Caprial and John's Kitchen . The Cooking School

Caprial and John began teaching cooking classes together at Caprial's Bistro when they opened the restaurant over 13 years ago. As their restaurant flourished their classes did too-so when the Bistro underwent a major remodel and expansion, they added a small cooking school that doubled as a private dining room. Interest in the classes continued to grow, and soon the limited space became problematic. With this in mind, the Pences opened a new cooking school and retail shop in January, 2002.

Just around the corner from Caprial's Bistro in Portland's Westmoreland neighborhood, Caprial and John's Kitchen features a spacious 40-seat cooking school with a beautiful, fully-equipped professional kitchen (with cooking equipment provided by Dacor) and a store with the best in chef-recommended utensils, cooking equipment, cookbooks, and specialty ingredients. The facility can also be booked for private classes, parties, and events.

The Kitchen's extensive culinary program incorporates both demonstration and hands-on class style formats. Program offerings include classes taught by Caprial and John as well as guest appearances by some of the most talented local and national chefs. Rounding out the program is an enticing selection of courses taught by Resident Chef Lisa Lanxon. See our online catalog for the complete list of classes and detailed descriptions, and use our easy online registration to enroll. You may also call us at 503.233.4382, or stop by the Kitchen during regular business hours (Monday-Saturday, 11:00 am- 6:00 pm) to sign up.

Accommodations
Planning a culinary excursion has never been easier. The 5th Avenue Suites Hotel has teamed up with Caprial & John's Kitchen to offer special lodging rates to our culinary program participants. 5th Avenue Suites Hotel is conveniently located in downtown Portland. For more information visit www.5thavenuesuites.com. For lodging rates and reservations call 503-222-0001 or 1-800-711-2971; ask for the Caprial & John's Kitchen rate.

Directions to Caprial and John's Kitchen

From downtown Portland and the West Side: Head east over the Ross Island Bridge and exit at 99E, the first exit to the right. You will be going south on 99E; continue for about 1 mile, and then take the Milwaukie Avenue/Westmoreland exit. At the end of the exit you will reach Milwaukie Avenue; take a right and go about 1 mile to the intersection of Milwaukie Avenue and Bybee Street. Take a right on Bybee and go 1 block to 16th Avenue; Caprial and John's Kitchen is on the left at the corner of Bybee and 16th.
From the Sellwood Bridge: After going east over the Sellwood Bridge, turn left on 13th Avenue and follow it around the curve as it transitions onto Bybee Street. Caprial and John's Kitchen is on the right at the corner of Bybee and 16th.
From the Airport: Take I-205 south to I-84 westbound to Portland. Go south on I-5, and then take the Milwaukie/OMSI exit. As you exit, get in the left lane and stay there as the road bears to the left. Take the first right at the 99E exit; you will be going south following the Willamette river. Continue for about 1-1/2 miles, and then take the Milwaukie Avenue/Westmoreland exit. At the end of the exit you will reach Milwaukie Avenue; take a right and go about 1 mile to the intersection of Milwaukie Avenue and Bybee Street. Take a right on Bybee and go 1 block to 16th Avenue; Caprial and John's Kitchen is on the left at the corner of Bybee and 16th. The street address is 1608 SE Bybee.

View a printable map to help get you to The Kitchen and Caprial's Bistro.

Staff Biographies

Caprial Pence
After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, Caprial Pence returned to her native Pacific Northwest and in 1986 began working at Fullers Restaurant. She was quickly promoted to Chef de Cuisine, and in 1990 she was named Best Chef: Pacific Northwest by the James Beard Foundation. In 1992, she and John moved to Portland and opened their own restaurant, now called Caprial's Bistro.

As a cooking teacher, author of eight cookbooks and A television host, Caprial loves to share her talent for creating innovative regional dishes. Her fourth and latest series on public television is "Caprial and John's Kitchen; Cooking for Family and Friends," which she co-hosts with her husband. Together they and have also written a companion cookbook by the same name. Caprial's series produced by The Learning Channel, a 1994 nominee for the James Beard Award for best television cooking show, currently airs internationally.

John Pence
As a 1984 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, John Pence moved to Seattle to start his career as a chef. He worked in a variety of trend-setting restaurants including Fullers, where he joined his wife, Caprial, as co-chef. In 1992 John and Caprial moved to Portland and opened their own small neighborhood restaurant, Caprial's Bistro, where they began to teach their popular series of cooking classes. John appears alongside Caprial in the public television series "Cooking with Caprial and John," and the two have co-produced their second series together, "Caprial and John's Kitchen." They also teamed up to write the show's companion cookbook, marking John's debut as an author.

Traci Mandell
Traci Mandell is the program director of Caprial and John's Kitchen. A highly skilled project manager, Traci has over a decade of experience in the food and beverage industry. Traci joined the staff of Caprial's Bistro in June 2000 to assist with the demands of the growing business. When the opportunity to manage the cooking school arose, she was excited to take on the challenge. She now coordinates the culinary program, creates and designs the tri-yearly class catalog, oversees the creative development of the company's website and online catalog, handles marketing and public relations, and oversees the daily business of the school.

Lisa Lanxon

Caprial and John's Kitchen Resident Chef Lisa Lanxon has a proven culinary experience highlighted by long-term positions as sous chef, pastry chef, and catering director, as well as work as a freelance food stylist for commercials and print media. In addition, she has worked on Caprial and John's show and Caprial's solo series, running the behind-the-scenes kitchen that is such a vital element of every episode.

Lisa's love and knowledge of food began when she was a child growing up in Miami. Her mother was an excellent cook who prepared elaborate, multi-course dinners for typical family meals, and she frowned upon anyone being missing from the table. As a teenager, Lisa would have much preferred to be anywhere but the family dinner table during these drawn-out affairs, but now she fondly looks back on them, thankful for the care and creativity that went into preparing them and her own appreciation for cooking that grew as a result.

Restaurant work rounded out Lisa's college years, with waitressing leading her to the kitchen where the real excitement could be found. Under the tutelage of two gifted, knowledgeable chefs, Lisa began her culinary training, learning the basics on the job while taking cooking classes and filling her spare time by reading everything she could about food and cooking.

During a visit to Portland, Lisa met her future husband and decided to stay. Keeping her professional focus on cooking, she immediately put her culinary talents to good use for the appreciative customers of the Main Street Grocery/Cloudtree and Sun in Gresham. She stayed for ten years, working first as pastry chef and then as the director of the shop's busy catering department. During a seven-year stint as sous chef at the Rendez Vous Grill in Welches, she ran the kitchen and turned out a menu popular with both food-lovers and the outdoor set. Each year during this time she would take a seasonal hiatus to work on Cooking with Caprial and, later, Cooking with Caprial and John.

Now at the cooking school, Lisa runs the kitchen and ensures a smooth, positive experience for guest chefs and staff instructors alike. In her own classes she focuses primarily on teaching the basics, with a special emphasis on baking, pastry, and soups. An approachable teacher, she puts everyone at ease with her warm manner and her tried-and-true recipes that students will use in their own kitchens time and time again.

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