Meet Culinary Captain: Chef Mitchell Frieder

Director of Food and Beverage Training, Chef Mitchell Frieder has been at the cutting edge of culinary education for over twenty years—and is one of only two recognized subject matter experts in Culinary by the U.S. Department of Labor. Before joining the HTA, he was a Chef Instructor at the International Culinary School at the Art Institute, Le Cordon Bleu and Le Gourmet Culinary. Since 2015, Chef Mitchell has designed our nationally recognized curricula, trained thousands of students and incumbent workers, mentored our team of instructors, and built strong partnerships with employers. 

Where did your love of food come from? 
“I grew up in a food-loving family in New York City and was exposed to some of its best restaurants. My first cooking experience was making omelets and cous cous with my uncle who visited from Morocco when I was nine.  And then our home evolved into a weekly dinner salon for many years, with eclectic guests, including Eartha Kitt!”

How did your trajectory go from cooking to instructing? 
I worked at high end places including L’Orangerie, L’Ermitage Hotel and the Mandarin Oriental in San Francisco, before running my own successful restaurant. With a growing family, I was looking for a change, and my path led me to teach at Le Cordon Bleu and then a host of community colleges across Southern California.

What are you most proud of when it comes to the HTA? 
I’m proud that the U.S. Department of Labor recognized that we should be the model for the nation, of our extraordinary reputation and program integrity. And I’m gratified that one student at a time, we have made a dent in homelessness and multi-generational poverty and are transforming lives. 

What wisdom do you love teaching in the kitchen?
If we can teach our students how to balance sweet, sour, salty, spicy, umami, texture—then they can cook anything and bring it to its height. I want them to create new ways for people’s eyes to roll back in their head when they taste our food!

What’s cookin’ at your house?
Lately, I’ve been delving into Indian and Sri Lankan cuisine to explore the complexity and make masala spice mixes on the fly. And if you were coming to dinner—I’d probably make lamb biryani and string hoppers to start!