Cooking in Florence on a Rick Steves Tour

With so many travelers into food these days, food tours and cooking classes have become a big deal all over Europe. And a cooking class is a perfect example of how we, as part of our bus tours, encourage our travelers to roll up their sleeves and dig into the local culture through real experiences. I love to bump into our tours while in Europe doing my research. And just the other day I met one of our Venice/Florence/Rome tour groups and joined them for lunch. The catch? We had to cook it ourselves. Fun and enthusiastic Fabrizio (of the In Tavola Cooking School) had five mini-kitchens set up for our group where he and his staff led us through a marvelous 90 minutes of cooking fun. And, I swear, the food was as good as anything you might expect in a fine restaurant. Plus, knowing that we had made the bruschetta, pasta, sauce, chicken, and even the tiramisu ourselves, made it taste even better.  What favorite food-tour and cooking-class memories do you have from your European travels?

See photos from this cooking class on The Travelphile.

Comments

3 Replies to “Cooking in Florence on a Rick Steves Tour”

  1. Years ago in Avignon,France, local chef Robert Brunel gave a cooking class in the wood-fired ovens of the premier hotel La Mirande. We had lunch at his own restaurant a block or so from the Pope’s Palace couple of days later, an were warmly greeted by the chef as he made his rounds around the tables of diners. The class was almost totally taught in French, bu his technique and quality ingredients transcended any language barrier. A few years later, he opened his Avignon restaurant, “75,” although the upper floor wasn’t yet completed or ready to receive customers. A few years later, he taught a class here in the USA, in nearby Boulder, Colorado, a real treat. We’re looking forward to our return to southern France this summer and to at least one meal at a Robert Brunel restaurants. His passion for sharing quality food is evident, and that first class will never be forgotten!

    In 2009 on a bicycle tour down western Ireland, we stayed at the Berry House, and had a cooking class led by proprietress Rita Meade, attended also by a couple from Australia. Figuring out the Irish hob (oven) settings vs. the USA Fahrenheit measurements took some getting used to, but we got a proper recipe for real Irish soda bread (not what’s sold in the USA around St. Patrick’s Day!). Feasting on the lunch we’d prepared is another fond memory!

  2. Years ago in Avignon,France, local chef Robert Brunel gave a cooking class in the wood-fired ovens of the premier hotel La Mirande. We had lunch at his own restaurant a block or so from the Pope’s Palace couple of days later, and were warmly greeted by the chef as he made his rounds around the tables of diners. The class was almost totally taught in French, but his technique and quality ingredients transcended any language barrier. A few years later, he opened his Avignon restaurant, “75,” on the lower floor, although the upper floor wasn’t yet completed or ready to receive customers. A few years later, he taught a class here in the USA, at a cooking school in nearby Boulder, Colorado, a real treat. We’re looking forward to our return to southern France this summer and to at least one meal at a Robert Brunel restaurant. His passion for sharing quality food is evident, and that first class will never be forgotten!
    In 2009 on a bicycle tour down western Ireland, we stayed at the Berry House, and had a cooking class led by proprietress Rita Meade, attended also by a couple from Australia. Figuring out the Irish hob (oven) settings vs. the USA Fahrenheit measurements took some getting used to, but we got a proper recipe for real Irish soda bread (not what’s sold in the USA around St. Patrick’s Day!). Feasting on the lunch we’d prepared is another fond memory!

  3. Buon giorno,

    That looks like yummy fun!

    I get to enjoy doing that in October on my Rick Steves’ Venice, Florence, Rome tour.

    Ciao,

    Jeff
    Tampa Twin

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