When Mike Sandoz isn’t watching sports on TV, he watches another hero of his — Anthony Bourdain, celebrity chef and food connoisseur.Sandoz, nutritional sciences junior, is part of a larger national interest in gourmet cooking and eating and specialty food shopping.The U.S. specialty food industry is a $20 billion industry with about 20,000 stores nationwide led by Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s, according to an October report from First Research, Inc., an Austin-based market analyzing firm. The numbers include gourmet food stores, organic retailers and other specialty retailers. And pains taken by the grocery industry to market ideas of “fresh” and “organic” have turned student attention to Baton Rouge outlets like Our Daily Bread, Whole Foods Market and Red Stick Farmer’s Market.Bravo’s Top Chef and other food competition shows have piqued the interest of students and could be responsible for an upward trend in “gourmet” interest on campus and across the U.S., according to some local retailers. The August premiere of Top Chef’s latest season attracted 2.6 million viewers, 1.76 million of those between the ages of 18-49, making it the No. 1 cable telecast that day, according to an NBC news release. NBC Universal owns the Bravo network.”My favorite station by far is the Food Network,” Sandoz said.Courtney Baum, University alumna and director of marketing at Whole Foods Market on Corporate Boulevard, said stores like Whole Foods make specialty food students see on TV more accessible, and college-aged shoppers have more knowledge of international cuisine because of the shows.”Students are a lot more educated about gourmet foods these days,” Baum said. “They’ve got more sophisticated tastes.”Baum said a significant student-aged population shops at the store, and students are also interested in the classes and workshops hosted at Whole Foods, especially the exotic or “hip”-themed classes which feature sushi rolling and preparing seafood.Sandra Brown, employee at The Panhandler, said more students have been visiting the CitiPlace culinary supply store for kitchen gadgets.”A lot of them work part-time at restaurants, so they come in because they’re interested in trying things,” Brown said.Jennifer Martin, Our Daily Bread manager, said about 25 percent of the downtown location’s business comes from college-aged patrons. “More people are looking for naturals and organic food,” she said.Judy Myhand, human nutrition and food instructor, said in an e-mail students who cook at home have more control over the ingredients they consume and consume 50 percent less saturated fat, sodium and calories.”Can you find an economical restaurant that serves a variety of vegetables, whole grains, fresh fruit, lean meats or fish?” she said. “They say that good cooks have more friends, too.” Lani Bergeron, business sophomore, started cooking at age 10, and now she’s known as “the cook” by her friends.”I would love to go to culinary school after I go to college … That’s why I’m in business. The plan was to open my own restaurant,” Bergeron said.Victoria Jackson, studio art freshman, said she cooks five times a week — from Italian and Chinese to from-scratch confections. She said she got her start cooking when she saw the first season of Top Chef in 2006. Sandoz said he cooks every day and began cooking about eight years ago when he entered college. He said his mother’s cooking is his influence — she’s a full Italian with relatives in Sicily, and his uncle owns Tony Angello’s Restaurant in New Orleans.But his culinary products aren’t limited to Italian fare, and he usually starts with strong flavors and sauteing or searing his meats, he said. One of his favorite dishes to prepare is a chicken dish with rice, cannellini beans and lots of rosemary — a tribute to his Italian roots. He said he hopes to attend culinary school because there is only so much he can learn from television chefs.Sandoz is health-conscious in his cooking and incorporates seasonal fresh vegetables in his meals, and he goes for a balance of protein and lean carbohydrates, like brown rice, cous cous or whole-grain pasta, he said.Lynne Maxwell, leisure class coordinator at the Student Union, said four University students attended the “Taste of Wine” class last Wednesday at The Chimes. The class was taught by Stephen Staples, a local wine expert who has taught the class for 27 years.She said the class offered information about wine making, matching wine with food, wine regions and purchasing.Contact Sarah Lawson at [email protected]