We had the most memorable evening at Chef Stephanie Chinchilla's chef's table. The experience was…read moreintimate, warm, and beautifully executed from start to finish...every dish told a story and every detail felt intentional. We began with the Aji tuna on crispy rice, topped with a delicate sliver of jalapeño and crispy shallots, a perfect balance of freshness, spice, and crunch. The second course was Stefanie's famous focaccia...one sweet and one savory. The savory version featured parmesan, her homemade bread and butter, pickles from her garden, and a touch of mustard seed. The bread, made simply with flour, water, and salt, takes two to three days to create. The sweet focaccia was equally impressive, topped with brie, honey, and a guava jam made from her own garden-grown guavas... truly special. Next came the sweet potato course, made from her garden's harvest and paired with roasted pine nuts and coconut-shaved gnocchi in brown butter. The flavors were rich yet comforting, and the presentation was artistic and thoughtful. The main course... short ribs with a stunning potato gratin, was a showstopper. The short ribs were tender and deeply flavorful, garnished with delicate edible flowers from her garden, while the gratin was layered beautifully and topped with a fragrant chimichurri. Dessert was one of the best I've ever had: a sticky toffee date cake with a caramel apple sauce made from apples in her garden, served with raw cream vanilla bean ice cream. The balance of warmth, sweetness, and texture was perfection. The wine pairings, thoughtfully curated by Oscar from Sequoia Grove Winery, elevated the entire experience, from the velvety Merlot to the bold Cabernet, every sip complemented the food flawlessly. What makes Chef Stefanie so special is her warmth and authenticity. She shares her passion for food and where it comes from in a way that's engaging and educational, never pretentious. She spends time presenting each dish beautifully, with an artist's eye and a chef's heart. Her artistry, attention to detail, and genuine love for her craft come through in every course. I'll absolutely be attending her future chef's table events, a beautiful evening of intentional cooking, soulful flavors, and gracious hospitality.

I can't speak highly enough of the incredible experiences we've had with Stephanie Chinchilla. She…read morecatered our daughter's graduation party, she catered an intimate COVID birthday dinner, and we've taken several cooking classes from her over the years. For Christmas one year, my husband gave me the gift of her recipes. Every experience is top-drawer, from the incredible food, the personal touches, the elegant yet casual atmosphere she creates around every event. Her entire staff has been wonderful. After every event, people flock to us and ask for her number. She's Orange County's number one best kept culinary secret.

I was nervous about signing up for the home cook course, felt vulnerable in a new environment in…read morewhich I had no skills or training in. I can't recommend this beginner course enough. Even after the 1st day my meals at home were suddenly consistent and significantly better. 12 weeks later and I am confidently relaxed in my kitchen. I enjoy the ease that I feel now; from preparing dinner, menu planning, temp control, and little tips you just can't learn on google. Learning in person from Chef Jason and Chef Ben with a group of funny, eager, and caring adults has really shaped how I can give back to my family. This was the common denominator for all the students in our course. We wanted to learn a new skill to share with the ones we care about most, our families. "I haven't made a sh**** meal since day one of this course" - quote from my fiancé Take the leap and invest in yourself and your family plus laughing about it along the way is always a plus.

I am a home cook that wanted to deeper dive into cooking and to learn some new skills. I had a…read moregreat experience in the beginner cooking class at Culinary lab. The staff was very friendly and accommodating. The class covered all the bases of what you could learn in a beginners cooking class. From potion, to fish, to veggies, to knifes skills it is a good balance. The pace was not too fast but not too slow. We would learn about a subject, watch the chef cook it and then do it ourselves. I really liked my chef instructor explained things thoroughly but not overly controlling. One of the best parts is you got to take your a recipe sheet home with everything you learned that day and the food that you made, my husband and my kids always loved that. Over all it was a great experience and I will be back for more classes!

Such a fun time!! I chose the 'Date Night: Five Star Steakhouse' class and it was really enjoyable…read moreand informative. Our head chef/instructor Anthony brought great energy and charisma to the class. You could really tell he's passionate about what he does and enjoys it, which spread to the rest of the class. It was a very open environment with many of the attendees having little to no culinary experience, so we were all working on a level playing field. The class is decently interactive, with a nice balance where they do a good majority of the tedious prep work beforehand and let you do the rest (as a team of 4) with all of the nicely prepared ingredients. We also did a small crash course on cutting and mixing skills, which was appreciated. The dish we made was a really nice steak with an herb compound butter, grilled veggies, a small side salad, and a nice fruit tart (galette) for dessert. The class flowed really well and the time FLEW by. It was about two hours from start to finish, and it fun the entire time. I'd recommend to eat a little something beforehand, as you eat what you prepare at the end (after 2ish hours) and the portions are split amongst 4 people so they are a bit on the petite side. Overall, this was a really enjoyable experience that I definitely plan on attending again. I recommend you find a class that suits you and check it out yourself!!

I came with two girlfriends for a birthday gathering. I'm…read moreSO thankful we stopped to eat appetizers before we attended the cooking class. It took maybe 90 mins or so from start of class to chow time and we were ready to eat! I imagine we would have gotten hangry I we didn't, so I would recommend snacking before class!!! The instructing chef was very thorough and helpful. The food was on theme and SO good. We were surprised we could make such tasty bold flavors with simple everyday ingredients. (Our dish we Moroccan chicken night with couscous, beet salad, homemade ice cream with grilled peaches) Plenty of food to eat and even took some home. They were even so gracious to accommodate my vegan/vegetarian diet by subbing the chicken with either vegan chicken or potatoes (I chose potatoes). Flavors did not miss!! Would recommend and will be doing again...

Great place to take a cooking class. They also sell all things kitchen and you can have wine while…read moreyou cook and eat. Simple to follow instructions and a delicious meal after. Lots of free parking in front and a beautiful kitchen set up. We have cooked pork tenderloin, Thai food, and I want to take a pasta making class here. We will be back. Happy Yelping!

This was such a fun experience. I attended the Tuscan cooking class, and although it was pretty…read morefull, we ended up making some new friends along the way. There's an option to purchase wine, and while the selection is limited, it's clearly curated and high quality. The Tuscan menu was simple yet absolutely delicious. My only minor critique is that I wish the class had been a bit more hands-on--the instructor occasionally took over rather than letting participants do more themselves. That said, I understand time constraints and how challenging it can be with a large group. I imagine this experience would be even better in a more intimate setting. Overall, the food was excellent, and the instructors and staff were fun, friendly, and engaging. It is on the pricier side, but you're essentially getting a three-course meal, plus a 10% discount on anything in the store the day of the class, which is a nice bonus.

I took a private class with Teri to bake a cake for my husband's 40th birthday, and it was the best…read moredecision ever. I've never baked a single thing in my life, but by the end of Teri's walk-through (and with lots of friendly guidance), I had a beautiful 4 tier cake to leave with. My husband was absolutely flabbergasted that I'd baked and I was shocked that it was actually delicious. He's eaten a piece daily since and can't stop talking about how good it is-meanwhile I can't stop talking about how much fun I actually had with Teri. She shared the recipe so I can make it going forward and I think I can actually pull it off thanks to the education I got at Chef Tech!

My kids have attended Chef Tech's summer camps for the last two summers and I couldn't recommend…read morethem more highly! They are able to manage a large group of kids in a very organized manner and are excellent and patient teachers. Each and every time that I pick them up I'm shocked by how much they were able to make in the two and a half hours that they were there. They are currently in the Italian week camp and have made homemade pizzas, pastas and sauces from scratch, flatbreads, salads, sorbet, cookies, etc. My kids are 9 (twins), but we also brought friends this summer. One is in his last year of middle school and enjoyed the class just as much as the younger kids. Truly, such a wonderful experience for them! Thank you so much, Chef Tech!

We had an amazing class with Sara for her thai food night! Everything was prepped as we did the…read moreHipCooks mini 2 hour class but it was great! We learned the seasonings and flavors and got to enjoy our food after. Highly recommnd for date night or just a solo adventure

What a great, fun experience. My grandson has bern really interested in cooking so I decided to try…read morethe 2 hour cavatelli class here at Hipcooks. Sarah was entertaining, warm, welcoming, encouraging and a great instructor. Made the class so much fun and my grandson couldn't not stop talking about how much he learned in a 2 hour class. The school itself is small but neat, clean and vibrant. Everyone participated in making the meal and sitting down together to enjoy it. I generally do not enjoy classes that are structured like this, but in this case, everyone was able to participate in all aspects and all portions of each dish if they wanted. My previous experience has been that each team makes one part of the meal and it gets assembled at the end prior to eating. I always felt I was not getting a full experience that way. This was structured differently and it absolutely made the experience so much more enjoyable. I would not hesitate to recommend them or to take another class there. Thank you again Sarah for making this such a great experience.

Amazing romantic cooking class. My wife and I did this class for Valentine's Day. Everything was…read moreperfect and delicious. Creamy potatoes and delicious steaks. Can't recommend any of the classes offered here. Amazing and well worth the time and money.

Joined the Valentine's Day cooking class and had the most fun experience, and the meal was…read moreabsolutely delicious! We made filet mignon, baked brie with bruschetta, chocolate cake with berry compote. I loved every minute of it and cannot recommend enough learning from chef Zak! You will really enjoy your time there!!

Vibrant Life is for everybody and every healthy type of diet. The food is fresh, organic and full…read moreof life. Everything I have eaten from vibrant life has been very good. I have a few picky eaters @ home and they had no problem eating anything from vibrant life. We enjoy many paleo desserts as well as meals. Kristen is not only a fabulous chef but very knowledgeable in every type of diet out there as well as nutritionally.

From the owner: -Personal Chef Services -Cooking Classes…read more-Weight Loss -Nutrition Consultations -Customized Meal Plans -Local Handmade Artisan Baked Goods made with love -Gluten free, Paleo, Keto and Plant based recipes and options -Wellness Retreats and Workshops -Edible Garden Design

Chef Ollie makes the absolute best food with the freshest ingredients and warmest atmosphere. An…read moreabsolute must for anyone wanting custom catering or private cooking lessons. She is the best.

We celebrated my daughter's birthday at Ollie's kitchen making the most delicious food together…read moreItalian style and learning great cooking tips as we cooked. It was such a memorable experience. We thoroughly enjoyed everything including the ambiance, the delicious food, Ollie's delightful personality and knowledge of food and how to prepare it and her beautiful kitchen. Can't wait to do it again!

Pasta Mark made the pasta-making lesson such a wonderful experience! He's incredibly talented at…read morewhat he does and made it fun, engaging, and easy to follow. He was especially patient with the kids, taking the time to explain each step and making sure everyone felt included and confident. Not only was the experience fantastic, but the pasta was absolutely delicious. We couldn't have asked for a better personal chef or a more enjoyable lesson. Highly recommend!

We cannot say enough incredible things about Pasta Mark. During one of the hardest times for our…read morefamily -- planning a celebration of life -- he stepped in and truly went above and beyond. Mark didn't just cater a meal... he created a completely custom pasta experience that felt personal, thoughtful, and made with genuine care. From the initial conversation, he listened closely to what we envisioned and added special touches that honored our loved one in such a meaningful way. The menu felt intentional, the flavors were absolutely delicious, and everything was prepared beautifully. More than the food (which our guests are still talking about!), it was Mark's heart and professionalism that stood out. He made the entire process seamless and stress-free, allowing our family to focus on being together and remembering someone very special. If you are looking for someone who brings not only culinary talent but compassion and personalization to your event, Pasta Mark is truly exceptional. We are so grateful for the care he poured into making the day as special as it could possibly be.