Draeger’s Cooking School

My company had a team-​building event at Draeger’s Cooking School and we loved it. We split into three teams: one group made salad and appetizer, one group made entrée and side dish, and one group made dessert. Some preparatory work was already done by Draeger’s before our arrival so that each group had similar remaining amount of work to do. There is a chef stationed with each group. What I liked about the chefs was that they were very keen on each group member’s strengths and weaknesses. If the group members were already good chefs, they step back. If the group members had no idea what they were doing, they offered more guidance. And if the group members just did not want to cook at all, the chefs ended up doing more. After the food was all cooked, we all got to sit down and eat what we cooked. The chefs then turned into servers during the meal. At the end of the event, we were given recipes scaled down to 4 – 6 servings to reproduce at home… not that I can ever reproduce the spinach soufflé.
Did I mention that there are drinks, wine, and snacks available while you are cooking? The gougères (French cheese balls) were so good that I almost forgot to finish my cooking while eating them. Yeah, I was one of «those» students.

Draeger’s Cooking School offers a great option for work team building activities. A team of dedicated professional cooks, who made it a PLEASURE to tackle a really recreate-​able French Bistro fare menu during a team off-​site team building. I don’t know WHO on my work team came up with the idea of coming to this cooking school, but it was a memorable experience. They had us chopping, dicing, mixing and baking/​cooking WHILE laughing.
If your work place is looking for a team building activity for a medium sized group, I would highly recommend Draeger’s. The ingredients for each dish were fresh, the menu prepped in advance and the instructor/​chefs were friendly and helpful. A copy of the recipe was given to each of us to take home.

i love the classes they offer at draegers cooking school, i been a regular for a long time since chef instructor Terri dien Taught there she told me about it while she was teaching at south city rec and they were fun classes, i love the lunch classes and love the chefs who work there today like Janice watcha, pateince thien and Saira Paulose, they work hard and they give the best foodie tips they can offer, im a self taught chef and been cooking for 10 years now since i was 13 and doing it eversince and still passionate about it. i will come back for 3 more lunch classes 2 with indian chef Saira paulose and one with patience thien, i’ll try to come back for 2 or 3 more genreal classes, but i pefer to be fugual as i can be, but love new recipes and ideas and experiement with them, so i’ll be back draegers, as i will promise, ok just love the chefs there, excellent recipes and food!

We took the Knife Skills class and it was money well spent.
I am looking forward to future classes at Draeger’s. Chef Mia was a great leader and really taught us a lot: terms, techniques, things to focus on or skip over, great little safety tricks and tips in general in the kitchen. I can see how the series of BASICS classes would benefit any level of home cook.
Best things learned:
Amazing way to cut a bell pepper so all the center bits with seeds and top stem are one disposed piece…
how to peel tomato skin quick and easy
How I should hold a knife — really hold it/​grip it

I’ve taken a few different classes here… both hands-​on (handmade pasta, paella, sauces, knife skills, and one or two others) and demo (marmalades with Rachel Saunders of Blue Chair Fruit). All have been led by excellent instructors who take the time to show you what needs to be done, and who answer your questions patiently. Every class I’ve attended has included beverages (wine, water, soda) and something to nosh on. One recommendation: if you see that a class you *really* want has space… sign up as soon as you can (if not immediately). There are some classes, like knife skills, that fill up almost as quickly as the new calendar is posted. PS wear comfortable, closed-​toe shoes! If you’re taking a hands-​on class, you’ll probably be on your feet a lot.

My sister-​in-​law and I took the Hands-​On Shellfish cooking class and llooooooved it! The class was very well organized and the staff were beyond nice and helpful. The cost of the class (approx $ 70 per person) is not cheap but you end up having a light dinner and 2 glasses of vino while you learn which in my book makes it a bargain. The (crab cakes, scallops in beurre blanc (AMAZING!!!), shrimp al mojo de ajo, and mussels in coconut curry) recipes I walked away with have been a hit with everyone I’ve cooked for! Be sure to sign-​up in advance as classes fill up quickly!
Also a great place for a girls night out!

I can’t speak to the quality of the cooking class, only the customer service. My girlfriend and I signed up for a class that was two months away. We neglected to put it in our calendars right away and completely missed our class.
I am rating this low because Draeger’s chose not send a reminder e-​mail before or after we had missed our class.
I followed up with them to ask if we missed the reminder and they let me know that they don’t send reminders as it increases cancellations.
I have always liked Draeger’s but this experience with customer service has really disappointed me. It was our fault for missing the class but for a small family owned operation to not have the courtesy to not send a quick reminder is poor. If I prepay for a service I expect better.
I really wish we could have attended after seeing all the other reviews.
I still want to take a cooking class but won’t be doing so through Draegers!

I’ve had probably my most civilized and enjoyable cooking classes ever at this place. It’s not cheap, but it’s a very nice experience. We’ve been taking a few classes a year here for around a decade.
We often go to see the famous chefs they manage to bring in, but they also have a regular staff for hands-​on classes, and often find local folks to give a demonstration — a chance to watch your food being made and interact with a chef.
Most recently, we came to see Sachin Chopra (of All Spice Restaurant in San Mateo) prepare four courses. After being plied with wine (or sodas for those so inclined), we were provided with packets of recipes and pens to take notes while watching the chef demonstrate and explain each dish and answer questions. Food was quickly plated by a number of assistants after each course was completed. It was a small class — about fifteen folks. They have cameras to help see in the pots on the stove, and also sometimes use microphones if it’s a big group.
The people are nice, and the classes are often very interesting. It’s the one cooking school we find ourselves regularly revisiting.

I was fortunate enough to go to DCS with a fellow foodie and it did not disappoint!
The menu included:
* Curry Cauliflower Soup with Apricot Chutney
* Orange Roasted Ginger Chicken
* Kale with Sweet Potatoes and Pecans
* Quinoa Pilaf
* Poached Pears with Saffron Broth
(The above is used without the express permission of JL Enterprises)
Who knew healthful food could be so good! The wine was yummy (Alamos Malbec and a Chardonnay) and I got a bottle of the red to take home. Next I want to do the «Basics» classes on knife skills, souffles, chicken.
:)

Until last night, I’d never had a cooking class in my life. A friend and I attended a cooking demo class called «The Cancer-​Fighting Kitchen» taught by Rebecca Katz, M.S. It’s a great class for anyone looking to cook healthier food.
The menu included:
* Curry Cauliflower Soup with Apricot Chutney
* Orange Roasted Ginger Chicken
* Kale with Sweet Potatoes and Pecans
* Quinoa Pilaf
* Poached Pears with Saffron Broth
Everything was really delicious and healthful, except I really didn’t go for the poached pears; at least my friend loved it. Dessert isn’t really a dessert for me if it isn’t chocolate. Hey, chocolate has antioxidants too.
I am excited to have some new recipes to try at home. I purchased Ms. Katz’s book «The Cancer-​Fighting Kitchen: Nourishing, Big-​Flavor Recipes for Cancer Treatment and Recovery» so I can try additional recipes to keep my family healthy.
The class itself was well organized. We each sat at a desk with a packet of the recipes that Ms. Katz was demonstrating. There were two large-​screen TVs so people in the back could observe what she was doing. We were all fed the delicious food, plus beverages of our choice (wine, water, or soft drinks). Everything was included for $ 50.
Our teacher was passionate about her recipes and fun to watch. Just because food is healthy doesn’t mean it can’t be yummy. One can see the cooking class schedule online. Parking was convenient and free.
I look forward to taking more cooking classes. This is just the beginning.

My husband took a class for baking chocolates around Valentine’s Day and had a wonderful experience there. The teacher was thorough, the recipes were appropriately complicated & yummy, he got good hands-​on experience, and he brought home some fabulous recipes. He has since baked a couple of the delicacies he learned to make in class, and did a wonderful job. He also liked that he learned some new terms and skills along the way. Both of us want to enroll in classes there again soon.

Draeger’s Market has a full sized awesome kitchen and cooking school on their upstairs level. They offer classes on cooking a variety of great foods such as Mexican, Indian, Asian, Tapas, Cookies/​Cakes, Breads, Soups, and more. Some of the classes are demos and some are hands-​on, and these are priced from $ 60 – 80.
We spent a Friday evening at a class called: Margarita Madness, hosted by Tom Vargas, and company. This was a hands-​on class, so where we sat in the class did not matter, since we were all up, on our feet, helping prepare our meal for most of the class. They started us out with chips and salsa– all of the veggies in the salsa were fire roasted, it was delicious!
We were also excited to find out there was going to be a Tequila Tasting! Great way to get the night started and break the ice!
Next, we had to choose with station we wanted to be on, each group would be preparing something different. This is where you may want to split up from your friend/​partner so that you can work on 2 different stations, and learn more about the foods and recipes. Meanwhile, we were each poured a Margarita and were able to socialize, mingle, while learning tips and secrets to fabulous Mexican cooking!
After we got started, we were able to walk around to the other stations. All of the chefs were fun and we got to prepare quite a few recipes. While we were finishing up at some of the stations, the food was being prepared and served. Everything was really tasty, especially the Chile Verde!
We all received a copy of all of the recipes to take home, of course. Our recipes included:
Classic Margaritas
Pico de Gallo with Fresh Blue Quesadillas
Poblano Chile Rellenos in Corona Batter
Chile Verde with Avocado Crema and Queso Fresco
Smoked Turkey «Pozole» with Hominy