Our Hospitality program at St Max not only delivers an industry focused experience, it teaches important life skills. Students learn how to properly use tools and equipment to prepare wholesome food products with a focus on real, natural ingredients.

TFJ2O1 Grade 10 -Focuses on fundamentals of the culinary world- students learn how to effectively use a knife to simplify tedious cutting tasks. They learn basic baking and how to apply various mixing methods. Students get an opportunity to debone whole chickens and learn how to utilize the entire product by making a basic stock and turning that into a soup. Our annual field trip to The St Lawrence Market and through Kensington and Chinatown allows students to experiene life as a tourist.

TFJ3C1 Grade 11- Focuses on the chemistry of cooking and how certain ingredients react to others. Together we discover how glutens work in different recipes ie: bread vs pasta. We discover flavour profiles and dive into the world of herbs and spices and how they affect the flavour of a dish. There is a heavy emphasis on learning how to taste food- not just eat it. Students learn how to balance seasoning using salt, acidity, sweet and spicy. In grade 11, we volunteer to host large function in the school such as our Best Buddies Semi formal dance to hone event planning skills.

TFH4C1 Grade 12- Is planned with a heavy emphasis on hands on work. Students have learned the fundamentals in grade 10 or 11 and are now ready to put their skills to work. We focus on the complete meal creating a braised protein and learning how to pair them with an appropriate starch and vegetable. We focus on complimentary flavours and how to pair them up. We discover the world of fresh stuffed pastas, risotto and other grains. We learn about different vegetables and how they react to heat. Students also design cakes for events beginning with the brainstorming process, working through the planning process and ending with a 2 tier cake complete with event specific decorations and colours and of course complimentary flavours. This is the year when we host a school wide fundraiser. Students create a menu of food items to sell to staff with all proceeds going to sponsor families at Christmas through the rose of Sharon.

Our classroom space is equipped with industry standard equipment so students have an opportunity to experience a real workplace. We use modern technology by incorporating sous vide cooking into our lessons and we are constantly adding and upgrading our space and the tools we use.

Students not only learn how to cook and eat , they learn how to experience food and dine.