The Seasoned Chef

My son and neice have attended two of their kids cooking classes and had a blast. They not only learned but said the instructors were fun. Way more affordable than other local cooking school options even if the location is somewhat unusual.

I came here with a group organized by my friend/​realtor for a ladies’ night out. It was a little confusing because the kitchen is in an office building behind a shopping center without outside marking. However, once inside, the atmosphere is very culinary class friendly. All the equipment is top of the line KitchenAid, All Clad, Le Creuset, etc. The mirror above the kitchen counter is perfectly tilted to allow viewing from the seating. The chef was great — funny, knowledgable and helpful.
Our menu was picked out by our hostess and delicious. It was a nice opportunity to meet people, have fun and eat some delicious food.

I went to The Seasoned Chef for the first time this week to attend a class using peaches. I have also been to another cooking school in Denver and both were ran very differently. At The Seasoned Chef you only get to make one of the recipes while other groups make the other items and then at the end everyone shares. I would have preferred to have gotten to each make our own full dinner to gain experience making all of the recipes. That would probably mean cutting down on the number of items made although I would like that better. That is what I experienced at Stir Cooking School and I found it much more enjoyable as I got to stay with the group I came with rather than having to split up.
Also, while the food turned out quite well, I will say that FOOD SAFETY was not a concern whatsoever. As a health inspector I was expecting much more from this establishment. The cases of peaches we used (some sliced, some peeled and some whole) were not washed and the instructor stated that was fine as we either peeled them or cooked them. I asked to wash mine and she pointed me to the utility sink also known as a mop sink where they do their dishes… Also since everyone makes a separate recipe I got to watch people tasting their food and not washing their hands and then those items were served to everyone to eat! There was no glove use either. Anyone of those people could be sick, touching their face or hair and then others have to consume that. Since food safety is a great concern for me I will probably not be going back to this cooking school as there are plenty of other options out there.

My husband and I took the gourmet egg class because we have 3 chickens at home and wanted some new ways to cook the fresh eggs. We got what we wanted and more! The eggs Benedict and perfect omelet s were my favorite but having a soufflé come out perfectly was amazing!!!

I have taken so many classes here and have loved every single one.
I was never a baker until I took Mile High Baking with Chef Amy. If you can get into any of her classes right away. She makes it fun and know how to adjust the recipes for Our crazy altitude.

Pros and cons here. Staff is super nice, Chef Andrew was a competent instructor. Whipped up some excellent paella dishes and, overall, the experience was organized and pleasant.
Now for the downsides… first, this cooking school is on the ground floor of an office building. Zero ambiance, feels like this space could have been a dentist’s office or a travel agency in a previous incarnation.
The dining spaces are basically circular tables with highly uncomfortable wooden chairs. No linens, no candlelight, no music. Also, most of us ended up recycling the same plates and silverware through course after course because they didn’t have plates for every course. Hmmm.
There is but one large kitchen space, with a single double oven that works double-​time to accommodate food for 20 or more people. The oven door is opening and closing constantly… the end result is that some dishes come out undercooked. There is but one large cooktop… and it’s electric, not gas. Probably the case because this space used to be an office space, but not many world class cooking schools work off of electric ranges.
All in all, the experience is okay, but not great. There are a few places around town (Stir, for one) that offer some real ambiance, plus better quality kitchen spaces, plus music, plus a private dining area.
Not a bad place to go on date night, but not life-​changing, either.

Hubby and I attended a Knife Skills class. We learned the proper way to hold and use a chef knife. Very informative and useful class! While the menu was not necessarily cohesive, it served as practice for our newly acquired knife skills. Chef Dan was professional and personable!

Enjoyed our class on French cooking there. Having spent 10 years in Las Vegas working in restaurants, have been around a few kitchens.
The guest teacher was wonderful and Dan is highly knowledgeable.
The class had a good combination of information, learning new skills, while still keeping it fun & light. Will definitely return.

I was fortunate enough to come here as part of a team building event with my work colleagues for a night of «Christmas in Tuscany».
This was my first ever cooking class and I thought the set up was done well and the menu was well thought out. The class of 15 – 20 is split up into groups that work on 1 – 2 dishes that have been planned for the class.
The menu consisted of a vegetable soup with collard greens and Parmesan crostini, a citrus mussel salad, cheesy polenta, homemade linguine with roasted shrimp in a cream sauce, lamb roulade with gremolata, and the menu finished with meringue cookies topped with brandied cherry sauce.
The chef goes over the menu for the class and what the steps will be for each dish and how everything will work together. The chef then reviews a few safety tips and a couple helpful chopping techniques. The chef and his cooking assistants walk around the room helping each group start their dishes, helping with supplies and keeping work spaces clean.
The groups then go to their designated areas and start on their assigned dishes. At varying intervals during the class the chef brings the entire class to different stations when showcasing a certain step in the cooking process or a cool technique. I really enjoyed listening and watching the group that made homemade pasta and the group that was in charge of cooking the mussels.
I had a wonderful time with my group and the entire class, joking around and cooking new dishes. I could see this as a wonderful date night or group outing. It was a well paced class and at the end everyone was able to try all the dishes and enjoy some wine while discussing the ease of cooking each dish and how easy it would be to replicate everything at home.
My mom visits CO often and I could see a cooking class here being right up our alley. I would come back in a heart beat for another class and try my skills at something new. Maybe a dessert class — chocolate anyone?

So much fun. That’s how both my hubby and I would describe the classes we have taken. I will say I’m not the one who cooks in my house. When my husband suggested we take a cooking class I thought eh… but I’m so happy we did. The first class we took we decided to go as it was the anniversary of a tough loss we had in the family and wanted to do something to take our minds off the grief. The class was part of the Denver best Chef series where classes are thought by some of the most prominent and successful chefs around the city. It was so much fun cooking with others (not my thing normally). The result leading to an amazing feast. At first we thought it seemed a bit spendy, but after the class and an entire evening out with gourmet food, it was a steal!
We have taken a couple more classes since. One was an Indian cooking class. Some of our favorite cuisine. My husband is now a pro at cooking homemade chicken tika masala. The other class was cooking with micro brew beer. This was taught by chef Michael Long and was also great. We love how these classes have given us such great quality time together both at the school and back at home. If you can’t tell already, we are big fans and try and tell anyone we can about our new found fun.

A while back I attended the «A Sommeliers’ Springtime Pairings» class and it was plain awful. I had called ahead to see what this class would entail and long story short we were very disappointed in the outing and even left hungry. I posted a review and the owner replied and explained that this was a new class and extended an offer to attend another, more established class. I recently took Chef Dan up on this offer and attended the «Catch of the Day: Fresh Fish» class. This class was much better and we left full of food and a lot of new knowledge. This is still a rather expensive event so I’d recommend against it if you are looking for a casual outing or date, but it could be good for more of an event or more serious date.

After reading the other reviews, I think that (perhaps) I owe it to The Seasoned Chef to try another class… maybe my experience was simply reflective of a «bad day.»
Although I am a confident cook in the kitchen, and have taken a variety of cooking classes at other venues, I was shocked at the disorder and general mayhem during my class.
What I found most exasperating, however, was the fact that they didn’t even have the ingredients on hand to prepare two of the five featured dishes! And we’re not talking exotic ingredients here — no peas, no ham? Really?

It’s been a few years since I took a class here, since I no longer live in the area, but wow has what I learned served me well! I do nearly all the cooking in my household, and the recipes, tips, and techniques have been so helpful. Beyond techniques, and confidence, it was also helpful to be introduced to things my family didn’t cook when I was growing up — and so I never got exposed to.

Phenomenal! Chef Dan and the team are awesome — you will have so much fun as you learn the basics of cooking — and then get to reap the delicious rewards as you sample everything, which turns out to be a full meal. My boyfriend and I recently took the Basics of Cooking class, on two consecutive Saturdays, and I learned so much in that short time, I’m still kind of in awe — everything from proper knife skills to how to tell when meat is done to your liking — and perhaps most importantly, to toss out the notion that you need to follow a recipe to a tee — in fact, if Chef Dan catches you using one, he is rumored to throw out what you’re cooking! You can’t go wrong with these classes — it is one of the funnest things I’ve done and I will use the skills I learned for the rest of my life!

I have taken 3 classes at The Seasoned Chef and have loved every single one. I learned a lot, had fun and got to eat some amazing meals that I now know how to create at home.
I’ve taken Fish & Seafood, Modern Vietnamese and Holy Mole and all were wonderful. I am a pretty experienced cook but I have learned so much from the chef instructors and will continue going back to learn more. There are classes geared for all levels and I would recommend that anyone check them out now matter what their experience level is.
The classes would make a great gift for anyone and are a great girls night out or date night experience.

These classes are a lot of fun, you eat really good food, meet some nice people and hopefully learn to cook some delicious food.
They offer a broad list of classes, many different types of food (Italian, Asian, Cuban, Desert, sauces, salads, to name some). And the also offer cooking skills for specific diet interests, vegetarian, canning, etc…
The price seems reasonable considering you get to eat two fantastic multi-​course meals and you get great information.

Just fantastic! We just did our first class this past weekend with Chef Dan and wow did we learn a lot. Never realized how many things we did wrong in the kitchen. Chef Dan had us laughing minutes into the class and he has a great way of sharing his knowledge.
We purchased the 2 day Cooking for Beginners class since this was our first cooking class. I highly recommend this class for anyone who is not a seasoned cook or can just do the basics. Chef Dan focused on technique which I did not realize was so important. Everything from how to use a knife in the kitchen properly to how to make food not stick in your pan without using Pam.
They split our class of 17 in to teams of 3 or 4 and we each made a portion of the meal. I will say, everything we made tasted great and was a joy to make,
The facilities were well lit and stocked, clean and professional. I am really looking forward to our 2^nd day this Saturday.

How have I not written a review yet??? I’ve been taking about 3 classes a year here for 3 – 4 years. I’d love to take more, but I work at night. I’ve loved all the instructors I’ve met and remade many recipes to rave reviews. I haven’t tasted anything in a class that I haven’t liked. I never liked brussel sprouts, and now, I blame Dan for making me like them. I also credit Catherine with my upcoming wedding. Who knew learning that chocolate has six different crystal formations would catch someone’s attention?
While you’ll learn practical skills (like how to chop an onion efficiently and safely) and basic techniques, you’ll really be learning how to translate these abilities into amazing creations of your own. I can’t wait for cheese-​making in February. :)

I’m a little hesitant to write a review on a cooking class since this was the first I have ever been to, but oh geez, what the heck… I’m just gonna go with my gut.
I had an amazing experience at Seasoned Chef. I showed up, annoyed that I didn’t get to sleep in on a Saturday, and had no idea what to expect. Within 15 minutes of the class starting, Chef Dan Witherspoon had me laughing at his jokes and engaged in the lesson. Witherspoon entertained the class with his sassy and no b.s. attitude. I was very glad when he [lightly] reprimanded a girl for taking an unnecessarily long break– we couldn’t start without her, and I wanted to get my money’s worth!
Figuring that I’m no stranger to the kitchen, I thought that I would simply be brushing up at my skills at the «Cutting Edge» workshop. Instead I discovered I have been holding my knife the wrong way, the knife sharpener is really an edge straightener, and tons of other useful tools that I can use every day.
I highly would recommend Seasoned Chef for anyone who is looking to brush up their skills and learn something new while having a great time. Also, I agree with Mary Jo S.- bring a date (because he’ll learn WHY it’s not a good idea to put knives in the dishwasher and you’ll never have to scold him again!)

I just got back from a Fish and Seafood Workshop taught by Chef Dan Witherspoon at the Seasoned Chef. This was probably the best $ 68.00 I have spent in a long time. We learned four techniques for cooking fish and one for seafood and each method had secrets I never knew.
The facility is well lit, well stocked, and well operated. The class was divided into 5 teams of three (each of us making different dishes: mine was Oven Roasted Cod with Miso Glaze). As we prepared each dish, the staff would come behind us and pick up the dirty dishes and have them washed and restocked by the next dish (I would pay dearly for someone to do this at my home). Once the class did the prep work for their individual menu, we would go to each «station» to watch a team cook the dish with Chef Dan assisting; it is very hands on. Then we would eat the prepared food, not only learning proper cooking techniques for fish but how to make sauces, browned butter, flambé, rice, and vinaigrette.
There were 16 people in my class and a great mix, from a young high school student to an older lady who kept hitting the wine carafe (Yes, the chef asked us to join him in drinking wine with the meals).
I highly recommend the Seasoned Chef classes for beginners and seasoned chefs alike. I think anyone could learn something. Next on my agenda, knife skills; I heard that is a great class as well.
Tip: There were several couples taking this class; I think taking a class together would be a great date night for any couple.