Delineating Cultural Boundaries and Debunking the Myth of the “Classless” Kitchen

Abstract

This study examines the role cultural capital plays in students’ culinary training. I argue students’ class-dependent cultural capital influenced how they experienced culinary school. I examine how the organization and the standards of culinary school—which draw on aspects of high culture—create barriers for some students. I discuss how students with omnivorous tastes are better equipped to navigate the cultural capital dominant in culinary schools. Prior understanding of omnivorous tastes helps students, as they learn about the culinary field, but given the unequal distribution of the students’ economic capital, not all of the students had equal access to developing such wide range of tastes. This study spans 15 months of ethnographic observations at a culinary arts school in an urban Midwestern city, where I observed students’ interactions in kitchen classrooms and culinary competitions. In-depth interviews were conducted with 50 students and 10 chef instructors. The findings indicate that some students’ class backgrounds limit their opportunities for informal learning and socialization. I found that socioeconomic status, race, and geographical region influenced the students’ cultural capital and their ability to participate in kitchen culture.