Executive Chef / Owner Denise Norton welcomes you to Flavour Cooking School, an inviting place to share your cooking enthusiasm & to explore your inner chef.

Denise’s culinary journey did not start with a childhood easy bake oven & cupcake dreams! Born & raised in the Midwest, her family food traditions were steeped in tin cans, jello, dinner-in-a-box & pre-prepared products (go ahead, ask her about canned asparagus!).

She began her professional life as a CPA, working at a top accounting firm as an auditing manager, firm instructor, & national recruiter. Several more years passed at a Fortune 1000 company in Chicago & a startup “.com” (after all, it was the ‘90’s). After more than a decade in corporate America, she threw in the towel in search of a different life.

Enter cooking.

After taking some recreational cooking classes in the city, she realized that pairing cooking with teaching was her true calling. She attended the Cooking & Hospitality Institute of Chicago, graduating with highest honors with a Le Cordon Bleu culinary degree & baking & pastry certification. Denise worked & taught in Chicago until she founded Flavour Cooking School in Forest Park in 2003.

At Flavour, Denise combines her passion for food with a love of teaching. She creates the class curriculum, writes recipes, teaches & oversees the retail operations of the store. Her driving goal is to create an atmosphere that welcomes guests & helps them to feel comfortable & cared for as they explore their own culinary interests. She invites you to come & take a class or discover the shop. At Flavour, you’ll find a unique culinary classes & a retail store that will delight & inspire.

Live, laugh, learn, eat!

Chef Norton has been seen locally on WGN-TV, NBC5, ABC7 & at culinary events such as The Taste of Chicago, NBC Fitness Expo, Museum of Science & Industry exhibitions, Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust dinners & the Oak Park Farmers Market. Nationally, she has appeared on The Food Network & TLC. She has been featured in several local & national newspaper & magazine articles. She resides in Oak Park with her understanding (& Mr. Fix-It) partner John & her adorable (& smart) black lab Bella.