Culinary Schools in France: Five Featured by Eduniversal

Which Culinary Schools in France Are Rated by Eduniversal?

FERRANDI Paris and Institut Lyfe are the two French institutions rated 5 Palmes of Excellence by Eduniversal in the Arts & Luxury vertical, the highest Palmes tier awarded to culinary and hospitality schools in France (source: eduniversal-ranking.com school profiles, checked November 5, 2026). Le Cordon Bleu Paris is the most internationally recognized French culinary name, though its Eduniversal listing does not currently display a Palmes level. Two further schools, Ferrières Hospitality & Luxury Management School and Excelia Hotel & Tourism School, are rated 4 Palmes of Excellence; both focus on hospitality and luxury management rather than culinary arts as their core discipline.

This article groups these five schools into two families, because they answer two different questions. If the goal is a hands-on cooking or pastry career, FERRANDI Paris, Institut Lyfe, and Le Cordon Bleu Paris are the direct match. If the goal is hotel, luxury property, or hospitality group management, with gastronomy as one skill among several, Ferrières and Excelia are the closer fit. Each profile below states the school's Palmes level, city, program focus, and whether teaching is available in English, since that last point determines whether an international applicant can enroll without first mastering French. For a broader view of top-rated schools across all fields in France, see the France country ranking page. For culinary and hospitality schools in Switzerland and the United States as well, read the companion article on the best culinary schools in the world.

How Does Eduniversal Rate France's Culinary and Hospitality Schools?

Eduniversal rates culinary and hospitality schools through a Palmes of Excellence system, not a numbered ranking. Schools are grouped into tiers, from 5 Palmes down to 2 Palmes, and every school inside the same tier is presented as an equal: there is no first place, second place, or numbered position within a tier. A 5 Palmes rating places a school in Eduniversal's top tier for a given vertical; a 4 Palmes rating places it one tier below. Some schools, including Le Cordon Bleu Paris, appear on Eduniversal's Arts & Luxury hub without a Palmes level displayed at all.

This tier-based design means Eduniversal groups schools that are broadly comparable rather than forcing a false precision between programs that are, in practice, very close to each other. All five schools covered in this article sit inside Eduniversal's Arts & Luxury vertical, alongside schools of fashion, design, and luxury management listed on the Arts & Luxury schools of excellence hub. Because of this structure, the schools in this article are grouped by Palmes level first, then listed alphabetically within each tier, rather than stacked into a 1-2-3 countdown.

French Culinary and Hospitality Schools at a Glance

The table below summarizes all five schools covered in this article: their Eduniversal Palmes level, their location, their program focus, and whether teaching is available in English.

The sections below cover each school individually, starting with the two schools rated 5 Palmes of Excellence, then the most recognized name without a displayed Palmes level, then the two hospitality and luxury management schools.

FERRANDI Paris: Culinary Arts and Pastry Across Four French Campuses

FERRANDI Paris is rated 5 Palmes of Excellence by Eduniversal in the Arts & Luxury vertical (source: eduniversal-ranking.com, FERRANDI Paris school profile, checked November 5, 2026). The school was founded in 1920 by the Paris Ile-de-France Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI Paris Ile-de-France) and today teaches culinary arts, pastry, and hospitality management across four French campuses: Paris, Rennes, Bordeaux, and Strasbourg.

The school's program offer spans a Bachelor in Culinary Arts and Entrepreneurship, a Bachelor in F&B (Food & Beverage) and Hospitality Management, an MSc in Hospitality Management, and an MSc in Culinary Arts & Responsible Entrepreneurship (CARE), a program that pairs advanced culinary technique with sustainability and business management content. For English-speaking applicants, FERRANDI Paris runs 8 dedicated International Programs, taught entirely in English and covering cuisine, pastry, and bakery (source: ferrandi-paris.com, checked July 30, 2026). This gives FERRANDI Paris a broad English-only offer of 8 programs, rather than a single introductory course bolted onto a French-taught curriculum. Eduniversal covered the rating in its news article FERRANDI Paris earns 5 Palmes of Excellence. Full program details and admissions information are available on the FERRANDI Paris school profile.

Institut Lyfe (Formerly Institut Paul Bocuse): Culinary Excellence Near Lyon

Institut Lyfe is rated 5 Palmes of Excellence by Eduniversal, placing it in the same top tier as FERRANDI Paris (source: eduniversal-ranking.com, Institut Lyfe school profile, checked November 5, 2026). The school was founded in 1990 under the name Institut Paul Bocuse and is based in Écully, near Lyon, a location that keeps it close to one of France's most established culinary and dining scenes.

Institut Lyfe offers three Bachelor's programs, in hospitality and restaurant management, culinary arts, and pastry, alongside three MSc programs in hospitality management, culinary leadership, and wine tourism, the last of which combines wine-region fieldwork with tourism management coursework. Teaching is available in both English and French, so international applicants can choose an English-taught track for some programs rather than a single bilingual format applied across the board. The rating is covered in Eduniversal's news article Institut Lyfe awarded 5 Palmes of Excellence. More detail on admissions and program structure is available on the Institut Lyfe school profile.

Le Cordon Bleu Paris: The Most Recognized French Culinary Name Worldwide

Le Cordon Bleu Paris, founded in 1895, is the most internationally recognized French culinary name, operating as part of a network of more than 35 institutes worldwide (source: cordonbleu.edu, checked July 30, 2026, cross-checked against the school's Eduniversal profile). That global network is part of what sets Le Cordon Bleu Paris apart from the other schools in this article: a diploma earned in Paris carries the same brand recognition across every other Le Cordon Bleu location, which matters for graduates planning an international career rather than one anchored to a single city.

Unlike FERRANDI Paris and Institut Lyfe, Le Cordon Bleu Paris does not currently display a Palmes of Excellence level on its Eduniversal listing. This was checked twice, once on the school's individual profile and once on the Arts & Luxury hub page, both on July 30, 2026, with the same result on both, and the hub page was checked again on November 5, 2026 with the same result. The school is based in the 15th arrondissement of Paris and teaches classic cuisine, pastry, and hospitality. Courses are taught in French with consecutive translation into English, and the school states that speaking French is not essential to enroll, which helps explain its pull among international applicants who want to study in France without first mastering the language. The Le Cordon Bleu Paris school profile lists current programs and admission routes.

Beyond Cooking: France's Hospitality and Luxury Management Schools

FERRANDI Paris, Institut Lyfe, and Le Cordon Bleu Paris train chefs and pastry professionals directly. Two other Eduniversal-rated schools take a different angle: hospitality and luxury management, where cooking and food service are one skill among several rather than the core discipline. Ferrières Hospitality & Luxury Management School and Excelia Hotel & Tourism School are both rated by Eduniversal in the Arts & Luxury vertical, and both include cooking and food service training inside broader hospitality and management programs that also cover guest relations, property operations, and brand management.

Readers picturing a career running a hotel, a luxury property, or a hospitality group, rather than standing at a stove full time, will likely find these two schools a closer match than the three culinary schools above. Both are covered in detail below, including their Palmes level and their English-language program options.

Ferrières Hospitality & Luxury Management School

Ferrières Hospitality & Luxury Management School is rated 4 Palmes of Excellence by Eduniversal (source: eduniversal-ranking.com, Ferrières school profile, checked November 5, 2026). The school is based at the Château de Ferrières, near Paris, a historic property that doubles as a training setting for luxury hospitality and event management. Its founding year is not confirmed by an official source, so it is not stated here.

Ferrières offers a Bachelor in Hospitality Management and an MSc in Leadership in Hospitality Management, alongside pastry and cooking courses taught in both French and English. The Ferrières school profile has full program listings and admissions details.

Excelia Hotel & Tourism School

Excelia Hotel & Tourism School is rated 4 Palmes of Excellence by Eduniversal, with its main campus in La Rochelle and additional campuses in Tours, Orléans, and Paris (source: eduniversal-ranking.com, Excelia school profile, checked November 5, 2026). It is the first French institution certified by UNWTO.TedQual in tourism education, a quality label awarded by the UN World Tourism Organization. The multi-campus structure lets students move between locations depending on the program stage, with the Paris campus used specifically for the school's English-taught hospitality track.

Excelia's Bachelor in Hospitality, on the Hotel Management track, is available 100% in English on the Paris campus. Published tuition for this track is 9,450 EUR per year in years one and two, rising to 9,950 EUR in year three, for EU students; non-EU students pay 10,200 EUR per year in years one and two, rising to 10,700 EUR in year three (source: tourism.excelia-group.com, Bachelor Hospitality Hotel Management Track program page, checked July 30, 2026). Eduniversal's news article Excelia Hotel & Tourism School redefines tourism education explains the school's approach, and the Excelia school profile has the current program list.

Can International Students Study Culinary Arts in France in English?

Yes: all five schools covered in this article offer programs or tracks taught entirely or partly in English, though the exact format varies by school. FERRANDI Paris runs 8 International Programs delivered fully in English. Institut Lyfe teaches in both English and French, depending on the program chosen. Le Cordon Bleu Paris teaches its courses in French with consecutive translation into English and does not require French fluency to enroll. Ferrières delivers most of its programs in English, alongside French-taught options. Excelia's Bachelor in Hospitality is available 100% in English on its Paris campus.

None of these five schools require French fluency to start an English-taught track. The share of fully English-only content is highest at FERRANDI Paris and on Excelia's Paris campus, where the entire track runs in English rather than a bilingual mix of the two languages. At Institut Lyfe and Ferrières, applicants should confirm with the school which specific program and campus carry the English-taught option, since the two languages coexist across their program lineup rather than one language applying to every course.

How Much Does Culinary School Cost in France?

Four of the five schools publish official tuition figures. FERRANDI Paris, Le Cordon Bleu Paris and Ferrières were checked on November 5, 2026 (latest published grid); Excelia's figures were last checked on July 30, 2026.

• FERRANDI Paris: 15,100 EUR net per year for the three-year Bachelor in Culinary Arts and Entrepreneurship, and 15,500 EUR per year for direct entry into year 2 or 3 (source: ferrandi-paris.com, program page and fee sheet for the September 2026 entry).
• Le Cordon Bleu Paris: 60,000 EUR for the Grand Diplôme in cuisine and pastry, which includes a 1,500 EUR registration fee, learning material, a knife kit and a uniform, for start dates from January 2027 to April 2028 (source: cordonbleu.edu).
• Ferrières: 13,500 EUR per year for the Bachelor in Hospitality Management, and 11,500 EUR for the eight-month pastry course (source: ferrieres-paris.com).
• Excelia Hotel & Tourism School: 9,450 EUR to 9,950 EUR per year for EU students, and 10,200 EUR to 10,700 EUR per year for non-EU students, for the English-taught Bachelor in Hospitality track, depending on the year of study (source: tourism.excelia-group.com, checked July 30, 2026).

Institut Lyfe does not publish a tuition grid on its official program pages as consulted on July 30, 2026.

For Institut Lyfe, the most reliable way to get an accurate figure is to request a brochure or contact the admissions office directly. For all five schools, tuition can vary by program, campus, and academic year, and schools update their fee structures from one intake to the next. Figures that circulate on third-party student-advisory websites are not confirmed by the schools' own published pages, so they are not repeated in this article.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which French culinary school has the highest Eduniversal rating?

FERRANDI Paris and Institut Lyfe share the highest tier: they are the two French culinary and hospitality schools rated 5 Palmes of Excellence by Eduniversal, the highest tier in its Arts & Luxury vertical (source: eduniversal-ranking.com, checked November 5, 2026). Le Cordon Bleu Paris is the most internationally recognized name by reputation, with a global network of more than 35 institutes, but its Eduniversal profile does not display a Palmes level. "Most prestigious" therefore depends on whether the question is about an Eduniversal rating or about worldwide name recognition.

How much does culinary school cost in France?

Published tuition ranges from 9,450 EUR per year for Excelia's English-taught Bachelor in Hospitality (EU students, years one and two; up to 10,700 EUR for non-EU students in year three) and 13,500 EUR per year for Ferrières's Bachelor in Hospitality Management, to 15,100 EUR per year for FERRANDI Paris's Bachelor in Culinary Arts and Entrepreneurship and 60,000 EUR for the full Grand Diplôme in cuisine and pastry at Le Cordon Bleu Paris (sources: official school pages, checked July 30 and November 5, 2026). Institut Lyfe does not publish official tuition figures on its program pages, so prospective students should request a brochure or contact admissions directly for an accurate, up-to-date quote.

Is it hard to get into Le Cordon Bleu?

Le Cordon Bleu Paris does not publish an official admission rate, so no verified acceptance figure can be cited here. What is documented is that the school teaches its courses in French with consecutive translation into English, does not require French fluency to enroll, and operates as part of a worldwide network of more than 35 institutes (source: cordonbleu.edu, checked July 30, 2026). Applicants should check current entry requirements directly with the school.

Can I study culinary arts in France without speaking French?

Yes. FERRANDI Paris offers 8 International Programs taught entirely in English, Le Cordon Bleu Paris teaches its courses in French with consecutive translation into English and does not require French fluency to enroll, and Excelia's Bachelor in Hospitality is available 100% in English on its Paris campus. Institut Lyfe and Ferrières also offer English-taught content alongside French-taught options. None of the five schools covered in this article require French fluency to enroll in their English-taught tracks, though everyday life in France still benefits from some basic French.

What is the difference between a culinary school and a hospitality management school in France?

A culinary school such as FERRANDI Paris, Institut Lyfe, or Le Cordon Bleu Paris trains students directly in cooking, pastry, and food preparation. A hospitality management school such as Ferrières or Excelia trains students to run hotels, restaurants, and luxury properties, with cooking and food service taught as one component within a broader management curriculum that also covers guest relations and operations. Both types of school are rated by Eduniversal in the Arts & Luxury vertical, but they lead to different career paths: chef or pastry professional on one side, hospitality or luxury property manager on the other.