The Rhode School of Cuisine is proud to present the new home of their Italian cooking school, Villa Lucia, a superb Tuscan villa with beautiful frescos and country elegance. Villa Lucia will serve as your "home base" for exploring one of the most beautiful regions of Italy. Tuscany is deservedly famous for its sites, culture and centuries of art and history.
But this area above all in Italy is famous for its food. The simplicity of "casalingua" cooking is the basis for all Tuscan cuisine. "To cook like your mother is good, but to cook like your grandmother is better," is an old Tuscan proverb. The Italian cooking classes are set up in an intimate, hands-on manner, so that complete novices can sit along side professional chefs, yet both be educated and amused. Our chef Giancarlo Talerico will patiently teach you the skills and techniques required to prepare beautiful Italian cuisine in a relaxed and enjoyable environment. Giancarlo's warm personality will make you feel comfortable and fully capable of producing some of Italy's most famous dishes.
He will help you unravel the mystery of selecting the finest, freshest ingredients available. You will learn to differentiate between various olive oils and balsamic vinegars and use them appropriately. With this knowledge of ingredients, you will make full Italian meals: antipasti, soups, assorted primi piatti of pasta, risotto, pizza, secondi piatti of meat, poultry, and fish, various vegetable contorni, and many delicious dolci including Tiramisu and biscotti. You will recreate the flavours and aromas of traditional Tuscan cuisine with pizzas, breads and roasted meats cooked in our wood-burning oven. New "traditional" techniques adapt these recipes for the modern home kitchen and barbecues.
Your day will begin with a breakfast of fruit, pastries, cereal, juice and coffee and depending on your mood you can either dine inside or outside in our beautiful garden. Each day will be a balanced mix of hands on cooking lessons, cultural excursions and time to relax and enjoy the beautiful property and surrounding countryside. Each cooking lesson is followed by lunch or dinner. The leisurely and relaxed meals are served to you either "al fresco" in the courtyard or by candlelight in the villa's elegant dining room. The meals are paired with a proper wine, including some of Tuscany's most noteworthy. Your dinners will be complemented with Chianti Classicos, Brunellos and other succulent wines from the region of Tuscany.
And, of course, in Tuscany the food is accompanied by wonderful olive oil and some of the world's best wines. From Chianti Classico to the stunning Super Tuscans this area produces a range of wine second to none. Your introduction to wine tasting in Tuscany will include some of the revolutionary Super Tuscans, such as Sassicaia, Tignanello, Castello dei Rampolia and Ornellaia. During the wine tasting you will hear the story of the Gallo Nero, which defines the Chianti region.
2006 Dates: April 2 - 8, April 9 - 15, April 16 - 22, April 23-29, April 30 - May 6, May 7 – 13, May 14 – 20, May 21 – 27, June 11 - 17 June, 18 - 24 September, 3 - 9 September, 10 - 16 September, 17 - 23 September, 24 - 30 October, 1 - 7 October, 8 - 14 October, 15 - 21 October, 22 - 28 October, 29 - November 4, November 5 - 11.
Detailed Itinerary
Sunday - arrival in the morning. Hands-on fresh pasta cooking lesson and preparation of lunch. Lunch served on the terrace; meet in the garden pergola for the guided tour of Pisa. Free time to visit the Pisa market. Hands-on cooking demonstration and preparation of dinner. Free-time before dinner. Dinner.
Monday - Breakfast available. Free morning to relax and enjoy the coach house. Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of lunch. Lunch. Tasting of fine Italian wines, olive oil and balsamic vinegars. Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of dinner. Free-time before dinner. Dinner.
Tuesday - Breakfast available. Meet in the garden pergola sitting area to depart for a guided tour of Lucca. Free to explore or shop at your leisure. Lunch at the "Buca di Sant' Antonio restaurant" in Lucca. Depart from Piazzale Verdi to return to the Villa. Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of dinner. Dinner.
Wednesday - Breakfast available. Meet in the formal salon to depart for Pistoia market. Visit to the bustling market town of Pistoia to help the chef choose fresh produce for dinner. You will have plenty of time to explore the many piazzas and stop for a panini in a local café. Free time to have lunch in Vinci, birthplace of Leonardo Da Vinci. An optional visit to the museum of Leonardo Da Vinci. Visit to the famous Tacchini brothers where, you will see the famous brothers' produce fine pieces of ceramic art. Return back at Villa. Free-time. Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of dinner. Dinner.
Thursday - Breakfast available. Leave for an optional trip to Florence - a vast and beautiful monument to the Renaissance and one of the world's greatest artistic capitals with paintings and sculptures from Botticelli, Michelangelo and Donatello. You have the choice of a free day to yourselves with a meeting point for the trip home, or you may join your guide on a tour of the Uffizi, the Duomo and a walk round the city. Free time to lunch, tour and shop in Florence. Depart Florence to return to the Villa. Arrive back at Villa. Meet in the formal salon for optional pre-dinner drinks where we will set off at 8:00pm for dinner at the local "Ristorante Bimbotto".
Friday - Breakfast available. For those who wish to join us in the kitchen, we will have an optional Cooking lesson on preparing and presenting a buffet lunch. Free time to take a stroll through the olive groves, play tennis or to simply relax as you wish. Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of dinner. Champagne Graduation Ceremony in the large demonstration kitchen. Formal dinner.
Saturday - Depart for the airport before noon. Thank you for sharing a special week with us.
Accommodations
Guests will stay at Villa Lucia or Casa Cameron. The rooms include the Caravaggio, the three-room master suite, which has a separate salon with fireplace and a large bathroom with an antique tub, double marble basin, and a glass shower that sympathetically integrates the historic frescoes. The deluxe rooms, Bronzino, Raphael, and Michelangelo, are very spacious and have glorious scenic frescoes.
The Villa's premium rooms, Fra Angelico and Da Vinci, are located off the main drawing room that is decorated with beautiful Tuscan silk curtains, a marble fireplace, fine antiques and a grand piano. The upper floor has three bedrooms and is designed as a separate maisonette. The bedrooms, Botticelli, Masaccio, and Donatello, share a spacious deluxe living room. The kitchen and dining area are located off the large central salon and television room.
Other activities
As part of the Rhode School of Cuisine we offer several excursion possibilities to guests. Because of the size of the Italian School, flexibility on some of the set excursions may be limited. Some of the possible excursions are listed below:
- Visits to selected restaurants and food markets;
- A visit to the beautiful city of Sienna and Marble Duomo;
- Visit the 11th century Tuscan vineyard of Castello Banfi;
- A visit to the beautiful city of Florence and Uffizi museum;
- A day trip to the beautiful city of Pisa;
- Visit the white wine shops in medieval San Gimignano;
- A visit to several historical Roman towns in the area.
Close to our villa there are some good hiking and jogging tracks that wind up the Monte Pisamo. The villa also has several mountain bikes that can be used to explore these tracks and the surrounding area. The nearby village of Vorno has stables where horse back riding can be arranged if you wish to explore the area at a more leisurely pace. Conveniently located nearby are two excellent golf courses for the more active sports person: one in Versilia and the other in Monte Catini.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Superior Room: $2,795 - double occupancy, $3,245 - single occupancy, $2,295 - double occupancy non-cooking guest;
Deluxe Room: $2,995 - double occupancy, $3,445 - single occupancy, $2,495 - double occupancy non-cooking guest;
Premier Suites-Caravaggio and Botticeelli: $3,795 - double occupancy, $4,245 - single occupancy, $3,295 - double occupancy non-cooking guest; There is a $500 penalty for changing dates after you have paid your deposit.
Includes:
- 5 nights accommodation at Villa Lucia;
- All meals at the Villa;
- Cooking school tuition and excursions;
- Transfers to and from Pisa or Florence airports.
Also see tour packages in:
Europe
Italy
Cooking School
Food & Wine
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