Florence Culinary Arts School (FCAS) - Firenze

Best experience ever in the most beautiful city I ever been. Grazie!

I took a Gelato Course at FCAS last summer for just 2 weeks but it was a lovely experience. The instructors helped me a lot in terms of understanding the process, how it's made, the type of equipment used, and what the difference is between gelato and regular ice cream. Absolutely worth it!

I want you to know that I almost never write reviews but felt an obligation to protect others here. This school was the place that we chose to make a huge investment of time and money, studying cooking with them for a whole month. What we did not know was that the school had been purchased by a Japanese company and was run very poorly. Friends who stayed in the suggested housing got it worst- commutes of more than an hour to class (triple the maximum promised on the site), showers that were unsanitary with crumbling stucco, apartments beside construction and noise where no one could sleep. And no refunds for any of these issues nor were solutions found quickly. We loved our teacher as a person but: We are all displeased in this class where: We do not have individual stations so there is not enough work to go around. Much of the day we just sit and watch. We cooked in a toaster oven and therefore can’t broil, grill, roast or bake anything significant. The pastry and desserts are far too simple for any of the students to learn anything new- far less complex than on posted sample menus. We then toured other local programs with beautiful professional equipment and environments for significantly less than the price we paid. At these programs, all students have individual stations and build skills instead of watching one person take turns doing tasks. They also provide recipes for all dishes cooked instead of asking us to type every afternoon. I suggest you look elsewhere.

Amazing experience, especially for someone that loves cooking, the food industry, and anything related to food. Furthermore, I can't describe how beautiful is Florence and how friendly are the Italian people. Being a chef has been my dream school since the ninth grade in 2016 through 2017. I started the culinary program in my school, and all I can think of is baking. Everyone looked so professional and helpful, and the excursions were absolutely magical. I loved the wide range of places students can do their internships. I would like to thank our Chef instructor, Prof. Francesco, for his patience and dedication. He really cares about his students. Just like any other place, there are things that need improvement, but there are always people working to solve any issue.

Best time of my life! I took both the Italian home cooking and gelato course. The people I met during these programs were what really made this experience so special. I made so many friends in just 4 weeks. Italian people are so helpful and friendly, and of course the food is crazy good. Also, I learned more Italian this month, than in two years of classes in my country...

I came to FCAS expecting many things. Most of which I was led to expect by their website. I've been in the program now for a week, and initial impressions have left me quite disappointed. The italian language course is a joke. I get that due to covid, changes have had to happen, but using Skype to teach and not knowing how to screenshare is so wild to me. Emailing your point of contact once the course starts leads 24-48 hours of no contact with a one sentence answer. The kitchen set up is weird in that we barely have stations, and then we miss out on the other dishes. Speaking of which, the recipes have been basic so far. I came to learn technique, and maybe its because of the translators, but we're barely shown how to do something, not told the proper name, and not told the reasoning. I highly recommend looking somewhere else as of right now.

Please reconsider attending FCAS! (note: I write with respect for every individual associated with FCAS. Despite this review, I wish to honor the personal instructors) This program is presented as a 2 month Italian Cuisine Chef Training Course that “prepares students to become professional chefs and to enter the culinary workforce in settings such as restaurants, country clubs, resorts, hotels, and many other food service opportunities.” Our lessons have been anything but professional. The classes are an insult to any student with any experience in the culinary arts. And they are a scam for anyone who doesn’t have experience and wants to gain skills before entering the industry. In class the students execute the mise en place while the chef does the actual cooking. We do not have the opportunity to cook, but rather just watch. The overall structure is hysterical. Ie, our class starts at 14:30 and half the students show at 14:00. Instead of waiting for the time stated on our schedule, our chef will begin the lessons when the first student shows. There is never an explanation of the menu, declaration of our goal objectives, or communication of expectations. This program is in no way preparing one for the industry. More so, there is a lack of respect for each student. Over the past 2 years, I have worked as a pastry chef, executive chef and personal chef. Of course we are not cooking for clients, so the structure and energy of the lesson implies that the end goal is to eat the food, and this feels like we are a bunch of tourists just trying to get our fix of Italian cuisine, rather than artists honing our culinary skills. Yet we don’t even take our dining seriously. We stand around the prep tables and eat, rather than cultivated the art of plating well, or setting tables. If the end goal is to eat the food, we do not even have the dignity of sitting down, savoring the food, comparing notes, learning about the wine, etc. I do not understand the lack of order, deliberation and respect for the art and the artist. While I have many other concerns, I have to keep it short due to the word count limit. 1) the kitchen is under stocked — broken utensils, rusting knives, bent boards & pans, etc. Often we have to improvise with the tools we are using. It is a great way to learn to adapt, but it does looks cheap, desperate and lazy. 2) my apartment provided by FCAS was filthy. There was food on the counters & stove, grease covering the entire kitchen, gnats in the refrigerator, pubic hair on the bathroom floor, grime in the shower and rotting towels in the kitchen. They’ve refused to reimburse me for housing. A simple solution on their part would have been to merely hire someone to clean the apartment. 3) we have 2 professors for our language class. Miss Marianna has been wonderful, exactly what you need for an intensive language course. Hard, but good. Fast paced, but respectful of each student’s level. Mr. Marco on the other hand is incapable of teaching a good class. It has taken him over three hours to explain singular vs plural articles. We do homework as a part of class, which is a total waste of time. Every english speaker has directly written Carlo, the admissions advisor, expressing our concerns and needs. And he has failed to provide a new instructor, The immediate problem is that the school it is run from Japan (the long distance management causes little comprehension from administration of what the classes actually look like and I am unclear as to who is in charge - Carlo refuses to forward me to the program director’s info), the instructors are privately contracted (few, if any, objectives and requirements are communicated between the instructors and management), and they do not actually care for their students. Their “customer” service replicates an abusive relationship — promising something and yet unaccompanied by any action. I truly wish them the best! Readers, please don’t hesitate to comment below.

The Chef Training was a great course especially thanks to chef Francesco. Also, the staff at the international office helped me with the entirety of the application process and had guidance for my pre-departure process, making everything a smooth and less stressful process. As for the actual experience, I was always welcomed by the staff and even though my Italian was basically zero, after some weeks I could connect with the locals in Florence. The cultural immersion was brought to the program and they also took the students on a wide range of activities in order to gain more cultural insight. The classes were challenging but not overwhelming, and the instructors were always willing to help (I would have loved more cooking classes though). Now I can work confidently in our Italian restaurant here in Japan. 10/10 would recommend and I would do it all over again with the same program.