Are you a Japanese cuisine fan or a professional chef/caterer interested in it? If so, you would quickly notice that, despite the global Japanese food boom, it is still pretty challenging  to find the opportunity to learn authentic Japanese culinary art without speaking Japanese and/or traveling to Japan.

Many Japanese culinary schools are located in Japan (so you have to travel) and/or they are taught only in Japanese. However, for anyone who hesitates to travel that far or doesn’t speak Japanese but still desperately wishes to learn Japanese cuisine, here we collected various alternative options. (The information below is accurate as of September, 2018.)

Tokyo Sushi Academy

From sushi to tempura, you can learn the basics of authentic Japanese cuisine at this school. Additionally, more than 4,000 graduates from this school have found jobs in over 50 countries for the past 16 years. If you want to be a Japanese chef outside your country, this is the school to make that happen!

Campus Location: 

Tokyo

Program Options:

  1. Beginner to intermediate sushi course
  2. Intermediate sushi course
  3. Beginner to intermediate course
  4. Beginner to intermediate total course (4-week sushi course, 5-day sashimi course and 5-day Japanese cuisine course)
  5. Beginner to professional private lesson

Program Period:

  1. May 21st to June 15th
  2. June 18th to June 22nd
  3. June 25th to June 29th
  4. May 21st to June 29th
  5. 3 hours or 6 hours

Tuition and Fees:

      1. ~ 4.   Contact for tuitions and fees

      5.   3 hours: ¥40,000; 6 hours: ¥60,000

Admission Requirements:

Applicants need to be ages 18 or older and be able to stay legally in Japan during the course.

Tokyo Sushi Academy Singapore

This is one of the few schools you can learn Japanese culinary art in Southeastern Asia. In fact, it was the first school outside Japan with a professional sushi training program! Here you cannot only learn about Japanese cuisine, but also grow and work together with great chefs and future chefs from all over the world.

Campus Location: 

Singapore

Program Options:

International sushi chef course

Program Period:

  1. January 30th to February 9th
  2. March 27th to April 6th
  3. May 6th to June 15th

Tuition and Fees:

4,000 SG$ + tax 7％

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must be 18 years of age or older and be able to stay legally in Japan during the course.

Salon de Hifumi-an 

If you’re thinking about visiting Japan for a week or so to learn traditional Japanese cuisine, this school may be the best fit. In addition to Japanese cooking, you can learn about ingredients, dishes, display techniques and so on to make your Japanese cuisine as authentic as possible.

Your instructor is skilled and talented, having been awarded one Michelin star for three times and two stars for four times.

Campus Location: 

Tokyo

Program Options:

  1. Japanese cuisine demonstration class
  2. Japanese home cooking 3-day course
  3. Japanese home cooking 6-day course
  4. Advanced course Kaiseki-cuisine 3-day course
  5. Advanced course Kaiseki-cuisine 6-day course
  6. Advanced course Kaiseki-cuisine 12-day course

Program Period:

  1. One day
  2. 3 days
  3. 6 days
  4. 3 days
  5. 6 days
  6. 12 days

Tuition and Fees:

  1. 29,160 JPY
  2. 225,000 JPY/3 days
  3. 420,000 JPY/6 days
  4. 336,000 JPY/3 days
  5. 672,000 JPY/6 days
  6. 1200,000 JPY/12 days

Admission Requirements:

Number of people in a class is limited from 6 to 12 people.

Tokyo Belle Epoque

What is cool about this school is that up to 86% of all the schoolwork can be hands-on training. This means you can learn how to cook Japanese cuisine by actually cooking, instead of just reading textbooks in class. They also offer Japanese culture classes where you can learn about cultural rules and manners you should know as Japanese cuisine chef.

Campus Location: 

Tokyo

Program Options:

Japanese cuisine course

Program Period:

2 years

Tuition and Fees:

3,086,400 JPY (The entrance fee and school expenses for 2 years)

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must be 18 years of age or older and have finished 12 years of education.

Tokyo Sushi Japanese Cuisine Cookery College

This school offers you time to learn about Japanese cuisine more than twice as much as other culinary schools. Additionally, there are classes for students who want to work outside Japan, where they can learn things such as “omotenashi” skills and new Japanese food recipes to entertain and inspire people in the world.

Campus Location: 

Tokyo

Program Options:

  1. Washoku and sushi course
  2. Advanced course
  3. Research course

Program Period:

  1. 2 years
  2. 1 year
  3. 1 year

Tuition and Fees:

1,500,000 JPY (the 1st year)

1,450,000 JPY (the 2nd year)

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must be 18 years of age or older.

Hattori Nutrition College

One of this school’s mottos is to promote shokuiku, dietary education. Classes are offered based on shokuiku, and students can learn to cook delicious and healthy Japanese cuisine. Also, graduates get 18 job offers from both inside and outside Japan on average! The harder you work in this school, the more career opportunities you can get.

Campus Location: 

Tokyo

Program Options:

  1. Culinary hightech business administration course
  2. Culinary main course
  3. Culinary course

Program Period:

  1. 2 years
  2. 1 year
  3. 1.5 years

Tuition and Fees:

  1. 3,420,000 JPY
  2. 1,760,000 JPY
  3. 1,529,000 JPY

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must be 18 years of age or older before admission, and have finished 12 years of education.

Food Professional Academy Japan School

This school is run by a company for food coordinators and restaurant consultants. So the classes are taught by professionals in the food industry, such as chefs and restaurant supervisors. Moreover, once you complete the required classes, you can get national licenses without taking exams! If you want to learn from the professionals or get licenses efficiently, this school is the answer!

Campus Location: 

Fukuoka

Program Options:

  1. Food producer course
  2. Super grade food producer course

Program Period:

  1. 6 months
  2. 1 year

Tuition and Fees:

Please contact the school for more details.

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must be 16 of age or older.

Kyoto Culinary Art College

Are you looking for a school surrounded by old Japanese temples and traditional Japanese restaurants? This school is in Kyoto, and will help you learn authentic Japanese culinary art and Japanese history and culture at the same time. At this school, you cannot only learn how to cook, but also master “the art of making people happy”!

Campus Location: 

Kyoto

Program Options:

  1. Advanced Japanese cuisine course
  2. Culinary course

Program Period:

  1. 2 years
  2. 1 year

Tuition and Fees:

  1. 3,730,000 JPY
  2. 1,880,000 JPY

Admission Requirements:

Applicants must have finished 12 years of education before admission.

Dusit Thani College

This school in ‘The Land of Smiles’ focuses on hospitality, which is essential if you want to succeed in the food industry. In addition to Japanese cuisine, you will learn how to make each customer happy through the power of hospitality. Plus, you can learn and grow with students from all over the world in the center of Thailand!

Campus Location: 

Thailand

Program Options:

Authentic Japanese cuisine course

Program Period:

10 lessons

Tuition and Fees:

60,000 THB

Admission Requirements:

This course is open to the public.

As we listed above, there are so many options for non-Japanese speakers to learn authentic Japanese culinary art. By participating in one or more of these classes, you will be able to learn a lot about Japanese cuisine and grow as a chef. We hope this information helps you make your dream of becoming a Japanese cuisine chef come true!