Florence: Pasta Cooking Class with Singing & Wine Tasting

4.97

(129 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

I’ll be honest—I almost bailed on this Florence pasta cooking class because I was nervous about singing in front of strangers. But the second Giulio greeted us (he’s got this wild energy, like he’s been waiting all day just to meet you), I forgot about feeling shy. The kitchen smelled like flour and tomato even before we started, and someone was already humming a tune—maybe that’s how it always goes here. There were people from everywhere; I ended up next to a couple from Sweden who’d never made pasta either. We put on aprons that felt way too big for me, but whatever, everyone looked ridiculous together.

Giulio showed us how to shape reginette—those ribbon-y noodles—and kept cracking jokes in between instructions. He’d toss out little bits of Italian (“Mani pulite! Clean hands!”) and then break into song, dragging us along until the whole room was singing something that sounded vaguely operatic. I tried to say “pummarola” the right way; Giulio laughed so hard he almost dropped his wine glass. Speaking of wine—there were two kinds (red first, then white), both poured generously, not those stingy tourist pours you sometimes get. The sauce simmered in the corner while we kneaded dough; it smelled sweet and sharp at the same time.

At some point someone started clapping along to the music and then it turned into a mini dance party right there between the flour-dusted tables. It wasn’t forced—just kind of happened because nobody was pretending to be too cool for it. When we finally sat down to eat what we’d made (my pasta was lopsided but tasted perfect with that tomato sauce), I realized I hadn’t checked my phone once in two hours. The staff took photos for us since our hands were covered in dough anyway—if you spot yourself online later, it’s part of the fun.

I still think about that night whenever I smell tomatoes cooking now. If you’re after a quiet lesson where everyone whispers and takes notes…well, this isn’t that kind of place.