Small Group Market tour and Cooking class in Padua

Sharing the shopping experience and the language and his very specific techniques in cooking the meal; totally different than what is shown on TV; more than excellent.

Speaking with a well informed chef who made excellent suggestions regarding food and its preparation.

We had a very enjoyable 5 hours with Catia. We met at the market at Piazza Erbe. She took us through the outside produce market and indoor meat and cheese market. All the while she gave a historical summary of the many buildings around Piazza Erbe. When we arrived at her house we were put to work making tiramisu, cicchetti and bigoli pasta our thirst quenched by some very good local Cabernet Franc. We highly recommend the tour with Catia

My cooking experience with Catia was the highlight of my time in Padua. She was so generous and passionate about sharing her love of cooking, drawing on her family history as well as her own. This was not the cooking class I expected, rather, it was a special day with a friend who had invited me to her home and kitchen. And of course, the food we made together was amazing! This is an experience I will never forget!

When we first met Catia, she was so warm and knowledgeable as she guided us through the market place, and sharing the history of her beautiful city and all the best places to get our favorite items, then she so generously treated us to a cappuccino and we were on our way to her home to cook. What a magical experience to be truly immersed in the culture of Padua through meeting Catia’s family and hearing of her generations of cooking Venetian traditions and picking ingredients from her own garden! We started with a Venetian appetizer of chichetti, which were like tapas but each was a work of art. And Catia is an artist! A painter! Then we made homemade Venetian pasta called Bigoli on her grandmother’s heirloom pasta maker and then we made traditional tiramisu. It was organized and at the same time relaxed. She had so much patience for all of our questions and our messy spills and we truly feel like we made a lifelong friend. This experience was the highlight of our trip and one that our family will never forget!

Great experience. The memories of this day will stay with us forever. Catia is friendly, fun and a superb hostess. It was so wonderful to spend the day in her beautiful home and enjoy the art, music and mostly the food.

We had an excellent experience with Catia. It was so fun cooking some ofher family recipes including starters, homemade pasta and Tiramisu. Catia is a very knowledgeable chef and we were so honored that she opened her home for us. We can highly recommend getting a memorable taste of Padova.

Extraordinary day with on our small group tour and cooking class in Padua.

Catia was an exceptional host, warm and welcoming, as she guided us through a wonderful day. Even before meeting up for our experience, she was in contact, giving us confidence about what to expect and reinforcing our meeting place and time.

We started the day by learning the fine points of shopping in the busy marketplace, along with perspective on its history and place in Italian culture, as we gathered ingredients for our lesson and meal. There was also excellent explanation about the regional food differences in Italy.

She then brought to her home and made us feel like family as she guided us through a fun and insightful afternoon celebrating food and its preparation.

With some of the market purchases, she put together an amazing assortment of Venetian appetizers with her own special twist. It was a beautiful meal in itself. And that was before we even got down to the pasta and tiramisu preparation!

Catia was an excellent teacher showing us some traditional ways of making fresh pasta and the tiramisu in tandem, offering valuable perspective to ensure success. Even with some cooking experience we learned a lot, tried some new things and had great fun working together.

The results were magnificent, delicious and completely satisfying.

The best part was that we did all of this in great company. This was an outstanding experience all around and highly recommended. Great memories created that we’ll likely think about whenever we’re shopping, cooking or enjoying food with friends and family.

We walked through the Padua market, enjoying the many different stalls and shops. Then we made magic with semolina flour and water, bucoli! Fabulous day, great host.

Our chef was wonderful and very gracious. The experience with the company’s communication was not. I had push messages with two different addresses and time right until the day of the event. It was clear that my cook had changed however the confusing messages came after that.