Le Cordon Bleu

My first review got filed under the «not recommend» section along with a dozen other 1-​star reviews. Be sure to read those reviews and save yourself $ 40,000. My recruiter told me I had to sign up right then because it was the last class for the rest of the year. I enrolled and then found out they have a new class starting every 2 weeks! Very pushy for totally unnecessary schooling. Graduating from Le Cordon Bleu will not further your career. It does not impress restaurant chefs. In fact quite the opposite. I had a chef tell me they would not hire me (despite graduating with a 4.0 GPA and a letter of high recommendation from my instructor) because their experience with Cordon Bleu students has been negative. She said we were lacking in experience and self entitled because of our «degree.» Waste of time and money. Save yourself. Please!!!

Total waste of a drive out here, but — oh — what a bullet that was dodged that day. My girlfriend expressed interest in going to this school to further her education as an aspiring chef, so we drove all the way out to this place in Summerlin from the Tropicana and Pecos area of town. The recruiter showed us around the place, and it LOOKED like a decent learning institute… then, this walking leather handbag with short white hair sat us down in her office. I started getting suspicious once she showed us that a two-​year Associate’s degree would cost over $ 40,000 (before the disgusting amount of interest would ultimately accrue, making it somewhere between $ 60,000-$ 80,000) and started making condescending remarks about my girlfriend’s former employment as a baker at Glazier’s in addition to my academic pursuits. Yeah, sorry the career I’m going for DOESN’T involve preying on naïve kids and purging them into debt for years to come.
Anyway, something did not feel right about this whole «prospect», so I went online on my phone while we were sitting there, saw the horror stories about Le Cordon Bleu Las Vegas not only on here, but on numerous other Web sites (Ripoff Report, being one of them). Then, I excused myself out of the office, instructed my girlfriend via text NOT to sign anything, and told her exactly why. From what she tells me (I was not in the room for this), when she informed the recruiter that she did not want to put anything in writing that day, her demeanor IMMEDIATELY changed and she got incredibly pushy. «Well, whaddaya mean you don’t wanna sign anything today?! Don’t you wanna start having a future already?!» All doubt was promptly removed on what kind of place this truly was. The funniest part about all this is that on our way out, the recruiter lady looked like she was genuinely pissed off at me. Aw… sounds like someone’s upset she didn’t get her big fat commission.
Underneath the hollow promises, buzzwords, and presentation factor they try to «wow» potential applicants with, this is nothing more than a «for-​profit» rip-​off school. LCBLV has been on the receiving end of so many class-​action law suits, it is outright shocking. College of Southern Nevada might not be the greatest learning institute, either, but at least they offer the SAME education (if not better) for a small fraction of the price, most of their credits actually transfer, and potential employers don’t flat-​out laugh in people’s faces upon telling them they paid to go there. Honestly, I’m starting to think that most of these positive reviews are fake. That, or the people who posted them either don’t know what they’re in for yet or just don’t want to believe they got swindled horribly. Also, I find it a little strange that entire pages worth of 1-​star reviews ended up in the «Not Recommended» section. Just saying: It kind of makes me wonder…

Fun times! Le Cordon Bleu classes are a great way to do something new around Vegas. Especially in the middle of the summer when you don’t want to be outside.
There are a ton of different classes and workshops so you can find whatever interests you or something you want to learn more about. Besides cooking they have numerous technique courses such as knife skills, etc.
What may turn people away (or prevent them from finding it in the first place) is their website. It is not very user friendly and rather difficult to find a straight forward listing of what classes are available. If your patient you’ll eventually find it. Keep in mind that some ‘limited time only’ classes aren’t shown but will only be displayed as you delve further into signing up.
Cost is also a factor since they’re not cheap. But I will say you come away with a ton of food to take home! So weight that when you make your assessment.
I went to the Hundred Foot Journey class which, like the movie, is a theme of French and Indian with some overlap (cardamom crème brulee). The instructors were friendly and helpful and gave good tips. The students who helped clean, set-​up were great too. That class was overbooked sadly so we had to team up with a partner. Which was fine but you also end up with half the food you’d get on a few of the things.
Try it out!

The staff here is great! And even though I haven’t started classes yet, it might be a bit premature to say that I already think the most of it. Everyone there has been very helpful in directing me through this process. They made it easy for me to get my health card and my financial aid in order. And I’m so looking forward to orientation and uniform fitting. They are very straight forward and letting you know that jobs do not come along with the program. They just gives us the tools we need and I as the student are responsible for getting the work done in school and looking for work with their guidance. Of course I am older in age so I have experience in the work industry and knowing that no job just lands on your lap. It’ll take work and if it’s something a person is not willing to do, than this program is not for them. Only for the passionate culinary student like me.:)

I attended this school from ’09-’10. From the start it was hectic to put it nicely. I visited the school and was taken on a tour. They gave me a list of the current curriculum and didn’t let me know that it was going to change before I attended. I decided it was a decent school to go to and signed up. I was from out of town so I decided to go with the school’s housong program. Instead of providing the single room I applied for and was promised in writing, they tried to put me in a shared room for more money. When I got my single room they raised rent yet again and no where near the agreed upon original rate. As for the school, they changed the curriculum’s butchering class from a six week course to a 2 day stint somewhere in foundations 3. I should have demanded my money back right away but decided to stick it out. Despite many complaints from myself and other students, a certain student who constantly fell asleep and coughed into everything (after failing safety and sanitation several times) was allowed to remain in class and the school. He was also allowed to move on no matter what. Other filthy students, who didn’t know how to shower or wash their uniforms, were allowed to remain in classes. After an altercation with my restaurant intructor, he cornered me in the kitchen and threatened me while yelling two inches from my face, I was allowed to repeat the course without the possibility of a new instructor because he was all they had for that course. The finance office was never there and when they were had no clue how to do their job. The staff included chefs who admittedly hated their jobs and others that had only 2 – 3 years experience or none at all. Career services helped absolutely nobody and were rude to anyone who came in their office. Overall the experience was poor. I got most of what I could from a few chefs: Chef Bruce, Chef Labahn, and Chef Watson. They and a couple other chefs were the only chefs who cared enough about teaching t thehw correct ways of preparing foods.

My favorite place throughtout my day. I love to come here and learn to cook the way my favorite chefs cook. Vast amounts of knowledge roam these halls under a chefs jacket and hat! If you love to cook savory or baking & pastry and you want to be the next hot shot chef, this is the place to come and learn!

it was a great program very good teachers great staff very personal i love it ! i found a great career by choosing LCB

Purchased a travelzoo voucher for 2 people for $ 99 for a master chef cooking class (the title of this class is extremely deceiving). My friend and I of course waited until the very last Saturday before the voucher expired, so the class that we attended was «fall harvest» it was learning to can stuff basically. The class was scheduled from 10−1p and it started out with a tour of Le Cordon Bleu (probably could’ve skipped this, wasn’t interested) then we were taken to a large kitchen where the students do the cooking for the restaurant and class. It was very clean, but freezing, definitely wear long sleeves and closed toe shoes. We were each handed 7 recipes cards, I was under the impression we all would get to make each one, but there was 7 people in the class, we were paired up and given one recipe, started out learning how to properly sterilize the mason jars. In the end, we each were given a jar that each team made, we were also given a apron to take home. Don’t know if I’d go back before trying some other cooking schools in town. Mama will be so proud.

Perhaps I’m a bit early in writing this review as I’ve only recently started here however I can already tell there are several things in previous reviews that SEVERELY differ from my current experience here and I felt the need to provide some feedback against them.
First of all, the loans/​tuition/​etc. The first day of the school year — orientation, the president of the school took about 20 – 30 minutes to talk to us. He had us examine the reasons as to why we were in the school and VERY emphatically told us to make sure this was exactly what we wanted because it was a huge amount of money to spend on something and that if we weren’t sure, he encouraged us to rethink it before Monday when we started classes. When we started our classes that Monday, our Chef Instructor told us we had three days to decide we wanted this before we became financially responsible for the amount of the loans/​tuition. He made sure we were aware we would NOT come out of this school as a «chef» and that we needed to work from the bottom and earn our way up the ladder whether we went to school or not. When Career Services talked to us during Orientation, that made sure that we knew there was NO guarantee of employment when we graduated, that they were not there to GET us a job but to HELP us find one. They told us what any grown, sane adult should know already — only we can get ourselves jobs, having a degree guarantees nothing in life. If you have a piece of paper that says you know how to do something but you’re still unprofessional, unreliable don’t interview well etc, you’re not going to get hired, end of story. You have to be able to partner your own resources and capabilities WITH the degree to get employment. One additional thing — we’ve had several people from the school tell us about the scholarship opportunities the school offered and assistance with finding grants and other forms of aid we would NOT have to pay back. So hopefully that makes sense in regards to all the people who complained no one got them a job or said all the school wanted was our money.
Second — the school teaches us the terms, techniques and other basic material we all need to START a culinary career. Anyone who thinks attending 13 months of schooling will get them to executive chef levels of knowledge and capability is delusional. I have a friend who went to the CIA, one of the most prestigious culinary schools in the country, if not THE most prestigious — he’s currently an Executive Chef but he didn’t come out of school AS an EC, he started as a station cook and worked his way up through the kitchens. The best way to gain experience to supplement your education and make yourself more attractive to employers is to complete the volunteer events they provide us with to show we have experience with actual working kitchens, catering events, being able to take instruction from chefs, etc.
I’ve been interested in cooking/​baking/​food for half my life and I’ve been wanting to go to culinary school for almost as long. I follow every food program out there, read hundreds of cookbooks, magazines, websites and blogs on cooking and baking. I have learned more in the first two weeks of school than I thought possible. My chef instructor is a graduate of LCB himself and knows what we need to do to make it afterwards. I’m sorry that people went into this with unrealistic expectations so I’m here to tell you that if you go in with the right attitude and you know exactly what you’re gong to get when you come out, than you’re really going to enjoy this experience. YES it’s expensive however I’m not sure where people are getting 40k from, the program is $ 19,500 for the year. But if you want to invest in your future than 20k seems like a small price to pay if you start young and have a long career ahead of you.
One more thing — I realize this school is in Las Vegas which is one of the culinary mecca’s in the United States. Which is precisely why it is completely unrealistic to expect it would be EASY to get a job here right after graduating. Chefs who have been working all over the country (or the world even) come here to advance in their careers and if a restaurant on the Strip has the choice between someone who just graduated from ANY culinary school vs someone who graduated years ago and has been working in the industry for a few years, who do you think is getting hired? Which is precisely why when I graduate I plan on leaving to find a job. If I want to work in Vegas, I’ll come back after a few years when I have more experience and more leverage.

I went to this school 2008 – 2009. I was under the Associates of Occupational Science Degree. This degree is $ 41,000 about 80 after intrest. The staff here is the worst I have ever seen in any «BUISNESS». Jan Mieggs is by far the worst individual at this school. I was out of class for 4 days due to severe illness and surgery. I showed Medical Documentation for an excused absense. I completed the entire course except 2 weeks of back of the house restaraunt rotation. Due to the RACIST MEXICANT Chef in that class, who i told i would be missing 3 days and can i come in after class for a week and make up work. He said «I DONT GIVE MAKE UP WORK „BRO“» YOU HAVE TO BE HERE EVERYDAY TO PASS MY CLASS” I told him I couldn’t, I have medical needs and that have been at this school for 15 months working my tail off. and your going to fail me? he said «ITS NOT MY PROBLEM» Let me remind you, my lease on my appartment is up, i have no where to go… i get 4 hours of sleep a night. after this class, im moving back to MD. I have a deadline. They did not care, its not their problem they already have their money from Sallie Mae. THEY DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOU ONLY YOUR MONEY! SEVERAL, SEVERAL! times i was taken out of class in the middle of lecture… By financial aid reps, asking me when i would be able to pay them… ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Still to this day, I have not recieved a diploma, or been responded to the 50 emails and messages i have left the school admin. They did not care that i spent 14 months at that school and 2weeks left, some racist chef wanted to take my life in his hands… they take my federal tax return and are trying to take my benificiary money from my fathers death… how pathetic this school is. ALSO, The school fired 50% of the staff, and got rid of my program. They only offer a 20 thousand dollar «CULINARY CERTIFICATE» now… GET REAL!

I stand at an almost neutral point between the last and previous reviews.
There is truth to the fact that they will accept anyone who can pay tuition, there selection process is made for kindergartners not college level students. Then there is the issue of dealing with salle mae and who ever else your loans are through. you will wish you had your eyes scooped out with the very melon ballers your given at the start of the program when you see your first bill arrive and your still making below nine an hour. Good luck buying ramen and spam on your new budget kids…
I did receive a good education from my set of instructors at the time back in 2007 – 2008. However i understand they go through them like kleenex now a days. Thats beside the point. If you can afford this little endeavor you are well on your way to learning everything you wanted to know about the basics and some advanced techniques of the culinary world and art forms. This all depends on your out put and your willingness to learn provided Las Vegas doesnt absorb you into its fold of never ending partying. (which isnt so bad, but it sucks making patte’ choux when your hung over).
Jim is correct do not expect to be an Executive chef upon departure from LCB, you must earn your way up the ladder just as everyone else. I did not peruse this path, simply because i figured out after working in a kitchen for a year and a half it pisses me off to much and i dont care for it. In this economy you must be versatile and you are lucky if you can use the degree you left with from college. I work for a Whole Foods like chain out of San Antonio TX called Central Market and have nearly taken over their Foodie team (culinary know it all, s) that assist people with their never ending questions about fine foods and beverage. You have to make the most out of whats given you, wisely i might add.

I have to disagree with the other reviews. I can see they were very unhappy because they were not sous chefs as soon as they graduated. I am sorry but that is the same with any culinary school including the biggest ones (cia and johnson wales). Culinary school teaches you the basics so when you graduate you have a better idea of what to do than other people who have no experience at all. YOU STILL HAVE TO WORK YOUR WAY UP THE LADDER LIKE EVERYONE ELSE!!!
I graduated from LCB Las Vegas in 2005. I had several years of experience before I went to school. It was hard to advance to a sous chef before I went. After I graduated I became an Executive Chef in less than three years.
So take your sour grapes and make some WHINE!

I graduated from this school in ’07 and it has proven to have been a grave mistake. They are preying on people’s hopes and dreams. This school is FAR from selective, both in regards to student body and staff. You will only learn THE BARE MINIMUM there, and chef’s laugh in your face and deny you an opportunity just hearing the schools name. I have accrued over $ 50k in debt, and could’t afford to cook for a living to pay it back. Several other student I know including myself have had to resort to taking on completely different career paths just to pay for this mistake. This school is a gimmick, shame on them for taking advantage of so many people!
Also, I know exactly who Joanne below is referring to. There has been drama in those baking classes since 2006… SMH.

I am a graduate of this school and I agree with Stephanie 100%!
As long as you pay the tuition, YOU’RE ACCEPTED. During my job hunting adventures, most places that I applied to in Las Vegas during my schooling and even after I graduated, LAUGHED at the fact that I went to the LCB in Las Vegas. The NAME «Le Cordon Bleu» is world renowned, not the Las Vegas school.
The school also fails to mention to you, after you graduate, you’re not a «Chef» as soon as you graduate, qualifications are based on experience not the school you attended. Although, during your training, they make it seem as if the LCB name will open doors for you– HA! (Exactly what Chefs said when I told them I attended there! lol)
As far as a comparison to CSN? The tuition there is a sOoOo much more affordable than the price that you pay at LCB and they cover, the same, if not more at CSN. Private schools want money. Most of the credits, if not all, are not transferable to another school. I tried transferring my credits to make a career change, since I was getting more laughs than praises regarding the LCB name in my current career choice, and the school told me most of the credits are NOT transferable… WTF?! 40 grand in tuition that I am still paying off and the credits are not worth diddlysquat at, of all places, a community college!
And about the student body, they’re all the same at any college that you go to, «World Renowned» or not.
Now, the instructors, *SIGH*. There were a handful that are GREAT! Then, there are the rest of them that seem to hate their jobs or hate the students and there were also the perverted ones as well– EW! There was a particular incident that happened, not going to name names but there was a married couple that were baking & pastries instructors for part 1 & 2. For whatever reason, there was a misunderstanding with B&P1 Instructor and a few of my classmates… The instructor became so upset, stormed off, left the classroom and never returned. Well, this instructor went crying over to the B&P2 instructors class, the spouse’s class… Because of the «drama» with the first instructor, the dirty looks we’d receive from the B&P2 instructor and to avoid any «issues» in B&P2, the school had to rearrange the schedules and provide us with another instructor for B&P2… It’d be a lot easier if I could put out the detailed information but I won’t but it was quite hilarious, immature and unprofessional of the school and instructors to handle the situation like that.
The ONLY good thing that I can say about the school, is that the campus is small which allowed for easy parking. Very convenient unlike CSN, other than that, my suggestion is to either attend another LCB in another city that has a better reputation or CSN… Especially for the amount of money that you pay for the classes.