A sweet aroma fills the room as a cookie sheet full of hot, gooey chocolate chip cookies comes out of an oven. Culinary students gather around the teacher with their own tray, waiting for the next set of instructions.

After the new culinary lab opened second semester last year, culinary classes were moved into the newer kitchen labs where the old commons were previously. More professional appliances were added to the kitchens, offering students more access to trying different recipes and mimicking a more professional cooking experience.

Each student is adjusting to the bigger kitchen as the new school year progresses. For junior Jason Hernandez, one of the many students who is taking a culinary class, the change has been more positive than expected.

“We thought we would have a difficult time because we had a lot of people last year,” Hernandez said. “But the new kitchen is great and has a lot of space.”

Two separate kitchen spaces are configured next to each other, allowing two culinary classes to be taught at the same time during one period. One room has minimal appliances, encouraging students to try different cooking techniques with simple gadgets and experience learning different recipes. The other kitchen has more gadgets, cookware and appliances for students to use to their full desire.

“We have a lot more options here,” junior Esbeiry Lopez-Pallare said. “We made steak, different types of brunches and juices.”

Long stainless steel tables are spaced out in both rooms, giving students more room to move freely within their workspace and not have to work bunched up. This is one of the many things that students, including Lopez-Pallare, are grateful were put into consideration.

“I like the kitchen and table setup,” Lopez-Pallare said. “It makes it feel more professional and similar to a competition setup.”

Even with the new setup, the four levels of culinary classes students can take have not changed.

“We teach an introduction to culinary class, an advanced culinary class and then a professional level class called Pro-start l followed by Pro-start 2,” said culinary teacher Lauren Delehoy.

Through all the newly added appliances, the dishwasher, as odd as it might sound, is the one new added appliance most appreciated by students.

“We had to hand wash our dishes and dry them,” Hernandez said. “The dishwasher was a good addition because it would take a lot of time to clean.”

Providing a variety of new appliances and space, students can continue to learn and develop cooking and baking skills in a professional setup.