Do you dream of working with chocolate or learning how to make eclairs, macarons and other classic French pastries?

For visitors to France wishing to study pastry arts and chocolate during their stay, the following schools offer workshops and courses ranging in length from a few hours or days to eight months of full-time training.

Courses are usually taught in French, but may in some cases be translated into English by interpreters. Smaller schools catering mainly to tourists often offer classes in English.

Prices vary widely, depending on the school and type of program (amateur or professional) and space is often limited.

The following is intended to provide a general idea of courses available. Contact each school directly for more information.

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Pastry and chocolate classes for non-professionals

Barry Callebaut Chocolate Academy offers 1- to 4-day chocolate workshops at its campus in Meulan, about an hour northwest of Paris (Barry Callebaut also has Chocolate Academies in 11 other countries).

5, boulevard Michelet, 78250 Meulan
Tel. +33 (0)1 30 22 86 22
www.chocolate-academy.com


Cooking & Lifestyle Vacations, a French-American company based in Boston and Paris, offers a variety of cooking and pastry classes and gourmet tours.

2, avenue Division Leclerc, 92310 Sèvres
Tel. +33 (0)1 45 34 84 06
www.vacationsandlifestyle.com


Cook’n With Class is a small French cooking school in Montmartre offering, among other courses, pastry and macaron classes in English.

21, rue Custine, 75018 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 42 55 70 59
www.cooknwithclass.com


Ecole Bellouet Conseil, located on the famous rue Lecourbe, offers a full range of cooking and pastry classes.

304/306, rue Lecourbe, 75015 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 40 60 16 20
www.ecolebellouetconseil.com


Ecole de Cuisine Alain Ducasse, a fabulous facility run by the renowned Chef Ducasse, offers several classic pastry, macaron and chocolate classes.

64, rue Ranelagh, 75016 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 44 90 91 00
www.ecolecuisine-alainducasse.com


Ecole des Trois Ponts, located in Riorges, Grand Roanne (Loire department), specializes in week-long French language and chocolate-making classes. A review appears here.

Villa Beaulieu, 645, rue Marechal Foch, 42153 Riorges, Grand Roanne
Tel. +33 (0)4 77 71 53 00
www.3ponts.edu


Ecole Ritz-Escoffier offers 12 individual “Art of French Pastry” training sessions lasting two-and-a-half days each. Two of these modules cover chocolate (All About Chocolate and Chocolates & Confectionery). The school also offers a Master of Pastry program lasting five half-days.

38, rue Cambon, 75001 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 43 16 30 50
www.ritzparis.com


Ecole Valrhona Grand Chocolat organises gourmet chocolate workshops for amateurs. The school is located in the small town of Tain l’Hermitage (Drome department), the world headquarters of the Valrhona chocolate company.

8, quai du Général de Gaulle, 26600 Tain L’Hermitage
Tel. +33 (0)4 75 07 90 95
espace-pro.valrhona.com/ecole_grand_chocolat


Kitchen Studio is self-described as a state-of-the-art “culinary club.”
Recently opened (April 2010) in a spacious loft in the Parisian suburb of Boulogne, the studio offers daily classes, demonstrations and tastings.

151, rue de Billancourt
92100 Boulogne-Billancourt
Tel. +33 (0)1 70 74 41 10
http://blog.kitchenstudio.fr


La Cuisine de Marie-Blanche, in Paris’s chic 7th arrondissement, offers 2-hour pastry and dessert classes on Monday and Wednesday afternoons.

18, avenue de la Motte Picquet, 75007 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 45 51 36 34
www.cuisinemb.com


La Cuisine Paris is a new Franco-American cooking school founded in the fall of 2009. Located in the 5th arrondissement near the Jardin du Luxembourg, it offers pastry and chocolate courses. Additional information about this school can be found here.

89, boulevard Saint-Michel, 75005 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 40 51 78 18
www.lacuisineparis.com




L’Atelier des Chefs offers many different types of cooking and pastry/chocolate courses in Paris (multiple workshop locations) and several other cities in France.

L’atelier des Chefs – Paris Péclet (see website for other Paris locations)
27, rue Péclet, 75015 Paris
Tel. +33(0)1 56 08 33 50
www.atelierdeschefs.fr


L’Atelier des Sens offers 1- to 3-hour pastry classes at its Paris Bastille or Beaubourg facilities.

Bastille location:
40, rue Sedaine, 75011 Paris

Beaubourg location:
10, rue du Bourg L’Abbé, 75003 Paris

Tel. +33 (0) 1 40 21 08 50 (info and reservations)
www.atelier-des-sens.com (French only)


Le Cordon Bleu offers a large selection of 3-hour workshops in pastry arts and chocolate, among which several different chocolate classes. Courses are taught in French and translated into English by interpreters. The school also offers a variety of 1- to 4-day courses in various types of French cuisine and pâtisserie.

8, rue Léon Delhomme, 75015 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 53 68 22 50
www.lcbparis.com


Lenôtre Culinary and Pastry School (Pavillon Elysée Lenôtre) offers a variety of 3- to 5-day courses in pastry, baking and chocolate.

10, avenue des Champs Elysées, 75008 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 42 65 85 10
www.lenotre.fr


Les Coulisses du Chef avec Olivier Berté offers three-hour workshops in which students learn to prepare a complete French meal, including dessert. Check the schedule for their chocolate menu specials.

7, rue Paul Lelong, 75002 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 40 26 14 00
www.cookingclassesinparis.com


Promenades Gourmandes offers combined market tours and practical cooking and pastry classes in a small group setting. Instruction is given in English.

Tel. +33 (0)48 04 56 84
www.promenadesgourmandes.com


The International Kitchen offers both culinary vacations and cooking and pastry classes à la carte. A variety of courses and tours are available in Champagne, Loire Valley, Normandy, Paris, Provence/Côte d’Azur, and Rhône-Alpes regions.

330 N. Wabash, Suite #2613
Chicago, IL 60611
Tel. 1-800-945-8606
www.theinternationalkitchen.com

Professional pastry and chocolate programs

Ecole Grégoire-Ferrandi offers a professional five-month pastry course taught in English, followed by a six-month internship in a bakery, patisserie or restaurant. The course teaches students basic and advanced techniques to create a wide range of pastries and sweets, including chocolate. Ecole Ferrandi also offers one-week courses with master pastry chef Pierre Hermé.

22, rue de l’Abbé Grégoire, 75006 Paris
Tel. + 33 (0)1 49 54 28 00
www.egf.ccip.fr/international


Ecole Ritz-Escoffier offers a 15-week Superior Diploma comprised of several courses, including the Art of Pastry and Master of Pastry, followed by an internship in the main kitchen of the Ritz Hotel.

38, rue Cambon, 75001 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 43 16 30 50
www.ritzparis.com


Ecole Valrhona Grand Chocolat offers chocolate training courses for professional chefs. The school is located in the small town of Tain l’Hermitage (Drome department), the world headquarters of the Valrhona chocolate company.

8, quai du Général de Gaulle, 26600 Tain L’Hermitage
Tel. +33 (0)4 75 07 90 95
espace-pro.valrhona.com/ecole_grand_chocolat


Le Cordon Bleu offers three levels of 2.5-month full-time pastry training courses leading to certificates as well as a comprehensive 8-month diploma program. The art of chocolate is covered in the intermediate and advanced certificates as well as the diploma program.

8, rue Léon Delhomme, 75015 Paris
Tel. +33 (0)1 53 68 22 50
www.lcbparis.com


Lenôtre Culinary and Pastry School offers offers a Master Class Diploma based on successful completion of courses in basic pastry, chocolate and confectionery, baking and cuisine as well as a 12-week personal program.

40, rue Pierre Curie – B.P. 6, 78375 Plaisir
Tel. +33 (0)1 30 81 46 34
http://www.lenotre.fr