catering jobs are not that easy to find unless you
have the correct culinary qualification, and without
doubt the best qualification that you can obtain in
South Africa is the Prue Leith Chefs Academy Diploma.
The Prue Leith Chefs Academy is located in the grounds
of an old manor house in the garden suburb of Hennopspark
in Centurion.The catering course at Prue Leith's
is extremely comprehensive and covers every aspect of
the catering industry and of culinary art. Graduates
of the academy are guaranteed jobs after they finish
their course. But how do you get into this prestigious
college?
If you have the basic requirements, a standard grade
Matric pass and you are at least eighteen years of age
then you can apply by filling in the application form
that you will find on their website. The catering course
begins twice a year in January and in July, and it lasts
for eighteen months. If your application is successful
you will have to attend an interview board at the academy
before being formally accepted onto a course. By graduating
from the college you can expect to have all sorts of
catering jobs open up to you. There is a certain amount
of equipment that you will have to provide out of your
own pocket (things like catering uniforms, text books
etc.)
One of the finest tributes that a catering academy
can receive is to see the heading "Prue Leith graduates
only" in the classified ads for catering jobs, and this
is something that can be seen frequently.
Within a few days of starting the course, students
are put to work on the job in the academy's very own
restaurant in the college grounds. Students man all
jobs in the restaurant from preparing and cooking menu
items, front of house, Maitre d'Hotel, taking and serving
orders at table, and serving as wine waiter. They also
take a prominent part on stock takes and in the preparation
of weekly trading accounts to test the performance of
the restaurant. College catering of course, oversee
them, but essentially they run the restaurant and all
the jobs therein themselves.
The accolades received by Prue Leith's restaurant speak
for themselves - the restaurant has been awarded the
Blazon from the Chaine des Rotisseurs in France and
is placed in the top hundred South African restaurants.
In fact the restaurant even gets bookings from overseas
for people who will be travelling to South Africa.
catering jobs, of course, involve hard work, and the
college restaurant is not the only place where students
get practical experience. All students are placed in
jobs at selected five-star hotels, restaurants and lodges
for an eight-week period during the second and third
semesters of the diploma course. Our students are so
well thought of at these establishments that they are
frequently offered catering jobs at the establishment
they have been working at once they have graduated from
the school, another fine accolade for the catering academy.
Prue Leith Placements, a new addition to the Prue Leith
Group, is yet another way of ensuring that our graduates
have every opportunity of securing top catering jobs
whenever they come along.
You will find an application
form for the catering academy elsewhere on our website.