Cozymeal Cooking Classes — Restaurant in Washington

My wife and I enjoyed an absolutely delightful class with Chef Shelley last evening. We were celebrating a wedding anniversary and she went out of her way to make it a lovely and romantic experience. Her warm and welcoming hospitality, exuberant and outgoing personality and superb culinary skills combined to make it a memorable evening. We had so much fun learning how to make the most incredible flourless chocolate cake (always start with dessert); flavorful chicken with 40 cloves of garlic and seasoned ratatouille. She provided great cooking tips that even those experienced in the kitchen may not know. The time just flew by as we combined food preparation, stories and laughter and a glass of wine together. After the meal was prepared my wife and I sat down to savor our experience. Shelley was right that this is the best chicken dish ever. The skin was crispy, the meat was moist and the infusion of spices and garlic was perfectly balanced. The ratatouille was Shelley's own take on this classic dish and it was delicious. Then we topped it off with that incredible chocolate cake which was topped with fresh whipped cream and 18 kt gold dust! We were certain that we weren't going to finish it because it is so rich but about two and a half minutes later it was gone and we were scraping the plate for every last morsel. We can't thank Shelley enough for such a delightful evening in her cozy and warm home. Needless to say we enthusiastically recommend her for a wonderful cooking, dining and...

I cannot say enough good things about our experience with Chef Meg. She was such an accommodating, gracious, personable, amazing chef and host, and everything we could have hoped for. From the moment I heard back from her via Cozymeal, to her coming out to my boyfriends apartment cook with us, I couldn't have imagined anything better.

We had a bit of a snafu in that I ended up suffering from a stomach bug on the night of our dinner, which Meg still graciously made for my boyfriend and saved me some for when I was feeling better. My absence was no hinderance, though, as he still had a great time and delicious meal (Duck, Duck, Mousse, by the way). However, Meg in all her awesomeness reached out the next day and subsequent days to inquire how I was feeling, and we were ultimately able to reschedule a time to do our dinner in full, this time at her place. She and sous chef Doug (he's a dog, and he's the best) gave us one of the best meals of my life, made exceptional by her humor, wit, cooking skills, and relatable food (and life) tips.

I feel like I could go on and on about our experience(s) with Meg. If you want quality food and to meet one of the best people to exist - you...

This review is of the "Signature Italian Pasta" class at Sur la table - Arlington, booked through Cozymeal. The chef was great (knowledgable and personable), but the $90pp class had two major drawbacks:

(1) the Sur la table - Arlington kitchen is filthy. Everything above eye level was extremely dusty, to a level indicating the kitchen hadn't been deep-cleaned in years (all lights, the AC vents on ceiling, the range hood over the island, etc where all filthy). I'm not sure how any professional chef didn't notice or remedy this. It may be because the chefs rotate, so no individual has ownership of this issue.

(2) the Chef did all of the actual "cooking." Yes, the students prepared our pasta dough and ravioli filling from scratch, but the Chef cooked everything without warning. The chef called a 5 minute break in the class, and when the students returned, everything was cooked - this was really odd and off putting. So, the Chef - not the students - fried the ravioli, breaded and cooked the dessert, made the pasta sauce, cooked the pasta, roasted the squash, etc. Not only did I not get to cook the meals, I didn't even get to see the...