This will (technically) be my first review of 2020 as I visited wineUdesign once the calendar page turned to this doubled-up year. This is also (technically) my first gold badge review so I wanted to make it memorable. And while we're at it, I (technically) enjoyed an experience here that had little to do with wine.
How so? Well within the walls of wineUdesign is an entire kitchen setup and the other aspect of the spot: The Cook's Studio. Here's where my girlfriend and I fixed up an edible storm last Friday night. You see, it was a gift for the lady and one that was truly memorable, and pretty tasty I might add.
I mean what wouldn't be memorable (and delicious) when it involves tacos? Yep, that's what we made, everyone's favorite Mexican handheld. But don't start thinking things were that simple. We basically began from scratch, mixing our own flour tortilla dough, braising chicken in a wonderful chipotle and sofrito sauce, chopping up vegetables that we doused in vinegar for a little pickled taste, and concocting fresh guacamole to round out our meal. Oh, we did also fry up those tortillas ourselves, just sayin'. We were our very own Taco Bell, except the quality was legit!
What also was legit was, well, more of a who. Chef Victor (or perhaps Guy Fieri's doppelgänger) was a true gem of the evening. Super fun, friendly, and personable. He spent the first chunk of time explaining everything that goes into our cooking and then running through each step, start to finish. I must say, watching all the processes we were going to have to then perform ourselves left us a little apprehensive, but having Chef Victor there (and his assistant, Chef Gina) to guide us along (as well as our handy paper recipes), made the job that much more enjoyable (and just about stress free).
Did I say free? Well I can't completely commit to there not being any wine drinking that night as we were given a complimentary glass when we first arrived as well as continued refills throughout the evening (if desired). The most interesting part was that these wines were formulated and created by wineUdesign, right within its walls. For that actual aspect you'll have to read other people's reviews, but the thought of physically being able to develop your own wine from grape to bottle sounds pretty amazing. And hey, the flavors of their wine, from what we tasted, were perfecto.
Overall, The Cook's Studio and/or wineUdesign creates a totally awesome experience. For the semi-reasonable price ($75 a person), you'll enjoy a truly unique night of cooking and make enough food (at least with the taco class) to last you a couple of meals along with plenty of wine to wash it all down. And hey, if tacos aren't your thing (somehow), there's oodles of other classes you can take, from sushi to pasta making and everything in between. My lady and I are already discussing which one we might want to do next. Until then, just know this was technically (okay, actually) a great evening I'd recommend to anyone. read more