Teaching the finer points of hospitality: New culinary academy in Sudbury bringing professional training to town.

• Author: Myers, Ella Jane
• Position: TRAINING AND EDUCATION

When Stephanie Piche and her brother share the kitchen, it's like something off the Food Network.

"My brother and I can be competitive. As much as we say we're cooking together, who are we kidding?" laughed Piche. "It's sibling rivalry at its finest."

Piche and her brother, Stephen Pechkoff, both had a passion for food growing up, but only she turned it into a career when she launched a catering company in 2006, funneling that competitive energy into profits. And now, the marketing professional-turned-dining expert has launched her second food venture, the Legacy Service Academy.

The Sudbury hospitality school will deliver lessons from a diverse range of experts--from sommeliers to specialists in regional cuisines from around the world.

With more than 10 years of catering under her apron belt, Piche isn't new to teaching. Nine years ago she started running cooking classes at a local store called Kitchen Bits, and as time went on, she realized it wasn't slowing down; there was demand for even more classes.

"I think the trend right now is for experiencing: people want to experience things that are more genuine and interactive, they want to be involved in things," explained Piche. "They don't just want to read a recipe online."

She's run everything from French and Italian cooking classes to sushi demos to wine-pairing nights, and for audiences from bachelorette parties to corporate groups.

Piche won't be running the academy alone. She'll be getting a little help from her friends.

"As much as I know, I've never said I know everything. I have a lot of friends in the industry who have all said they'd love to teach classes, and they have their own experience and expertise," she said. "I'm basically being the party hostess."

One of her instructors, Cynthia Loiselle-Seguin, is an event planner and Shopify leadership trainer, who will teach some business-and personal growth-centred classes.

Loiselle-Seguin has first-hand experience taking classes like the ones she'll teach.

"I love the idea of 'experiential learning' as entertainment. My husband and I have enjoyed date nights where we learned how to do a thing, whether it was...