True Bleu: Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts opens Vegas branch

By Kristen Peterson

Wednesday, July 30, 2003 | 8:13 a.m.

The scent of fresh paint and new carpet still lingered in the hallways at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, Las Vegas.

Staff members strolled the Summerlin campus with prospective students as the receptionist fielded a surge of telephone calls.

It was a Friday afternoon. The first week of classes was ending and a student ice cream social was under way. The school photographer captured an energized moment: Head Chef Heinz Lauer flanked by students decked in traditional uniform.

Since 1999 the world-renowned French cooking school Le Cordon Bleu has been blending its culinary programs into school curriculums throughout the United States, through a partnership with Career Education Corporation. But it chose Las Vegas and its booming restaurant industry as the site for its first stand-alone facility, at 1451 Center Crossing, near Summerlin Parkway and Town Center Drive in Summerlin.

The 15-month, full-time program offers an Associate of Occupational Science degree and teaches the same 450 core competencies of the Paris campus.

Already the school's enrollment is swelling. Its first class of 80 was filled within two months. School officials expect a new group of students to begin classes every six weeks.

"It's a market that was very ripe to hosting a culinary school with all the hotels and restaurants opening in Las Vegas," Kathy Shaw, spokeswoman for Le Cordon Bleu International, said. "It's a viable market. There's a large pool of students there."

The school also has only limited competition. Only two other accredited cooking schools are operating in Southern Nevada.

The Community College of Southern Nevada offers an associate's degree with a culinary arts emphasis. The degree can be transferred to the University of Nevada Las Vegas for a Bachelor of Science Degree in Culinary Arts Management. And the Art Institute of Las Vegas in Henderson offers a 21-month Culinary Arts Associate of Science degree.

Campus life

Le Cordon Bleu has 22 campuses in 12 countries. Its degrees vary according to schools, from the prestigious Le Grand Diplome in Paris to a Master of Business Administration or Master of Arts in Gastronomy at its Australian campus.

The Las Vegas campus features six production kitchens, four demonstration classes, four management classes and a computer classroom where students will learn software programs for food purchasing and vending.

In May Le Cordon Bleu's fine-dining restaurant will open on site using the first group of students as staff. They'll work any job from cooking to taking reservations.

The school is headed by the German-born Lauer, who was born into a culinary family and began his own culinary apprenticeship in Baden-Baden, the Black Forest region of Germany. He's worked in executive chef and managerial positions at hotels in Germany and for Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Lauer came to Le Cordon Bleu school from the Las Vegas Club, where he worked as director of food operations. He had been an instructor at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, which now has a Le Cordon Bleu culinary arts program incorporated into the school's already established culinary curriculum. In Las Vegas, Lauer has taught part time at CCSN.

Jennifer White, president of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, said Lauer was the school's first pick "because he came so highly recommended from the California academy."

Lauer anticipates the school will have a significant impact on the local culinary industry.

"It will raise the bar," Lauer said. "When it comes to hiring cooks and hiring chefs, property managers will now have something to measure them by.

"We'll get them ready. They're not just a pantry cook. They get the entire basic skills here."

For Scott Green, a 22-year-old Le Cordon Bleu student, Le Cordon Bleu adds another element to a culinary career that he began by stocking a salad bar in a hotel employee kitchen.

"A lot of people who work in Las Vegas don't have the schooling we're getting here," Green said. "The average cooks come up from dishwashing."

Though the degree from Le Cordon Bleu will carry little promotional weight at Primo's at the Suncoast, where he works, Green said it will further his knowledge and help in his pursuit to open his own restaurant.

Besides, Green said, looking down at his Le Cordon Bleu uniform, "I head straight to work from class. You really feel proud walking around in it."

Ed Martucci, a 44-year-old student at Le Cordon Bleu who has been working as a cook for 20 years, hopes his degree from Le Cordon Bleu will someday help him earn a chef's title.

"I've done chef's work, but I don't have the title; that's why I'm here," Martucci said.

"It's the oldest, most prestigious school in the world. If I'm going to go to a school, I'm going to go to a school where there's a history."

Industry notes

Some industry representatives are still curious whether the local Le Cordon Bleu, which has already begun its heavy marketing campaign, will carry the same prestige as the Paris school.

"It's a big name," Chef Andre Rochat, of Andre's French Restaurant, said. "Let's hope they make it a big school. We need it. We are desperate for good cooks."

Spago Chef David Robins said it's too early to tell whether Le Cordon Bleu will have an impact on the local culinary industry, but added, "Any program is a good program.

"The culinary industry is getting to be on par with professions such as doctors and lawyers. It's always good to have a background. That means they're a little more passionate, a little more focused."

Tom Kaplan, managing general partner for Wolfgang Puck Restaurants, agreed, saying, "At a certain time before the restaurant world exploded, it was easy to get their foot in the door. As the business exploded, it hasn't been as easy to get in."

With a degree, Kaplan said, "You're more marketable, especially for someone who wants to make a career change. But it's not a guarantee. Chefs will look for someone with experience. And they'll have to work their way through different positions in the kitchen."

Growing numbers

An excess of trained cooks might be on the horizon; students are steadily enrolling in each of the local culinary schools.

CCSN had 435 students attending its program last spring. The Art Institute of Las Vegas, which opened one year ago, has 100 students enrolled (meeting its intended small classroom capacity) in its culinary program. Its head chef, Master Chef Raimund Hofmeister, estimates that soon there will be 2,000 culinary students enrolled in all of Las Vegas' culinary programs.

"Over the next five years you will see an exciting competitive spirit," Hofmeister said. "You will see a shift. It will reflect on the labor market, two to three years from now, quite significantly."

Still, the schools must compete with the notion that many cooks in town often work their way through kitchens from entry-level positions with little academic or technical background.

"It is a little tougher in Las Vegas to get students because they say, 'Why should I get a degree when I could be a cook's helper or pantry runner?' " Chef John Metcalf, director of CCSN's culinary arts program, said.

"But what are you going to do when you leave Las Vegas? What are you going to do when you want to move up the ladder? You can only go so far without a good education. Usually they don't give people chef positions without (a degree)."

Metcalf graduated in 1990 from the Culinary Institute of America. The culinary arts program he heads is highly regarded by some local chefs for its hard-working and award-winning students.

As far as Metcalf is concerned, the arrival of Le Cordon Bleu poses no threat to enrollment in CCSN's culinary program.

"They're actually targeting different students," Metcalf said. "We cater more to the people who are working full time and come to us part time. There's a big cost difference. They can get a degree at the community college for $6,000. That includes knives, books, tuition."

Le Cordon Bleu is reluctant to disclose its tuition fees for fear of scaring off potential students, but Renee Brattin, director of admissions at Le Cordon Bleu, said students can expect to pay between $30,000 and $35,000 for a degree at the school. Financial aid in the form of federal loans is available to those who qualify.

Le Cordon Bleu's stiffest competition will likely be the Art Institute of Las Vegas, which charges roughly $37,000 for its Culinary Arts Associate of Science degree, achieved in 21 months. Average class size is 18 students, many of whom are from Southern California. There are four master chefs on the advisory committee. Similar to Le Cordon Bleu, it offers a career-placement program based on networking.

Hofmeister welcomes the competition from Le Cordon Bleu.

"The more competition, the better," he said.