poivre (Steak with Peppercorn Sauce) Pommes Anna (Thinly Sliced Layers of Potatoes) Haricots Verts (French Green Beans) Chocolate Pots de Creme Wine pairings: Malbec Rosè & Malbec So many skills included, such as egg poaching, flambéing, a mini knife skills lesson, and steak seasoning and cooking the right way! The wine pairings were spot on also. The class was so fun and interactive that I can't wait to return. The chefs truly made it a date night done right!

I've taken several cooking classes at markets and restaurants around town. This, by far, has been…read moremy favorite. There were four chefs, and just 10-12 cooking students, so we always had someone to step in when our pastry cream started to clump, or we looked just a slice shy from chiffonading off a knuckle. Pizza Party was equal parts its namesake: we had calzones and pizza, followed by a fruit tart "pizza" PLUS we had an absolute ball making it all. Oh, and fresh salad and wine tastings throughout. All for $45, plus our own cooking sweat equity! The chefs never judged us for putting croutons from the salad in our calzones, or trying to fold our fruit tart NY pizza-style. Nope, it was completely a Have It Your Way style with assistance when requested. I can't wait for the Harry Potter theme class this fall. Rice Epicurean Cooking School - see you all again soon, and thanks for. Fantastic evening.

All of the equipment is old and greasy. The entire place smells like sour milk and sewage.read more

I saw this adorable house converted into a Swiss pastry store during a BCO bike ride from Onion…read moreCreek to Urban Harvest Farmers Market. There were homey hand-written signs, the Swiss flag banner, and this lady standing on the porch waving at us as we rode by. I already knew that this would be a cute pace with sincere, friendly service. I immediately made a mental note to return. I did and am so happy to have done so! This place is owned by a Swiss family who used to have a bakery long ago but now sells Swiss pastries wholesale to various grocery stores and for holidays. They decided to open a this neighborhood store to bring their unique Swiss pastries to the community. They host birthday parties, have chocolate bar making classes, and host special Swiss raclette dinners. Sylvia and Lance welcomed me in with much enthusiasm and immediately began to show me around. As we looked around, admiring the adorable Swiss decorations, Lance told us that the red chairs with the Swiss symbol were specially ordered and made in Houston for them. There were cuckoo clocks on the walls, paintings of the Swiss countryside, and more adorable Swiss decorations. It really makes you feel like you are in another country! They explained how a few rooms is for the various classes and parties, and these rooms people tend to come in for a nice communal Swiss breakfast. They explained that they sell Danish style filled croissants, pretzel-shaped butter cookies, key lime cheesecakes, apple strudel, quiches, sweet breads, and more. All the pastries looked so good. Sylvia explained that the Danish style of croissant is different than French and American, plus they had the option of hazelnut or almond fillings. She immediately got excited and gave us samples of the croissants and butter cookies. I loved the hazelnut-filled one and loved the butter cookies. The almond one was good as well, but hazelnut was better. The prices are affordable too: :$2.50 for the filled croissants and $1 for the cookies. They also left gingerbread men for sampling at the front. They also offer espresso so you can sit down and enjoy the pastries there. I want to return to try the apple strudel! Sylvia showed us a giant gingerbread man that you can decorate in one of the parties. It is actually a traditional lebkuchen, not gingerbread, dough. This is a flavor and texture that old-world Germans may be familiar with and enjoy, but I warn Americans who are used to butter and sugar-laden gingerbread, that this is not what that tastes like. This particular lebkuchen is denser, less sweet, and has a strong anise flavor, which is like the original recipe. Don't let this turn you off; the dough is more structural than edible for the purpose of the gingerbread man-decorating and gingerbread house-making parties. All-in-all, my first experience was absolutely charming. Sylvia's father even came in and chatted with some other Swiss people. It is such a cute neighborhood place with good pastries and is a great place to host kid's parties or attend a fancy Swiss dining experience. I highly suggest stopping by! *PS, as of this post, it is only open Saturdays from 9am-2pm.

Kindli House is a cute little shop right down the street from Gelazzi, and Kindli House definitely…read morefeels like a family-run place. I think they're only open on Saturday. It's decorated outside with gingerbread men, so when I walked in that's what I wanted, even though they have tons of other pastries and sweets. The gingerbread man was delicious--soft enough to be delicious and just hard enough to keep the gingerbread man shape.

Professional quality baking supplies. And Cindy runs an amazing baking academy program for kids…read more Really wonderful!

My Son shops there for the Mrs supplies. I have gone into the Shoppe with him on occasions Friendly…read moreTeam

Chef Reggie and Team provided my husband with a beautiful fusion of Southern Cuisine and Haitian…read moreKreyol staples for a lovely Haitian Flag Day Celebration for all to enjoy. I highly recommend, from the tasting and the followed through recommendations left us pleased as well as our invited guests. Thank You! Best, Crystal & Mathieu JN Baptiste

I really wanted to support this business for my 25th wedding reception, but after receiving quotes…read morefrom other vendors before speaking with Miranda, who I believe is the owner, I couldn't move forward with them. They are affiliated wIth MATCH Houston, and are the required vendor for beverages. This may explain their lack of professionalism, especially when compared to the other catering companies I had spoken with. I cannot speak for the quality of their food, but if you're planning a special event, such as a wedding or anniversary, steer clear of Lemond.

Made a visit with a friend for Houston Restaurant Week (HRW) $20 lunch…read more Entered a fairly quiet dining room with 3 other tables, and was greeted immediately by a friendly waiter. I opted for the charcuterie board and the salmon. Presentation was a beautiful work of art for both plates. Charcuterie board had a decent variation of meats and also had a sort of super rich salmon pate (initially I thought it was cheese). As far as the entree goes, I felt as if I had a plate of salmon alongside a bunch of random decorative vegetables. Presentation was very nice, portion was fairly large, just more so random to me. Taste was ok. We didn't opt for the $5 supplemental dessert, however we were given 3 delightful complimentary coconut and banana white chocolate truffles upon receiving the check. I'm thankful for opportunities like HRW to give me a chance to try places that I normally wouldn't go to. Not sure if I'd return though.

Le Bistro is a French restaurant located inside the Culinary Institute Le Notre. What initially…read morestarted off as a bad experience made a dramatic reversal. I tried to stop by on a Friday evening for dinner. Le Bistro is located on the north side of town, is not in the best area, so it was a bit of a drive. Once we arrived, we were asked if we had a reservation. We did not. They were unwilling to accommodate us as they require reservations. We had to leave and dine elsewhere. For the inconvenience, we were offered a free glass of wine on our next visit. Le Bistro is a small restaurant so I get it. But, when we visited the next week, the restaurant wasn't full. That's not to say it wasn't when we tried. Either we were unlucky or they use an antiquated system without the flexibility that diners expect in this day and age. Rant over. Fast forward to the following Friday and we stopped by for Houston Restaurants Week. They start you off with some warm bread, fresh out of the oven, with butter. A lot of it too. We demolished all of it. For my appetizer, I had the scallops which are served with risotto. Scallops are easy to mess up but they cooked them just right. Soft in the middle with a nice crispy sear on top. The risotto complimented the scallops nicely. For my entree, I had the waygu strip which is served with potato sticks (the fancy kind) and green beans. For all the steak eaters out there, you know that waygu is an expensive cut of meat. I was expecting a small portion as a result. It was not. 10 ounces which was a lot more than I expected. This dish alone is probably worth more than the $45 you pay for three dishes during HRW. This was my first time having waygu and it was as advertised. A little fatty on the outside but flavorful, chewy, and buttery when you take off the fatty ends. An excellent cut of steak that everyone should try at least once! The sides were also good. For my dessert, they were out of two out of three of the desserts listed but offered us some alternatives. I went with an apricot flan which was alright. Throughout the meal, we had a bottle of red wine which was also great. Eating at a culinary institute is an experience in itself. You're going to receive excellent service. The waiters and waitresses are students so they have an incentive to provide great service. Not only are they getting a tip but they're being graded. At the end of the meal, they give you a card to rate your experience and sign up for any culinary classes that you're interested in. Not only do they have several classes available, but you can also get a diploma as well as an associates or bachelors if you're trying to become a master chef. The chefs are from France so you're learning from the best. The presentation of the food should also be noted. The food looks like art. Which is what you would expect at a fancy French restaurant. We had a 5-star experience. The service was friendly and efficient. Just make sure to make a reservation.