Sur La Table Culinary Program

We booked a Sur La Table cooking class for our annual holiday party and it was perfect. The camaraderie if fostered amongst our staff was perfect, the direction by our instructor and her assistants really good, and the dishes we prepared we all excellent with the exception of one. Some of us are foodies, and we all left having enjoyed the class and learned some great tricks and tips.

I have a lot to say about the Sur La Table culinary program, and all of it definitely complimentary!
In the month of July, they offered an unlimited pass for cooking classes. You could take as many cooking classes in the month of July as you wanted.
Needless to say, I took 28 classes! Although I wouldn’t make a few of the dishes we made again, I have already made quite a few of the dishes. I absolutely loved my entire month there. If they offered the pass again when I’m in town, I’ll definitely sign up for it! Adding up the price of all the classes I took, it was almost $ 2000. The pass cost $ 300. It was an incredible deal, and I made some wonderful friends along the way.

My brother-​in-​law and I went to the March 16^th, Sunday night Sicilian cooking class. We were supposed to cook sword fish Sicilian style along with a dessert and salad. Our teaching chef was very nice but we ended up having a recipe for a historically British/​Sicilian repipe for Chicken Marsala. I have nothing against Chicken Marsala but I have made it many times, what i had paid my money for was how to cook Swordfish Sicilian Style. I felt that unless you were a novice cook this class would leave you with very few new ideas.

Did the Macaroon class here.
The Good:
1. Instructors were really good. They were all pastry chefs at one time and really had a great understanding of what to do.
2. They provide you the exact recipes you work on so you can follow along and see what is happening.
3. You do end up learning some tip and tricks that you wouldn’t have normally learned.
The «You should know this, but it isn’t a bad or good thing»:
1. You do not make every dish/​flavor. There are different stations, and everyone makes a few here and there.
2. It is a big class, but instructors are quick to get to you.
3. Not every station is the same. The equipment may differ from station to station.
4. You do not get to do every step in this process. Some things need to be speed up. Some things come pre-​prepared.
5. You share a station with strangers. So if the kind lady in blue can fold like a champion but the grump woman in grey manhandles everything like shes punishing a roudy child…
The Bad:
1. You do not get to eat what you make. Rather they take everything you make, put it into a big batch, and split it up. We ended up eating other peoples Macaroons. Some were good. Some tasted like crap. Not everyone was made to be a pastry chef. But it was kinda sad to spend so much time bringing life to these puppies to only see them being culled and sent away…
2. Everyone has to get an equal amount, so while we probably made hundreds and hundreds of macaroons, everyone only got to have 5. So if you are imagining a class where you get to engorge yourself on these bad boys…

I took my first cooking class at Sur La Table today, well actually it was a class on making French Maracons. I’ve made them twice on my own, half of which turned out really well. I really love Macarons and thought it would be fun to do with my mother, so I bought us a few seats.
I loved that the class was small, there were only 6 of us. I think I would have gotten irritated if there were a lot more because there were only 2 mixers. It’s been 3 years and I still have all my handouts from class, which are covered in smatterings of macaronage.
Only thing is, we both got food poisoning that night! And it was definitely from the class because we didn’t do anything else that day. I think they maybe should have given instructions on hand washing at the beginning of class…

Tuscan Date Night Cooking Class was a blast. The intimate and hands-​on class was more fun and interactive than the last one.
The food was tasty, the fellow classmates were fun, and the 10% off coupon at Sur La Table was icing on the cake!

Went last night and brought a date. It was a really great experience. I learned a lot and the food turned out delicious. I gave 4 stars because a couple recipes were pretty complex and the prep work was done in advance by the chef. This gave us the illusion that we could recreate the dish at home, but I think it would be a lot harder if we had to make the reduction sauce from scratch. Overall, a great time and awesome food.

I took a cooking class at Sur La Table this weekend — it was my first ever cooking class. It was the Parisian Boulangerie class with Chef Ben Witten. I had a great time and would love to take more classes from them in the future.
We arrived and had the handout of recipes and an apron ready for us to use. Everything was laid out on the cooking space in front of us and Chef Ben was ready to go. We learned how to make croissants, chocolate eclairs, puff pastry and palmiers. I lived in France for several months and, of course, enjoy these pastries, but I have never learned how to actually make any of them. This class was a bit overwhelming because the recipes are quite involved, but Chef Ben was very knowledgeable about the subject and did a great job of going around the room checking on each group as we were working on each recipe. Everything came out beautifully and now I have a packet of recipes to go try at home.
We also received a 10% off discount for anything in the store that is good for the entire week following the class. The best part is that it can be used more than once. You can bet I will be taking advantage of that!

I went on a date with my now boyfriend and we had a great time cooking in a communial setting. We took a course on making salads of all regions, it was fun and easy.
For the price we paid, I thought it was a bit much; since we couldn’t take it home as you can at other cooking program. But we did have fun.
The techniques taught here are very basic. If you’re looking to master the art of cooking I recommend looking elsewhere, this is for beginners. A great place to start.

I received a gift certificate to try out a cooking class here about a month back. Admittedly I was a bit skeptical-​I feel that I’m a decent cook and for the money I wasn’t sure that it was going to be worth it. So, I was delighted when it more than exceeded my expectations.
I signed up for a NW Cuisine class that had the following on the menu:
Appetizers: Halibut Ceviche
Gazpacho with Crab Aoli
Main Course: Crab Fritters over apples
Salmon over fresh greens and blueberries
Dessert: Homemade vanilla ice cream and grilled peaches.
Not only do you walk away with the recipes and the knowledge of how to make this meal… but you get to sit down and eat the meal at the end of class!
(Did I mention they serve wine and beer while you’re preparing the meal and with the meal?)
I guarantee that I will be back for more.