The Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) is an American culinary school located in New York City, New York.
Accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC), ICE offers comprehensive 8-18 month career training diploma programs in Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts, Culinary Management and Hospitality Management.
The school runs one of the largest program of hands-on recreational cooking classes and wine education courses in the country, with more than 26,000 enthusiasts taking any of the 1,500 classes offered each year.
ICE also hosts private hands-on cooking events such as corporate entertaining, corporate team building and closing dinners, or personal celebrations such as birthdays, rehearsal dinners, or special reunions.
History
ICE traces its roots to 1975, when Peter Kump opened Peter Kump's New York Cooking School, one of the first culinary schools in New York City. Kump's philosophy was to concentrate on teaching cooking techniques and flavor development at a time when most other cooking schools were only teaching recipes.
In 1983, Kump inaugurated a professional program to train aspiring chefs. A number of his former teachers, including James Beard, Simone Beck, Marcella Hazan and Diana Kennedy taught classes. A number of other notable chefs, including Julia Child, James Peterson, David Bouley and Jacques Pépin, were frequent guest instructors.
When Kump died in 1995, the school was acquired by Rick Smilow, an entrepreneur with an interest in education and the culinary arts.
After the acquisition, the school’s professional programs expanded, requiring a move to its current location in the Chelsea neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York City at 50 W. 23rd Street, where it has expanded twice, in 1999 and 2004. In 1999, the older East 92nd Street facility was closed.
In 2001, the school's name was changed to The Institute of Culinary Education.
Academics
Career-Training Programs
ICE's career training diploma programs range from six to 12 months. ICE features small, attentive hands-on classes with distinguished Chef Instructors and staff.
Culinary Arts Program â€" In this program, students are taught a wide variety of knowledge and skill in culinary arts. Cooking techniques from a range of countries and cultures are presented along with basic food-preparation skills. Students learn the theory, practice and art of cooking. The 650-hour comprehensive curriculum is grounded in ICE's five-point model of skill development: theory, technique, palate training, speed and teamwork.
Pastry & Baking Arts Program â€" This program was founded by pastry chef Nick Malgieri. The 610-hour program is designed to offer students theory, techniques and hands-on experience in the pastry and baking arts.
Culinary Management Program â€" This program prepares students for a career owning or operating their own food business. The diploma requires 316 credit hours and includes courses in restaurant management, catering management, menu selection, legal issues and a broad array of business aspects to working in the food industry.
Hospitality Management Program â€" This program prepares students for a career in the travel and tourism industry. The diploma requires 428 credit hours and includes courses in food and beverage management, human resources, housekeeping, legal issues and a broad array of business aspects to working in the hotel industry.
Students in the Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts and Hospitality Management programs must complete an externship as part of their diploma requirement. This experience provides real world training, allows students to focus on a particular culinary interest area, and gets their foot in the door at some of America's top restaurants. ICE has placed 562 externs in 302 establishments in 11 states and 4 countries in 2010. In 2010, the top three externship sites were: Perry Street, Financier, and Every Day with Rachael Ray. Multiple restaurants headed or owned by chefs Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Daniel Boulud, Dan Barber, Tom Colicchio, Mario Batali, and restaurateur Danny Meyer took a combined 98 student externs in 2010.
Continuing Education
ICE offers several continuing-education programs.
Center for Advanced Pastry Studies â€" This series of three-day classes features some of the world’s leading pastry chefs, offering courses such as "Advanced Sugar Artistry" and "Chocolate Showpieces" with such experts in the field as Elisa Strauss, Stephane Treand, and Norman Love.
Center for Food Media â€" A year-round series of classes and workshops on subjects that include recipe development, food writing, culinary travel writing, food styling, blogging, cookbook proposal development and related topics.
Meet The Culinary Entrepreneurs â€" A year-round series of lectures from leading culinary business owners. The sessions introduce audience members to restaurateurs, specialty food retailers, caterers, and other proprietors who have established highly regarded local and national brands. Past speakers have included Danny Meyer, Joe Bastianich and Gary Hirshberg
Recreational Cooking Classes
For the general public, ICE offers more than 1,500 courses each year. From beginners to advanced, ICE’s courses cover all tastes, including Italian, Asian, Spanish, French and Latin-American cuisine as well as pastry techniques, home entertaining, knife skills, wine education and greenmarket cooking.
Class instructors include a full-time teaching staff, culinary experts from around the country as well as alumni and dozens of special guests from notable chefs to award-winning cookbook authors with expertise in specific cuisines or techniques. Guest instructors have included Daniel Boulud, Elizabeth Karmel, Pichet Ong and Sara Moulton.
Facilities
ICE operates out of a seven-floor, 42,000-square-foot (3,900Â m2) facility that includes 11 teaching kitchens, a demonstration kitchen, three traditional classrooms and a wine studies center.
Awards and Honors
ICE was the winner of the International Association of Culinary Professionals’ Vocational (2008) and Avocational (2003) Culinary School of the Year awards.
Also in 2008, ICE’s extensive program of recreational cooking courses was included theSaveur Magazine Top 100 (“Culinary Things We Loveâ€).
ICE was highlighted in a 2006 story titled “An Inside Look at America's Finest Culinary Schools†in New York Restaurant Insider magazine.
ICE alumni have won numerous awards and gained national recognition over the past 35 years, including: James Beard Foundation, Food & Wine, Women Chefs & Restaurateurs and the American Culinary Federation.
Notable alumni
- Lee Knoeppel - Finalist on ABC's The Taste
- Denisse Oller - journalist
- Marc Murphy - Chef & Judge on Food Network's Chopped
- Gail Simmons - Judge on Bravo's Top Chef
References
External links
- [1], The Institute of Culinary Education official website
- [2], The Official Blog of the Institute of Culinary Education
Post a Comment