Cooking in the Art City of Pietrasanta

We were extremely pleased - accommodations great, chef fun and knowledgeable, side trips and excursions exceptional. Loved the [final documents] package The International Kitchen Chicago staff was very "pro" - really appreciated the follow-ups and attention to detail! Robert C., FL

Our cooking instructor was great. We really enjoyed Dorimo. However, we did not receive any written copies of the recipes we used, and we had to take our own notes. It would have been nice to have the recipes already written down, and then we could have taken notes (rather than write the recipe AND take notes). The variety of foods prepared was perfect. Our tour guides for Lucca, Cinque Terra and the marble quarries, and our drivers to and from Pisa were all very good -- very friendly and informative. I would recommend each of them to anyone traveling in the area. Donna M., WI

The classes were great. Dorino, the chef, is a very wonderful man who taught us many things that we can do in our own kitchen. I think the thing that made our time together so great was that Dorino not only cooked with us, but also ate with us what we had cooked together. We had not previously experienced that on the two International Kitchen tours we did in Spoletto and La Spezia. Being a transplant Italian from South Africa, Dorino is bilingual. He was assisted by Francesca, an employee at the hotel, who spoke no English, but she is a wonderful women who we also invited to eat with us. Being together with Francesca gave us an opportunity to practice speaking Italian. The kitchen in the hotel is very small ... The day trips were led by great guides, very knowledgeable men, one more informed about art, another very informed about processing marble. The trip to the Cinqe Terra was not as wonderful as I had hoped because the place is overrun with tourists. ... We finally left the Cinque Terra to go to Sarzana which we thouroghly enjoyed. It was there that Umberto gave us a lecture about art which I will never forget. The other guide who took us on a trip to Carera was also superb. At one point we spontaneously applauded his discussion of the history of marble from geological deposits to Michelangelo's sculpture. Visiting the quarries was a spectacular experience that I think very few people have the opportunity to do. Our trip to Lucca for the day was great. The guide was a well informed and very charming woman. We had never been there before. ... The dinner arranged for our first night was fantastic. The hotel arranged for us to go to a restaurant, Ancilla, just down the street from the hotel. It was, without a doubt, one of the best meals we have had in Italy. Being in a small town the owner/chef came out to meet with us and discuss the recipes for the food we ate. She spoke Italian, and the waiter helped translate to English. And whenever we would pass the restaurant during our stay in Pietrasanta and see the cheff, we stopped and talked. This was also a great experience made possible by having the cooking classes in a small town. I think I can honestly say we were probably two of maybe six Americans in Pietrasanta. We loved Pietrasanta. Being right in the town gave us an opportunity to walk everywhere to see the sculpture, and the studios. Everyone in the town was friendly. One day we went to the town of Forte de Marmi to go to the food market and also a large market where they sold everything. We had a great lunch there at a restaurant called Il Fortino where we had a great pizza and the very best apple tart I ever ate. All in all it was a great experience, and we will look forward to your adding some other similar places to your itineraries in the future. Carol D., ME