Rustic Italian Cooking Class

Learn the art of delicious homemade Italian food with Pasta!

Rustic Italian Cooking Class Menu

  • Hand make our signature stretched black salt and rosemary focaccia with whipped truffle butter or lemon and balsamic heart dipping sauce
  • Authentic sauces from scratch – traditional Sugo and burnt sage butter
  • House-made pasta. Your choice of pasta style to make from scratch, cook and eat! (not gluten-free). Think ravioli, tortellini, fettuccine, angel hair spaghetti and lasagna sheets
  • Loaded Vanilla Panna Cotta with culinary bling sugar glass, chocolate curls and pistachio gravel

Each table will share the cooking of these dishes on the day, some sides and sauces may be made for the group!

Vegetarian and Dairy Free available. For Gluten Free have a look at Rustic Italian 2 Class

Hundreds of 5-Star ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reviews

Fiona “Thank you Vanilla Zulu for an amazing cooking class! We will now be making pasta every weekend! And going home to sleep off all that delicious food!”

Find a Day For Your Class

Click on the Availability tab below to search our dates!  The Start Date will show the next available class.

Weeknight Classes Mon – Fri are 6pm – 9pm, Weekends are 10am – 1pm or 3pm – 6pm. 

Bookings of 4+ guests will automatically discount.

Booking with Children – please note we accept Youths from 9yrs to 17yrs.  However, for Children 9yrs – 14yrs each child must have an adult booked in with them.  


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Why a Rustic Italian Cooking Class

Become an Italian Masterchef!  Our signature Rustic Italian Cooking Class is the #1 Italian Class to be at.  Learn the art of delicious handmade Focaccia, Ravioli and delicate Panna Cotta! Make your own Pasta! Best of all you’ll eat what you make on the day AND get some to take home!

  • Lose the fear of attempting to make your own pasta from scratch ever again
  • Follow the step by step, fail-safe recipes that will produce amazing fresh hand made pasta, hand-stretched focaccia every time
  • Learn the secret authentic Italian ingredients that really make an Italian dish and how to use them with ease
  • Repeat every recipe at home whenever you want and create food that is better than your local Italian restaurant!
  • Novice level and up – anyone can learn this!

Follow up your cooking journey with the next class in our Rustic Italian series with cooking classes Italian 2 and Italian 3 (launching in 2023!), learning different techniques each time.  Complete your Italian adventure in any order, it doesn’t matter!  Be ready to wow your guests next time you entertain.

Who Is This Class For?

Come alone, bring a friend or partner, or bring the whole family! Kids 9yrs+ with a passion for cooking are very welcome!

Enjoy a night out with a friend and enjoy a glass of wine while you learn a new skill you can use for the rest of your life. Anniversary coming up? What’s more romantic than Italian Food?! Connect with your partner, creating something you can enjoy together long after the class ends. Is your friend or partner’s birthday coming up? Treat them to something different.

Come along, learn, eat, laugh and enjoy. Or maybe you just want to learn the secrets of cooking something new that your friends and family will think has come straight from Nonna’s kitchen.

In fact, do you actually need a reason to come and learn how to cook incredible Italian Pasta, from scratch, yourself so you can take those secrets back to your own kitchen?!

  • 3hr action-packed, friendly cooking session in a relaxed environment
  • Everything you need to create the most authentic, made from scratch, mouth-watering Rustic Italian food
  • Apron provided
  • Enjoy a 3-course feast of the meals that you prepared – prepare to amaze yourself!

Fully licensed bar, so if you fancy going full-Italian, enjoy a glass of wine while ‘get your chef on’

Isabel “I cannot recommend Mel and the Rustic Italian cooking class enough! A night of great food, laughs and fun cooking. Mel was such an amazing teacher and I left with so much more knowledge. I will definitely be back for more!! Thanks to Mel and her team.”

Michelle “Such a great fun night. Our trip to Italy was cancelled but we definitely got the next best thing with our Rustic Italian night. Chef Lucinda was amazing. We had such a fabulous night and ended in trying to decide what class we would do next.”

Eve “I went with a friend to the Rustic Italian class. Fabulous! Chef Mel is hilarious. I really liked the way the class was run with safety in mind, but with the added touch of humour. And of course the delicious food. Came home all inspired! Highly recommend.”

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What to Expect in the Class

Your cooking class begins with a heart-warming welcome, introduction and chat with your fellow budding chefs. Then pop on your apron, get into the kitchen and start cooking. You will work in small groups of about two on a table of four as your Chef guides you step by step. In this class you will learn the tricks and tips to making the perfect pasta and delicious sauces. On top of that, you will also have the opportunity to learn an Italian sweet dish – the fabulously light and refreshing panna cotta, a versatile, delicious Italian dessert. This is fun, informative and will teach you how to produce stunning authentic Italian dishes that are steeped in tradition and flavour!

Class Terms & Conditions

NO REFUNDS ON BOOKINGS – but we do have a very generous rescheduling package, please check your invoice for details or visit our FAQ page.

Vanilla Zulu is usually booked out for several weeks in advance, late changes have an impact and we can’t always find replacement participants at short notice. Staff rosters and food are prepared in advance of each class. These rules are designed to protect our business, but also to ensure if something does come up, you and your friends don’t miss out on a great experience.

A minimum of 8 guests is required for the class to go ahead, in the event we don’t reach these numbers we will contact you in advance to reschedule your booking.

Please note: The menu is based on available seasonal produce and is subject to change at the experience provider’s discretion. Pasta will always be included. You will work and cook together as a team, and shared a workspace and the kitchen equipment with other participants. A group cooking session with partial group participation is the most effective and fun way to add to your cooking skills. To ensure the class finishes on time some elements of the dishes are demonstrated.

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