We held our annual holiday party at KoF and was impressed by their professionalism and knowledge. We had about 25 people split among 5 different courses and they managed it quite effectively. They did a great job explaining everything, have a great facility and the equipment to get the job done. All of the recipes were well explained and the from the coaching to the execution went excellently. I was impressed by all of the cooking tips that can be applied to many different foods, not just the ones we cooked. I will admit, I assumed since we were the chefs the food would not be very good, but I will say I was beyond pleasantly surprised! I was stuffed to the gills by the end of the meal and even as I type this am looking forward to re-creating some of the menu items! All in all the class was 5 well prepared courses for the group to enjoy, and was a rousing success among my colleagues! I highly recommend CHef Olive who was the lead instructor for our group; he was hillarious and very knowledgable. It ws obvious that he has a serious passion for cooking! read more

Came for a knife skills course. It was entertaining and the chef's instruction was good overall, though much of it was about his own personal preferences and habits. Overall, too beginner level to be a good value for me given the cost, as the things they taught us I'd already seen on YouTube videos and I knew the basics. Having some personal instruction and correction on our technique was the most helpful aspect. read more

Just take classes here, ok? :) This place is awesome. It's funny. I love to cook, and last year I was searching for BA cooking schools and chose a different one because the KOF website was a little funky. Boy was I wrong. I learned more about cooking in one class at KOF than the entire three week course I first took in Campbell. This place is unlike most other cooking schools in that you can feel the passion and warmth in the way you are taught, as opposed to the cold and clinical way you are taught in other schools. I have taken classes at three schools and this one is by far the best. Chef Mike and Olive are awesome and are thorough. They take the time to explain things one-on-one, and have no problem helping you even after the class is over. Again, just take classes here. You will not be disappointed. read more

I took my first cooking class at KOF tonight and I could not be happier with how it went. Though I could gush for a long time, I will try to make this direct and helpful for other Yelpers. 1.) You are showed how to prepare everything and then allowed to prepare everything, rather than one or the other. You get to copy someone who truly knows what he is doing, which leads to some pretty impressive results. I doubt that 7 culinary novices could bust out perfect souflees on a first try without that kind of visual aid. 2.) The equipment is great. Everything that you are using is top of the line and made so that you can focus on your technique. Even if you're just learning the basics, the knowledge that your knives and appliances are all working is very comforting. 3.) In addition to learning the skills for an individual dish, the teacher took the time to teach us a few useful culinary tricks that are useful in everyday life in the kitchen. The classes are about learning to be a better cook in addition to learning to make a few specialties. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about this place, and look forward to going back soon in the next few weeks. Love Live KOF!! They do the measuring and prepping for you because that's not cooking read more

We reserved the kitchen for a private cooking party for fifteen. One of the co-founders, Chef Olivier, worked with us to pick a menu that would satisfy both vegetarians and meat eaters alike. We selected five items: mushrooms & leeks with a green salad, spinach & smoked salmon fritters with dill aioli, vegetable tian, roasted chicken with romesco sauce & wrinkled potatoes, and a delicious chocolate lava cake with berry coulis. Chef Mike was our primary host for the evening. Chef Mike gave us no fail instructions and answered a wide range of questions. He set us free and off we went. I wish every night in the kitchen was this easy . The kitchen on fire folks shopped, prepped, assisted, and cleaned up after us. Our job was to cook and have fun. We did indeed have a blast. Oh and yes, the food came out great. If you are looking for a night out with a group of friends, planning a party, or scheduling a team building event this is the place to go. Say hi to Chef Olivier and Chef Mike from the folks at Perforce. read more

I asked for a knife skills class for Christmas. Husband got me a class here. Chef Mat taught the class, he's charismatic and friendly, even though he cut himself in the first 15 minutes. It didn't bode well but the class turned out just fine. He does basic vegetables and if you stay past the end will show you how to also cut some unusual fruits. He talks about knife safety and care. I wish I had brought my knives because you can get them sharpened. Although Mat was teaching the class I found chef Jerry to be incredibly helpful. He has a wonderful demeanor and a sly sense of humor. He taught me a trick to work on my hand placement that made all the difference. Today I cut apples for my daughter holding the knife correctly and using appropriate hand placement, it's amazing how much difference it makes in safety and in the quality of the cuts. I would definitely go back for more technique classes. I don't think I would go back to learn a specific cuisine, I can use YouTube and cookbooks for that. There's something about somebody showing you in person how to do things correctly that makes a big difference. The pizza they made for us help too. You can bring wine but I think knives and wine may not be the best combination. read more

One of the best cooking classes with techniques, top ingredients, and full participation demanded. My son and I took a Parisian bistro class tonight that improved our skills. We were paired with a similarly aged mother/daughter team and we worked well together. Great company. Highly recommended. read more

Took Moroccan cooking with Chef Olive last night. Easily the best cooking class I've ever taken. Chef has a wonderful, comfortable style. He's a confident, articulate teacher without being arrogant. Room size was perfect for our full class to peek at others' work and mingle. Somehow, there was time to experiment but chef kept things moving and lively. The food was DELICIOUS and there were even menu items added "just because." I was hesitant to bring my 11 yr old (who has cooking experience) to class but he was easily included and got to see how a fun, energetic, competent kitchen is run. Perfect location in North Berkeley a couple doors from Chez Panisse. Kudos to this school and Chef Olive. We'll definitely be back. read more

I purchased the knife skills class, hosted by Chef Mat, as a Christmas gift for my husband. We both really benefitted from learning the basics about using a chef's knife, as well as some amazing tips for cutting mangos! I was worried that just learning about knife basics would be boring-- with Chef Mat, that was far from the case. He told entertaining stories about the industry and the names of knives and the cuts. His anecdotes really made what he taught us easy to remember! Because this particular class wasn't a cooking class, Chef Gerry prepared pizzas for us and was very accommodating of special dietary needs and made a dairy free pizza for me. I hope I'll have the opportunity to take more courses at Kitchen on Fire! read more

This year for Chanukah and her birthday we bought a gift certificate for Tam to take cooking classes here and one for her husband for Christmas so he can join her. They will choose the courses that fit their interests and schedules. Tam will review their experiences. This is the review of mine, I went online and purchased Tam's gift certificate first. Being relatively nonvisual, I didn't read the whole screen, so I didn't see the "Print gift certificate here" button. I saw the "Do you want to purchase another gift certificate" button. Well, yes, I did. So I clicked on it, which took me to the next screen so I could purchase Kevin's. At that point I noticed the "Print Gift Certificate" button and clicked on it, but I couldn't figure out how to get back to the previous screen to print out Tam's. When the confirmatory email arrived for hers there was no way to print out a certificate. I called Kitchen on Fire and left a message because it was after hours. I called the next day and left another message because I had not yet been called. Shortly thereafter I received a call from Carol, a charming woman w/ a British accent, who explained that she was the office manager, that she was fairly new and didn't know how to do that, but the guys would be in soon and she could ask them. She just wanted me to know she wasn't ignoring me. An hour or so later she called to say they would resend the email so I could print it out from there. Then she commented on my congestion, which she could hear over the phone. I told her I'd had this thing for a week and a half and I NEVER get sick or stayed sick that long if I did. She volunteered that she was an herbalist and if I were her client she would recommend olive leaf. I asked how I would take it and she said it was a liquid. She said it was available at Whole Foods and that she would recommend taking a tablespoon a day throughout the winter to boost my immune system. My MD had told me our immune system become less effective as we age and it seemed to me a good idea to reinforce it. I appreciated her advice and stopped by Williams Health Foods that afternoon and picked up a bottle of Barlean's Olive Leaf. I have taken 3 tablespoons, one each day, and am starting to feel better. It may just be the passage of time, but my plan is to take a tablespoon each day. It has a nice, earthy taste. I felt well and kindly treated, and that Carol went above and beyond in a way I appreciated. read more

I visited kitchen on fire with my work group for our holiday celebration. Chef Olive was absolutely amazing, he was so knowledgeable and such a great teacher. Myself and my staff thoroughly enjoyed our day cooking our meal. We were beginning to make plans to come back again, and until our day was completely ruined. When's lunch was served and our event was over, chef Olive had to step away but he invited us to stay as long as we would like to finish up eating and enjoying each other's company. Shortly there after the office staff woman had to step out as well to move her car, at this point the kitchen staff (dishwasher), Who had been incredibly nice all day, began yelling at my group. Threatening and saying very unkind words to us as we were packaging up the remainder of the desserts and tinfoil to take with us. He was yelling that it was against the rules and we could not remove food from the kitchen. (If that were the case, it was an honest mistake, and he could have simply told us). Instead he chose to raise his voice and repeatedly yell at us. We all left very upset and dinar day on a very very low note. I would have loved to give our day five stars however at this point I would not consider going back because of how poorly we were treated by the kitchen staff. read more

Very disappointed in our first attempt at kitchen on fire for the couples seafood class. The facilities and instructors were very nice, however the structure of the course needs some major tweaking. To start it would have been nice to have some sort of intros with the couples. There was no interaction with anyone making for a rather awkward experience when it finally came to cooking. It would have been nice to have individual stations to work on the food as a couple while the instructor taught. Instead we were all standing around a table for over 2 hrs just listening to the instructor going on and on about each dish we were going to make while adding some other cooking anecdotes. I can't recall a single helpful tip. I only remember thinking I wish we were doing SOMETHING. Give me a glass of wine, give me some food to play with, give me something to do! When it finally came to cooking, we broke up into groups and were given a singe recipe in which to create. No one seemed to have a clue how to proceed as the previous few hours of instruction was all very general. The only food I touched was cutting an onion and pulling some meat out of a lobster. Needless to say the end result was less than impressive. Additionally people all finished their stations at different times and just hung out and ate their own. I wish their was some sort of presentation of the dishes to allow everyone to try all the meals without walking aimlessly around feeling awkward as if you are stealing food from the other groups. I only tried a couple of the dishes and decided to leave and go to a restaurant nearby. I'm not sure if the structure of this class was different because it was a couples class but it may have well been a singles class because there was nothing for me and my date to do together. Extremely boring, disappointing and an overall mess. Again I give my props to the instructors and the facilities, just the overall set up didn't provide anything educational or more so FUN. read more

I've learned a lot from and truly enjoyed Kitchen on Fire's 12 week Basics of Cooking program. Chef Olive, Chef Lev, Chef Kevin, Patty, and the rest of the team are wonderful cooks, teachers, and people. Chef Olive is charismatic, approachable, and quite funny. In addition to learning about food prep and cooking, it's been great to learn more about eating and cooking for a healthy life. read more

We took the "Cooking Seasonally From the Farmer's Market" class last Sunday with Chef Mike C. It was our first time there. I believe there were 21 students and 8 volunteers/helpers. A very fun experience although it would have been better if the class size is smaller and everyone gets to actually make all the dishes. I, for one, was only able to really do 2 of the 5 dishes. Also, the volunteers/helpers don't really know more than the students themselves :). At several points of the afternoon, things were pretty disorganized. Maybe it's just me but I expect a bit more personal attention and better organization and time allotment at a $70/pp price tag! read more

I took the 12-week basic series class last winter/spring. I waited to do the review because I wanted to see how the class paid off nearly a year later. Before the class I was not a good cook. I had about 4 recipes that I could make well, but I had no real instinct as a cook and the science of cooking was foreign to me. I love watching the food network, but I was never able to recreate the meals I saw on TV at home. There was something missing in terms of my basic understanding of cooking. Although the class was more expensive that I could pay comfortably, I knew that ultimately I would cook more, eat out less, and save the money that it cost me in the long run. First of all I had so much fun in the class. I looked forward to every week and always enjoyed what we learned and what we cooked. The instructors, Mike and Olive traded off so I had them both, were completely knowledgable about everything that had to do with cooking and were also extremely patient. However, their patience did not lead to enabling. They were patient, but also held us to high standards since they knew we were going to be on our own outside of the class. An instructor that is both patient and demanding is the epitome of a quality teacher. They also spent tremendous time teaching about the science of cooking and the different techniques of cooking. A year later, those ideas have stayed with me, so even if I don't remember how to make some of the dishes we made in the class, in general I know the right techniques for how to cook meat without drying it out. Knowing how foods work has totally transformed my confidence in the kitchen. Right after the class I had a cooking slump where I felt like I had learned all that I was going to learn. I didn't cook for a while and began to feel like the class only paid off while I was in it. However, that was fairly short lived. Once I did start cooking again I remembered the science of cooking and I felt comfortable jumping back into things. Although it took me 9 months after the class ended to make my own chicken stock, I finally did and it was great. Now I have a bunch of stock in the freezer and every time I make a dish that calls for stock, I have some great tasting homemade stock that I can use. I kept all the notes from my class and keep referring to them as I build my repertoire of recipes and techniques that I can use to make my dinner every night. So nearly a year after the class ended, I am still learning more and growing as a cook. I'm eating out less, and don't even enjoy eating out as much because I know I can make better tasting food at home. Next to my lasik eye surgery, this was the best investment that I made to improve my quality of life. I highly recommend it to anyone that wants to learn more and cook more. read more

So my friend and I booked Monday at 3pm for a Thursday class. Emailed them Monday (SAME DAY THAT I BOOKED IT)to tell them we can't make the class due to a conflict I overlooked and if we could just get CLASS CREDIT. They emailed and called back and would not even credit the 200.00 we had just spent. That was 4 days within their policy . I have attended their vegetarian cooking class before and was going to sign up for their cooking series class but due to horrible customer service and really a lack of empathy I will never come back here again. That's a lot business they will miss out from me in the future. But no never again And I would have spent well over this 200.00 with return visits had they at least credited me . Never again. Pretending to be Small business when your company has a corporate mindset read more

the husband gave me (us) a cooking class here as a birthday present. we took the spanish grilling class with a guest chef name matt schuster who was awesome. super knowledgeable, approachable, and just a chill guy overall. his family is from spain and he goes back every year, plus has lots of restaurant experience so i really felt i was in good hands. the space is great, open and airy, overlooking the street. and you can bring your own wine and drink as you cook. (always my favorite way to cook). i thought they were very organized. everything we needed for our recipes was right there in front of us and all the recipes were clearly explained. the chef moved around between the groups of people to answer questions and just check in on us. the kitchen assistants were great too. there if we needed them but not intrusive either. not only did we learn some great spanish recipes, but we also learned some good techniques and some basic cooking knowledge. (who knew that cooking olive oil at a high temp turns it in a trans fat?!) we'll definitely be back to learn more. read more

I LOVE Kitchen on Fire!! Let me tell you why. First, Chefs Mike C. and Olivier are great! I have taken classes with both of them. Mike C. in particular is absolutely hilarious while also giving his students a well rounded culinary education. In addition, Chef Richard is awesome as well! He's the go to guy when you have a baking question. The man made the most delectable passion fruit rolls/buns for our class that were delicious and beautiful! The format of the courses is great. You get a demonstration for the first 1.5 hours, while they also share culinary wisdom on the side, e.g., peel ginger with a spoon. Freakin genious! The next 1.5 hours gives students time to pick a recipe that calls to them, and partner up with other folks to make it. A great way to make new friends who obviously have a similar interest (cooking), and get your practice in so that you can impress once you get back to your own kitchen. In the meantime, the chefs walk around answering questions, and help students with different aspects of whatever dish is being made. I have taken the 3 month basic series course. An excellent value and the next best thing to culinary school. I have also taken "hearty vegetarian meals", "baking for the holidays", and I'll soon be taking a cake baking, and tart & pies courses that are upcoming. Yes, that's how much I love KOF! I've gone back, and will continue to go back many times in the future. It truly is a wonderful part of the community that we are lucky to have right in Berkeley. I recommend that you try a class out. You won't regret it. read more

I went to the knife skills class over the weekend with my wife and another couple. We figured it would be a great way to hang out and learn a new skill. Having recently gotten married and accumulating an awesome set of knives, we needed to learn how to use them properly. Chef MikeC. taught a great 3.5 hour class that flew by way too quickly. He spent some basic time lecturing and then we got to sample several different knives and practice the cuts that he demonstrated. I learned valuable skills like how to hone a knife, dicing, slicing, and cubing. More importantly, I learned knife safety so I can keep all of my fingers in the future. The class went over cutting vegetables and how that transfers to everything else. I do wish that we would've been able to spend time learning about cutting meats. Other than that, I definitely will sign up for another class sometime soon. The place is fantastic and the instruction is very detailed. Last note, we were served an awesome pizza during the class as well. Great food and great time. Sign up now! read more

Today I attended the second holiday cooking party at Kitchen on Fire I've had the good fortune to be invited to. What a wonderful experience! The ingredients are top notch, the chefs knowledgeable and patient teachers, the setting is comfortable, and the resulting meal scrumptious. From the most seasoned cooks to the total novice, everyone at the party had a wonderful time cooking and eating together. I can't wait til next year! read more

Loved it! Went for a Bridal Shower and it was super fun. Chef Olive and Chef Matt were great! They were attentive, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and patient. And the food we prepared was absolutely delectable, I could go on and on. So for now I'm going to plan another reason to go back. I highly recommend this experience to any novice, or foodie who loves to cook at home. read more

Friday night cooking class with Chef Rick. Great way to spend a Friday evening with the family in the kitchen! The class we attended with the Big Night movie meal. If you haven't seen the movie you should because it makes preparing this meal even more fun. We had fun, learned a lot. They send you home with the recipes. We are going to prepare the meal again and do it up like they did in the movie. We thought parking was going to be an 'issue' turns out there is plenty of metered parking on adjacent streets. The class started at 6:30p so parking was free as well. Chef Rick, Chef Chi and apprentices assisted us throughout the process and had most of the ingredients pre-measured and had the red sauce prepared ahead of time as well. There were quite a few courses and those were divided amongst the 12 participant's in the class. However, we got to see most of the other dishes being prepared so we didn't miss out on much. The Risotto, whole trout, soup and the Olive cake dessert with Brandy glaze were all prepared close enough to our Timpano prep so we could hear and see what was going on with that as well. I got lucky and helped prepare the Timpano! We all brought wine and just like in the movie were feeling pretty happy by the time we ate. If you are looking for an enjoyable evening, like to eat and want to learn some good cooking techniques this is the place. The pace was great and the pros very patient with all of us! My darling kids gave this class as a Christmas present -- one of the best GIFTS ever-learning to make a meal from one of my favorite movies and most of all spending the evening with them! read more

I would give them 3.5 stars if I could, but here's my explanation and experience: Last year I surprised my wife with an evening class to KOF for a French cuisine (I think) class for her birthday. Now before I start, I should say that we have been to a more formal (6-day, 8 hr/day) thai cooking class in Koh Samui Thailand, so I may be a little biased, but that also cost ~10x more. First off booking: no problem, great website, easy to choose a class and pay on-line, lots of classes to choose from and price seems reasonable. Second, location and facility: Easy enough to find and located right across the street from the cheese board, now that's a good way to get inspired to cook, walking by a delicious pizza place right before going to cook! We got parking right down the street shortly before the class no problem. As we walked in, the facility looked great, very clean, neat and organized, especially for all the pots pans, fridges, ingredients. Looked to be kept very sanitary with regards to ingredients/containers, etc. Refrigerated food looked to be fresh from the farmer's market, I guess if business is good, you turn it over very quickly. Prep/learning session before cooking. We had chef Oliver who is a very energetic and engaging teacher. Learned a good few tidbits of info regarding tips and tricks of cooking, slicing, and overall cooking. He did a quick run through of what we were going to cook that evening (5 dishes I think) and introduced the volunteers who were there to help (they were very nice). I guess this part was a bit rushed, but informative nonetheless. Note: they encouraged us to bring a bottle of wine for ourselves. I enjoyed this as we sipped on a glass of wine while listening to the prep session and while cooking. Cooking: One thing is that we were never informed on how the cooking class was actually going to be conducted; this was my first demerit I guess. I am used to one workstation per person (or couple) that you would work from, but in this case as soon as Chef Oliver was done with the lecture/demo portion he just told us to 'Okay...Go!' Basically, those who had been here before knew that it was basically a 'group' cooking class where each dish was only cooked once and everybody participated however they wanted to (i.e. stick with one dish all the way through or jump back and forth between several). There was enough food prepared that everyone got a taste, but it was not the best environment as you've got a mix of novice to experienced cooks working on the same dish and one wrong move could hurt the final product. It's kind of the embodiment of too many cooks spoil the stew as none of the dishes came out perfect, most came out OK to good. Example, cheese soufflés: several of us worked on the batter which was a complicated stepwise approach which Chef helped us with and it looked to be a success, then a novice chef helped with the water bath for the soufflé cups (bain-marie), over-filled it and got water in 1/2 of the cups, therefore destroying them. Since there's only one shot to make each dish, 1/2 of them didn't turn out... Maybe we were in an abnormally large class, but it was hectic throughout the whole evening. Chef Oliver was bouncing around trying to give everyone some attention and doing a pretty good job. I must say, he gave some great nuggets of advice when you would ask him questions directly, but I didn't want to hog all his time myself. Overall: I would say that for beginners, this is a great class to get your feet wet, have a fun time at your own pace (or just observe). We learned a good sauce and how to make a taty cheese sauce and soufflé. The recipes for each dish are provided, so you can try them at home. The chef we had was very knowledgeable and engaging, but too busy to really learn a lot from. For the more serious chef, I would look for a more formal, smaller class size approach. read more

If you want a social event to meet up with friends to do some cooking, this is a place to go. If you want to learn how to cook, don't go. I'm not a cook, but I do know that if you want to whip two egg whites to a stiff consistency, that the bowl provided needs to be bigger than a demitasse cup. Really that is what was provided to me, by a "volunteer chef', a student helping out. The co-owner Olive was busy helping the other students put pre-cooked onions in Pepperidge Farms Puff Pastry. Don't waste your time here. read more

I took the wok cooking class. The teacher is excellent, the food that I tasted was wonderful but the experience was lacking. First, it was a group of strangers cooking and learning together but no introductions to each other - rather cold socially. And when it came time to actually cook, it would have been more gracious for the chef to divide us into groups so that those of us who did not come with our friends would still be included. But as it turned out - we self-divided and some of us worked alone, some of us with the friends we met there. No one really shared their food - just ate what they had made and then moved on to the next recipe - so it ended up being everyone out for themselves - which had two components, if you weren't in a group it was like not getting picked to be on a softball team at recess and if you were not in a group you cooked everything by yourself, which was a lot to do after working all day - more work than I was up for - and it also felt awkward for those of us a bit too tired from a long day at work to socialize with strangers. This hospitality issue was a key ingredient left out of the recipe which, if added, would have made the whole experience superb because the chef and food were wonderful. read more

Took the Sicilian class here yesterday. The chef was great and the recipes turned out pretty well. Unfortunately the kitchen was pretty unorganized. Some ingredients were missing from the stations and since the staff did not give a kitchen orientation no one knew where things were kept. We were missing herbs and measuring utensils. It would have been nice if the assistants were familiar with the recipes and could have lead each station. There were many people standing around not knowing what to do. I've only taken a class/team building class at one other place and it was much more organized! read more

After taking several classes at Kitchen On Fire, we decided to hold a birthday celebration there - a place where we could learn, prepare and eat food all together. It was an amazing experience and checked all the boxes. Everyone enjoyed it - from 18 to 80 years old. Chef Olive has a wealth of knowledge about food chemistry, answering the "why?" questions we have about eating certain foods and not others. The instruction is patient, while the learning is hands-on and really fun. Oh - and the programs that they provide to the community? Amazing. Thank you, thank you, Kitchen on Fire! read more

I would give this place 5 stars, because it really does deserve it, however prior to going I had read numerous reviews and was excited about the non-stop alcohol! Well...for the alcohol list was a champagne berry cocktail & wine, about an hour into the class, all the champagne was gone! Are you kidding me??? It's Valentine's day, I love champagne and paid an additional $10 above the original $95 for this specific menu, and you're out??? read more

We did a team off-site here a couple weeks ago for a late lunch (10 co-workers). Chef Olive & Chef Mike were great and everyone had a blast. After talking us through the (5) recipes they randomly split us into pairs to make the 5 items, my boss selected appetizer/tapas type items that we could all make at home and she brought wine that was paired with each item for us to drink as we cooked & ate. The food was fabulous and I learned a few tricks that I will use when I cook at home. All the recipies were items that can easily be made at home, in fact they even gave us the recipes! The Double Chocolate Bread pudding was my favorite but then again I loved the Mini Burgers with Brie & bacon. read more

I now know how to grill thanks to Mike C. I took "Vegetarian Grilling" a few weeks ago to break in my new Weber. In this class I learned extraordinary recipes. I tried them out on friends last weekend and they were so impressed. My husband said that my grilled romaine salad should be photographed--it should have! All I did was follow Mike C's instructions and I seemed like I had been born grilling (actually I never owned a bbq in my life till now!). In this class, I also learned tips to cook meat, so my steaks turned out great: perfect grill marks on the first time! I am so enthused, I signed up for his "Basic Skills" 12 week bootcamp. Who knows what dreams may come from my new skills! read more

I just finished my 12 week basic cooking series and I HIGHLY recommend it. Although some might look at the cost and get a little nervous, this series transformed my life. I am walking away with cooking skills and friends that I will carry with me forever. My only regret is not taking this series 10 years ago. Every week, Chef Mike and Olivier cover a different topic like "Yeast Breads", "Sauteing" or "Pasta, Grains and Rice." The chefs are amazing instructors and provide the perfect blend of scientific explanation, quirkiness and an "occasional" 4- letter word to really get the point across. I was so sad to leave last night, but will definitely be back for their other one-off classes (around $65 a piece). If you can't dive into the full 12-week series, at least take a one-off class. I know you will be hooked! PS - my only critique is that they need a bigger space! On some nights, it did feel a bit crowded. Maybe they could add another roll-away cooking station that wheels out after the instruction part. read more

I took the 12 week basic cooking class with Chefs Olive and Shy (and apprentice Jessica). All were terrific. They begin class with a lecture/demo on the week's topic (ranging from roasting to soups to sauces to breads) and then you break off to cook for the next few hours. The chefs were always happy to stick around after class to chat or help (one day, I stayed late so Chef Olive could teach me how to make a proper omelet). Totally appropriate for beginners or home cooks looking to enhance their skills. You walk away with an arsenal of cooking tools at your disposal. You eat a lot. You meet fun people. You feel more confident in the kitchen. It's a great way to spend one night a week. read more

My fiance and I came here last weekend for a sushi-making class and had an awesome experience. This was our first cooking class ever and the instructors really made it fun for all levels. The space was nice, but a little too small, which is my only complaint. It might be okay for other classes, but there were four people at our table and I wished I had a little more room to spread out. Back to the positives...we got to eat a TON of sushi, sadly I couldn't even finish eating everything I made. It might not have been pretty but it was delicious. I will definitely return! read more

My boyfriend actually got us an Indonesian cooking class here for my birthday last August. We had a great time at the class, learned a lot on what kind of coconut cream to buy, how to grind spices, types of chilles, and a lot of cooking preparation techniques. They split us to work in groups for each recipe and we had a lot of fun slicin', and grinding stuff, and cooking. After all that work, we shared and enjoyed a great dinner with everyone. It was a fun! read more

I took the basic series and now I am an apprentice. I LOVE THE SCHOOL! I like both locations. Mike C. and Olive are AWESOME! Mark is really nice too. Janey is nice and she attend your request really fast. You can learn a lot! If you do not know anything about cooking, this is a super start, if you know some, I guarantee to you, you going to learn a lot too. read more

This place rocks. The classes are so much fun, the food is yummy and the instructors are great about giving everyone individual attention. Make sure to bring a bottle of wine - it makes the class even more fun :-) and is a great way to make new friends :-) this makes a great date night or a good gift to give to foodies. read more

Chef Olive's Turkish mezze class is wonderful. We had a great time and the food was spectacular.

We had a such a blast doing a birthday party here! Bring your own booze and learn to cook a dinner... novel concept... except when there is 40 people and 40+ bottles! Fun times.. hands on experience and Chef Olive was amazing!! Simply amazed at how a room filled with people, alcohol, sharp knives, open fire and raw meat infused into a night of fine dining and alcohol fueled debauchery! read more

This review is based on my experience during the 12 week "Basics" Series. WOW!!! what an transformational and fun experience! Signficantly upgraded my cooking skills, the instructions on making Gnocchi were alone worth the price of the class. My Gnocchi comes out so light and tasty. Each class is 3 hours, half dedicated to instruction/demonstration, half to practice. The classroom is well stocked with high quality kitchenware and food. Between the food you prepare, and the food you share with your classmates, you will also eat well. read more

Cooks of Yelp, you need to go here. Cool people. Incredible chefs. Great food and great times. You may learn something, too.