Auberge Cooking Classes

L'Auberge is a true hidden gem at the Edge of Seattle. The setting's scenery was quiet tranquil and serene, something we needed. Thank you for the the beautiful memories and making this place feel like a home away from home.\r The cooking class with Chef Philippe was simply delightful. We were able to immerse ourselves in French cooking and cuisine. We definitely appreciate the opportunity we were able to spend with Chef Philippe. Thank you for the gastronomic journey!\r The pastries in the morning and your French Macarons are to die for! We loved them so much we had to order some to go. Thanks for doing it and such short notice. Thank you for the wonderful experience! Maureen and Steven more

Reviewed by Jena and Wendy 3/2/2013\r We thoroughly enjoyed your warm hospitality, Philippe's classic French Cooking Class, the students in the class, the delicious dinner and our charming suite, a fabulous mother-daughter weekend. Au Revoir.\r \r Reviewed by Teresa and Bob 2/16/13\r It was really something to stay here. Your honeymoon bathroom was beautiful, every girls dream. The bed was nice and big. Also loved the morning pasteries, very delicious. The piped in music topped everything and nice to have a fireplace when you don't have on.\r \r Reviewed by Ken and Betty 10/20/2012\r We love L'Auberge and our suite was wonderful. We've been married 34 years and this was our first stay in a honeymoon suite! We felt spoiled every day. We will be back with some friends. Our dinner class with Philippe was superb and it was a great group of very nice people. Thank again and we will see you again.\r \r Reviewed by Kate and Ian 08/20/2012\r Thank you so much for such an amazing experience. The food was fantastic and the cooking class was so much fun. It was a great surprise for Ian. He hasn't stopped talking about it since last night. We both really enjoyed getting to know you and hope to come back in the future. All the best!\r \r Reviewed by Candace and Peter 08/10/2012\r Un grand merci! What a wonderful way to celebrate our anniversary. This is such a beautiful, tranquil setting, the colourful gardens, the French decor, all the special details. We had a gret time at the cooking class, Philippe was very patient with the group. Les croissants au chocolat sont fantastiques! Merci! We will be back! more

I would never use this school. Had a gift certificate for this, no willingness to extend the time and only only choice of cooking class.....sucks more

So far I have taken 9 cooking classes at l'Auberge, with about 5 more scheduled, and I have had a wonderful experience in each of them. Four of the classes were with Chef Paul (basics) and five with Chef Ryan (brunch and a dinner course). Both are excellent teachers and go through great lengths to answer any questions that come up or demonstrate anything we?re asking for (sometimes many times). The mix of background information followed by hands-on practice has been just right, and for the brunch and dinner courses you actually have a formal setting to enjoy everything that was prepared. Every single class I learned something new and was able to do it home with confidence as well. The highest praise I can give is the fact that my youngest daughter didn?t want to go out for her birthday dinner this year, but requested something that I had learned to make in one of the classes. The payoff doesn?t get any better than that. Nancy, the proprietess and owner of l?Auberge, has been a fabulous host on every single location. She goes out of her way to make everyone feel welcome and included in her beautiful home and very well equipped kitchen (professional stoves, oven, lots of specialty items, etc). It?s fun to look around at all the vintage pieces she has accumulated over the years, both in the kitchen and dining room. She has many stories to share about those (just ask), and always keeps the conversation flowing when we sit down for brunch or dinner. She recently started making macarons at l?Auberge, and don?t miss the chance to try those and get some ? they are absolutely delicious. I?ve done some cooking classes at other places, e.g., Sur la Table, and while those have been good as well, the variety of classes at l?Auberge and my interactions with Nancy and the Chefs keep me signing up for more. more

The atmosphere was astounding, the staff was knowledgable, kind, and professional. The kitchen was clean and well stocked. We had everything we needed plus extra. I have never seen such a well prepaired cooking class. With SO Very Much Food!!!! Nancy was very generous with her time and her supplies. I am amazed at all I gained from this class. Not to mention the beautiful bed and breakfast this class is attached to. I plan to stay overnight soon... more

My family recently purchased a package of the basic cooking series classes for me....perhaps this is a bit of a hint to my cooking abilities? Anyway, over the past several months I have attended cooking classes at this well appointed establishment. The classes are fun and informative and Chef Paul has a very nice way of presenting the material that helps everyone feel excited and anxious to try the evenings lesson. I have enjoyed the company of the other classmates working in our groups under Chef Paul's watchful eye and I have taken home the confidence to practice what I have gained from the classes that I have attended. I am amazed at the difference this hands on experience has made in my attitude about cooking and the desire to serve all home cooked meals which are a pleasure to make, serve and consume. I was also pleased to learn that the owner, Nancy, also runs a bed and breakfast and offers other group events here! The property grounds are in a area that lends to the relaxing tone of a getaway while also being centrally located to the abundant local wineries while not being too far from other Seattle attractions. more

I took the breakfast cooking class and was excited to learn new things. I am not a food expert by any means but I am accomplished in the kitchen. What I do know is that you have to have sharp knives to do anything without hurting yourself, much less get zest from a lemon or chop sweet potatoes without cutting your thumb off. ...and frying and egg and throwing water on it is not ""poached"". I don't care what logo you have on your chef coat. The chef was knowledgeable, but just didn't run a class so much as assign people prep duty. Nobody really learned anything because they were all so busy focusing on their preparations. Everything fell behind schedule and we all had ""breakfast"" at 12:30 in the afternoon. I left famished and enjoyed fast food afterward. The ""class"" could have been fun if it were a lot less, but I was expecting a lot more for the money I paid. We didn't even see the mimosas that were in the class description. more

If I could give 0 stars I would! First off this review has no reflection on teacher Paul Redman, he was great! This is ALL about Nancy!! We took the Sausage making class. I have taken many cooking classes in my life and have never had such a disappointing experience before. The kitchen was a mess, very little cleared counter space for us to work on. Nothing set out for us, we had to hunt for everything, Cutting boards, knives (which I'm sure have not seen a knife sharpener EVER), bowls, etc. No sponges to wash dishes with. We were assigned one little towel a piece to use for the evening. Now imagine after handling raw meat all evening how clean and sanitary this towel was by the end of the evening. Class had 12 people in it, which was way too many for size of kitchen and for Paul to be able to divide his attention between the 4 groups he split us up in. The last group was still trying to stuff their sausages when Nancy started to remind everyone that class was over. We were supposed to end the class with a meal of our sausages, salad and bread. We didn't have time to prepare salad and everyone enjoy our meal. People ate a sausage in between trying to clean up and finish making their sausages. We were also scolded by Nancy about not cleaning the kitchen. Last time I checked I PAID for this class and didn't know I needed to wash dishes as well. At the end of the class we were given a small Ziploc and told we could take 2 sausages home. Keep in mind between the 4 groups we had made over 100 sausages. We were all a little astounded that we were not taking all of our sausages home. Any cooking class I have been to, you take home what you made. We were informed that Nancy wanted to keep the sausages to serve to her B&B guests. First off, we paid for this class, those were our sausages. Second, if I were a guests at a B&B I would not want to be served a sausage made by a class (12 different people touching, preparing, etc.) in an obviously not commercial kitchen. When asked about this, Nancy was very rude to the class and said she paid for ingredients and they were hers. Again, didn't we pay for class? Unfortunately, I bought 2 Groupons for these classes; I will now be seeing how I can get a refund on the 2nd one. This was not a professionally run cooking school, Nancy has a lot to learn about professionalism and customer service. I can't imagine how she treats her B&B guests more

This was the most unimaginably miserable experience and we had to pay for it! All 11 (was told limited to 8)of the people attending thought so. The owner Nancy needs personality classes, the kitchen needs to be gutted AND cleaned, and the chef is not a chef but a guy from France (maybe). Shame on them for even considering saying this is a cooking class! If you read a good review about this it can only be submitted by them to fool people to coming because there is no way a good or even a mediocre review could be written more

If you have never had french cooking before, then you might be fooled by the french names of the dishes and the french accent of the chef and of course the high price into thinking this is actual french food. If you don't know what wine pairing means, then you might be charmed to know the each person is expected to bring a bottle of whatever wine they feel like, leaving the unopened bottles as a ""tip"" for the owner. If you've never had a cooking class or rarely cook yourself, you might find it useful to be handed a menu and told to go make it with little or no further instruction while Nancy and the chef are drinking your wine and talking behind your back in french so you won't know what they are saying about you. more

Exquisite cooking class....enjoyable experience! Rarely does a cooking class have the appeal to be classified as an exquisite experience...but now I've found the exception. The evening started out with hopeful ambitions of learning a thing or two about how to grace my limited skills with a few gems in the French tradition. Nancy was a fantastic host by making us all feel welcome and connected. Since my friend and I were the only 2 males among the team, we were clearly outnumbered ....but no worries, the atomosphere was open and inviting. We all brought our own bottles of wine...sharing our favorites....tasting the newness of diversity. Nothing like getting a social function going like the fruit of the vine! Again, I'm a person of few culinary skills (and feeling somewhat nervous about what I'd signed-up for!) but before I knew it, I was learning how to prepare cordon bleu and apple-tart pastries. The way the class was organized, we learned from master chef Philip...and we learned from other. Being an experiential learner, it was exactly what I hoped for....the opportunity to learn and interact....while doing. The kitchen area was large and accomodating...allowing for plenty of workspace and hands-on activity...while accomodating the mid-work glass of wine and side conversation. I found Philip to be insightful and personable...it was much like joining a family, then receiving a cooking class. Dining on the labor of our own hands, was a graceful and relaxing experience. Conversation was filled with our personal cooking experiences and ambitions (mine was more ambition than experience!). Nancy provided an excellent dining experience...and even allowed my friend to sing a pre-dinner song in French to get us all in the mood. On the pragmatic side, we all recieved printed recipes for the meal, generous dinner portions, and personal instruction with the chef. On the personal side, it was an enchanting evening with newly-made friends and the opportunity to experience France in my own backyard - brilliant! more

I recently had the pleasure of attending one of the ""Exploring French Classical Cuisine"" classes offered at L'Auberge Cooking School in Woodinville, WA more

We first discovered Miss Nancy's B&B several years ago, when searching for a place to stay overnight for a concert at a nearby Winery. The B&B is something out of a magazine. Entering in from the road you are greeted by a sunny potager garden and lush lavender surrounding you and once through the wooded glade you are enveloped in another sense of time. I felt an exultation of spirit from the rich garden grounds. A perfect place for a 'getaway spot'. The front entrance is composed of over sized double wooden doors, recalling the gorgeous more

Please do yourself a favor and do not purchase a Groupon for this establishment. more

As a business woman myself I know how vital it is to create a great experience for your clients. The product can perhaps fall short of expectations, but the tone, environment, service, and hustle can easily eclipse a lackluster product or result. Last night I experienced none of those things. You asked for some constructive criticism so I will address several areas of disappointment. Tone and Service. I did not feel like a welcome guest in your establishment. Your strict manner in which you address your guests and their behavior is not in keeping with my idea of great customer service. For example; You asked us to put our things in the room and then when Becka instead left her purse on the couch the way that you communicated your dislike of that was that as a mother scolding her children. It was not the tone of a welcoming service oriented proprietress By contrast what if you had asked when we arrived, said . ""May I take your things for you?"" I know the married couple felt scolded when they were slightly late, again tone. On that note of feeling welcomed. How could you not think of providing at least a small token of appreciation for our participation. A small hors d'oeuvre, some french cheese or at least some bread would have gone a long way. Not only did we BYOB which in my mind cheapened it, but then you instructed us on how to drink it. I am a 40 year old woman with a great deal of life experience and do not need to be told how I will drink the wine that I in fact provided for myself. I can appreciate the liability however, how about providing an effective means of limiting the liability quite easily....BREAD? The ""cooking course"". There was absolutely no learning going on in this arena. It was; here is the menu, here are the items, here are the teams, go to it AND...by the way do not open anything unless we tell you to. No cultural discussion of food, no French charm, no useful tips, no learning, not an ounce. It was disorganized and disjointed. I wanted to be swept away learning about French culture and the food of the region, told some history, made to fall in love with what I know as french cooking. We wont even go over the somewhat unprofessional behavior of the chef who more than once said, ""sh**"" when presented with a challenge like there was not enough chicken. I actually questioned if he was a chef to be honest. The food. This went from being an of OK experience to unpleasant. The mussels were cold, the souffle a flop, the chicken dry the rice mediocre the dessert well...epic failure. Why did we not make a gratin or something? Rice? really? Additionally you provided no salad, no bread. When I started doing the math on how much we all paid for our dinner $75 a piece I moved from disappointed to angry, especially when you take into account we provided all of our wine. A small lovely salad a small baguette? Not a large cost for a great pay off. On top of that I was offended by the changing of your role from hostess to a participant. You again became antagonistic when the couple wanted to sit together and informed us that is where YOU sit, finally after us pressing you, you capitulated but made sure to point out we would have to scoot in. Again, your tone was less than accommodating. In conclusion, I was utterly disappointed. I am the woman who happily pays $15 for a slice of fois gras. After we left your place unsatisfied my husband drove us through the McDonald's drive through for some chicken breasts and a hot fudge sundae all of which were more satisfying than the experience we had at your home. I know that ""off nights"" can happen but don't believe that was the case here. The entire experience was unpleasant. Ultimately I felt as if we were a bothered nuisance not a cherished guests and the product you provided was far less then what I paid for. more

I was so excited about this class after reviewing their site and some of the reviews, but my experience was very disappointing. If you are teaching a cooking class out of your home, have the pots, pans, utensils, and bowls necessary to prep food. 15% of the class was like a scavenger hunt to find basic necessities and the rest of it felt like an episode of ""Survivor"" with how do you prep a food item given only these two items rather than the customary tools you would normally use? You were unable to see how all the dishes were prepared because everyone was divvied up to work on one dish only. The recipes were too simplistic, unless you are new to cooking. And last, but not least, the proprietess acts like you've decided to invade her house and cook in her kitchen uninvited. I don't know if she was having a bad night, but from a few other reviews I've read, I don't think so. Having spent my life in training, I would suggest she be better prepared and learn to speak to customers as customers, not naughty children. The program itself is a wonderful concept, and I greatly enjoyed my fellow students, but overall it needs much improvement. more

My fiance and I were looking for a Bed and Breakfast in the Seattle area, and I stumbled upon L'Auberge Edge of Seattle's website. Speaking French myself I was immediately attracted to it's name. As I read more and more about the cooking classes, the amenities, and the secluded and relaxing location, I just had to book a night's stay there. I contacted Nancy, who immediately confirmed availability for the Studio suite, and that there were still opening in the following day's cooking class. When we arrived, we entered through beautiful doors, were shown to our room, and were left to unpack/settle in. The room was spacious, with all the amenities you would need for a weekend getaway. Then we began the cooking class, which far exceeded my expectations. It was a slow pace, relaxing, enjoyable, memorable evening, and I will continue to recommend this to all of my friends and colleagues. I will be returning again very soon. Thank you L'Auberge for the most romantic evening my fiance (now husband) and I have ever had. more

I have been to a number of cooking classes,( French, Morrocan, & Spanish) and have thoroughly enjoyed the food, the company, and the great Chef's that come to L'Auberge to teach . It is usually the highlight of the weekend for me and the other participants, and we get to cook and consume a great meal. Highly recommend this little bit of heaven. I'll be back! Pros: fabulous and entertaining people and food more

I have commented separately on the wonderful accomodations at L'Aubrege at tje Edge of Seattle under Bed and Breakfasts but felt that the French Cooking Classes deserved special attention. My wife and I are both amatuer gourmet chefs and thought it would be fun to attend an afternoon class in French cooking and ultimately enjoy the fruits of our labors. We chose the French Crab Feast offered by Chef Adam Hoffman of Rover's Restaurant in Seattle and to say we were not disappointed would be an understatement. Chef Hoffman proved to be a delight both in skill and personality. He allowed us to be as hands on as we wished and kept us entertained not only with his culinary skills but also with his wit and knowledge. Each person was asked to bring a bottle of their favorite vintage to share with our small group and this in itself was worth the attendance. As to the meal I can only say that if you have never eaten in a multi star French restaurant you could certainly say you have at the end of this extraordinary meal. I only wish we lived closer to Seattle so we could attend each and every one of these events, especially those with Chef Hoffman. Pros: Dishes of the finest quality, perfectly prepared, wonderful atmosphere Cons: Absolutely no ""cons"" more