Schools and Departments

Schools/Departments

Welcome to Culinary Arts. Use the following buttons to navigate to view all Culinary Arts Courses, the Culinary Arts Certificates/Degrees offered, the faculty page and to visit the Culinary Arts program page that reflects our catalog information.

The Mesa College Culinary Arts/Culinary Management program is one of the few in the nation that operates a classroom driven restaurant open to the public. The main cafe operates four days a week, in a restaurant-replicated environment, as part of the laboratory, preparation, and service curriculum requirements. Students learn in real-time and obtain immediate feedback from both instructors and those served. Students, faculty, staff and our community neighbors reap the benefit of extraordinary meals served at unbelievable prices

The dining area is located behind the main cafeteria in room  H-105, on the Mesa College Campus. Free parking is available for the dinner service. Click here for a map, directions and parking information.

Lunch Service: M Fusion Cafe – Spring and Fall
Monday-Thursday 11:15 am - 1:00 pm
The M Fusion menu changes daily, as students work to understand the nuisances of this complex industry.  Please enjoy their daily creative flair and skill, as they work to become the professionals needed in today’s growing industry.
Made Fresh Daily – Soup, Salad, Entrees, Vegetables, Starches and Dessert.
Entree Prices Vary - $7.00 -  $9.50

Dinners Service: Gourmet Bistro – Fall Only
Wednesday-Thursday 4:15 pm - 6:00 pm
Five-Course Meal - Including Appetizer, Soup, Salad, Entree and Dessert
$19.00 - Including Coffee or Iced Tea - Tax Included
A La Carte Prices Vary
Take-out Available (please bring a take-home sack for your orders)

Program Catering:
The Culinary program students, make, design and offer catering service as part of the classroom and laboratory experience.

Going Green:
M Fusion is going green. We have steadily changed from Styrofoam and other oil based products. We have adopted "cradle to cradle" disposables to help minimize the to-go 'footprint'. In addition, we will continue to bring new "green" products in as they become available to our program. We do not have plastic bags for to go, so please bring a reusable sack for to-go items. All of our herbs from our Mesa's 3 organic gardens located on the M Fusion patio, on the side of the "G" building and in the P300 area.

Careers

Culinary careers are everywhere-in restaurants, hotels, cruise lines, private clubs, resorts, private yachts, culinary schools, hospitals, and educational institutions. You can build your career in one of these hospitality segments, or easily transfer among the segments. According to the National Restaurant Association, the foodservice industry employs more than 11 million workers, making this industry one of the leading generators of job growth in the United States and the nation's largest non-government employer. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the restaurant industry's growth will be more than 30 percent in the coming years.

Culinary and foodservice professionals and owners indicate that the biggest challenge facing the industry is finding educated, competent, and well trained personnel to handle this growth. The income level of chefs, cooks, and food-preparation workers differ among regions of the country and types of food-service establishments. The highest wages typically are found in upscale restaurants and hotels in large urban cities where several executive chefs are employed or in catering.

A major in Culinary Arts/Culinary Management will put you on track to become a culinary specialist with career options as a caterer, line cook, restaurateur, executive chef, food stylist, pastry chef, kitchen manager, private chef, entrepreneur, restaurant manager, food writer or editor, product research and development specialist, or sous chef. There are rapid promotional opportunities in this field for people with increasing skill sets and enhanced educational backgrounds.