After two weeks in Italy eating handmade pasta from my relatives, fresh-made pasta in restaurants, and taking a pasta class at Il Paluffo in Chianti Colli Fiorentini with the famed Wilma (most of the restaurants in the area get their pasta from her), I am definitely inspired to dust off my old Ampia machine and crank out some pasta at home. Here are places in SF where you can take pasta-making classes, and on the nights when you're too busy to bust out some pappardelle, here’s where to score freshly made pasta too.
Where to Take Pasta-Making Classes
Sign up for their newsletter to keep up on pasta-making classes from too-legit-to-quit teachers like Viola Buitoni—you can find a class almost every month.
Rosetta Costantino is known for her Calabrese cooking classes, and I have thoroughly enjoyed her pasta-making classes. (Her mamma is also there to keep an eye on you, just like any good Italian grandma would.) The classes are held in Emeryville; there’s an upcoming pasta class on January 10th.
Not only do locals flock to this restaurant for their plates of tasty housemade pasta, but Flour + Water also regularly teaches classes that cover pasta types from all regions of Italy, from Piemonte to Puglia; sign up for their newsletter to keep up on the latest.
This brand-new cooking school (ooh, so shiny!) regularly has a Pasta 101 class on their schedule where you will learn to make five kinds of pasta, from tagliatelle to ravioli. (Next one is November 13th.)
This well-known local cooking school (open since 1979!) has a variety of classes every month, so keep your eyes peeled for any pasta classes. But they also have guest chef cooking demonstrations, so you can sit in on a class with masters like Carlo Middione.
Where to Purchase Freshly Made Pasta
By no means is this an extensive list, but here some shops where you can pick up fresh pasta around town:
- A.G. Ferrari: Three locations in SF, with a variety of fresh pasta shapes available.
- Falletti Foods: They carry the quality line of fresh pasta from The Pasta Shop.
- Mattarello: This pop-up shop makes and sells excellent artisan pasta (try their tortellini!)—they pop up this Saturday October 12th at Biondivino.
- Pasta Gina (741 Diamond St.): This Noe Valley spot features an extensive selection of housemade pasta.
Some old-school Italian delis around town like Lucca Ravioli (made fresh daily!), Lucca Delicatessen, and Molinari also make and sell their own pasta. Buon appetito!
Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column; subscribe and get more food news and gossip at tablehopper.com. Follow her on Twitter: @tablehopper.
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