Cesarine: Authentic Italian Cooking Class and Meal in Varenna

31 Ratings

Varenna

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Immerse yourself in Italy’s culture with an authentic Italian cooking class in Varenna. Learn the secrets of iconic dishes, taste your creations, and enjoy local wines.

Duration: 3 hours

Cancellation: 24 hours

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Highlights

Varenna - Immerse yourself in a private cooking class at a local’s home, learn the secrets of the most famous dishes of Varenna cuisine and taste the fruit of your labour for lunch or dinner accompanied by local wine.

What's Included

Hands-on cooking class
Learn and taste 3 Italian recipes (starter, fresh pasta, and dessert)
Alcoholic beverages

Meal Options

Seasonal starter
Fresh Pasta - Sample Regional Pasta: Ravioli or Risotto or Gnocchi
Local dessert - Torta miascia or Cutizza pancake or Tiramisu or similar typical desserts

Additional Information

Dive into the heart of Italian tradition with this interactive cooking class conducted in a local household by a skilled Italian home chef. Uncover the hidden techniques behind the most renowned Varenna dishes and enjoy the fruits of your efforts over lunch or dinner, complemented by local wines.
You will be provided with a fully furnished workstation…

Location

Varenna

Enjoy this unique experience in a Cesarina's home. For privacy reasons, the full address of your host will be shared after booking. Please note that the location may be either in Varenna or in Bellano (approximately an 8-minute taxi ride).

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

4.6

(31 Ratings)

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Y1533bejanetf

May 31, 2025

Amazing Experience, a Highlight of our week in Italy - This was so much fun and so convenient! It was a block from the Royal Victoria Hotel, in a very unique room. Our chef was Monica Airoldi who was warm, engaging, and an excellent cook. She only does groups of 4 because she finds it easier for all to be involved. We started by each of us making a tiramisu in a dessert glass that could then chill while we made our raviolo from scratch. It was very simple and delicious. Monica had premade the ravioli filling, so it went smoothly at prepping time. The 3 hours went very quickly! It was me, my husband, our 24 year old daughter and her boyfriend, all of us felt this was one of the best things we did in our week in Italy.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Vacation00548973731

May 22, 2025

Best Way to End Trip to Italy - Patrizia, was wonderful. She helped us navigate to the location after we got lost, she explained details of her village, she made us both feel welcomed and showed us grace as we didn't quite do everything right with the pasta. She was very attentive and kept in mind any allergies we may have. Definitely recommend this experience as it was a wonderful way to end our trip to Italy. Fresh pasta, local ingredients, and she shared her homemade tomato sauce with us, and made us fresh focaccia. Highlight of our trip, and the view of Lake Como could not be beat. Beautiful experience.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

938cadem

May 12, 2025

Perfect Como Activity - Patricia and Luca made this an unforgettable experience. We had a great time. Their home is beautiful, the views are surreal, and they are genuinely wonderful people.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Vickydt7261bc

Apr 22, 2025

Magnificent Lunch Experience - My husband and I attended this cooking class and it truly exceeded all of our expectations. From the moment we arrived, our host welcomed us so warmly into her home that we instantly felt comfortable and at ease. The recipes we made were simple, delicious, and perfect for recreating at home — which I definitely plan to do! Her husband also joined us during the experience, and together they shared so much insight into Italian life, culture, and cuisine. It felt less like a class and more like spending time with friends. When it came time to leave, we both felt like we were saying goodbye to people we had known for years. It was a heartfelt, authentic, and unforgettable experience.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Keith_l

Dec 15, 2024

10 out of 10 - Luca and Patrizia were amazing hosts. Their home was beautiful, the food was amazing, and the experience was fantastic altogether. This is experience is a must for anyone visiting the area.

Review provided by Viator

Keithlevine92

Dec 15, 2024

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Robert_m

Oct 9, 2024

True Italian Experience - This is a must do when in Varenna. Antonietta was the best! She accommodated a gluten free allergy and prepared gluten free pasta. So delicious. Admittedly, it is a bit of a ride but she helped arrange for transportation. She loves cooking and truly treats you like a member of the family.

Review provided by Viator

Kayleighmk9869jm

Aug 15, 2024

Private cooking class in the best locals home! - This was AMAZING! This totally exceeded our expectations. We felt so welcomed by Luca and Patrizia. The food was delicious and the views were breath taking. They are the best and made our experience incredible. I highly recommend booking a class with them you won’t regret it! We will definitely be back. Kayleigh

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Lydia_r

Aug 6, 2024

Food with Feeling - This was a wonderful experience - to be welcomed in to true Italian hospitality and in a jaw dropping location, overlooking the lake. Antonietta was so friendly and welcoming and fully adapted her cooking course for both me and my 6yo. He had an excellent time working the pasta machines and I learned a lot and feel more confident to make pasta and tiramisu from scratch. The meal was really delicious and we left full, smiling and happy. The one surprise was that the Cesarine I was matched with was some way away from Varenna, so be aware that there may be extra costs involved in getting there. Overall, it was worth the cost though, and provided one of the most rewarding and memorable nights of our trip.

Review provided by Viator

Greve25

Sep 2, 2024

Somewhat disappointing, average/good food. - Address for the meeting place was not the correct location. It would be great if they would update the address on the ticket reservation with a the correct address prior to the event, but they send an address via email later after you make the reservation, so you have to remember to look through your emails, not the ticket reservation for the event. Because of this mixup, we were 20 minutes late to the cooking class. The instructor was very friendly, but the class felt rushed and was not very hands-on. I understand that she had another class at 2 o’clock, but we definitely felt that we were booted out the door at 1 o’clock sharp . The instructor did most of the prep work, we did very little, so that was disappointing. I am comparing it to a cooking class I took in Monterroso a couple years ago. The environment was very nice, and we met two other travelers during cooking class. Ravioli was very good, tiramisu was excellent, tagliatelle was average with my husband and I mostly having noodles with no sauce because we used very few ingredients.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Check Availability

From $166

up to 10 guests

1 - Adult