Sunshine is amazing! I booked a private class for four, and we got to help plan the menu which was…read moregreat because I'm vegan. (Sunshine is very willing to adjust the ingredients for any allergies or food restrictions). We made a papaya salad, pad Thai with shrimp, and Kanom Krook for dessert. Everything was prepared and ready to go, and Sunshine instructed us throughout the whole meal. (Sunshine is hilarious! I really enjoyed her energy and help!) I learned a lot of tips and tricks I can use in everyday cooking, and I'll remember this event for a long time to come. The four of us all loved Thai food proper, but we've never had such authentic Thai food--it's better! YUM! BOOK A CLASS WITH SUNSHINE! You'll have a blast!

Fantastic cooking experience…read more I came with a few friends to have a little bonding time during the holiday. We opted for the Tom Yum shrimp, Pad Thai with chicken, and Kanom krook cooking class. We were honestly very impressed with Sunshine and the recipes she took us through. The Tom Yum was pretty straightforward, but the pad Thai was slightly more difficult. We were happy to have her guidance as it turns out needs to be cooked quickly to get the right textures/ cooked efficiently. I've never had kanom krook dessert, but were pleasantly surprised at how good and how versatile it can be. The location was also nice and comfy. I would love to be a regular student of hers. She's a lot of fun. At first I thought that the ingredients she chose were so fragrant, it made me want to just take those home. Turns out I'd enjoy the whole experience. I highly recommend Sunshine's class

Treated myself to attend another Wagashi class in February 2020. The typical classes are consisted…read moreof demonstration of one recipe, and hands-on of another. This time, we had TWO hands-on recipes!! One of them "Uguisu-mochi" were so tasty, and so easy to recreate at home. I've made twice at home since. The tasting of the Wagashi just made and a cup of Matcha in the Japanese room nicely decorated with seasonal flower and Kakejiku is so enjoyable every time!! Highly recommended for anyone who's interested in Japanese culture, especially the Japanese traditional sweets making.

I had the pleasure of attending Kimika Soko Takechi and Larry Sokyo Tiscornia's Kaiseki Workshop…read moreyesterday. These lovely folks teach Chanoyu - the art of tea ceremony - in addition to giving workshops in Wagashi (traditional Japanese sweet-making), and Kaiseki, the wonderful several course meal that can accompany tea-ceremonies. Note - this particular Kaiseki is not the elaborate and uber-extravagant 7-12 course feast; rather, it's cha-kaiseki, and we learned its basic components of "one soup, 3 dishes." I found out about the workshop through the Japanese Cultural and Community Center's newsletter and signed up by calling the JCCCNC directly, where you'll be able to pay via credit card. The 2.5-hour class is held in the kitchens of the JCCCNC - mostly demonstration with fantastic narration on the cultural context as well as useful cooking techniques in preparation of the 4-course Kaiseki. The Senseis made: Ebishinjo - steamed prawn dumplings served in dashi - they have a *fantastic* recipe for making dashi stock, and the proper way/ proportions to make it. Kaibashira no Kobujime - kelp-marinated scallops TatakiGobo (pounded burdock root with gomae - sesame dressing) Susbasu - Vinegared lotus root Sekihan - "red rice," or rice with adzuki beans Larry-san and Kimika-san trained in Kyoto at the Urasenke School of Tea for 6 years and are treasure troves of knowledge and experience - giving tips on where to source good products in San Francisco (Trader Joe's has beautiful flash-frozen scallops with no additives, straight from Japan; Rainbow has powdered pure wasabi powder that is real wasabi and not just horseradish and green food colouring). Towards the end of the class, students are able to help plate the numerous bowls for the different courses, and partake of a wonderful, authentic and super-oishi cha-kaiseki. Anyone who loves Japanese food (no, this is not sushi, but there could be a raw fish course), is interested in Japanese culture and cooking techniques, will adore this class, as I do. I'll be signing up again and again, as the dishes will change with the seasons.

James was a pleasure as a host and a teacher! He is not only an amazing chef but he loves to host…read more He warmly welcomed us, showed us how to make pizza and let us be social amongst friends. Felt like our own kitchen. I would highly recommend.

In an article published in January of this year, Chronicle Staff Writer Janine DeFao wrote…read more"Culinary speakeasies ... are popping up in cities in the Bay Area and beyond, across the country and around the world. Part of the thrill, of course, is the hipness factor, the ego-inflating I-know-something-or-somebody-you-don't-know feeling that comes with being on a VIP list." So naturally, when the opportunity for me to eat at one of these "homegrown supper clubs" arrived I jumped at the chance, particularly since my friend and former colleague, James Stolich, was at the helm. I had no idea what to expect when I arrived at the beautiful San Francisco flat James lives and cooks in. After a tour of their home, I joined James in the kitchen to watch him in action as he prepared a six course meal for twelve. His marble counter and timeless appliances are the stuff self-professed epicureans like me dream about (while living in studio apartments with little counter space and undersized refrigerators.) Having known James in a primarily professional capacity (we worked together at a UK-based digital business consultancy during the height of the dot com boom) it was a joy to see he's as adept at cooking as he is as an interactive producer. The crowd on Friday night was as eclectic as it was international. As Pia is from Italy, the Italians were well-represented. Other folks hailed from a variety of exotic locales including Queens, Atlanta, Romania and France. While some folks congregated at the table, others mingled in the kitchen either helping James or quizzing him on his preparations. The night began with champagne and appetizers which included prosciutto and roasted cashews with olive oil, sea salt and lime. The subsequent six courses were wonderfully prepared, seasonally appropriate and above all, delicious! From the burrata cheese and golden beet salad to the restaurant-worthy sweet tomato gazpacho and the handmade gnocchi, I was thoroughly impressed at every turn. If you're growing bored of the restaurant scene or just want to try something new, I highly recommend Cook With James.

Cooking with Sara has been such a fun and helpful experience! I love that you don't learn how to do…read morecomplicated, fancy recipes that you wouldn't have the time or ingredients to do in a normal day. While I love to cook, I've lacked comfort in the kitchen and scrambled to time properly. I feel much more comfortable cooking and familiarizing myself with new ingredients. You get three sessions you pay for plus cost of groceries, which Sara kindly gets for you & checks whether you have certain things. Session 1: Sara went through our kitchen to give tips on key pieces of cookware that might be missing. We put together two meals for our next two sessions. Session 2: The menu was puttanesca pasta, seared scallops, salad, and berry cobbler. The meal was amazing!!! Before our 3rd session, I made the puttanesca twice from memory. My dad and boyfriend were blown away even though the recipe was super simple. I brought leftover cobbler to work, and my coworkers were convinced it was the best thing ever and also soo easy to make. Session 3: We made seared steak with pan sauce, crispy potatoes, and oven broccoli. Super easy meal I could whip together, and I learned to use new equipment like a cast iron skillet and how important a baking sheet is (not the same as a glass dish). Sara is so easy going and great to work with. Looking forward to future sessions to come!

I bought this for my girlfriend for Christmas. It was absolutely what we needed. We wanted to be…read moreable to cook more, but leverage what we already had in the kitchen. Sara did a great job of being realistic based on what would work for us as well as what we could add that would give us the biggest bang for the buck. She did exactly the same with the cooking instructions. She was great at giving us a lot of basic information and small tips that made me much more comfortable being able to experiment. Sara is incredibly comfortable in the kitchen and she has a memory like a steel trap. I would highly recommend.

I wouldn't call it a cooking school, for the class we attended was more of an interactive culinary…read moreexperience. The class isn't designed to ensure that everyone get equal instruction/ demo or time interacting with each dish. Many components were already prepped, so I did a lot of asking to get caught up to speed as to what the ingredients were and how they were prepared. Tim, the head chef was fantastic - friendly, accommodating, and an overall great host. Snacks and beverages were available upon arrival, which was nice because we waited at least 20 minutes after the start time to actually get started. Tim then gave a brief introduction and some cooking tips. We then dispersed to different stations. For the next hour or so, we bounced from station to station to learn about different dishes and participate in making them. Sometimes there was chef instruction, sometimes not. I wish there was a chef at each station to get our money's worth. I noticed a lot of people wandering aimlessly and looking a little lost. I was sad to miss out on learning a couple dishes. Overall, for the price, I wish it was more organized/efficient. If you're looking for a casual cooking experience, then this is a lovely place to go if it doesn't break the bank. For me, it was too expensive for me to confidently recommend to others.

FANTASTIC cooking experience at Cavallo Point Cooking School!…read more The theme of our cooking session was "New Orleans Crawl." The menu consisted of: Jalapeno Biscuits Eggs Sardou Crab Cheesecake Shrimp & Grits Chicken Gumbo Beignets Max is 18 students in a session; a cozy fit around the dining table. Tim was our main chef and a wonderful host as were his two assistants. This class is interactive as much as you want it to be. If you're intimidated to participate or not comfortable being around the kitchen, that's ok. Feel free to listen and watch but these classes aren't cheap. It wouldn't hurt to get your hands dirty. Realistically, you won't be able to participate in preparing every dish; choose the dishes you're most interested in. When all is done, the students sit around the dining table to share the meal. There was plenty to go around more than once. My favorite was the Shrimp & Grits, Jalapeno Biscuits, and Beignets. YUM! The room is HUGE, clean, and beautiful. They offered a delicious charcuterie board but the drinks were extra to my surprise. I highly recommend arriving half hour early to find parking. Valet parking is available. The location is GORGEOUS. After class, you can sit outside on their porch and enjoy the sun, have a picnic on the grass, or walk around the area and take pictures of the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate. It is stunning when the sun is out! A wonderful experience!

I recently got to try some of their healthy desserts at an event I went to over the weekend. I…read morereally like their Chia pudding and their Matcha energy balls. If you're looking for a healthy dessert this is the place to order from!

Karla, baker extraordinaire and business owner, went above and beyond! I was beyond impressed with…read moreher professionalism and organization that put me at ease when thinking of a unique activity for all the kiddos in my daughter's school to enjoy! This was 100% stress free for me! I loved every detail of the party down to the vision board she kicked off for our initial conversation! Do yourselves a favor and hire Karla for your next cake decorating party or event. She's worth it!

I have seen a ton of reels on flow painting and found Craftivity in San Francisco through a google…read moresearch. They offered a very convenient Saturday afternoon class so I was all over it. My expectations were tremendously exceeded. Han was a patient and encouraging guide and really helped me realize my ideas. I was pleasantly surprised that even I, a retired IT project manager could make art. The space is huge and staff very welcoming. I can't wait to repeat and repeat!

I was looking for a fun class to take with my friend for her early birthday. I wanted to do…read moresomething different, so I spent over 2 hours looking for a class that I liked. I finally came across Craftivity on Google and saw that they offered a lot of fun classes. So I sent the list of classes to my friend to have her decide. She picked the resin coaster class. I've always wanted to get into resin craft making, especially during COVID, but didn't want to commit, so this was a nice trial for me to learn about resin! So I initially scheduled a class for 2PM on Saturday, but I had some last minute plans come up. So I reached out to Craftivity to see if they were able to move me to the 4PM class. I believe I spoke with Mary. She told me that she was able to accommodate my request if we have the class somewhere else, like at a common area at my home since they are used to hosting classes for team bonding activites / bachelorette parties. Luckily, the indoor common area in my building didn't have any reservations, so we were able to have the class there. On the day of the class, Metti, our instructor, arrived 45 minutes early to set-up our work station. When we were able to start, we realized that one of the lids for the resin was stuck! Apparently, the resin hardened at the top, so we couldn't twist the lid off. I tried to look for some tools to pry over the lid, but I didn't have anything that was wide enough to pry over the lid. After 20-25 minutes of Metti trying to use resin remover, scissors, and a bottle opener to scrap off the dried resin cast, the lid finally twisted off! We almost had to reschedule our class because we couldn't use the resin. I'm so glad that Metti didn't give up, so props to her! Since we started late, we also finished later. Metti didn't mind staying later to assist us the entire way. My friend and I learned so much about resin and really enjoyed the class. My friend made two kinds of resin products: 3 sunset coasters and 1 flower jewelry dish. I wanted to make some galaxy theme coasters. I wasn't able to imitate the design that I liked, so I made due with what I was able to do. it was pretty hard to draw or make thin lines / designs using different pigments. Since I had some left over resin, I decided to make a coaster holder and two smaller coasters to not let the resin go to a waste. The resin took a while to cure, so our session took over 2 hours. After all of our resin products were finally done cooling down, Metti wrapped our products in parchment paper and gave us a box for us to store our products. We helped her pack up and load the supplies back to her car. My friend and I really enjoyed our class. Thank you Craftivity (Mary & Metti) for being so accommodating and making this class so enjoyable! I would love to try out some other classes another time! :)

We had a fun time here. It's a nice place to hold a holiday party. We had set food and the food is…read morepretty good except my peeps and I thought that the chicken was on the dry side. Otherwise, great atmosphere and fun place for a party! Parking is tough... but it is San Fran!

Once again Andrea and the Tres Senoritas crew came through-- this time for my cousin's graduation…read moreparty! Seriously you can't beat the price for the quality of food and the service. The staff is great and they keep the food and drinks coming! Of course we had to order the sweet potato and goat cheese empanadas (or empanaditas?? as the last guy said, either way they are AWESOME!) and my new fav is the shrimp with the orange zest! So good! So good! Sooo GOOD!