HCAT Institute

HCAT is the Hotel, Culinary Arts and Tourism Institute at Anne Arundel Community College, and it serves Glen Burnie and the rest of the county. It runs two tracks. Career students can earn an Associate of Applied Science in Culinary Arts or Baking and Pastry Arts. The American Culinary Federation Education Foundation accredits that degree. Home cooks can take noncredit personal enrichment classes instead.

The noncredit classes sit under Food and Wine Enthusiasts. There are three kinds: Hands-on Cooking, Wine and Spirits, and The In-Home Classroom, which uses video cooking demonstrations. The college says the classes suit beginners and experienced cooks alike.

The instructional staff is ACF accredited and comes from industry. Chef Veronica Guerra, known to students as Chef G, teaches artisan bread, knife skills, French pastries and Caribbean cuisine. She has more than 15 years of culinary and hospitality experience plus five years of public school teaching. HCAT holds a 5 rating on Google from 7 reviews. It's a good fit if you want to learn in a college setting, whether for fun or as a first step toward a kitchen career.