About This Program
A 12-week, small-group accelerator for cooks ready to turn their food into a business. Develop and standardize a signature menu, cost and price it for profit, build the brand, and finish with a launch-ready plan for a pop-up, food truck, catering company or restaurant. Includes weekly 1-on-1 consulting. Limited to 10 founders per cohort.
Great food is only the start of a great food business. This accelerator is for cooks, home chefs and career-changers who are serious about launching their own concept, whether that's a pop-up, food truck, catering company, ghost kitchen or small restaurant. You'll do it with a tested menu, real numbers and a clear plan instead of guesswork. Over 12 weeks you'll work live with Mike Rode for 4 hours, 3 times per week. That's 144 hours of Google Meet sessions that combine hands-on cooking with business workshops. You'll develop a signature menu inspired by Philadelphia's street-food icons and immigrant food traditions, then standardize every recipe so it tastes the same on the 500th plate as on the first. From there the program moves to the business itself: food costing and menu pricing, supplier sourcing, kitchen workflow and prep systems, food-safety practices, the permits and licenses to research for your location, branding, food photography and social media, and the financial plan that ties it all together. Every founder also gets a private 60-minute 1-on-1 consulting session each week (12 in total) focused entirely on their own concept. The program ends with Demo Day. You present your concept, menu, pricing and launch plan to the cohort and cook your signature dishes live for feedback. You'll leave with a complete launch package: a standardized recipe book, costed menu, brand starter kit, operations checklist and 12-month budget. You'll also earn a Certificate of Completion from Philly Culture Academy and keep lifetime access to every recording and template. Program Format: Hybrid. Self-paced recorded lessons and business templates, plus live cooking and workshop sessions via Google Meet (recordings available afterward), plus weekly private 1-on-1 consulting. Includes recipe-costing and menu-pricing spreadsheets, launch checklists, and a private founders' chat for ongoing support. Cohort size is capped at 10 founders.
Inside the Program
What You'll Learn
- Define a food concept, target customer and positioning that stands out in your local market
- Develop a signature menu built on Philly street-food icons and the flavors you do best
- Standardize and scale recipes so every batch tastes the same
- Cost every recipe and price your menu for a healthy profit margin
- Source ingredients and packaging and build reliable supplier relationships
- Design efficient prep systems, kitchen workflow and service timing
- Know which food-safety practices, permits and licenses to research for your location
- Build a brand: name, visual identity, food photography and a social media launch plan
- Choose the right launch format (pop-up, food truck, catering or restaurant) and plan its numbers
- Present a launch-ready business plan and signature tasting at Demo Day
Curriculum
- 1
Weeks 1–2 · Concept & Market
Finding your concept, studying your competition, defining your customer, and testing ideas cheaply before you spend real money.
- 2
Weeks 3–4 · Signature Menu Development
Building a focused menu around Philly street-food icons and the flavors you do best, with live cooking, tasting and critique every session.
- 3
Weeks 5–6 · Recipe Standardization & Scaling
Writing production recipes, batch cooking, yields and portion control, prep lists, and holding food at quality through service.
- 4
Weeks 7–8 · Food Costing, Pricing & Suppliers
Plate costing, menu engineering, pricing for margin, and building supplier and packaging relationships.
- 5
Weeks 9–10 · Operations, Food Safety & Licensing
Kitchen workflow, equipment planning, food-safety systems, and the permits and licenses to research for your format and location.
- 6
Weeks 11–12 · Brand, Launch Plan & Demo Day
Brand identity, food photography, social media and launch marketing, your 12-month budget, and a live Demo Day presentation and tasting.
Prerequisites
- Confident cooking skills and at least one dish or cuisine you want to build a business around
- A serious interest in launching a pop-up, food truck, catering company or restaurant
- Availability for three 4-hour live sessions per week for 12 weeks, plus work on your own concept
- A kitchen where you can cook during live sessions, with a camera on your station
- A laptop with spreadsheet software (Excel or Google Sheets) and a stable internet connection
- A budget for ingredients for menu development (shopping lists provided)
Program Details
- Program Type
- professional
- Duration
- 156 hours
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Language
- English
- Certificate
- Included upon completion
- Access
- Lifetime access
- Category
- culinary
⭐ Student Reviews
Pay by card or SEPA Direct Debit
No account needed — pay securely with Stripe
- 36 live sessions with Mike Rode
- 12 private 1-on-1 consulting sessions
- Small cohort: max 10 founders
- Costing & pricing spreadsheets and launch templates
- Demo Day presentation and live tasting review
- 156 hours of content
- Lifetime access
- Certificate of completion
- Secure checkout via Stripe
- No account required