Cooking Class - Steak Night in Tuscany

I was very disappointed with this experience. Sur la Table hosted the event. There were 10 guests and only 3 cooking stations! I was at a station with 3 other people. Although the food was good and the chef was very nice, I paid $103 to stir some rice and cut a shallot. There was no “culinary experience” unless you consider standing around and watching. I didn’t even receive a copy of the recipe so that I could try this at home. I’ve done other cooking classes where I actually cooked for less than what I paid for this class.

for a 3 hour class it would have been a plus if we had chairs to sit on while the chef talked or during fridge/oven time.

This cooking class was so fun! Jared did a great job. I could never have taught and entire meal like this! I learned so much, plus we got to eat a great meal!❤️

So amazing! I had a blast and learned a lot - can't wait to do this again.

The resident chef was kind and caring. It would have been nice to start with an overview of how the evening was going to proceed. We weren't sure of the steps and cooking tips would have been helpful. We had a good time and the food was delicious.

It did not appear that the chef had taught this class before or made these recipes The chef kept looking at the ingredients and directions on how to make these dishes, and stumbled through explaining things. Rather than have the class make the aioli, the chef did it. While adding oil, the chef had the aioli at a good consistency, he glanced down at the directions again and added another 2 cups of oil, which broke the aioli. He then had to start again from the beginning and remake while the class looked on. Why wasn't the class doing this, and why doesn't a professional chef know how to do this off hand? The chef didn't speak up enough to hear instructions in the back of the classroom. Kitchens are loud, but it feels like a key part of being an instructor is ensuring everybody can hear the instructions. Chef kept looking at his assistant to confirm line items on the recipe The classroom format was sloppy Lettuce and other ingredients were not prepped for the students ahead of time. Crammed quarters at the front of the classroom with all three burners next to each other. There wasn't much room to have the class gather around and watch/participate. We kept running into each other. After the first glass of water, there was no water for drinking in the container. One of the participants asked if we could have some more, but it was never refilled over the course of 2.5 hours. There was no seating in the classroom - we had to stand while eating, which made for an uncomfortable meal. The chef kept pushing items for sale in the store - this felt more like an advertisement than a cooking class. It happened at least 3 times during the class. There wasn't much instruction on how to cut or use kitchen techniques. When we sliced shallots and other items, the teams were just expected to do vs. learn techniques appropriate for the dish. The students were excused for ten minutes halfway through the class while the chef prepped the next dish. This didn't feel planned and was more due to disorganization. It's odd to roam a retail store to just kill time. The steaks were not ready when we got to that portion of the class, and the chef had to go into the refrigerator to get them, remove them from packaging, and portion them. Then the chef seasoned and prepped steaks vs. allowing students to do so. I thought the purpose of a cooking class was to have the students do the work. Things felt rushed throughout the class, and especially towards the end. It would have been nice to have this a little better paced, and not feel like we were getting in the chef/team's way while we ate our meal. The food was not done properly While cooking the steaks, there were no meat thermometers to see internal temps. The assistant went out into the store to grab one off the shelf, which ended up not working. We then had to rely on the thumb test to see "doneness", which led to the thicker steaks being rare. The solution to this after cutting them open was to sear them on the grill. This resulted in seared steaks with no juice, and little flavor. Really disappointing to have the main course being such a miss. Steaks and salads were ready first, but not the fries, which were brought out after we were mostly done with the meal. The point of cooking steak frites is having those dishes served together. Overall this was one of the least instructional cooking classes I've ever taken, and it was disappointing to see the chef doing the work I expected us as participants to be taking on.

Continued throughout saying she didn't understand the recipe. So why were we doin it?

Ashley was not the chef. We enjoyed the class, but felt it was a bit rushed, and the last half hour we were told to take a break for 10 minutes and they were prepping for the next class. Based on what we paid, the chef was not as prepared as I would have hoped. It was just okay.....

Thank you so much for such a fantastic class! We had an amazing time!

The food was amazing, and it was fun! The chef/instructors seemed to be enjoying themselves! I struggle with verbal instructions, so it would have been helpful to have a printout of the recipe and instructions at each workstation.

Ashley and Kristen did a good job. This was our first 'cooking class' and it felt rushed. Scheduled for 2.5 hrs it was done in 2. More explanation would be helpful. Also, not the fault of chefs, but being located in the back of the room away from the grill added to the 'more explanation would be helpful' comment.

Excellently managed the class

Loved the class. I was able to make the croissants at home with ease. My family loved them. Looking forward to my next class.

Our instructor was super hands on - taught us some great techniques! Food turned out amazing. We were all impressed!

Excellent instructor. Great hands-on experience. I was able to go home and replicate the recipes.

Loved the class! Chef did a great job teaching us these recipes. I can not wait to take more classes.

Great class, Excellent Chef. Enjoyed every minute.

Absolutely delicious food! Really enjoyed the group and the chef leading the class.

The French croissants class was excellent. Chef Eric was very helpful and the experience was great. Be prepared for an engaging hands-on class We learned a lot and had fun. The final products (sweet and savory croissants) were delicious.

Amazing class. Chef and her assistant were wonderful! Highly recommend.

Great class. I learned a lot and class was very hands on.

This was the first cooking class I have ever taken! It was very informative and I enjoyed the class . I will be taking more classes in the future.

We thoroughly enjoyed our class. The instructor made our class so much fun. The macarons were delicious. Looking forward to more classes.

This class was great! Very informative and lots of fun, the instructors were very helpful (and the food was delicious!). I highly recommend this class and look forward to taking another class soon.

Excellent class. Chef Michael made it fun and informative.

The class was really fun and informative. My girlfriend and enjoyed it as a birthday gift. We will definitely attend more classes in the future.

Absolutely loved the class. I'm an experienced baker and have wanted to make macarons. The instructor was extremely knowledgeable. I enjoyed the class so much, I'm considering taking the class again as it was so much fun!!!

Fabulous class, food was fantastic and met some great people! This was my second class, I'm signed up for several others!!

Super enjoyable class! Instructor moved at a good pace and food ended up tasting delicious! Will be back for another class for sure!

I walked out with technique and confidence. I enjoyed the setup of the class and the instructor very much. Would take another class!

Great class! So delish!

I walked out with technique and confidence. I enjoyed the setup of the class and the instructor very much. Would take another class!