From Family Gatherings to a Future in Food: Student Spotlight on Kyson McIntyre
Before Kyson McIntyre started culinary school, he cooked for familiar faces: his family. Holidays and gatherings at his aunt’s house gave him opportunities to bring a dish, try something different, and discover how much he enjoyed feeding people.
Sweet potato pies and pound cakes helped spark his interest in baking. Dressing and macaroni and cheese became favorites on the savory side. Over time, preparing food for family became something he wanted to pursue professionally.
Today, the Natchez, Mississippi native is a third-semester student in the Savory program at Louisiana Culinary Institute (LCI) in Baton Rouge. Known on campus as a “red neckie” for his red neckerchief, Kyson is building on those early experiences with kitchen labs, chef mentorship, and event work, all with a future as a private chef in mind.
Can You Go to Culinary School After High School?
Culinary school can be a next step for students ready to turn an interest in food into professional training. For Kyson, that meant going directly from high school to Louisiana Culinary Institute.
He considered another university before deciding LCI’s program was the right fit. His interest already extended across baking and savory cooking, and he wanted to keep developing both.
Although he is currently studying Savory, Kyson also plans to pursue
Baking and Pastry and
Hospitality and Culinary Management. His goals reach beyond preparing a good meal. He wants to understand the different skills involved in building a career around food.
What Is It Like to Attend Culinary School?
For Kyson, life at LCI combines a fast pace with room to explore. He enjoys moving through different topics without feeling rushed.
Kitchen labs are a highlight. Lectures introduce the information and techniques; lab time lets him apply them and show what he can do.
He also appreciates the balance between instruction and creativity. Chef instructors demonstrate techniques, then give students opportunities to put their own twist on what they have learned. That freedom helps him explore his interests while developing his skills.
The instructors’ work ethic has also made an impression. Kyson especially looks up to Chef Colt, whose drive and approach to the work set an example.
What Do You Learn in Culinary School Beyond Cooking?
A culinary arts education includes food history, cost control, and business concepts alongside kitchen techniques. Kyson’s experience has helped him see how those subjects connect.
He recently finished his international cuisine class, where learning about food origins added another dimension to cooking. Studying Italy and the history of ingredients such as tomatoes and potatoes encouraged him to think about how cuisines develop and influence one another.
Those lessons also connected with something he already understood from home: food brings people together. Growing up in the South, he saw cooking as part of how people gather, share traditions, and build relationships.
How Does Hands-On Experience Prepare Students for Culinary Careers?
Working events gives culinary students opportunities to practice teamwork, solve problems, and understand what service requires beyond the kitchen. Through events with Bacon & Fig, Kyson has seen how many people and moving parts contribute to a successful experience. Food preparation is one piece. Coordinators, coworkers, and guest needs all shape the work.
Working alongside Chef Colt has been especially valuable. Kyson gets to see lessons in action, including how to respond when a problem needs solving. The experience has also been humbling. Preparing food for an event means keeping the people being served at the center of the work, a lesson that fits naturally with his interest in private chef services.
What Culinary Careers Can You Pursue Outside a Restaurant?
Private chef work, catering, and food truck ownership are among the paths students may explore beyond a traditional restaurant kitchen.
Kyson’s goal is to become a private chef, preparing meals in clients’ homes and cooking for events. Opening a restaurant is not an immediate priority. He is more interested in opportunities to work directly with people through food. A soul food truck is another possibility, and it lets him share the dishes he loves.
“Can’t go wrong with some soul food!”
—Kyson McIntyre
Whether he is cooking in someone’s home or serving from a food truck, the connection to his beginnings is clear: making food people look forward to sharing.
How Do Classmates Shape the Culinary School Experience?
For Kyson, learning at LCI also means having classmates he can count on.
He gives a special shoutout to Demondre and Vasanti, fellow red-neckies who work events with him. Since starting the program, they have built friendships around shared experiences, encouragement, and a willingness to ask one another for advice.
They trust each other’s perspectives and draw motivation from one another. As the work becomes more demanding, those relationships give Kyson people to learn alongside and lean on.
What Should You Know Before Starting Culinary School?
Kyson encourages prospective culinary students to see school as a chance to learn the profession's full scope.
Cooking matters, but so do understanding food costs, learning culinary history, and building the business knowledge needed to support a career. His advice is to take advantage of everything available.
For Kyson, that means staying curious in class, showing up for events, learning from his instructors, and exploring where his interests might lead. His journey began with dishes carried to family gatherings. At LCI, he is learning how to bring that same love of cooking into a professional future.
Ready to explore your own path in culinary arts? Schedule a campus tour at Louisiana Culinary Institute
to learn more.
