What they're saying about us...
Below you will find articles and reviews of our cooking school in Umbria as well as comments from clients who have taken our cooking classes and those who have dined with us at Tita's house near Perugia or had a dinner catered at a villa rental.
The following are recent comments from clients of our Italian cooking classes in Umbria in 2012.
There are so many things that make Italy special and one of them is the food. Learning the traditional techniques and putting them into immediate practice gave me a new appreciation for the food we eat here. Combine the ingredients of laughter, learning, wonderful food and wine and you have an afternoon with Nonie and Tita. One of the best dishes on the menu of Umbria.
Gundy Jackson
Toronto Canada
My husband and I had a wonderfully fun afternoon cooking with Nonie and Tita and another couple from the US. We were made to feel at home right away, and also were put to work immediately getting hands on in the kitchen which is what we were looking for in a cooking class. Nonie is a great cook in her own right and translates for Tita. We made a good variety of dishes and went home with all the recipes so we can make things for our friends. The recipes were all traditional, straightforward and delicious! We couldn't believe all that we had produced (with a little help from our hosts!) when we sat down to dinner! It was quite the feast! There were a lot of laughs in the kitchen along the way as well, thanks to Nonie's great sense of humour. If you are in the neighbourhood and love food, don't miss an afternoon with these ladies. It will be a highlight of your trip :) Thank you Nonie and Tita!
Kathy Schmidt
Edmonton, Canada
My friend and I were interested in taking a cooking class when we went to Italy. The people at our accommodations suggested Umbriacooks4u and we are so glad they did. What a wonderful experience! We had a terrific afternoon with Nonie and Tita, learning the recipes and cooking techniques used in Umbria. Nonie and Tita are a great team who created a wonderful learning experience for us. The foods were simple yet very tasty. Their method of instruction made it easy for us to help make the meal. Both of us were pretty impressed with ourselves when we were able to successfully make the parmesan cheese baskets. The menu includes several antipasti including a very tasty torta rustica (a fav) and the parmesan baskets with pears, Primi - a chickpea zuppa and a spaghetti with oven cooked tomatoes, Secondi - meats and veggies and Dolce - chocolate lava cake (which reflects the fact that Perugia holds one of the biggest chocolate festivals in the world). Our husbands joined us for the meal and all of us agree it was one of the best meals we had in our month long trip to Italy. Best of all, we know we can recreate the meal at home. Thanks Nonie and Tita for a very memorable experience!
Green Mch
Petersborough, Canada
My husband and I took the cooking class with Nonie and Tita and had a terrific experience. We've done a number of cooking classes over the years, but this one was the best. A great variety of dishes to prepare, hands-on instruction, a little bit of history for each course, and wine! The meal was delicious and knowing that we had a part in putting it together, made it taste even better. We're looking forward to making the recipes at home. Many thanks to Nonie and Tita for an enjoyable and memorable afternoon.
Nancy S
Crozet, Virginia
Tita and Nonie create a wonderful and tasty experience. My 11 year old niece and I joined six couples for an afternoon cooking class on our first day in Italy. They we well organized, adjusted to the needs of the group and provided fun for all. The day ended with a wonderful meal and a clean kitchen. It was the best group cooking class I've ever experienced
Marie S.
Seagrove Beach, Florida
Dear dear Nonie and Tita -
Thank you so much for a fantastic afternoon of cooking and eating!! It was more than we had hoped for and I still can't believe we actually made such delicious creations! It was fun, educational, and delicious! What more could anyone hope for!
Starting the afternoon by preparing a yummy chocolate dessert was just perfect... I do however still think it's a shame that we need to wait til the end of the meal to eat it :)!
Highlights included:
- everyone saying "we made that??" and the men saying "you made that??"
- the rolling pin competition (I think leah won!)
- making cheese birds nests.. how DID we do that!?
- smelling the herbs!
- knowing that all was well at Tita's house
- lighting the veal on fire
- and then of course eating it all!!
It was an absolutely fantastic experience and one of the highlights of our trip! Thank you sooooo much!
Di (and the girls!)
PS: Gwyn (aka the wacky welshman who loved ALL our food, will post this on trip advisor)
My wife and I recently had the great experience of cooking, eating and socializing in a real Italian home. Tita invites you into her home and you feel like her personal guests. This is not a tourist attraction, but a visit with soon to become friends. Nonie grew up in NYC and was able to compare local italian foods and groceries available back home. English is her first language.
It was really fun prepairing the food. They made it so easy and enjoyable. Sipping some wine during the "class" didn't hurt! We then got to enjoy the fruits of our labors in a wonderful dinner shared with another couple and enjoyed conversation with Nonie and Tita.
Highly recommend. We would do it again.
John Buckley
I cannot say enough wonderful things about the private dinners that Tita and Nonie cooked for us while we were visiting Umbria. (It is important to note that I am a foodie and extremely picky -- I insist on eating the very best.) We scheduled a private dinner for 10 to be held before we went to the Umbria Jazz Festival. It exceeded all our expectations -- it was perfect down to the very last detail. We were traveling as part of a larger group and when we shared our experience, the group insisted we try to book a larger dinner. On very short notice, Tita and Nonie agreed and we had yet another amazing meal. I can't thank them enough for the dinners and the unique experience. The memories of these dinners have made my top 5 of all time great food experiences.
Sally Ward,
Los Angeles, CA
Nonie and Tita are exceptional cooks. They are extremely knowledgable about traditions and history about Umbrian cooking. If you want to enjoy a hands on evening of exceptional food this is an experience we highly reccomend. We are a party of 11 and they came to our villa with everything prepared to the minutest detail. The recipe book is quite detailed and enables you to recreate this at home. Their personalities were perfect and we spent as much time laughing as cooking. The meal was outstanding, consisting of 5 courses with 3 appetizers and ending with a molten chocolate cake. A must on your trip to Umbria.
Kellie
Oklahoma City
Nonie hi,
A rather belated thank you for the FABULOUS afternoon Sally and I spent with you and Tita a couple of weeks ago. Sally describes our afternoon as the highlight of our 3 week holiday. I actually can’t believe that we managed to organise it with you so quickly and easily. Thank you for making it so seamless.
The cooking class was just so good, so organised and perfectly prepared. The menu was perfect for us and so well thought-out by you and Tita. You were both such gracious hosts and we really enjoyed your company. I was quite pre-occupied as I have a cap on my front tooth which had come loose the morning we were due to meet you and I was horrified that it might come off completely while I was eating all the glorious food. Thankfully it stayed in until we arrived home in quite cold and rainy Sydney. We loved spending time with you both and loved everything about the afternoon. I am very happy to say there are a dozen Chocolate Lava Cakes proudly made by Sally in my freezer at the moment… and that is the 2nd batch. Happily devoured by my son and his friends, Sally is very chuffed at her success. Tita’s Spaghetti with tomatoes is also now a family favourite.
Thank you again
With very best regards,
Kim Garrow
Sydney Australia
Nonie and Tita came to the villa we were renting with everything they needed to teach us how to create and enjoy an Umbrian feast! We were 3 couples and Nonie and Tita kept us laughing and entertained throughout the hands on demonstrations and instructions of traditional Umbrian cooking. The evening was relaxed, fun, educational and the food was absolutely fantastic. We were also provided copies all the recipes so that we can recreate the dishes at home. A highly recommended experience and a true highlight on our recent trip to Italy.
Holly O'Gara
Stratham, New Hampshire
Entertaining & educational while providing so many laughs. We also had amazing dinner results. Nonie & Tita keep it light and fun but you really get a complete & full experience. Would highly recommend them!
L. Dugan
Boston
My husband and I recently spent an afternoon with Tita and Nonie. We had an excellent time! We were with another couple (whom we didn't know), but I think that added to the fun. The hands on experience was a good balance between getting your hands dirty and watching demos. The steps were easy to follow, and we've even tried the recipes again at home. The food that came out was delicious, one of the best meals ofvthe trip. Would highly recommend Umbriacooks4u for a fun afternoon in Umbria.
Jenny kraems
Madison, Wisconsin
We contacted Nonie not long before arriving in Europe and asked if there was any chance we cold book a coking lesson with Umbriacooks4u.
She got back to us quickly and the arrangements were made without any hassle. She came to pick us up at our hotel in Perugia and took us to Tita’s country home. We were the only two scheduled for a lesson that day so we had plenty of one-on-one attention. Both Tita and Nonie were very warm, welcoming and a pleasure to talk to and learn from. The lessons were so well organized making the experience more fun than work- i.e. no doing dishes, just making food. At the end , we were impressed with ourselves for having made such delicious dishes and were thrilled to enjoy the fruits of our labor. We also felt that we went away with a better understanding of the region of Umbria, it’s culinary traditions and local foods. We would definitely recommend Umbriacooks4u for anyone visiting Perugia or the surrounding area. Thanks Tita and Nonie!! We had a fabulous time.
Stefanie
Ontario , Canada
The ultimate way to become absorbed in the Umbrian way of life is to not only eat but cook Umbrian food. Tita and Nonie (umbriacooks4u) give you the opportunity to enjoy preparing local food in a very relaxed way. The whole family enjoyed this activity. Tita and Nonie arrived at our villa, took over the kitchen, entertained us, fed us and then left the whole place immaculate. The children including 5 year old were involved in the preparation and we learned some nice recipes to take home as a memory of our time in Italy.
Often when you travel you focus on what you can see but this cooking experience adds another dimension. We recommend an afternoon with Tita and Nonie as a fun and relaxed way to experience Umbria. Thank you Tita and Nonie for a very enjoyable day.
Stuart Christie
Auckland New Zealand
HI guys, A group of 5 of us just spent two weeks in Italy. One week in Sardinia and a week in Umbria.
While in Umbria, we had arranged for a cooking class that we could take at our own villa ( we were doing so much travelling we wanted a day of "rest"), with everything we saw and did while in Italy, we agreed that probably the best experience we had was our cooking class with Nonie and Tita of Umbriacooks4u.
First of all - our villa that we rented was WAY out of the way and Nonie and Tita were troopers hiking up there for us , they came with welcoming smiles and completely fun attitudes. It was so enjoyable and laid back even though one of my friends threw them for a loop by last minute telling us that she couldn't eat parmesan......Ahhhh! they reconfigured some things for her and made it work and all the while Nonie kept on reassuring us that this was for us and it was all about us having fun.
We did everything hands on and laughed and tasted and smelled and just had a blast and then- the best part- we ATE! Nonie and Tita served us and they had this amazing presentation and everything just looked so lovely and tasted amazing. We had a variety of appetizers, a soup, a main course and veggie and an amazing lava cake for dessert---we all now know the secret to make lava cake--- YAY! The best thing with the recipes we were taught is that they were completely Italian but pretty easy so we can replicate them at home. They were great about giving us some back ground on the foods and recipes and the differences in regional cooking , we all definitely learned a lot!
We would 100% recommend making umbriacooks4u part of your Italian experience. We shopped around and found their pricing to be the best and I don't think we could have paid more for a better experience. Wonderful!
Nonie and Tita, if you are ever in Chicago -- you've got friends here so look us up!
Alison Behn
Chicago, Illinois
