Classic Italian meal with a twist: family, friends and many local surprises

Meet Cristina

Cristina works for a multinational technology company, and for as long as she can remember, her passion has been cooking and organizing creative events with culinary themes. Her cooking passion comes from her origins in Abruzzo, an Italian region east of Rome. In Abruzzo her family produced olive oil, with her grandmother leading the production. According to Cristina, her grandmother was the most talented chef in their hometown, and she used to cook in almost every local wedding that took place!

Cristina takes her passion for food everywhere, even to her workplace. As the president of their employee association she is in charge of planning social events, and she came up with the idea of organizing theme dinners representing the most important Italian regional cuisines, such as those of Piedmont, Veneto, Tuscany, Lazio, Campania and Sicily. In each event, she cooks for an average of 50 people and - over traditional regional wines of course - she blends culinary history with stories, music and even local performances! She is excited about sharing her passion for food and hosting with travelers from around the world.

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal: (1-6 guests) Cristina will greet you warmly at her apartment located 20 minutes from the city center of Rome in a very traditional neighborhood, easily accessible via public transport. She will be expecting you with her husband and, when he is available, her son who is in his twenties.

Cristina's experience will be as Italian as it gets, so be ready for surprises. Expect to meet her family, maybe one or two friends, perhaps a tour guide who regularly eats at her home and will entertain you with information about the city, or even a professional sommelier to pair your meal with wine. As you enjoy a local appetizer, Cristina show you a very brief video of Rome. Once the film is done, she will start blending typical cuisine with local background music. The meal will have several courses, starting with her homemade soup. After your soup, enjoy a pasta course followed by a meat or fish course featuring fresh fish purchased from Cristina's local market. Please note that if you booked a cooking class and meal, your menu will be different.

At the point of the evening when you might be getting full, Cristina offers a local and very tasty digestive alcoholic drink before serving dessert. Dessert will also be a surprise, so let Cristina know if there's something that you don't like, otherwise relax and trust your host's amazing cooking and hosting skills.

Cooking experience: (1-6 guests) Expect a fun and dynamic class where Cristina will blend cooking with culinary history. Cristina is very well acquainted with the culinary traditions of each Italian region, so she will have a lot to share during your cooking lesson about the different styles, ingredients and specialties of Italy's diverse regions. Learn to cook 3 dishes during your cooking class in Rome with Cristina - you might cook pasta such as tagliatelle (with ragu or trapanese, an almond, tomato and basil pesto) or pizza, an appetizer, and a main course (fish or meat like saltimbocca) or dessert. Enjoy your cooking lesson and culinary history over Italian wine while listening to local music. You will also get to watch a brief video of Rome to get you acquainted with its history.

Cristina is a big fan of home-made pizza. She has participated in almost every course and event related to pizza in Rome, so please let her know if you prefer cooking pizza over pasta and she will be happy to provide you with a homemade pizza lesson. Cristina is excited to share her culture through food and offer an authentic/traditional cooking class in Rome. She can also accommodate vegetarian diet on request in her Italian cooking class.

Notes: If you choose the optional alcohol add-on, Christina offers a glass of prosecco and a glass of wine. Please note that the menu varies according to the season.

Languages spoken: Italian, English

Sample menu

• Appetizer of seasonal bruschetta, formaggio (cheese plate) or soup
• Handmade pasta or pizza
• Main of fish or meat
• Dessert

Traveler reviews

Our travel agent recommended this cooking experience with Cristina and it exceeded our expectations. Cristina and her husband Vito greeted my family with open arms as if we were a part of their family or friends. We instantly felt at home. We were able to learn how to prepare and cook an authentic Italian meal from scratch from the first course through dessert. My husband and daughter made spaghetti and ricotta/spinach filled ravioli with Cristina in the kitchen complete with making the dough, kneading it and making it into the pasta while my son and I made the antipasto plates and the panzanella salad. Cristina served us the pastas, one with her sauce with meat and the ravioli with a butter sage sauce. We helped set the table and all sat down to eat the meal together with engaging conversation. Then we finished the evening with homemade cannolis that we also helped prepare and a suprise taste of Vito’s homemade limoncello. My family all agreed that it was so delicious and the best meal that we had. We highly recommend Cristina’s cooking experience if you want to really feel the heart and soul of the Italian culture. We will always have this as a wonderful memory for our family .

- Stephanie August 04, 2024

My husband and I enjoyed a wonderful evening with Christina and her family. Christina’s expertise and passion for cooking was truly remarkable. I highly recommend this class to anyone looking for a truly authentic experience.

- Go5621 June 11, 2023

Cristina and her husband were wonderful hosts for my wife and I. We made fresh dough from scratch, prepared a variety of toppings and baked a number of delicious pies! They also provided some local beer, moscato, and a traditional Sicilian dessert. This was an amazing experience, we spent hours eating and sharing our cultures. Highly recommended!

- lightthelamp April 18, 2019