Executives can learn to work as a team or just relax in Coble’s classes

Two and a half years ago, Rex Coble gave his son a gift certificate for a cooking class. His son enjoyed it so much he persuaded Coble to give it a try. A self-proclaimed “foodie,” Coble soon found himself hooked on the experience. Then, after several years with McGladrey and Pullen, the accounting and consulting firm sold his division. Coble saw the opportunity to turn his culinary enthusiasm into a career by opening a cooking school, The Chef’s Table, at 9902 Swanson Blvd. In Clive.

“There are so many cultural influences in Des Moines,” Coble said. “The business people in town travel quite a bit. They try restaurants on the West Coast, in New York and Chicago, and they want to bring some of that into their kitchens.

“People are very into food right now, and I think that interest is not a fad, but a trend. I say trend because there’s such depth and breadth to the interest.”

The Chef’s Table has two main types of classes, demonstration and participation. Coble says he expects the participation classes to be the most popular. In a participation class, no more than 24 students enter a massive, residential-style kitchen and line 45 feet of granite countertops. They don aprons and get to work, making three or four dishes as chef Darrin Miller circulates through the room giving pointers and fielding questions.

“[The kitchen] was big, but it was almost like walking into your own kitchen,” said Suzy Pearson, dean of Henry A. Wallace Elementary School in Johnston. “There was that sense of excitement people who love to cook always get when they walk into the kitchen and get ready to create something. It’s invigorating.”

Pearson heard about the classes from a co-worker, and after examining the school’s Web site, www.thechefstable.net, she chose a dessert class and became one of The Chef’s Table’s first students.

“I just love food, and it’s a time away, a chance to meet new people,” she said. “I do think it’s a stress reliever. That’s why a lot of people cook. And a lot people find a lot of pleasure in eating good food.”

The main reasons people take classes at cooking schools are to relieve stress or to better entertain guests, according to Coble. He says that many 20-somethings are interested in classes because both their parents worked when they were children and never had time to teach them to cook. Coble says 40 to 50 percent of students in cooking classes are men, and he expects the same to be true at The Chef’s Table. He says many men feel confident cooking outside on a grill, but not in the kitchen with the oven and stove.

“You can give me anything to cook outside and I’ll grill it up for you, but inside – well, that takes a lot more thought,” said Patrick Farrell, an accountant at Accounting Management Services Inc. Like Pearson, Farrell attended the desert class and enjoyed making crème brulee so much he bought his own torch to caramelize the dessert’s surface.

“I think the personal attention you get from Darrin is one of the real advantages,” he said. “He gave simple answers that made sense in terms I understood.”

Miller has culinary degrees from Johnson and Wales University in Providence, R.I., and most recently owned Pintasse Locally Inspired Cuisine in Ankeny. Coble says he interviewed chefs from Boston to San Francisco and Miami to Canada, but was lucky enough to find the right one so close to home.

“I really love the educational side of the culinary arts,” Miller said. “I’ve instructed part time at [Des Moines Area Community College] and I love the interaction with people.” Miller enjoys answering students’ questions and imparting deeper information about cooking, the processes, or even the historical background of ingredients or dishes. Coble appreciates the enouragement Miller gives the students to experiment and trust their instincts.

“[Miller] reminds students that recipes are just a starting point,” he said.      Soon Coble will combine his corporate experience creating team-building workshops with his new culinary expertise. The Iowa Soybean Association is already scheduled for a workshop at The Chef’s Table. He says participants will have to work together to make the dishes, but there’s more to it than the process.     “Think of the last party you went to,” Coble said. “Where were people gathered? Probably in the kitchen, and around the food. Food is the magic ingredient to communication.”