Relish Culinary Adventures

We attended the Mother’s Day brunch and it was quite fun! This was a surprise for me so I had no expectations going in. The food was delicious — I enjoyed the crab cakes. My only criticism would be that it was difficult to get organized with the number of people (18 – 20). It was hard to know when/​where to «jump in» and who was doing what. I think the volunteer «helpers» should have each been assigned to a station and helped to organize folks.

I loved Mother’s Day brunch cooking class. It was smoothly run and the food was incredible. I felt it was a little too pricey though, for brunch… but then that’s Healdsburg. Still, I came close to not doing it for that reason, if I am being honest. There was champagne and two glasses of wine included so perhaps that’s why. Anyway, the instructors were great – friendly and helpful. The menu was well chosen. Loved the crab cakes best and the banana bread with bourbon caramel sauce was unbelievably delicious. All ingredients were local – even using the chef’s home grown lettuce, and the ingredients showed it. If you can afford it, go for it. It was a lovely morning.

We attended a Chef’s dinner with Rob Lippincott from The Parish in Healdsburg. The event was low key and relaxed. Questions and interaction with the Chef was encouraged. The conversation was lively and interesting. Rob’s stories were great, and the food was out of this world. What a wonderful, unique way to spend the evening. Such a nice change from a restaurant environment. Educational and delicious. We will continue to check the Relish website frequently.

We participated in a cooking class/​dinner prep/​eating dinner – Spring Wine Country Dinner– led by Relish’s resident chef, Anne Cornell. The teaching part was informal, more like tidbits of food knowledge thrown into the mix of what we were making. I had never prepared fava beans before, and now I know why: a crew of five is the only way to make the process untedious. But the group effort was entertaining, and provided an interesting way to see how small informal groups organize themselves to complete a task – or not. Everyone did finish, and we ate a well-​designed meal, really delicious, with an emphasis on fresh spring flavors. My favorites: green garlic, fava beans, fresh ricotta with honey, all on crostini; gorgeous skinny young yellow carrots cooked with fresh peas in a slurry of minced shallots, morels and browned butter; olive oil cake, slightly flavored with lemon (texture of a moist slightly light pound cake), served with a strawberry/​rhubarb compote and crème fraîche. There were also pork roast and grilled asparagus salad but the others were my favorites.
The staff and volunteers were uniformly helpful, friendly, and irreverent – serious but not solemn about the tasks and people at hand. Altogether a delightful Sunday evening.

My friends and I attend the Chef’s Table featuring Mark Stark (Bird & Bottle, Willi’s, Stark’s Steakhouse, etc). Not only was it a delicious 4 course, dessert and wine experience, Mark was entertaining and informative. The theme was sustainable seafood and each dish was perfect. While Mark demo’d how to make the dish (recipes were included), his ‘sous chefs’ prepared the same course for the guests.
I’ve been to many of Relish’s Chef Tables, Mark’s is my favorite but I’ve enjoyed all of them as well as Donna’s other classes.

We went to the Pop Up Paella Party on Wednesday ³⁄₉ and had a great time. Restaurant week menus weren’t cutting it with us and then I saw this Pop Up under the Unilocal «Popular Events» heading. So glad we stumbled upon this.
The Relish Culinary Center is tucked away on Matheson st. around the corner from The Wurst restaurant. Upon arriving last night for the Paella Pop Up we were handed a glass of complimentary sangria (1^st glass free, $ 5.00 a glass thereafter) and there was a tray of Manchego cheese with a quince spread, crispy bread and BBQ shrimp in flavored oil Spanish style. Very nice start and there was ample time to chat with the other guests and servers before the main course was served. Kinda like a cocktail hour.
The main course of course was the paella, two different ones were served, Valencia was chock full of seafood and chicken while the other had chicken and chorizo. Two very different flavors, both delicious and you could have as much as you wanted. Extra helpings were encouraged! An arugula salad was also served with the paella. This is no ordinary paella, its made by Gerard Nebesky who has been making world class paella for many years and is known for beating Bobby Flay during a Food Network Paella Showdown.
Dessert was a simple but tasty frozen chocolate treat that was refreshing after the rich paella.
There was a short very well priced wine list by the glass or bottle or you could bring wine in for a reasonable $ 12.00 corkage. Be sure to grab a flyer if you go or visit their website often as they have a bunch of interesting events coming up.
Everything from mushroom foraging (and lunch) to local chefs dinners, butchering workshops, bread baking etc. Lots of interesting classes, demonstrations and dinners.
The Paella Pop Up continues Thursday ³⁄₁₀ and Friday ³⁄₁₁. If you are interested give them a call to see about any openings.

I went on the mushroom walk which was followed by a cooking demonstration and a several course lunch. The woman who led the mushroom walk was very knowledgeable and interesting, discussed ecology, uses of mushrooms in different parts of the world and different cuisines, as well as mushroom identification and a bit on medicinal uses. She also discussed responsible foraging, i.e. not destroying the environment around the mushrooms so they will be able to continue growing.
After the hike we returned to Relish, which is a great space for cooking demos. They cooked several types of mushrooms with advice on cleaning them and different cooking techniques. While they were doing this we had a delicious 4 or 5 course lunch with wine pairings. They had some examples of woolens dyed with mushroom dyes and mushroom hand-​made paper. I think the thing that amazed me the most was the pound cake and whipped cream that tasted like maple and was made with candy-​cap mushrooms.

Great butchering class. Very informative, hands on, and a tasty lunch. The owner and the teacher were awesome. I highly recommend this class!

Fresh. Ricotta.
Room-​temp, simply salted, creamy, perfect.
I’ve never had just-​made ricotta and now I’m afraid all else pales in comparison. Must learn how to make it. :)
It opened up visions of a Tuscan breakfast complete with coffee, crusty bread and the honey-​drizzled ricotta .
Thank you Relish, and Unilocal,for introducing me to one another.
I’m a fan of cooking classes so my first Unilocal Elite experience here couldn’t have been more enjoyable. I got to socialize as well as prepare a variety of foods, all the while learning about the items I was using in the appetizers.
Great spot in Healdsburg but it was made even better by an awesome owner/​instructor, Donna. She clearly loves what she does and is knowledgeable to boot.
Fantastic!

What a great place. Donna made us all feel so welcomed at the Elite Unilocal get together. We had a large group. 25 or so would be the perfect number for a private party, cooking class, or a farm/​winery supper. We liked the interactive cooking classes. Who new making fresh Ricotta cheese was so easy? The location is convenient; right downtown. I hope to go to another event soon.

We went to a special Unilocal Mashup version of the Culinary Adventures put on by owner Donna and her team. She explained that there are a lot less people than the 50 we had today so you make a full sit down dinner together. That sounds like a lot of fun. I really would like to do the mushroom foraging that we missed due to the rain. We made spring rolls, Lavash bread and mushroom tarts, YUM! We also had some lovely wines, a sav blanc from Longboard and two Pinots from McPhall’s (Somona Coast and Pratt Vineyard). Double Yum!
What a fun time we had making and eating food, visiting with old friends and making new friends too.

We attended a free Unilocal event that included an informal cooking class of easy appetizers such as spring rolls and some informal wine tasting. I enjoyed making and then sampling these snacks. The owner was very friendly and engaging. The space was nice although a bit crowded for the probably 50 people at this event. When I asked the owner about how many people are in a cooking class, she said it wasn’t usually more than 20. The mushroom foraging experience sounds fun and unique (we didn’t get to do this due to the rain) and if you are in wine country and looking for a hands-​on activity, the cooking classes and foraging here would be fun. (Note, the classes are not inexpensive though – in the $ 100 range.)

Attended a Unilocal event that included an informal cooking class of quick do-​it-​yourself snacks.
The kitchen is well laid out, as one would expect from a facility that earns its cash from cooking classes and event catering. The owner is a high energy engaging and funny gal. Instantly likeable.
Her husband owns MacPhail wines (Tasting room located in the Sebastopol Barlow complex). He was in house, pouring two very good pinot noirs.
The cooking class schedule shows that the price range to create a single dish is in the $ 79 — $ 100+ range. For me, a retired senior citizen cheapskate, that seems a bit high for a 90 minute session. But then again that’s the price range for a Sur la Table cooking class — Though at that price Sur la Table often creates an entire meal.
If you are a Healdsburg tourist and want to do more than just shop the plaza and drink wine, Relish can offer you an interactive fun experience.

Enjoyed a wonderful hosted Unilocal event here and was extremely impressed by all involved. There were three DIY stations with a lavosh cracker bread, mushroom tarte, and spring rolls. All stations were surprising simple and made me extremely excited to cook some of the recipes at home. Met with the owner and many of the staff and was impressed with their vast knowledge in the culinary world, whether it be knife cuts or how to obtain a specific umami taste in a dish. Grabbed a flyer on the way out to make sure I sign up for a future class to expand my culinary mind and skill.

An authentic culinary experience. I love the word «relish» and this place is a true contender to the meaning. Here you can test your chops at being a better, gourmet, home chef. That afternoon it was a fungi extravaganza, we learned about mushrooms of many varieties, we embellished (another favorite word) mundane lavash flatbread & made a hero out of it with brushes of olive oil, grated dry mushroom, thyme, Parmesan cheese, sea salt. Baked for 7 minutes. There, I gave out a recipe. We moved on to a mushroom tart, and then a Asian veggie roll. They had a participant making fresh ricotta cheese that was delish & pure. All this while being instructed by the chef and a couple of overhead monitors for not to be missed instructions. We munched, chatted & drank some great complementary wines. A Pinot Noir by MacPhail vineyards, Sauvignon Blanc by Longboard vineyards. The place is immaculate, well designed, down to the bathroom. They have on going classes big & small & they even go out & forage for mushrooms but that afternoon the glorious rain prevented it. In summary, this place rocks & the people that run the joint are humble, knowledgeable & generous. I’m excited to take another class, very soon.

Very disappointed in the mushroom foraging class. Half of the class was spent outdoors looking for specimens, but there was very little guidance on edible species. After this class, I do not feel confident looking for wild mushrooms on my own.
Back in the kitchen. Participants just sat while the cooks did all the work for the cooking demonstration. While the food and wine was tasty, there was no hands-​on portion for the cooking class. Basically, we just paid for a expensive lunch and left at the end with some recipes in hand — definitely NOT my definition of a «culinary adventure».

My husband and I were very privileged to attend a free event here. Enjoyed it immensely. But, looking at it as a place to pay about a hundred bucks — eh– But, we come from a place where we just take a real look at prioritizing our budget for leisure activities. I would recommend this to anyone look for a unique date, or a nice way to meet new people. All in all, wish it cost less, but liked the vibe.

The lunch was tasty although this is not a «cooking class». The leaders do the cooking and the participants do the eating.
As far as the mushroom foraging portion went, the information was very disjointed, not for the beginner mushroom enthusiast. Very difficult to follow the mushroom «expert», as she did a very poor job of explaining about the mushrooms. I foraged an entire bag of wild mushrooms and I still have no idea which were edible and which were not! Those «in charge» were not at the same professional level I have experienced in other cooking schools. Overall, I enjoyed being outside at a beautiful foraging spot but felt unfulfilled when it came to the cooking portion.

What an experience. We had a business event at relish with about 20 of our best clients. The groups cooking experience ranges from making cereal to 4 course meals and this brought us all together for one EXCELLENT dinner and adventure. I highly recommend it for tour next business meeting or just for a fun night out with friends. The Relish team is awesome.

Have enjoyed 2 classes recently. Hubs and I took the mozzarella, burrata & pizza oven class. Super fun and easy. Cooking in the new Mugnaini oven was a special treat. (Note: Class was ⁶⁰⁄₄₀ women/​men, and several women commented next time they would totally make it a couples thing– glad we did) Yesterday a group of girls did the Mediterranean Grilled flatbread class offered in the vineyard at Thomas George Estate winery. That was spectacular! They source most of their ingredients locally, share tips on markets they like so you have a way to replicate. Registration is simple & easy. A good value and fun experience. Several recipes from both classes we plan to try at home.