Dissappointing. I anticipated learning, creating & having a bit of fun. The young lady who taught is really nice ... ..but the overall truth was that ... EVERYONES' 'dish' was a flop, with exception, of two participants* that were later Sweet-hearted @ the end of class. I suspect, they're repeat students (Josh & the couple to his left, that had a fire earlier in the class.) They were the only one's given thee*ONE successful pan of baked items (that survived the over- loaded oven.) The ladies, to my right, celebrating a birthday, were friendly, laughing hysterically, wiping tears & taking photos saying "Three hours for this" (holding up their unrecognizable baked item as if to say 'all this- for this!') They were the highlight of my evening, as they summed it up best. read more

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While Chef Nick was knowledgeable and the cooking portion of the class was enjoyable, the entire experience was completely overshadowed by the unprofessional and unwelcoming behavior of the owners--particularly the female co-owner. As others have mentioned in their reviews, the business is run by a husband and wife team. From the moment we arrived, the female owner's rude, hostile, and dismissive attitude set a negative tone. Despite following their instructions to arrive early, we were told we couldn't wait inside, and it was hot out! We completed the required waivers in advance as recommended, but we were met with annoyance instead of appreciation--almost as if our preparedness was an inconvenience. We made every effort to remain friendly, polite, and respectful, but her dismissive, cold and abrasive demeanor persisted to the point that we genuinely considered walking out before the class even began. What could have been a fun and memorable evening was completely derailed by her unprofessional conduct. We tried to make small talk, and I have a high tolerance for rudeness, but this was to a scale that I have never encountered. There were roughly 10 couples in the class, and as we began interacting with others, it quickly became clear that we weren't alone in our experience. Several guests shared similar complaints about her attitude and lack of courtesy. It wasn't just a bad day or a misunderstanding--this is a pattern. In addition to the customer service issues, the structure of the class itself was disappointing. We signed up expecting a hands-on cooking experience. While we were allowed to assist with some small tasks, the majority of the cooking was done by the chef. The setup seemed more geared toward encouraging guests to purchase additional drinks (which are not included) and to socialize, rather than actually teaching any meaningful culinary skills. Although we enjoyed the meal and met new people, I don't believe anyone left with the knowledge or confidence to recreate the dishes at home. While I understand that this format may help keep the evening on schedule, it wasn't what I paid for or hoped to experience. Given the premium price of the class, we expected a welcoming, professionally run event. Instead, we left feeling frustrated, disrespected and disappointed. I would not attend again, and I strongly discourage others from signing up until the owners--particularly the female co-owner--reevaluate how they engage with their guests or sell it to someone with people skills. read more

Outstanding experience. Chef John was very personable and extremely knowledgeable. The pizza was delicious. Can't wait to make my first disastrous attempt at home! read more

The Cutting Edge Classroom - Chicago-style deep dish pizza - Cooking Schools Near Me - Knoxville, Tennessee

Such a fun experience!!! Will definitely be back! We did the pasta class....we made bread, 3 kind of pastas and a cake. All were delicious read more

The Cutting Edge Classroom - Cooking Schools Near Me - Knoxville, Tennessee

My boyfriend and I were visiting Knoxville and we love to cook, so he found this class for us to take while we were in town. We took the That's Amore Rustic Italian Date Night class and over all, it was a great experience! Neither of us are accomplished chefs by any means, but we both know our way around the kitchen and I found we still learned quite a bit during our class. The skill it takes to lead a bunch of semi-intoxicated amateurs (they have a pretty good mini-bar in the kitchen area where you can purchase drinks) in a short period of time with bread, dessert and a main course with homemade pasta was nothing short of amazing. We had a great time! That said, I feel I have to mention this, but when we first got there (and we arrived early because we were visiting Knoxville and didn't want to be late), the woman who greeted us (who is a co-owner of this establishment) was so incredibly rude and icy when we walked in, we felt like we'd done something to offend her, even though we just walked in. She finally warmed up a tad when my guy (who is so nice, it's rare for anyone to stay mean with him) kept trying to get her to be nice, but there was a moment there where we both gave each other a look and considered just leaving right then and there. We were taken aback at how rude she was and this was the initial vibe when we first walked in. I mention it because they may want to work on that. We almost walked out. And like someone else mentioned in a review, the place has a ton of "do NOT" signs all over the place and that didn't help the less-than-welcoming initial atmosphere. Here I was oohing and aaahing over the cute things in the front shop and she just glared at me, so I wasn't exactly incentivized to buy a memento either. But the end result was great and we had a good time. So, I recommend this place, other than the initial greeting we received). I'm taking off a star for the initial experience, but if it were remedied, it would be five stars. read more

The space is beautiful and we had a good time once we actually started making food. I went to a family class on sushi and half of the class was not hands on. It is boring for kids to sit and watch a man make sauces and rice. I came from Dayton Ohio and have taken classes at The Tablespoon in Cincinnati where everyone has their own station with all of their supplies. You watch the chef and actually attempt to do what the chef does at your very own station. The staff at The Tablespoon is also high energy and they have about 5 people all around helping you. There was only one person assisting John and she seemed like a servant. There was also a robust effort for us to tip the helper. I didn't like that after it was plastered on our recipe booklet. The tv screen in front of the classroom needs to be replaced. The screen was fuzzy and unprofessional looking. We had a good time overall. I would have had a better time if l had not experienced outstanding cooking classes at The Tablespoon. Recommendations: Start right away with making sushi and let people stay after if they want to watch you make sauces and rice. Be mindful that kids have short attention spans and how boring it is for kids to sit and watch you cook. It is as fun as watching paint dry. Get more help. Charge more so that we're not waiting for ingredients, or waiting in line to get more rice, or waiting to cut our sushi. Consider the environment and have compost bins at every table for food waste. Eliminate the use of styrofoam. Make a professional trip to The Tablespoon and see what you can adopt at your establishment. While this place could do much better overall, it has a solid foundation: beautiful space that is clean. read more

The Cutting Edge Classroom - sushi - Cooking Schools Near Me - Knoxville, Tennessee

My daughter and I attended the Date Night Street Tacos & Tequila class April 12, 2024. It was a great experience. The kitchen was well prepped and all tools on the tables.We love to cook together and not rookies but we learned am lot about Mexican style cooking and the staff especially Chef John were very helpful and informative. We ended with a great meal with a delicious dessert and had a margarita while we cooked. The reason for the missing star was the class was supposed to have a tequila tasting and it was forgotten-my bad for not asking though. Didn't think of it till later. We will go for another class. read more

First let me say this is by no means a review on the cattle company. They brought in Fantastic steaks! Thank you boys for those Very Fine Pieces of beef! Will be buying some from you online store soon! This event was a Steak and seafood class. Flank, Filet, and Ribeye steaks with scallops, asparagus, polenta, and bread pudding. Some of the steaks were brought in by a local Authentic Japanese Wagyu Ranch. A short critique of the food. Asparagus, Bread pudding and scallops were fantastic! The Polenta was some thing i can live without. The steaks were another story. I love steak. I cook steaks very well. Family and friends love them. However, in this class for some reason, the students were not allowed to cook the steaks. Unlike the last class we came to and the students did ALL the cooking. The Chef cooked all of them. First the filet steaks. I buy choice (cheap) filet steaks in the grocery store and no matter how you cook them they are always very tender, juicy and delicious. These were not. Toughest filet we have ever had. Next the chef made the flank steaks. Both some store bought and some Wagyu and were both very tough. Some of it was left on the table no one wanted to eat it. Then came the Ribeye. Half of them store bought (choice) and half Wagyu. Beautiful 2 in thick steaks. Could not wait to taste both of these. I've had Wagyu steak before and it is wonderful. The chef Cooked them 2 ways. 2 medium rare and 2 rare. The store bought ribeye was very tough. Over half of it was left on the table no one would eat it. Now the Wagyu. Everyone was waiting for these bad boys. The chef SHOULD know how to cook these beauties. The medium rare Is a little more on the rare side than we like but it was still Excellent. Tender, juicy and delicious. The rare was not rare. It was RAW and surprisingly very tough. HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT!!! No one in the class would eat it or could eat it because it was so tough!! 2 of the 4 Wagyu steaks were left on the table Ruined !!! What a waste of an Awesome and VERY expensive piece of meat. Very disappointed !! For veggies and dessert the chef is fantastic. For meat, Do it yourself. read more

I ordered our Easter dinner from The Cutting Edge Classroom expecting high quality, chef prepared food, but instead got something subpar and amateur. I spent $149 and was understandably upset. I sent the business an email Easter evening and this is what transpired. My email to The Cutting Edge Classroom: Hello. I hate to say it, but my family was very disappointed by this meal. We enjoyed the deviled eggs and ham, but everything else was not up to the standard of a meal that cost $150. We would like, at the least, half of what we spent returned back to us. I am writing to you before we turn to Yelp and/or social media, which is not something that we typically do, but to be charged this much for what we received was not right, especially when we were just trying to help a small business during this difficult time in America. Sincerely, ******* and ***** ***** In response to my email I was asked for my phone number. I received a phone call from a very rude, belittling and over-bearing "Chef John", who proceeded to talk over me and question my character. He was threatening and hateful. and did not even try once to accomodate me These are the facts: 1. I emailed Chef John on Easter night about how dissatisfied I was regarding our Easter dinner that I purchased for $149. I requested a reimbursement of approximately half of what I purchased the dinner for $75. 2. His response was simply asking for my phone number. I emailed him my phone number and received a call from a very defensive Chef John this morning. **He talked over me the whole conversation, was very rude, belittling and overbearing. **He told me that I was only "1 of 25" customers that he made the dinner for and he received accolades from everyone else. **He never offered to correct the situation in any way, shape or form. **He also said, in a tone that was incredibly threatening and angry, that if I posted to Yelp or social media about this dispute that "I have your email and will respond appropriately", before disconnecting the phone call. My takeaways: 1. I perceived that I am just a number to him, as he said that I was just "1 of 25" customers. I am not a valued customer, but just someone who paid too much for a subpar Easter dinner. 2. I perceived that he didn't care about my experience with his company enough to make it right or for him to offer any type of reconciliation. 3. I also perceived that if I were to rate his company on Yelp or express my concerns on social media, that he could retaliate against me, which makes me anxious and worried about my safety. Finally, I have to question if he responded to me in this completely unprofessional and demeaning way because I am a woman. In fact, I wonder if this is the way he treats all of the women in his life. Does he generally use misogyny and arrogance, while belittling them? I also ponder what his reasons are for acting in such a way toward a woman that was dissatisfied? In closing, I would not recommend paying for any meal from Chef John and his Cutting Edge Classroom and if the Easter dinner that I paid for denotes the way he would teach someone to cook, I would also definitely not recommend taking lessons from him as well. Please take a look at this "chef" prepared meal and let me know if you would have paid $150. read more

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We had the pleasure of celebrating our daughter's 11th birthday at Cutting Edge. She personally requested Chef John to lead her pasta making class. She and her friends had an incredible time! The kids learned how to make angel hair pasta, fettuccine, and 2 sauces which they turned into their delicious lunch. Chef John does an amazing job of incorporating learning and fun. He kept the kids entertained and interested while they learned the ins and outs of pasta-making. It was a seamless experience that even included cupcake decorating! We really appreciated that we were able to be accommodated for our vegetarian family, as well as for children with allergies. Thanks, Chef John & Cutting Edge Classroom! read more

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The cooking class Stewards kept everything moving smoothly. We never wanted for anything. Chef John makes amazing cocktails and then entertains you while he imparts the knowledge you need to make some truly delicious dishes. We recommend this experience as a date night or a group activity for team building. It is cooking and does take time to create and cook, so be prepared for at least a 2 1/2 hour experience. Great job! read more

I would like to preface this by saying that Chef Nick was AWESOME. The class itself was great, he was a great instructor and had good energy. That guy deserves a raise. I was recently there for the pasta making class and the lady that works in the front...oh boy. I showed up early, as everywhere on the email recommended to be early to get a seat with whoever you were going with. I show up about 15 minutes early with my guest. The door is locked. The lady finally unlocks the door and scowled at us when we asked if she was ready for us to come in. I give her my name, my guest gives hers and then front desk lady was rude for no reason. She said we had to fill out a waiver. We do, no problem. More people come through the door and she's short with them about the waiver too. She tells us we need to put our stuff in the cubby and grab a hat and apron and as we are walking away to do just that, she was short in temper and said something very condescending like, "um, I NEED to finish my spiel." This was the first time we had been there and honestly, not the best impression. We are in the classroom and looking around at the mix and matched energies: a lot of ~live laugh love~ font kitchen signs followed with DO NOT TOUCH or some kind of NO. I understand that being in a kitchen, even in a classroom setting is potential for liability, but it felt like we were entering the "House of No" upon arrival. If I'm paying $200+ for a course, I simply do not want to be treated like I'm less than by some Chef Gordon Ramsay wannabes. May I suggest the front desk lady check into some anger management classes or like everyone else attending, leave her ego at the door. read more

My daughter just attended the full day cooking around the world camp. She had an absolute amazing time. Chef John was great and very informative. She loved it so much we signed her up for next weeks camp also. Thank you for teaching youngins how to be great chefs! Very highly recommend! read more

This place is a joke.... He gives you recipe cards and tells you to make it. He does nothing! When we went, people had recipe cards for French Baggett's, when comparing to everyone else recipe's, they were all different. I will charge people a lot less to come to my house and give you a printed out recipe card to make something that you could do on you own. read more

Buyer beware. We had to cancel a family cooking class due to a food allergy for the class we had paid for. They sent me a voucher to use for another family cooking class. The vouchers/gift card are only valid for 30 days but no one mentions it. It is on the face of the voucher but I did not open the email until I was trying to sign up for the next class. They will not honor it after the 30 days. I do not want to see anyone else lose their money. read more

My bread class was very informative. We prepared and baked 3 kinds of bread and took some home too! What a fun class!

Chef John is amazing! He hosted our Christmas party of 12 and we couldn't have been happier! Italian food perfectly prepared with wine and dessert to finish us off! My husband and I will be going back for date night!!! This little gem of a kitchen made our holidays that much more special! Thank you again Chef John!!! read more

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My husband and I took a dessert (macaroons) class and had so much fun!!! We were successful in class and came home with a delicious treat. They even send home the recipe. Located right outside of Turkey Creek read more

The Cutting Edge Classroom - Work station - Cooking Schools Near Me - Knoxville, Tennessee

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This place is a scam. DO NOT GO HERE. I booked a class as an anniversary gift to my parents. It was a Thai cooking class that they offered on the Friday before Memorial Day. The day before the class, they sent an email saying the class was cancelled because of Memorial Day weekend. First of all, why would they offer a class on Memorial Day weekend then cancel it BECAUSE of Memorial Day weekend? They knew it was Memorial Day weekend when they offered the class, so that already tells me that these people don't know how to run a business. They offered me a voucher for another class. Even though it was inconvenient because the class was on their anniversary, fine. But when I looked at their other classes, they didn't have a Thai one. That was the one class my mom wanted to do and the only reason I went to Cutting Edge. So I called and asked for a refund. The woman on the phone told me there is no way they are giving me one. So I demanded to speak with the owner. Five minutes later, "chef" John called me and told me that he doesn't care that the Thai class was cancelled and that I was not getting a refund. He was extremely rude and unprofessional, and by the way he yelled and cut me off with every sentence, I don't think he should be teaching anyone anything. Honestly, you can look at my reviews. I never make bad ones about any business because maybe someone was having a bad day. But this man is a rude, unprofessional scam artist who won't give a refund on a class that HE cancelled last minute. DO NOT GO HERE. **EDIT: They finally gave me a refund, minus a 20% "refund fee" read more

We went to a pasta making class, everything was premeasured and placed on trays in front of you. We received a brief explanation and then began to cook following preprinted directions. Cons: I found the Chef to be abrupt, definitely not friendly and felt that his staff was intimidated by him. We paid 90$ per person to eat pasta (not good pasta) and foccacio bread on a paper plate with plastic utensils, paid 40$ for a 10$ bottle of wine. We served the other tables our pasta, they served us theirs, no salad no dessert. The training kitchen was an OSHA nightmare extension cords everywhere. Did not feel clean. Pros: Great table of people we had never met. Do your self a favor, put your credit card back in your wallet, pick out a good recipe and teach your self. This imo was a rip off. read more

I had a great time at the classroom learning to make tamales. John took the mystery out of the process and I can 100% do this at home! Another benefit - getting to meet great folks who enjoy cooking and leaning as well. I would highly recommend any of his courses!!! read more

My boyfriend and I went to the sushi beginners class and it was great! Throughly enjoyed the technique explanation, and the chef was amazing. He did more than just explain, he was very encouraging and funny as well. Highly would recommend The Cutting Edge Classroom and will be going back for another class. read more

The Cutting Edge Classroom - Cooking Schools Near Me - Knoxville, Tennessee

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Was very excited to take a shushi class with my son. I paid for two classes at 89.00 each. We now have inclement weather in Knoxville, snow and ice. The class will end at 7:00 pm, when the temperature will be freezing. They did not cancel class. I contacted them and said I was concerned about driving tonight. I was told I can pay 50.00 to reschedule. They go by Knoxville weather. It was sleeting and snowing by the time they contacted me back. ???? Knoxville weather? I told them I felt 50.00 was excessive when class should have been rescheduled by them. I've already paid almost 200.00. This was disappointing. The chef was also very rude. I understand they will be out food, but I've owned businesses. Sometimes there's a cost to conduct business. Mother nature is out of my control. 50.00 is excessive in my opinion. read more

I highly recommend! The food is restaurant quality and you will learn so much. Chef John is incredibly good at teaching a variety of techniques and is open to any and all questions, making it the perfect environment for learning. He also makes coffee - and who doesn't love that. The kitchen is kept very clean, and the staff is great. I can't wait to go back again! With a large variety of classes to choose from - there is something that will please everyone. Don't be afraid to go alone! I did, and I left with two new friends. The environment is very conducive to socializing and meeting new people. They also started offering vouchers, so it would make a great gift! read more

Please be aware of their cancellation policy before booking a class. I tried to cancel a class 6 weeks in advance and they refused to refund my money. Their answer to any scheduling conflicts is to send someone else in your place. They are inflexible to life circumstances and because of this I will no longer do business with them. read more

Such a fun and yummy experience! My husband and I had the best time Mastering the Mother Sauces. Not only was it super informative, but Chef John was a great, high energy instructor, and the food was DELISH! So thankful for our new skills-- we will definitely be back! Great activity (and dining) for Knoxville! read more

John is not a chef, my wife and I went to a cooking class we would have learned more watching the cooking channel!! He had our group make easy apps, salad, and roast pork as a meal, BORING!! If your looking for a fun night out with no other options, go for it! If you want to learn something new, watch the cooking channel!! read more

We had a really nice evening doing date night at the Cutting Edge Classroom. The staff are friendly and helpful, the food quality is great, and the kitchen is well equipped. It's a little pricey, so definitely save it for a special occasion. I would definitely recommend it, though! read more

Another great class last night by Chef John. Steakhouse Techniques. I left full of knowledge and a stomach full of great steak.

Would not recommend! They took my money, canceled the class and then refused to give me a refund.