Near public transportation
Infant seats available
Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
All Guests of our experiences are kindly required to come at the indicated time. A delay of 15 minutes can be accepted. Arriving later would make you becoming a no show with no chance to do it.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

Noli_O

This cooking class was our highlight of our Bologna trip. Irene was such a charismatic, helpful and kind teacher. We learnt how to make pasta in the traditional Bologna style and it was so easy and accessible. Irene and her family kept a big smile on our faces the whole time, they were so friendly and accommodating! We will definitely be using the tips we learnt in our home cooking and this experience will be in our hearts forever! Thank you so much❤️

Reviews

4.0

91 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 91 reviews

Loved it! Well worth doing.

Linda_O, Sep 2023

Irene was amazing and very personable. We loved her approach to teaching and learned so much not only about making pasta but also about Bolognese tradition.

Prepare yourself for disappointment - DO NOT BOOK with this vendor

Jennifer_D, Sep 2023

My friend and I were hoping that our cooking class in Bologna would be one of the highlights of our trip, but it was a HUGE disappointment, and frankly scary and weird. Not only did our host try to cancel and say we had booked the AM class, she then said she had a group at 6pm and it was sold out. In the next text, said oh sorry, I have space, you can come. So we did, but NO GROUP. Aside from the 20 euro taxi ride from the old center of Bologna (EACH WAY), a very sketchy neighborhood.We had no idea where we were, or even a way to call a taxi back, which is not explained in the description, only that you have to make your own transportation to/from there. OK, but we didnt know when booking it it would be on the very outskirts of the city and in a bad neighborhood. The class is offered as 3 hours, 3 courses, including beverages and dessert, as well as "take home" recipes and other items. We were given enough flour to make a well in the center of our cutting board, 1 EGG, and mash it around, roll it out, cut it. The fillings (for the ravioli and tortellini) were pre-made, and we were give a tablespoon each to use to fill our ravioli and tortellini, with no idea how to make the ingredients, we asked, she told us her grandmother made it with meat, cheese and herbs. The total time for us actually rolling, cutting, shaping and filling took roughly 20 minutes. Then she told us to sit, we were given pitchers of water on the table, and she went into the kitchen. About 40 minutes later, while my friend and I were wondering what the hell was going on, she served us our tortellini, with a broth. Again we asked what this was (the broth) and she said, oh, its this and that. 20 minutes later we were served the ravioli in a sage butter sauce. then another 20 minutes, the pasta with bolognese sauce. We asked again, about the ingredients and she said, here, write down your email on this notepad (her child's schoolwork) and I'll email them to you tomorrow. (its been almost a month and we have not received anything from her). While she was cooking and my friend and I were sitting at the table, wondering "is this it?" - 65 euros each plus 20 euro taxi cab each way, we would have eaten at a Michelin star restaurant for 85 euros each! In the kitchen, she and her husband were arguing the whole time, and she had cut on her leg, which was bleeding enough to drip down it! Her 8 year old daughter came in to show us her drawings, and their cat was tableside...the house was extremely hot and everyone was wearing very little clothing. It was unbearable. We were offered a slice of fruit at the end. Then we sat some more, and we both said at the same time, lets get out of here! it was hot, awful, awkward and uncomfortable and messy. I will undoubtably receive a negative response from the host, since she's done that with others that have complained. (she also said she hosts 4,000 people annually, not possible in her tiny apartment) and is opening a cooking school). Consider yourself warned. I did request a Partial refund, but Viator declined, and didn't allow me any way to explain the reason, only refund reasons were due to acts of illness, bad weather, etc. I'm not booking with Viator either again for this reason. Bad customer service and they offer no way to hold the host responsible for their lack of responsibility. What a complete and utter disappointment for our trip to Bologna. So sad.

A lovely experience and worth the money

Sonya_D, Aug 2023

We were altogether 4 people- two in each group which is a perfect size. The host was lovely and engaging. After the pasta making we sat down to enjoy some wine and eat our creations. It would’ve been nice to see how the sauces were made and get a little more kitchen time - we spent quite a long time at the table chatting to the other guests.

An amazing experience in Bologna

Noli_O, Aug 2023

Fun experience

Rose_W, Aug 2023

Fun cooking lesson! We learned how to make 4 different types of pasta. Irene is lovely. Thank you!!!

Fun making pasta

Judy_R, Jul 2023

We had a wonderful experience learning to make different types of pasta. Eating the pasta we made was a nice part of the evening. We would recommend this cooking class.

Disgusting and not authentic

Natalie_L, Jun 2023

I'm not sure why this tour would be recommended on such a reputable website. Yes the idea is to have an authentic cooking experience what's not expected is to have to travel 20 mins outside of a city Centre to a block of what can only be described as Chernobyl-esque style complex's. Then to have to share a cooking table with 15 other people but the table is so small you have to take turns rolling your dough. Then when you want to wash your hands and the sweat off your face from the non airconditioned unit you have to use the family's personal bathroom and wipe your hands on towels that look like they haven't been laundered in months. Despite the venue, the teachers family coming home and disrupting the class and the location finally we get to the food. I'm Italian background and I can say for certain the sauces provided for our pasta were not authentic or of an edible quality and Irene really shouldn't call herself Italian if she's going to serve up watered down ragu. Would not recommend to anyone

Response from Host, Jun 2023

What is Disgusting is your comment and your limited and poor brain activity trackable in your comment. byebye

A great experience that I would highly recommend

Mark_A, Jun 2023

My wife and I joined 5 others in Irene’s dining room for this wonderful experience . The fact it was in her apartment was part of the charm. The other people in our group were interesting and funny and we all learnt how to make pasta . The wine was simple but delicious and our pasta making was successful. Irene made the filling and sauce otherwise it would have been too complicated but she explained the ingredients and methods. Getting there was really easy on the bus or it’s 11 euros in a cab from the main square. This was a great trip and I highly recommend.

Underwhelming

David_P, Jun 2023

She was very nice and gave a good demonstration. It was definitely authentic, but I must say we were disappointed. It is held in her apt with a very small space, not enough for the 13 people in our group. The cooking and food preparation area had lots of family belongings around and we shared the bathroom to wash hands, etc with her family. Finding a taxi or Uber to get there from city center took more than an hour, fortunately she called taxis for our return to the city. The actual pasta was not great and the wine was mediocre. It was fun because of the other participants but I’m not sure we would do it again.

Irene was so welcoming...

Karisa_G, Jun 2023

Irene was so welcoming and though she does move fast with her instruction, she’s very good about answering questions throughout the process

Learning to make pasta from an expert

irene_r, Jun 2023

It was great to have this class with Irene! She was lovely and explain everything really well!! I would definitely recommend this to everyone.

Irene was very good at...

Ann_F, May 2023

Irene was very good at teaching and a lot of fun. Enjoyed meeting people from various places in the w

A Great Tour and a Wonderful Ending

Michael_C, May 2023

My husband and I loved this experience. Irene was so warm and friendly. With her expert instruction, we made pasta dough from scratch and enjoyed eating it with 3 different sauces. More importantly, I left my cell phone at her home. I wasn’t sure if I left it there or dropped it on the bus. When I was able to get Wi-Fi for my tablet, I saw messages from Irene and Viator. Irene knew we were next taking a train to Venice so she drove to the city, staked out the entrance of the train station until she saw us. Amazing! Irene is amazing! Thank you again Irene!

Easy and delicious pasta

Quinty_F, Mar 2023

We had so much fun making the pasta. The recipes were easy and we could make it all by hand without having to buy complicated machines to try this again at home. Our host was a wonderful woman which helped the experience as well

Awesome 👌!!!

Charles_C, Feb 2023

Gabriella was awesome... very welcoming and cordial. Had a great experience, not to mention a great lunch!

A waste of time

Francine_W, Oct 2022

Other participants were friendly and good company. However we were very unhappy with cooking class. It started late as no one could find the apartment. There were 10 of us but only 5 sets of cooking utensils. We thought we were going to book a starter main and desert. Instead we only had one portion of pasta dough each to form into 3 different types of pasta. instructor made fillings and sauces and said she would email recipes of them (which she hasn’t done ) it wasn’t even a demonstration as we were in the lounge room while she was in the kitchen cooking. We weren’t given an apron and ended up with flour all over our clothing. I actually can already make pasta .. but haven’t been able to eat it since. All in all this experience was not a good one but a shocking waste of money

Primo pasta day!

mary_w, Oct 2022

Gabby had a very well organized class. She shared stories about pasta making and other Italian foods as well as fun personal stories. Her instructions were clear and pasta choices interesting. The sauces and fillings she chose made for a very delicious meal! Wonderful experience.

Learning to make pasta, the traditional approach!

Dieter_W, Sep 2022

The chef was very knowledgable and friendly! Now we truly know how to make tagliatelle! Would be great to receive the recipes at dieterwillemyns@gmail.com

Wonderful

Susan_S, Sep 2022

Gabriella is very smart and engaging. A pleasure to spend time with. Cooking class snd food was great.

Great and fun the host...

steven_s, Jun 2022

Great and fun the host was very nice and funny. Food was really delicious and I would definitely recommend this to someone