COOKING SCHOOLS - Investing in yourself and your Career !!

I read an online comment by someone recently that stated "Don't waste your money on overpriced pastry schools." 
Seems the person took negatively to the comments I had also posted on LinkedIn advising a young new comer to the industry about the schools in which I have had the pleasure to train and learn...
Yes,"Pastry Schools" are not cheap...but instead of thinking of this as an expense, think of it as an investment..!!
Once you have trained in any given trade, the learning does not END on the completion of a four year apprenticeship...
In fact it really has only just begun.
I have been cooking now for 3O years and the reason I try to go to a cooking school "somewhere" other than my home area every year, is not really just to get educated, I think after 30 years I have a pretty good grasp of the whole Pastry trade, but mores the reason I go to School every year is to re-learn and remind myself of the skills that working hard and fast in our industry can remove from you...
I invest in reminding myself that taking time and care in production ends with better production methods, smoother flow of production and greater volume of production.
I go to remind myself the reason little tricks where taught to me 30 years ago and the reason some tricks should never be forgotten.
I go to remind myself that trends change in a heart beat and finally I go to remind myself exactly why after 30 years I am still in love with pastry....because it is simply amazing to create food people adore every day.

Many people expect the career they choose to just reward them with ever increasing incomes year after year, but even a bank account or investment never grows unless you invest into it... The more you give the bigger the reward.
And thats why I go to school every year.
To invest in a richer future for myself and for my customers and clients.
There is no such thing as a "wasted investment" in my eyes, if you are serious about your trade. We can never learn enough, we are simply not on the planet long enough to ever  know enough and even if a skill is not learnt then sometimes the richer reward can simply be to show you that you are better than you imagined.
I for one will always "INVEST" into my self, invest in my career and invest in the taste possibilities for my customers because after 30 years, they all deserve nothing less.
In the words of MARK TWAIN....“Education consists mainly of what we have unlearned.” and I could not agree more.


My favorite school for value for money and value of education is as mentioned on this site before BELLOUET CONSEIL... I love their professionalism, the ease of classes, the acceptance that we are all professionals and the fact that they have always made me feel comfortable despite the sometimes language divide.. ECOLE Bellout Conseil now headed by JEAN MICHEL PERRUCHON is one of the leading book publishers for our global industry today and their books are as precise and clean, methodical and clear as their classes. Class notes can be provided in English and French and some lecturers have understanding of both languages. (http://www.ecolebellouetconseil.com/) check their link for the lecturers....I have been going to Bellouet for many years now and their professionalism is second to none.

THE ECOLE BELLOUET CONSEIL TEAM

If Paris is too far then I have it on great note that SAVOUR School for Pastry and Chocolate,(http://www.savourschool.com.au/)...featuring internationally trained, and award winning chefs, Kirsten Tibballs, Paul Kennedy and Robyn Curnow host classes and international chefs (Some of the best chefs in the Pastry world) who conduct classes on their premises. Savour is also just releasing its own cookbook and for those who find the Australian state of melbourne closer and cheaper than flying to Paris, you will be rewarded by a city equally as delightful with just as numerous pastry shops to choose from for added education.

THE SAVOUR TEAM

EDUCATION is never wasted, sadly too few people invest in themselves and into their careers to truly get the rewards and bonuses that they could so easily achieve, and those that do, well , the world truly is their's to rule.

Bellouet Conseil - Perhaps The Worlds Best Cooking School For Pastry Chefs

I have studied in Paris many times now.

I have also studied at the Bellouet Conseil before.

But this year I appreciated it more than ever.

Perhaps it was my mood, perhaps it was the "spring of discontent" at home, that made anywhere but the Middle East seem so much more inviting than ever before. But it was really an amazing time. More amazing than usual.

Many people wonder why I still return to Paris to school myself in pastry, after a 30 year career in the business.

The reason , simple; I believe you can never know enough?

Those who believe that after 30 years that they are the best, well, I wish them all the best.

For me, I see that in the everyday existence in our kitchens, while we push ourselves to try and do the best, occasionally we also do certain things out of speed and necessity, rather than because it’s the right way to do something.

My schooling is not about new recipes.

I have enough of those already, thanks

What it is about is skill, memory and reminding myself of the little details that you tend to forget or dismiss, throughout a busy work day, week, month and year,  which can truly make all the difference to an end product.

Thankfully too, yes, there are new recipes, new skills and new concepts and ideas which come up in this industry all the time.

Another reason I go is to remind myself of something few people ever have the courtesy to tell others.

I remind myself that,"I’m not doing a bad job!"

I have said it for many years , but will repeat it once again.

Being French - does not mean that you are the best at everything.

When I was young I was told being a pastry chef was a waste of time. Australia had no need for local pastry chefs. If the country needed Pastry chefs or Patissier’s then they would import them from France.

Fair enough. That was then and this is now.

It is nice to go and work among French pastry chefs to see how brilliant 'some' are, and just like ever other country on earth, how bad some are as well.

In the category of the best and most amazing, let me return to the subject of Bellouet Conseil. While I have been to other schools, I return here for two reasons. Location – its in the heart of Paris  and secondly because the amazing “professeurs” or teachers.

Jean Michel Perruchon an MOF now runs the school originally founded by Joel Bellouet, who it must be said still turns up to see the finished products at the end of the courses. Something greatly admired, that even in semi-retirement he still cares about the education of those who attend the school which bares his name.

This year I did 2 courses. Tartes Nouvelles Et Gouters with Laurent Moreno and Petits Gateaux Nouvelles Tendances with Chef Julien

Two great courses and two amazing teachers. These guys truly have raised the bar in quality and efficiency and skill level among Pastry Chefs.

All I can say, is look at some of the photos for yourself, let the quality be the true example of precision for these guys.

Bellouet Conseil on Rue Lecourbe , Paris, is the school I adore to go.

Friendly, talented and well run, and at the forefront of modern Patisserie.

Thank you to Jean Michel and his talented team for always making me feel welcome, among fellow colleagues of an amazing global industry.