About FoodFirst
A federal worker by day, home chef by night, for years I have been turning to cooking as a daily meditation, creative outlet, and, of course, a source of nourishment for my family. I have also always loved sharing the food that I cook as well as the discoveries I make in the kitchen.
Being let go of my federal job in early 2025 gave me an opportunity to re-think my life goals and focus on what brings me joy. I started FoodFirst Culinary School to share my love of cooking delicious, healthy food and to help people find their inner chef. The idea behind this school is simple - everyone likes to eat good food, but not everyone likes or can afford to eat out for financial or health reasons.
While I was privileged to grow up in a household where we cooked delicious, healthy meals from scratch every day, not everyone can say the same. I think of cooking as a language - you need to learn it to be able to speak it, and you need to practice it to be fluent. You can pick it up by osmosis when, as a kid, you helped your parent or grandparent cook, and then you can decipher new recipes and expand your own cooking vocabulary. It is not as simple to pick up cooking if your parents were too busy to cook and you did not have a chance to learn the basics when growing up.
FoodFirst Culinary School was conceived as a place where we meet culinary learners where they’re at in their cooking experience and offer lessons and resources to build solid skills. We are not just teaching recipes - we are teaching cooking techniques, vocabulary, and a deep understanding of how these recipes come to life. We also offer to bring cooking as a community-building experience to a variety of events, from professional team-building to birthday parties to bridal showers.
I believe that anyone, regardless of their upbringing or circumstances, can learn to cook and enjoy the process and the result. I hope you will join our growing community of cooking enthusiasts!
Elena Walls
June 2025
FoodFirst is a registered LLC with the business license to operate in the District of Columbia
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Who is FoodFirst Culinary School for?
A: FoodFirst Culinary school offers cooking classes for beginners, intermediate-level cooks, and experienced home chefs wishing to expand their home cooking repertoire. All classes are designed for cooking at home and are not geared for commercial kitchens. There are no experience or age restrictions - we are happy to work with young chefs as well as with folks post-workforce. Everyone is welcome!
Q: Why choose FoodFirst?
A: Most, if not all, in-person cooking classes in the DMV area are offered by professional chefs who spend their lives in commercial kitchens and cook to impress, frequently using costly ingredients and difficult-to-master techniques. By contrast, FoodFirst classes are taught by a professional educator with over 30 years of home cooking experience who understands the constraints of home cooking and designs all classes to be responsive to budgetary, time, equipment, and experience limitations of home chefs. All classes are taught in-person in small groups to allow for ample hands-on time by each class participant.
Q: I don’t see the class I want on the schedule.
A: Tell us what you are interested in, and we will add a class! Just fill out the contact form at the bottom of any page on the website or a dedicated form linked on the scheduling page. If you are interested in learning to cook something specialized or would like to have a cooking class as an event (e.g., cooking date night, a birthday party, a friend reunion, a team building event, or a bridal shower), please contact us via the Events page and we will work with you to meet your needs.
Q: Is the cost of food included in the price of classes?
A: Yes! The cost of all ingredients and equipment is included in the price of lessons.
Q: Do you accommodate allergies or food preferences?
A: Yes! When you sign up for a class, please indicate your allergy or food preference in the intake form, and we will adjust the class delivery accordingly.
Q: Are classes in-person or virtual?
A: Education is a social process, and it produces best results when implemented in person. Currently all classes are in-person, in small groups (not more than 5 people but typically 3-4). However, if you would love to take our class and you are not in the DMV area, please reach out via the contact form and we can work with you to accommodate your interests.
Q: What do I need to bring to the in-person class?
A: We have all the supplies needed so you don’t have to bring anything. However, if you have your favorite chef’s knife that you prefer to use during the class rather than the one provided by us, you can bring it.