A little learning goes a long way
Pro See and try out some cooking techniques.
Con Not as hands-on as some might be looking for.
Pay
€€€€+
Per Person €70 - three hours of cooking demos, drinks, four dishes to eat.
Practical
Up to 12 participants. Hands-on practice; (unlimited) drinks. Apron to take away. You'll recieve a .pdf of the recipes and any others needed to complete the dishes and a discount voucher for purchases from some of the sponsoring companies.
Find
Website here
Access Step free entry. High stools in cooking area.
In Short
Hopes? Learn enough to cook a Peruvian dinner.
Reality? Learnt and saw enough.
First Impressions? Welcome to boho-posh.
A USP? Gift experiences for the hard to buy for.
The food in three words? Do it yourself.
Can they get the staff? One front of house, one chef.
Service with a smile? Friendly and open. Good explanations.
Friend friendly? Lots of courses on offer.
Rating for dating? Might be good for a partner - or potential one. Not a cheap date, mind.
Tip? Not the thing.
Change one thing? Clearer expectation management.
Going back? Definitely a maybe.
In Pictures
Calle Ballesta location on the website
What's the story?
Cookery class or interactive DIY dinner party? Kitchen Club is one and the other. But not quite enough of both.
Good news, 1. You pick up tips and techniques. I know how to make ceviche now. I can cut onions with fewer tears (slice them slowly). I have an improved chip making technique (put them in the oven first). But...peeling potatoes and keeping a hand blender button depressed for 5 minutes? Do you want to pay for that pleasure? Part of the cheffing experience, it's true.
Good news, 2. You eat quite a lot. We had four dishes, one of which we prepared individually, the rest we all did bits of. All four, and I say this as one of the chefs, were excellent. Possibly the best Peruvian food I've had in Madrid. Gallina al aji is a new favourite (blend the sauce for five minutes); my ceviche was over-acidic (balance it by adding salt), but you'll be chuffed with your presentation..
Good news, 3. There's no shortage of drinks to hand. Fridges are full of beers and soft drinks. There's decent wine too, all included. That said, you need a fairly clear head if you're nominated to fine-slice onions with a razor-sharp mandolin. Blue finger plasters are to hand.
Excellent news; someone else does the washing up.
So we prepped veg. We chopped chillis (taste the tip - it's the mildest bit). We made our own ceviche (always cut fish towards you). We decorated a plates and learnt a bit about rice cooking (wash it six times before cooking), helped make gallina al aji (top right picture) and joined in making a giant stirfry. I stirred a lot of things a lot. It's fun and even better shared with a friend or two.
But...you've just finished your (second) main course; the excellent lomo saltado (heat the pan really well before adding the oil). You're comfortably ensconced at the dining table, have got to know your fellow cooks, had a couple of glasses of Ribera and...that's all folks. Time to go home. Right away. With no desserts on this course, it's goodbye time. So obviously, no after dinner coffees or drinks, either. Well maybe it's fair enough. The chef's on a clock. But by this stage, mentally you're in another place. You're at a smart dining table, so it feels like an excellent lunch has come to a halt halfway through. Dessert? It's going to be a Malasaña artesan lollipop.
So...this isn't learning. There are no teaching techniques employed beyond demonstrating. No recapping of methods after recipes, no working together to solve problems. No whiteboard to help keep track of things. No video to download. No easy way to keep notes. There's no certificate at the end.
It's not a way to live out your Masterchef fantasies, either. You don't, personally, learn four of the five dishes on the list, hands on as you don't have your own ingredients or hob and oven. Instead you participate in randomly allocated stages of the prep and cooking. It's enjoyable and entertaining - like a corporate team-building exercise without the office politics, but it lacks the depth and sense of achievement a formative process can provide.
And it's not cheap. And while you aren't taught to cook four courses yourself, you don't get a full lunch either. The operator doesn't have to pay for sous chefs or waiting staff, or desserts or coffee and drinks.
Worth the experience? I could have made ceviche from a book, but I saw it done first hand. I got to see a chef in action close up. Yes to that. I think I learnt it better this way.
Worth the money? It came as a present. If I'd bought it as specifically a cooking course, it wouldn't feel like €70 well spent.
Pro See and try out some cooking techniques.
Con Not as hands-on as some might be looking for.
Pay
€€€€+
Per Person €70 - three hours of cooking demos, drinks, four dishes to eat.
Practical
Up to 12 participants. Hands-on practice; (unlimited) drinks. Apron to take away. You'll recieve a .pdf of the recipes and any others needed to complete the dishes and a discount voucher for purchases from some of the sponsoring companies.
Find
Website here
Access Step free entry. High stools in cooking area.
In Short
Hopes? Learn enough to cook a Peruvian dinner.
Reality? Learnt and saw enough.
First Impressions? Welcome to boho-posh.
A USP? Gift experiences for the hard to buy for.
The food in three words? Do it yourself.
Can they get the staff? One front of house, one chef.
Service with a smile? Friendly and open. Good explanations.
Friend friendly? Lots of courses on offer.
Rating for dating? Might be good for a partner - or potential one. Not a cheap date, mind.
Tip? Not the thing.
Change one thing? Clearer expectation management.
Going back? Definitely a maybe.
In Pictures
Calle Ballesta location on the website
What's the story?
Cookery class or interactive DIY dinner party? Kitchen Club is one and the other. But not quite enough of both.
Good news, 1. You pick up tips and techniques. I know how to make ceviche now. I can cut onions with fewer tears (slice them slowly). I have an improved chip making technique (put them in the oven first). But...peeling potatoes and keeping a hand blender button depressed for 5 minutes? Do you want to pay for that pleasure? Part of the cheffing experience, it's true.
Good news, 2. You eat quite a lot. We had four dishes, one of which we prepared individually, the rest we all did bits of. All four, and I say this as one of the chefs, were excellent. Possibly the best Peruvian food I've had in Madrid. Gallina al aji is a new favourite (blend the sauce for five minutes); my ceviche was over-acidic (balance it by adding salt), but you'll be chuffed with your presentation..
Good news, 3. There's no shortage of drinks to hand. Fridges are full of beers and soft drinks. There's decent wine too, all included. That said, you need a fairly clear head if you're nominated to fine-slice onions with a razor-sharp mandolin. Blue finger plasters are to hand.
Excellent news; someone else does the washing up.
So we prepped veg. We chopped chillis (taste the tip - it's the mildest bit). We made our own ceviche (always cut fish towards you). We decorated a plates and learnt a bit about rice cooking (wash it six times before cooking), helped make gallina al aji (top right picture) and joined in making a giant stirfry. I stirred a lot of things a lot. It's fun and even better shared with a friend or two.
But...you've just finished your (second) main course; the excellent lomo saltado (heat the pan really well before adding the oil). You're comfortably ensconced at the dining table, have got to know your fellow cooks, had a couple of glasses of Ribera and...that's all folks. Time to go home. Right away. With no desserts on this course, it's goodbye time. So obviously, no after dinner coffees or drinks, either. Well maybe it's fair enough. The chef's on a clock. But by this stage, mentally you're in another place. You're at a smart dining table, so it feels like an excellent lunch has come to a halt halfway through. Dessert? It's going to be a Malasaña artesan lollipop.
So...this isn't learning. There are no teaching techniques employed beyond demonstrating. No recapping of methods after recipes, no working together to solve problems. No whiteboard to help keep track of things. No video to download. No easy way to keep notes. There's no certificate at the end.
It's not a way to live out your Masterchef fantasies, either. You don't, personally, learn four of the five dishes on the list, hands on as you don't have your own ingredients or hob and oven. Instead you participate in randomly allocated stages of the prep and cooking. It's enjoyable and entertaining - like a corporate team-building exercise without the office politics, but it lacks the depth and sense of achievement a formative process can provide.
And it's not cheap. And while you aren't taught to cook four courses yourself, you don't get a full lunch either. The operator doesn't have to pay for sous chefs or waiting staff, or desserts or coffee and drinks.
Worth the experience? I could have made ceviche from a book, but I saw it done first hand. I got to see a chef in action close up. Yes to that. I think I learnt it better this way.
Worth the money? It came as a present. If I'd bought it as specifically a cooking course, it wouldn't feel like €70 well spent.