'A New Life'
Ecole de Cuisine's Farid Zadi makes culinary school fun and affordable
By Tiffanie Ma 11/24/2010
The savory aroma of Seafood Tagine will lure culinary hopefuls onto the humble porch and through the grand doors of ECP: Ecole de Cuisine Pasadena, the Southland’s newest culinary school. Within the barn-like exterior is a spacious, high-ceiling, wooden interior and a bustling kitchen, where magic happens.
As he chopped onions with the swiftness and poise of a magician, one could not help but wonder if even a top chef could avoid the typical tears of onion chopping. His confidence and precision in his work translated into his response as he chuckled and said, “After 30 years in the kitchen, the onion is scared of you and it starts to cry, not me.” Although humorous and light-hearted, Chef Farid Zadi, head chef and dean of ECP, believes that success is something to be earned — and that “everything has a price; you have to want it.”
Earning a degree in culinary arts comes at a high price, indeed. Many students entering the food industry invest thousands of dollars and countless hours into their educations. But after facing the requisite challenges in the kitchen, many of these students upon graduation will face the new challenges of the current job market, say culinary students, educators and industry insiders.
For some, graduation seems like leaping out of the frying pan and into the fire. Just ask Lariza Acuna, who at 21 is preparing to graduate in March with a degree in pastry and baking from Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena. The San Fernando Valley woman is apprehensive about beginning her externship and eventual job hunting. “You do or die … You’re just out there,” said Acuna, who said her biggest fear is not finding a job. Being a culinary student has been a challenge in itself for Acuna. “Everything about it is challenging,” she said.
A cupcake is not simply a cupcake, according to Acuna; there is technique, formulation and organization involved behind the sweet treat. But cupcakes are the last of her worries. “Right now, finding a job and looking for a place is really stressful and it’s hard,” she said.
According to Ryan White, a 26-year-old Pasadena resident who is also expecting to graduate from Le Cordon Bleu in March, jockeying for kitchen superiority is becoming commonplace among the rising number of students entering culinary school. “There’s always competition because eventually either somebody’s going to be your boss or they are going to be your co-worker,” said White.
Realistic about the nature of rising to the top in such a competitive industry, White said he wouldn’t mind “starting from the bottom up” and prepping food, rather than aiming for the sous chef position, which is a common goal for most culinary graduates.
Despite these challenges, some remain optimistic. “Honestly, I don’t really have any fears … I feel very confident that I will be leaving here with all the skills and knowledge I need to take on the world,” said 18-year-old Heather Suydam of Hollywood, who expects to graduate next November. Suydam dreams of opening up her own restaurant one day; and while balancing her studies with a part-time job, has found support from her fellow colleagues.
Food is a foundation of life, especially here in Pasadena, where food establishments represent one-third of first-floor pedestrian-oriented businesses in restaurant-rich Old Pasadena, according to Steve Mulheim, president and CEO of the Old Pasadena Management District. As life changes, so do the demands and expectations of what makes good food and where it can be found.
Prospective restaurateurs and culinary students should expect to see more competition in the industry, with “consumers demanding high-quality ingredients and better executed dishes,” said Susan Park, food connoisseur and admissions officer of ECP.
Having a wide knowledge of ethnic foods is important to finding success in this changing business, especially in Pasadena, which has a culturally diverse demographic. “Pasadena has become more diverse in terms of taste,” said Park, adding that Asian and Latin cuisines are surging in popularity.
What was considered fine dining 10 years ago is more commonplace today, according to Park, with people expecting fresher, higher-quality ingredients — ultimately, more real food — and consumers are willing to pay for it. The next question is how prospective chefs and restaurateurs can best prepare to enter this new food territory?
Food preparation
In Pasadena, the options for food education are diverse. There is the big brand-name school Le Cordon Bleu. Then there are smaller establishments, such as Old Town Cooking School, which is geared more towards home cooks, and now ECP, which opened in October. ECP is located at Chefs Center, a nonprofit program of the Episcopal Housing and Economic Development Alliance, which aims at helping small businesses. These schools differ in prices, class-size and curriculum.
“It’s a new life,” said Zadi, an instructor at Le Cordon Bleu for six years, on opening his new affordable cooking school. And so too will the lives of prospective chefs and restaurateurs be as they step into the changing industry.
Coming from a culturally diverse heritage — born of Algerian parents in Lyon, France — cooking all over the world, and now being married to Park, who is Korean, Zadi said he’s “not afraid of anything, as long as I’m cooking it.” His multicultural culinary background is the backdrop of ECP’s curriculum, where students are taught French cooking techniques that can be applied to create global cuisine, some of which include Mediterranean and North African delicacies.
“Cooking brings people together. Like soccer, it is a team effort,” Zadi shared as he demonstrated turning zucchini and reminisced about his youthful days growing up in France studying food and playing soccer.
What sets ECP apart from other career-oriented cooking schools is the cost; about $10,500 for an entire suite of classes, taking pressure off the $40,000 to $70,000 in loans students must sometimes take out to attend some culinary schools.
Where food stands in Pasadena
Facing food entrepreneurs are challenges as well. Paul Little, president and CEO of the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce, explained that restaurant owners operate on narrow profit margins, often on single-digit percentages. In addition, with the number of customers on any given day in constant fluctuation, the “commodity of restaurant services is perishable,” with a high employee turnover rate due to the often-stressful nature of the job, said Little. If owners cannot guarantee a steady demand, they may be reluctant to hire kitchen staff other than to replace those who leave.
But, according to a US Department of Labor occupational forecast for the coming decade, job opportunities in the restaurant industry are expected to be good, although employment growth is expected to be slower than average because of the replacements. Upscale restaurants are likely to see strong competition where employers generally pay more.
‘A tremendous impact’
Although the stagnant economy has affected some small establishments, Pasadena remains “a restaurant destination,” according to Little, with people traveling from across the Southland and beyond to wine and dine.
Summer Dahlquist, 39, from Santa Rosa, visits Pasadena when her husband is here on business, usually once or twice a year. “As somebody who’s a tourist, I would say eating and shopping are the reasons that I’ll come down,”
said Dahlquist.
According to Little, “the restaurant community here in Pasadena has a tremendous impact on our economy.”
Restaurants generate not only income, but also a sense of civic pride for Pasadena residents. “Pasadena has a very positive reputation and we certainly hope that it continues to grow,” said Little. In addition, “to have this volume of quality restaurants within a small area is unique and holds well for the city,” commented Robert Montano of the Pasadena Economic Development Department.
Foodies
The “Foodie Culture,” which strives for new gastronomical experiences, also appears to be growing. The multicultural younger generation is one influencing factor of this growth. There also seems to be a trend of “young students wanting to infuse their professional program with their cultural background,” said Park.
Foodies will be happy to hear that, according to Montano, there will be “a lot of emerging restaurants from the culinary school” with many creative chefs, which means more creative dishes to dip into. “We have so many different types of restaurants — we have chain restaurants, independent restaurants, even smaller lunch-type restaurants that provide amenities for employees, not just food type but restaurant type,” said Montano. With a selection like this, there’s a plate for every palette to enjoy.
Although there is never a guarantee for anything in life, Zadi reminds his students to “just do one thing: never give up” — a few simple words we can all live by, master chef, student, restaurateur and foodie alike.
Now enrolling Ecole de Cuisine is at 45 N. San Gabriel Blvd., Pasadena.
Visit ecolecuisine.com or call (818) 641-6899
for more information on professional classes starting in January and other non-professional programs.
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