Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/188061
DEPARTMENT HEADER The Kid in the Kitchen FAMED CHEF AND CULINARY EDUCATOR CHRISTOPHER BECKER SOUPS UP L.A.'S NEW SCHOOL OF COOKING by Breanne DeMore/ photos by Susan Sabo G rowing up in a restaurant family in Philadelphia, Christopher Becker always knew he wanted to be in the kitchen. "I remember thinking that it looked like a party in there. That combined with my natural curiosity for food meant that I started in the kitchen at ten and worked my way down the line," he says with mesmerizing animation. That kid in the kitchen definitely made his way down the line. After becoming quite the influential chef, Becker was invited to speak to some kids about cooking and realized a calling towards teaching. He decided to combine his two passions. Eventually founding the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena and the Kitchen Academy chain, Becker's influence grew and grew until he realized that he needed to take a few steps back. Asking his graduates about the state of culinary education, he found common complaints about the big, fancy schools: they weren't selective, they were expensive and they over promised and under-delivered. Christopher Becker, owner, explains his journey from a ten-year-old washing dishes in the kitchen to owning the New School of Cooking. 62 / the tasting panel / october 2013 TP1013_034-65.indd 62 9/23/13 10:35 PM