Le Cordon Bleu. The name conjures up images of starched linen laid three-ply across a table, heavy silverware and plain white plates bearing artfully arranged food. "Cordon Bleu" was once synonymous with all that is best in cooking. And if, in these days of fusion cuisine, its image seems a little stuffy or staid, we still haven't lost the habit of apologizing to dinner guests for our insufficiency in the kitchen with the words, "It's not exactly cordon bleu, I'm afraid. . ."
I love food, ergo I cook. As a graduate student I threw lavish dinner parties and perfected my pastry and cake baking techniques. Then I moved to Japan and got a job. I had little time and -- worse -- no kitchen to speak of, just a sink with a two-ring gas cooker on the draining board. Soon, preparing food turned into a chore to be done as quickly and as simply as possible.
Hoping to revive my cooling love affair with the kitchen, I made inquiries about local cookery classes. Then I heard there is a Le Cordon Bleu academy in Tokyo.