Silver Whisk Cooking School

Working with Silver Whisk was a personalized experience from start to finish — and we’re in the business of personalization, which makes it even better. My company had a personal Iron Chef Competition where we competed with two teams, one doing Texan cuisine and one doing San Franciscan Thai fusion.
They were extremely professional and focused on us having a good time as a group. The cooking was hands on which was the best part — they didn’t just let us watch them cook in a kitchen. We’re so excited to have a relationship with Silver Whisk and will most definitely be having events with them in the future.
We love Myrna and Jake! They are the best. We will definitely be back.

Didn’t even get to a class and I’m hugely disappointed.
My friends purchased us a gift certificate here for our wedding. From ¹¹⁄₁₄ to 4/​15, we attempted to book a class on 16 occasions with emailing, calling, their website, all with un returned responses. Their website was not working. Phones unanswered, emails none.
All turns out, I track Jake Gober down to get some sort of explanation and he says, we’ve closed our business in Lakeway. We are moving to Houston. The website was shut down as we are out of business. We weren’t answering the phone or emails as we were out of business. And your gift certificate won’t be refunded as you needed to use within 3 months.
I bet these crooks change the business name but remain in Austin.

I scheduled a cooking class three months in advance. I very soon realized I was going to have to reschedule. I have been trying to reschedule for two months now. I have left 4 messages and sent multiple e-​mails. I have gotten no response whatsoever. I am now disputing with my credit card company. what a pain.

Went to the classes and not impressed at all. No educational advice at all. It was basically me getting a meal handed to me with others around to share in the experience. Does Chef Myrna know anything? Bring us the basics so we can learn something.

We attended the Chinese cooking class held at Silver Whisk last night.
Dorothy Huang, the featured Chef was brilliant! Her personality couldn’t have been better or more charming, and you were naturally drawn to watching and interacting with her and cooking!
The food turned out to be amazing, and to know that we were eating Chinese food that we had a hand in preparing was a hoot.
Owner, Chef Myrna and her staff Jake and Louie were a pleasure and were always attentive to our needs.
We would certainly recommend Silver Whisk to anyone, and for sure we will be back again.

Came here for a corporate event. The spirit and the cooks that helped direct us were fabulous. I’d recommend this event to anyone who wants to do a great corporate team event.

I’m not going to lie. I am an excellent cook and probably don’t need to be taking cooking classes. I own an extremely high end range and have collected some cooking equipment that is in the extreme high quality range. That being said, I have an addiction to curiosity, which as we all know can sure get you into trouble sometime.
I took the basic class with a co-​worker of mine, just to see what the whole thing is about and really had a good time. Someone else here mentioned the aprons and they really are great. We took a lot of Instragrams of each other and got a ton of likes.
The meal we prepared was simple, but fun. I was glad there wasn’t a big time culinary attitude from the staff — like other places in town which will remain nameless. They allowed us to chop the vegetables ourselves and even cut raw meat, which is sometimes prohibited in other venues.
All in all, an excellent time. I only wish they would try to incorporate a «dog night» in the future where you are free to bring your pets. I think this could be fun and bring a lot of people in who have a hard time finding pet sitters.

Going to cooking classes is one of my favorite things to do with my husband (despite the fact that he’s often MUCH better than me at difficult, detail oriented recipes)
Most of the experience I have with cooking classes has to do with the Wholefoods classes at the Lamar culinary center– so most of my expectations were set from those events.
I think one of the things that surprised me is that this is not a completely hands on course. My husband and I went to a class specializing in soufflés — and most of the class involved the instructor showing us what to do and letting us taste the finished results. Though she did let us complete some of the easier recipes, it seemed as though she was rushing through everything else and didn’t trust us to do the more complicated recipes for ourselves.
If you’re familiar with the film Ratatouille, you know that Chef Gusteau’s prime belief was that anyone could cook. I truly believe that the instructors here didn’t really follow that philosophy.
I was hoping I could at least use my notes to help me recreate the recipes in the future — but unfortunately, I was never emailed the recipes after the class as was promised, which was a bit disappointing.
Also, if you’re into wine — it’s important to note that you are charged for glasses of wine if you want to sip some during class, while classes elsewhere tend to include complimentary wine.
Personally, I’d be willing to try Silver Whisk again — but I definitely feel that the classes here are designed to be more of an event you go to, rather than something you learn from.

What I find most interesting about these Unilocal reviews is the ability of Silver Whisk to respond so promptly. I’ve been trying to get the recipes from our December 12^th cooking class and have yet to receive anything. After waiting almost three weeks I emailed Jake and was told that I would be receiving them that following Monday. Monday came and went and I sent another email, letting him know that I wanted to cook these recipes for my NYE party. I have yet to hear a response. The funny part is during our cooking class another patron was writing down very precise instructions. When I told her that they are supposed to e-​mail the recipe list, she laughed and informed me that this happened to her before and it was just better for her to write them down. At the end of class we overheard Jake asking for her instructions. I’m not sure if he was joking or not, but from what I gather from my personal experience, it may not have been a joke (which is super disorganized for a cooking school!)
The actual class was really fun. My boyfriend and I and another couple had a great time. The class seemed a bit big for the size of the kitchen and at times seemed too crowded which made it a bit uncomfortable. the food however was delicious. The service was great.

I took the risotto class and instantly fell in love with this place. There was a small class of about nine, and both Myrna and Jake talked us through how to make four different risottos. It is not feasible for the entire class to be hands-​on for all participants at all times because even at nine people, there is not enough room at the two stoves for everyone to be working. However, everyone had an opportunity to cook on at least one of the risottos. I am sure the same could not be said of classes at other large-​scale businesses, unless you are wanting to pay for private lessons or attend culinary school.
In reading past reviews, I agree that conversation is free flowing and not always focused on cooking. However, Chef Myrna happily answered any and all questions I asked. As a customer, you just need to speak up politely and ask for the information. I learned a great deal and I also had a lot of fun visiting with Myrna and Jake as well as my fellow classmates. I do not recommend this class for people who take themselves too seriously. It is about having fun while you learn some new dishes. So, mission accomplished, in my opinion.
With regards to past reviews being frustrated at finding out the wine must be paid for… the wine list with glass and bottle prices was clearly displayed at my seat. The wine glass was already at my place setting, but the same thing happens at some restaurants. You are not surprised you have to pay for the wine at a restaurant, so paying at Silver Whisk should not be a surprise either.
When in doubt… ask a question. It is that simple. :)
I look forward to taking additional classes at Silver Whisk in the future!
Thank you for a fun evening and lots of information!
Once I am e-​mailed the recipes, I will change my review to five stars. ;)

Never expected a cooking class could be so much fun.
As part of a corporate team building event, I attended an Iron Chef Challenge cooking class at Silver Whisk. We divided into two teams each led by the head chefs.
Outstanding
–Service of the staff and their personalities
–The amount of fun we had as a team
–Of course, the food (pan seared asian salmon over fried rice noodles and a brocolette bell pepper stir fry; other team made spicy meatball gyros; nutella crepes and caramelized apple a la mode for desserts)
–The interior of the kitchen
–The cooking aprons
So-​so
–Would have liked slightly more complex foods to make cooking more of a challenge; though cooking a salmon is difficult
Not so good
–Nothing here
A side note: being the klutz that I sometimes am, I sliced into my finger while dicing apples. The head chef took me aside, bandaged me, made sure the station was sanitized, and really made me feel at ease. Then another chef came in and taught me proper technique, which is a lifelong lesson that I needed and am thankful for.
Thank you Chefs Jay and Myrna

I attended Rock & Roll Sushi with Chef Jake Goober and it was amazing. The facility is beautiful, the wine selection is great. The staff is so friendly and fun! The live music was the perfect touch to the evening. The instruction was hands on, informative and a lot of fun. Great date night, we will definitely return!

My wife and I attended the Kitchen Basics class here and it was an OK experience. The «basics» class is super basic… like no joke. If you’ve ever cracked an egg by yourself before, then this class is probably too basic for you. But still, we did manage to learn a few things here and there, like the proper way to handle kale. As other reviewers have mentioned, just keep in mind that this is more of a «participation» class than a «learning» class.
CHEF: I don’t know what to make of Chef Myrna. She was wearing a cupcake sweater and a pair of bright pink tennis shoes. She didn’t look like a real chef and she barely did any cooking or demoed any cooking skills. She just kept making pop culture references to Kim Kardashian and Britney Spears. I get what she’s doing — reference to weird events is one of the best ways to memorize technical contents — but her jokes were simply not to our taste. I mean I know her credentials as a chef but dressing appropriately in a kitchen is also part of being a good chef IMO.
CLASS: We didn’t do that much cooking. Appetizer involved dicing vegetables and sauteing them together (the most involved dish). Entrée involved rubbing a piece of meat with dijon mustard. Dessert involved whisking together milk, eggs, and sugar. I’m not simplifying anything. These are literally the only «tasks» we had to do. For the rest of the time, you can purchase glasses of wine to sip on then. Even though we didn’t do much work, the food was actually quite tasty (especially the appetizer soup). Btw, the knives they give us were some of the dullest knives I’ve ever used. Dull knives = more chance of cutting yourself.
ORGANIZATION: This is probably their biggest problem. When I called in to make the reservation, I was told that each class is usually about 6 – 8 people and that they want to keep the class size down to provide a more personal experience. Our class had 26 people (wow!) and I think their max capacity was 24 (4 groups of 6). They also didn’t seem to have ANY IDEA of how many people they were expecting. People just keep coming in and they didn’t even have enough ingredients ready. The saddest part is that our group didn’t even get to use a silver whisk! We got this tiny pink whisk that looked like it came from a kid’s play kit =(
Overall, it was a fun date for my wife and I on a Saturday afternoon. We didn’t learn much but at least the food tasted good. It would be interesting to try out one of their more advanced classes. We received this class as a Groupon gift and I would recommend others to use Groupon as well. We would have felt ripped off if we had paid full price for this class.
P. S. We actually received the recipes a few days later in the email! We feel so lucky!

Get in touch with your culinary side with a cooking class!
I gave my hubby/​me a class (‘Southern Food” with Jake G) using a Groupon and was not disappointed. Fabulous night enjoying meeting new people, learning cooking techniques and tips and some hands-​on experience (they do 90% of the work and walk you through it, letting you do the 10% to get the idea). Everyone seemed to enjoy the leisurely class and a week later we were emailed recipes so we can become brilliant chefs at home! Move over, Julia Childs. This is a great way to spend an evening that will reap benefits for a long time if you listen/​learn. For those who have a babysitter (we didn’t), just realize that sometimes things don’t go to plan despite your best efforts so although our class was longer than 7 – 9 (through no fault of their own), we loved every minute of it! Check it out!

The chef was bossy, pushy, and loud. She compared dough to Kim Kardashian’s ass. The recipes that we did in class weren’t followed based on the instructions sent out. She constantly joked about firing her assistants.
As for the class, it was more of a participation than a class. I didn’t really learn anything. I would only suggest going here if you know NOTHING about cooking. Everything was pre-​measured; all the «students» did was mix it together, or watch other groups mix things together.
Meh.

A lot of fun, the pear and butternut squash soup was fantastic. Scott, the chef, was very relaxed and chatty.
Only drawback was the 4 – 5 other attendees who wanted to make sure the rest of us knew what great cooks they were. Non stop giving Scott advise on how he should be doing it. Annoying.
The rest of the class was there to learn and enjoyed themselves, some very nice people.
Will definitely take some more classes.

My wife and I had a sprint at work and needed meals cooked for us so when we got home late we could just throw the food in the oven to heat it up and eat before hitting the sack. I had never had a private chef before, so this was a new experience. Chef Myrna customized our menu to our diet and preferences and delivered the food every Monday morning. The food was delicious, we had great diversity in the food, and we were completely satisfied. If I didn’t enjoy cooking so much, we would certainly have Chef Myrna prepare all our meals!

It’s been two months since our visit to Silver Whisk and we still have not received the recipes for our dinner — recipes the chef said we would get via email as we were all sitting down. A follow up email request has also been ignored. Please either follow through with your customers within 24 hours of their class, or don’t mention you will send recipes.
That being said, the food was excellent, the atmosphere was fun and the staff was friendly and attentive.
Silver Whisk is more like a participatory dinner than a school. You do get to (if you wish) participate in cooking some of the dishes. If you want to sit back and watch others do the work it is relaxed and that is fine.
As others have mentioned out first course was already prepared for us. Fine by us because we were starved and it was nice to be eating within a few minutes of arrival. Bonus points for thoughtfulness, but the points get subtracted back since we never were informed (darn those missing recipes) how to prepare the dish.
Most of the slicing and dicing prep work is done by the staff before the students arrive, which is fine. I think most people attending a class like this know how to slice veggies and such. The class part is the assembling of the dish and cooking it on the stove top. Participatory enough to be fun without overly challenging those who are timid.
The wine selections were good — we ordered a bottle upon arrival. Yes you do of course pay for alcohol. I am surprised people are surprised about that.
Silver Whisk is worth a visit for a different type of dining date, especially for those who like to cook together or are looking for a ‘get to know’ you first date.

Once upon a time, about six months ago, I was a Match member. I decided to do the Silver Whisk as a Match event. Oddly enough, they held up their end of the bargain rather well. There were some wonderful, charming women there.
The actual event did not turn out that great. Everything was rushed. The butternut squash soup and mashed potatoes (if I recall) were precooked before we got there. We «made» bread pudding. As in, we ripped a loaf of french bread apart. Almost everything else was done for us again. The only real «cooking» involved was pan-​frying fish, which is something of an idiot-​proof exercise. My lovely partner and I went *crazy* and used less oil than recommended. Health consciousness is sexy!
Here’s the real problem — we were promised that e-​mails would be sent out with the recipes of the precooked food. Maybe the e-​mails were sent, maybe not. But I never got them and they’ve ignored my e-​mails to get the recipes. It’s more a matter of principle — I can find those recipes anywhere but they promised it and didn’t deliver.
The other part was the wine. It was fantastic. But there’s a certain sleaziness in me and everyone else just walking in, being asked «Would you prefer red or white wine with your meal? Your glass is empty, let me top it off!» and then being billed $ 15 or more per glass. I even heard a couple of people complaining about it. I would have gladly felt more comfortable paying it if it were clear up front what is and is not included — it’s not like I wouldn’t have bought the wine in my attempts to impress the women.
I could even been the hero of the table, buying us a bottle rather than me paying for three or four glasses at almost the same price. But no…

I took a cupcake decorating class at the Silver Whisk today. The class was fun, informative, and packed with tips, tricks, and techniques, as well as plenty of inspiration for future cooking endeavors. It was a fabulous group in attendance, and everyone shared various cooking experiences and techniques. Chef Myrna has a big personality, with a variety of experience and knowledge and most importantly is an excellent teacher. I would recommend her classes. The facility is just gorgeous, and there is an awesome kitchen store (Faraday’s) with friendly/​welcoming staff in the same shopping complex (love kitchen shops and this is a good one). It may be a bit of a drive for some, but it is a scenic one, and the toll road makes it a snap (just watch your speed).