The Recipe — Local services in Ames

Celebrating The Recipe’s first anniversary, I want to express my enormous gratitude to Patrick, Rachel, Andy, their team, and guest chefs for creating this culinary-rich adventure space and sharing their passion and love! I am not new to cooking. Attending The Recipe’s cooking classes this past year, my aspirations have been to explore and try new things, share cooking experiences with my granddaughters, and meet new people.

From the first moment of walking into the Recipe, you are surrounded by the warm and invitational atmosphere! Each class is an incredible and, in many respects, cultural journey, blending professional expertise shared by fantastic chefs (who are members of our community) with a relaxed, fun, and joyful environment and making everyone—whether we are beginners or seasoned cooks—feel comfortable, encouraged, excited about cooking, and not being afraid to make mistakes. After all, cooking is sharing love; as we learn, we make mistakes. Often these days, as I cook, I tell myself, What would Patrick say or do?! What truly makes our experiences so unique is the sense of community that The Recipe nurtures! The Recipe is more than just cooking. It is a space within which friendships are formed over the flour-dusted or cooking-messy counters or special meal events, where laughter bubbles as we try new things, and every success is celebrated. I’ve met so many wonderful people, who have become my friends and with whom I share the love for food and the joy of cooking.

The Recipe has transformed how I cook at home and, equally importantly, enriched my family’s life in countless ways. I’ve learned/enhanced my cooking abilities, from basic knife skills to recipes I never imagined I could master and, above all, my family would enjoy. BIG congratulations on your first anniversary! Thank you again and again for creating this space that brings so much joy and love to our lives and community! I very much look forward to being part of our community for many more years to come! The Recipe is an absolute gem in Ames and...

I was hoping for a hands-on experience, but instead I just sat while an instructor finished preparing the meal (which she had begun before class) using both ingredients and techniques that were missing or explicitly contradicted by the handout we received. The dish we created was good, yes, but I don't expect I'll come close to re-creating it, nor did I learn any cooking techniques as the work the instructor did in front of us was just sauteeing meat.

Also, this was perhaps my fault for not asking or assuming, but while we waited for class to start, a staffer specifically offered us a few drink options -- turns out those weren't complimentary :|

EDITED TO ADD: Apparently I signed up for a "demonstration," which is sitting and watching vs doing, per the business response below. So that was my mistake. Having said that, I'll note that the demonstration was simply the instructor improvising with the sauce ingredients and proportions, then telling us she would not in fact show us how to fold bao buns (which she tried to describe in the recipe provided) and instead showed us how to take a ball of dough and flatten it...

The Recipe is the best ticket in town! My husband and I have taken many classes from Patrick, Andy, and Rachel and every one has been wonderful. We have learned something new each time and eaten so many delicious things. The staff at the Recipe make cooking accessible for all levels of cooks. It is never intimidating, always fun. Where else are you going to learn how to make everything from the perfect bourbon cocktail to goat biryani to chicken mole? The instructors answer every question and share "the why" of what they are doing. I always feel that the classes are just the beginning of what each dish or ingredient is capable of. Learning one particular skill or recipe is great, but being given the confidence and ability to create so many different dishes from each lesson is fantastic. If you are looking for a relaxed date night, fun girls, (or guys), night out, The Recipe is a great choice. We usually go for the in person classes, but each class is also live streamed, so if I can't make a class, I watch from home. The staff does a good job of filming...