Ecole de Cuisine du Domaine d'Espérance

What is the level of instruction at the cooking school?

Guests arrive with esperience at all sorts of levels. There has been a man who had never broken an egg in the same group as a chef and a caterer.

Will I be able to apply my lessons to the food at home?

The chef uses the local ingredients and gives the approximate equivalent in other countries.

Can you desceribe a typical day?

In the mornings, the chef demonstrates a starter, a main course and a dessert that is eaten together at lunch time. After lunch there may be a visit to one of the medieval villages in Armagnac and at 5:00 pm the students have a hands-on class where they prepare a starter, a main course and a desert, that is had by the group all together for dinner at around 8:00 pm (with the chef).

How do I get to the school? Will I need a car?

Transportation is provided to and from the Bordeaux train station (about an hour and a half away) to meet the Paris TGV train. Arrangements can be made to meet flights at the Bordeaux, Biarritz or Pau airports at an additional cost .

American guests usually fly into Bordeaux on Monday morning where they are picked up at the airport or they fly in a day or two before to visit the beautiful town of Bordeaux and get over their jet-lag. In the latter case, they are picked up at their hotel on Monday morning between 10:00and 11:00 am. On Saturday they leave Espérance around 10:00 am, and visit a Sauternes chateau on the way to Bordeaux. After a light picnic the guests are dropped off for the 2pm TGV train to Paris, (3 hours by train) at the airport in Bordeaux, or at a hotel in Bordeaux. There is no reason to have a car although you are welcome to drive to the domaine.

Are there any classes dring the summer?

No courses are offered in July and August as the house is used as the summer residence by the owner's family.

Are classes taught in French or English?

Classes are in French, Sapnish and English as needed by the participants of any group. The chef is fluent in all three languages and the proprietess is available to assist in other languages.

Are you the owners of the Ecole de Cuisine du Domaine d'Espérance?

We neither own nor operate the school. Mrs. Buxbaum is a travel consultant. I write about food and travel. We do a lot of traveling in France and we ran across the school several years ago. We were completely charmed by the owner and the premises and offered to help represent them in the United States. The Comtesse J.-L. de Montesquiou Fezensac is the proprietor of the school.

The current schedule is not convenient for me. Do you offer other classes?

The schedule is fixed and limited as posted on our web site. Upon advance notice, the Domaine is able to offer private sessions to groups of six to nine when the house is not being otherwise used. Custom weekend courses can also be organized for groups of six to nine.

What if my spouse is not interested in the cooking lessons?

There is a swimming pool and tennis court on the premises. It's an inclusive package and spouses who do not care to participate in the cooking classes do not receive a discount.

Can you give me the recipies in advance?

We can't offer the recipies as there are some 30 to 35 recipies (6 or 7 recipies per day for 5 days) and the chef modifies the recipies according to the vegetables in the market

Do you offer classes in specialized fields such as chocolate, pastry, charcuterie, etc.?

The sessions are comprehensive general cooking classes as listed on the web site. There are no specialized courses of instruction currently offered.

What do I need to bring?

There is no need to bring any equipment.

Are all meals provided? What's included in the price?

The cost of the program includes all meals and accommodations at the Ecole de Cuisine du Domaine d'Espérance from Monday lunch through Saturday dinner. The session begins on Monday with a buffet lunch and ends on Saturday with a buffet or picnic. You will be participating in the preparation of dinners. Lunch is prepared by the chef.

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