Chef Joe's Culinary Salon

I have wanted to take cooking classes for a long time but they always were either totally inconvenient or way too expensive. Enter The Culinary Salon. My friend, Greg, heard about them and asked if I wanted to take classes with him. I jumped at the chance. The location, right in Castro, couldn't be more convenient for me and with the variety of classes and prices I could easily find something in my price range. In fact I signed up for Thursday night classes for the entire month of September.

Chef Joe offered a "Tribute to Julia Child & The Art of French Cooking" series and we decided to take all four of the Le Bistro classes . Since we had just seen "Julie and Julia" the classes seemed perfect. There are only six people in each class so you are sure you get a hand at all tasks. You also get personalized attention from Chef Joe who is not only an amazing chef, but a delightful person.

Each week we prepared a specific menu, but these are not random menus. They are well thought out and not only allow you to make a fabulous meal, but teach you invaluable cooking skills. However, the proof is in the pudding. Can you make these dishes when you get home? You betcha! The weekend following each class I tried my hand at the entire menu and we had four weekends of fabulous eating. I could never have whipped these meals up with such ease and perfection had in not been for Chef Joe. Once you have finished cooking, you dine with the chef and your fellow classmates, who by now are your new-found friends.

Whether you know how to cook or not, these classes are great for every level. There's lots of fun to be had and lots of learning to do. They also make a great gift! Check out Chef Joe's schedule. You are sure to find a class that's right for you.

Since I have personally made all the dishes from the Le Bistro classes I am dying to show off my skills. I will be blogging about each class individually next week, but until then check out this video from my four classes.