Culinary schools have always fascinated me. Watching “Top Chef” is one of my favorite things to do, and hearing where all these cheftestants trained for their art is always so cool. There are a lot of cooking schools here in the country, but I never really got to be up close and personal with any. Last Thursday though I got to visit Istituto Culinario for a few hours. After chatting with some of the faculty members and meeting some students, I was impressed!
Some facts I know now about Istituto Culinario:
- It was formerly known as the OB Montessori Culinary College, established as the first specialized school for culinary arts in the country.
- Its objective is to provide world-class training for aspiring professional chefs.
- What sets Istituto Culinario apart from other cooking schools: It’s the only culinary school in Manila that has a ladderized program composed of a TESDA registered 2-year Diploma course that leads to a CHED’s registered Bachelor’s Program. This means that after two years, Istituto Culinario students have a choice of either starting a career after two years or moving directly to a full Bachelor Food Management course. So if you’re fresh out of highschool, the 4-year course would be great for you! If you already have a college degree, then you can go for the 2-year course.
- Istituto Culinario is the only culinary school with its own farm. How awesome is that.
- Istituto Culinario mentors are industry professionals, but they also tap mentors from outside the industry. Being a chef is also about business, marketing and management.
That’s where I came in. In their Marketing Management class, I gave a talk on Consumer Insights. It was wonderful to have shared my love for insighting with the students. It was even more wonderful to know that these culinary students were being trained in Marketing.
Thank you to the IC students for listening and participating. Thank you to Mr. Anthony Haber for inviting me to give a talk to his class. Thank you to Chef Chris Bautista and Chef James Antolin for leading such promising programs for these future chefs.
Learn more about Istituto Culinario here:
Main website: http://www.istitutoculinario.ph/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IstitutoCulinario
Hi! I'm Toni Tiu,
and I've been blogging at
at Wifely Steps since 2003. This started as a blog to help newly weds adjust to married life. It has evolved into a home and parenting blog. I write about things close to my heart -- good eats, good reads, family, marriage, and the little things that make everyday happy.