We had a nice afternoon class learning the basics of Indian cooking from Chef Parsati. She is…read moreextremely knowledgeable and was able to guide us through making a delicious meal. Chef Parsati made us feel welcome and tailored the experience to our preference. Would recommend to anyone interested in a fun cooking and learning experience.

I booked The Art of Homemade Tamales with Chef Karen for my daughter's birthday. She accepted and…read morethen just before the event she sent a message that she had "overlooked our booking" and that she wasn't available. Without consulting us, she switched the confirmed reservation to another date. We had invited guests and it was impossible to find anyone else at that point. I will never use their service again.

This place is full of goodies, coffees and great food. I…read morebought sourdough bread and done pastries. Very nice staff

Came in on a Sunday and the line was out the door. This spot is popular, and for good reason with…read morethe variety of pastries and breads they have. They were out of quite a few of their bakery items, but still had a pretty good selection. I ended up getting a piece of banana bread and a breakfast sandwich. My plan was to eat the banana bread later, but the breakfast sandwich wasn't filling enough for me, so the bread went down with it. The sandwich comes fairly plain with the option for some add-ons. I would've loved to have had the extra flavor from the additional items, but that would've made the sandwich $17 pre tax/tip, and that just seemed pretty crazy for a breakfast sandwich of that size. So on that note, I think I will personally stick to the baked goods. Though the wait to order was pretty long, the sandwich came up super quick! Service was also very friendly. Not only is this location a bakery, but they have fun shop set up with nick nacks, cookbooks, kitchen items, and some fun food finds. I wish they had a take a number system vs having to wait in line so that you could explore all the stuff they have while you wait.

Highly recommend Taking Pure Joy for anyone who wants delicious, no-hassle meals delivered to their…read morehome. Teddy was very accommodating to all of our dietary restrictions and other requests, and communication throughout was impeccable.

Delightfully started our holidays with Gingerbread House making at Taste Buds Kitchen. The house…read morewas already made, so all the kids had to do was decorate with quality candy (real M&Ms, Skittles, Jelly Belly brand candies) provided by them. Free refills as needed! 45 min $54/kid

I took a cooking class here focused on Spanish paella, and it was such a fun experience! The…read moreinstructor and assistants were clearly knowledgeable, attentive, and made the evening really enjoyable. I went with friends and we had a great time cooking together. The portion sizes were super generous; we made tons of baked chorizo croquetas, devoured our entire paella, and still had plenty of lemon ricotta cheesecake left over to take home. Just a heads-up: the class ran from 7:30 to 9:30, so dinner ends up being on the later side. That said, it's totally in line with Spanish dining culture, so no complaints there, just something to keep in mind if you're coming hungry!

We had the opportunity to cook with Valerie as a fun Fathers Day gift. It was a intimate setting as…read moreour own private session. She was fabulous including Dad who wanted to learn to cook fish better and involving the kids. It was a gourmet experience with a custom meal and two types of fish, marinated grilled artichokes and a delicious puff pastry appetizer. We now have new cooking and knife skills that will last us all a lifetime! She was very flexible, patient and thorough. Her time is worth every penny.

We had a very fun and productive evening with Valarie. She managed six adults and two children with…read moreease and grace. We learned new recipes, including four sauces. Thank you Valerie for making it a memorable evening for our family.

I have been wanting to take my kiddo to a caregiver and me cooking class for a while now. She is…read morefinally old enough and I felt like she was ready. I booked a Tuesday evening class during winter break. You get a confirmation email and that's it. I was worried about prep but they prepare everything for you and thought up everything as well. Small parking lot. They had us wash our hands when we arrived and then each kiddo had a color sheet with crayons. Nice touch but defeats the purpose of washing our hands first. The two of us shared a table with another mom with their toddler. Each toddler had their own set up to make 6 cookies. Everything was pre measured and it wasn't too messy. We were able to bake 6 cookies and use whatever toppings - she got to choose between chocolate chips, m&ms, white chocolate chips and these dried fruits. They read a book to the kids and then made milk shakes as a group. Each kid got a small cup and to place chocolate chips/m&Ms in. The cookies were really delicious and my child loved the milk shake. One thing is that you can't stop other kiddos from touching your items/food. Would return.

Great experience for people watching/interacting, and cooking without having to prep or clean!…read more Booked a shared table for 2 (4 people at a table) for an adult cooking class on a Saturday night. Pros: The shared table experience was great for meeting new people and having extra sets of brains for multitasking. Cons: Seating is random and the experience is shared; ie: one burner for 4, and the end products are shared. Our dish ended up being over-salted, and our experience was halved in interactive-ness due to the luck of the draw of seating. Never have I had a spoon or spatula taken away from my hands so fast before. And most certainly never have I had someone critique the knives and actively give the duller knife to us. This shared table experience was essentially a fight for all (for us). BUT this is just dependent on the attendees and who you're seated with. The other shared tables didn't seem to have such issues. For a more interactive learning experience, I recommend the private table to avoid the risk of randomization. On the bright side, we got to see how other couples interact, whether it was actively taking items from their partner's hands because they were doing the task wrong (ie: mixing eggs wrong??) or the couple next to us taking cute photos of each other and sharing drinks while enjoying their time together. The structure of the class was decent, organized, and well-paced. All ingredients were measured and prepared. Baking, cleaning, and chilling items were taken care of by staff. Prepping the dish (ie: battering items, mixing ingredients) and active cooking were the only things needed to be done. The instructor would explain the ingredients provided and the instructions during the instruction period for the dish at hand. Following the instructions, prep/cooking occurs while the instructor supervises and provides aid or guidance as needed. All in all, I had a great experience. The staff was nice, especially the instructor, and I felt taken care of during my cooking class experience. Would return for pasta night-- most definitely for the private table experience.

This past Sunday, we attended a cooking class with Mangiare Monterey. Sarah and Reggie, our hosts…read morefor the evening, were inspired by a class they attended on a recent trip to Spain. They were looking for something similar in the Monterey area and because it did not seem to exist, decided to create their own based on Sarah's Italian family recipes. The classes are done in the Comanche Cellars tasting room at 412 Alvarado St in Monterey. As we arrived, we were offered a glass of Comanche's Pet Gnat, a sparkling rose of Pinot Noir. For this class, the focus was on sauces. The cooking stations were set up with each couple preparing a different sauce; a meat sauce, spicy sauce and vegetable sauce (each tomato based). We had a small charcuterie to snack on as we cooked as well. I loved that all the prep had been done - no chopping vegetables. Everything was ready to go so after introductions we jumped right in with Sarah guiding the group through the process. Nicole, Comanche's resident sommelier, was on hand to offer pours of different wines which would pair with our foods. After we had prepared the sauces, we were treated to a family style meal which featured a homemade focaccia with a delicious ricotta, a fresh salad and of course pasta with the opportunity to try each of the three sauces. Which sauce was the best, I can't say. Although if I had to choose, I was somewhat partial to the vegetable. We were offered more splashes of wine while we ate. We finished it all off with some key lime cookies and a bit of Sarah's family's homemade Limoncello. It was such an enjoyable evening and something really different we had not had an opportunity to experience before. I think this would be so much fun for a special date night or just an opportunity to get together with a friend for a fun evening out. The next class will be held on February 23. For tickets and more info: https://www.mangiaremonterey.com/ Check them out on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/mangiare_monterey?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

I attended their cooking experience and it was such a great time. Loved the sauces that were made…read moreand the homemade pasta was delicious. The wine pairings were also a hit! Perfect pairings! The recipes were accessible and didn't take a lot of time so I look forward to making it home. I highly recommend attending!

Goi teaches a great class--efficient, fun and informative. We made two simple recipes, very yummy,…read moreand got local tips on how to get authentic ingredients.

What a great mid-week break! My husband and I had so much fun taking the Thai is Fun cooking…read moreclass. Goi is passionate about the ways in which Thai food is a healthy as well as flavorful and yummy cuisine to cook. I'm excited to have two new recipes to add to my repertoire--both of them quick and easy. I also appreciate getting advice on where to get the best Thai curry pastes and fish sauces locally. Add a Thai is Fun cooking experience to your list of things to do!

My 9 year old son attended their cooking camp and it was all praises from him. His exact words…read morewere, "it was so fun and the food was so good!" He was the one who wanted me to write them a 5 star review because he enjoyed it so much. The teachers were all friendly and helpful and my son learned a lot from the cooking class. We chose the Trip Around Asia and they had lots of other options. We're definitely signing up again next year!

This venue specializes in interactive culinary experiences for all ages, making it an ideal…read morelocation for small team gatherings and delicious food. We recently visited to celebrate the completion of a project with a group of about ten people, and it proved to be a perfect setting for our celebration. The venue offers various team-building programs, such as the bake-off challenge, which we chose. With wine and other beverages available, the experience culminates in enjoying a full meal together. I particularly enjoyed the bake-off challenge, as it emphasized teamwork rather than individual effort, and was well-organized. At the end of the challenge, the chef judged the results and selected a winner, making the experience both interesting and fun. I highly recommend this place for anyone looking to engage in small team-building activities followed by a meal.

Totally stumbled on to this place. Really well curated collection of toys and teacher supplies. The…read moreselection and service was fantastic. Super friendly. Great for kids and curious adults. Really good puzzle supply!

Very cute store with a wide variety of items. Learning materials as well. Would visit again.read more