All the Ingredients for a Culinary Career

When you walk into this state-of-the-art workspace, outfitted with shiny stainless steel appliances and generous work spaces, you might imagine that you’ve just entered the set of Iron Chef, a reality-television cooking competition. But this kitchen isn’t for a show or even a restaurant – it’s a classroom.

You’ll find it in a brand-new building on the Central Virginia Community College (CVCC) campus. This high-tech culinary lab is the centerpiece of CVCC’s new Culinary Arts and Management program, where students can get hands-on instruction in almost every part of restaurant/foodservice operations.

Dominick Launi, head of the program, is the unofficial CVCC Iron Chef. His background in the foodservice field (covering everything from cooking to food distribution to business management) helps to season the studies with real-world experience. As Dominick can tell you firsthand, there’s a lot more to learn in the foodservice industry than just cooking – and most of it is taught right here.

“We highlight everything from the preparation of the food all the way to the cleaning and sanitizing of the equipment and operation, so students get a full understanding of everything,” he says. Under Dominick’s expert direction, students have the opportunity to train for careers in the restaurant, bakery, and hospitality industries.

Besides a love of good food and a passion for cooking, Dominick stresses that organization is key to success in the program. Being well organized not only enables students to make efficient use of their lab time, it also helps them develop good habits for culinary careers. “After all,” says Dominick, “you can be a great chef – but you won’t stay in business very long if you don’t keep things clean, neat, and organized.”

Ever heard the phrase, “too many cooks in the kitchen?” Well, around here, class sizes are limited to just 16 so everyone really gets a chance to participate. Right from the start, the program has attracted all kinds of students, from high-schoolers in dual enrollment, to adults ready to change careers or start a business.

Dominick helps each aspiring chef create a personalized program by meeting with each one individually. Together they determine what the student hopes to gain from the classes—and what they’ll need to focus on as they learn.

Dominick is intent on seeing his students’ skills become as sharp as the knives they use in class. “It’s a hard industry to work in, and there are a lot of people doing it. To be successful, you have to be better than all the others out there.”