My husband treated me to two cooking classes with Chris, and I learned immensely at both. First…read moreoff, the space is gorgeous. You feel like you're in such a welcoming and relaxing environment, and Chris is generous with drinks to make people feel at home. Her style is really approachable, and she tries hard to offer tips that will stay with you when you're cooking at home. I've learned so much from her: I use old T-shirts to dry my meat, I never salt my potatoes before roasting them, I crank up the heat real high to roast chicken, and I make my pizza outside on the grill. She has helped me expand my food horizons and feel comfortable experimenting in the kitchen. She's also an all-around amazing individual who has been around DC a long time and has good stories to tell. In short, it's a great activity for a night out with friends or even as a couple, and she offers useful recipes that will make you more comfortable in the kitchen to boot. I wish I still lived in DC so I could take regular classes with her.

If you're planning a small cooking class among your closest friends, look no further than Just…read moreSimply... Cuisine. For my wife's birthday, Chris put together a customized menu with a focus on local, organic, and healthy. Her "slow food" approach has long been a staple in her instruction, long before it became cool to go green. She walked us through a five course meal, teaching new techniques while entertaining topics on food and life. We particularly enjoyed the roasted butterflied chicken with fresh sage. Our afternoon session ended with a simple, yet divine treat of strawberries with balsamic and whipped cream. Just Simply... Cuisine is one of the best kept secrets in DC. Let Chris host you in her lovely home and delight you with recipes that you'll want to try on your own over and over again.

Truly the best experience my friends and I had and could not reccomend it enough. It had been a…read morewhile since I'd had a unique and wholesome experience in DC, and I'm so grateful to Chef Sayeh for bringing that energy.

I had a ball!!!!! My husband and I took a DC favorites cooking class last month. From reservation…read moreto experience, everything was great. It's A fun, flavorful, and creative cooking class featuring crispy mambo wings, steak and cheese egg rolls, and a dirty banana pudding trifle that is perfect for anyone looking to try something new.

We did their "Date Night" cooking class and had an absolute blast! When we walked in they had us…read moremake a themed drink (nonalcoholic options available too!). We had time to sit and chat while everyone arrived. The menu was seafood paella and orange flan, yum!! The chefs were super helpful and kept things running smoothly, while additional staff helped keep things nice and clean! We were able to create a pretty delicious meal. I will say the timing was a bit off as we finished an hour after the listed "end" time. However overall I highly recommend for date night, or just a fun night with friends!

I'm a 60 year old college professor taking this class and I am already enjoying the resulta…read more before, I could manage to prepare some very basic food. Now I'm a kitchen hero at home.

From the owner: FoodFirst Culinary School offers in-person cooking classes for beginners, to help you learn how to…read moreprepare delicious, quick, and affordable meals at home. Also offering classes for intermediate-level cooks and experienced home chefs wishing to expand their home cooking repertoire and learn techniques such as baking sourdough or cooking authentic European or Asian dishes. All classes are designed for cooking at home and are not geared for commercial kitchens. There are no experience or age restrictions - we are happy to work with young chefs as well as with folks post-workforce. Everyone is welcome! The instructor is a professional educator with over 30 years of home cooking experience who understands the constraints of home cooking and designs all classes to be responsive to budgetary, time, equipment, and experience limitations of home chefs. All classes are taught in-person in small groups to allow for ample hands-on time by each class participant. Nearest metro is Tenleytown, 1 mile away; ample parking available.

What an excellent experience it was the perfect date night experience cooking together in a chefs…read morehome. We went with chef ali who taught us Sichuan cooking. Food was excellent and she had a great teaching style making it easy to follow allowing for a great experience would go again.

Chef Justin Sushi Making At-Home class was amazing!!! It was so individualized and he really paid…read moreattention to detail to provide a wonderful experience for us. The sushi was high quality, delicious, and filling! I highly recommend Chef Justin -- you won't regret it! I will be booking with him again!

My husband and I took the Southern Brunch class at Baltimore Chef Shop Sunday and had such a great…read moretime. We made breakfast sausage, buttermilk biscuits, chicken fried steak, country cream gravy, crispy hash browns, sunny side up eggs, fruit salad, and Texas sheet cake and somehow it all came together into an incredibly delicious meal. Chef Ted was warm, knowledgeable, and genuinely helpful throughout the class. At one point I was deep in ADHD overwhelm trying to keep up with the Texas sheet cake while everyone else seemed miles ahead, but Chef Ted and Madison (KA) stepped in, got me across the finish line and the cake turned out great!!!! The class was instructional and a little fast-paced in the best way. The two hours flew by!! It felt busy but never stressful, and sitting down to eat what we made together was the perfect payoff. Two thumbs (or forks?) way way up. Definitely recommend and would absolutely do another class!! We're already talking with friends about booking a private group night.

My crepe class with David was packed with fun! The structure of the crepe class was making a…read morevariety of crepe fillings, sweet and savory batters, cooking the crepes, and then eating everything you made as a group. Within the class there were about a dozen things to make. You are divided into 2 tables, with each table making everything. Personally, you make one or 2 things. I was assigned the savory crepe batter and the spinach filling. Then everyone took turns cooking a crepe or 2. In all the class was a blast! There were some minimal drawbacks. To start, I previously posted about them not honoring gift cards. I quickly removed that post and they corrected the problem. I am very satisfied with how that was handled after the fact, but the old gift card was not easy to use without working with the owner. I also had a few times in the class where I could not find items like spoons or ingredients easily. The class had a lead instructor and then a kitchen assistant. It took some getting used to and understanding how the place worked. I almost feel more prepared if I were to sign up for a class again. First hour was not the most intuitive. I recommend these cooking classes. It was fun and a good date morning with my husband.

I've been following Melinda for a while and was really excited to attend her class in Middleburg…read more Unfortunately, there were a few obstacles that kept getting in the way, like coordinating with my family. However, things fell into place during our layovers and we were able to join the open class during our available time slot. It turned out to be a lively and enjoyable experience overall. In the class, you have everything you need to succeed right at your table. You'll be sharing a table with another baker, so I recommend bringing a friend or family member along. Additionally, you'll receive a folder and a recipe sheet with a pencil to follow along with. The class is very hands-on, and I was lucky that my partner was able to take some photos while my hands were covered in flour. While we were working, we had the option to enjoy some refreshing beverages like lemonade, water, and tea. We worked diligently from 1pm to 5pm without any breaks. By the time we finally got to eat around 5:15, I was quite hungry. As someone with a creative mind, I would have loved to have some time to experiment with different dough designs or decorate the Danish pastries. It would have been exciting to incorporate bold flavor choices into our rolled-up croissants as well. Perhaps in the future, there could be a class dedicated to a creative open studio session day. Another suggestion I have is to have a grazing station with chilled snacks near the drinks, so we could nibble on something while working or receiving instructions. However, since we were on the go all day and didn't eat, that was on us for arriving to class hungry. I highly recommend this class. The community of students and Melinda herself create a wonderful atmosphere. You can tell that she goes beyond just teaching the course and keeps the conversation going. If you don't have any experience in bread making, I suggest starting with the fundamentals course and then progressing to the intermediate and advanced levels. Make sure to check the website for the available classes, as they tend to sell out quickly. It took us years to find a class that fit our schedules, but we would definitely do it again. It was a lot of fun!

I've attended several Knead and Know classes, and they have all been wonderful. Melinda is an…read moreextremely knowledgeable baker and a very thorough instructor. It's not uncommon to find repeat students in her classes because they appreciate Melinda's comfortable, non-intimidating approach to baking various breads and pastries. I can't recommend her or her classes enough!

This was a great class! Twin sisters facilitated the class and they did an amazing job. They're…read morefun and entertaining and they engage with everyone. They were excellent with time management by covering a lot of material in the allotted time. All aspects of the class were well planned out. I'll definitely take another class with them.

Took a recreational class on 4/17/26, had a blast! Dave and his assistant Ed were great! Learned…read morethe formula behind the dough we made and created a simple sauce. Would recommend Pizza University to anyone wanting to dip their toes in the world of pizza making. Can't wait to take another class and make my way into a 3-day intense course.

Taking a recreational class at Pizza University was hands-down one of the most enjoyable (and…read moretastiest) things we have experienced in a while. Our instructor, David D., was knowledgeable, super friendly, and clearly passionate about all things pizza ~ from pizza history to dough science to other fun pizza tips and secrets. The class was the perfect mix of hands-on learning and laid-back fun. We got to stretch dough like pros (well, semi-pros), experiment with toppings, and then, of course, enjoy the fruits of our labor .... which, not to brag, were delicious. Whether you're a total beginner or just a home cook looking to level up your pizza game, this class is a great time. You'll leave full of pizza, a little flour-covered, and very proud of your pie-making skills. Highly recommend for foodies, friend groups, or anyone who just really, really loves pizza!