Top Matera Food & Drink Classes

Learn to make authentic pasta the old farmer way, right in a Sassi cellar carved from ancient stone. Using the freshest local ingredients, you’ll prepare bruschetta, cialledda salad, and traditional pasta with guidance from a professional chef. Once the cooking is done, sit down to savor your creations in this extraordinary and historic setting.

Immerse yourself in a private pasta and tiramisu-making class in a welcoming home, learn the secrets of the region's most famous pasta dishes and tiramisu and taste the fruit of your labour for lunch or dinner accompanied by local wines. During this private lesson, you will learn how to prepare 2 pasta recipes and the tiramisu dessert from scratch. Your Cesarina will reveal the tricks of the trade of these iconic recipes. Have fun putting your cooking skills to the test and amaze your friends and family once home with an Italian meal! This experience is suitable for families with children of all ages. Le Cesarine is Italy’s oldest network of home cooks all over the country in more than 120 cities. They are passionate and welcoming hosts that open the doors of their own homes to curious travellers for immersive culinary experiences.

Cook alongside a local in their "agriturismo" home, a farmhouse in the countryside near Matera. Offering a more authentic take on a cooking class, the experience lets you live the local culture for a few hours, cooking with traditional recipes, and enjoying good food, wine, and company. You’ll even get a tour of the agriturismo to learn about organic farming methods.

You will cook inside a real cave in the Sassi of Matera, an authentic and suggestive environment that makes the experience unique. Everything is enriched by the use of fresh and seasonal ingredients, which enhance the flavors of the territory and allow you to live the local cuisine in a genuine and sustainable way. You can choose between two options: Private cooking class : practical experience of pasta preparation Cooking class with lunch: at the end, taste the dishes prepared in a unique atmosphere in the cave

Live an authentic experience that combines nature, tradition and taste in a unique setting. You will walk among majestic centuries-old olive trees, witnesses of history and culture, immersed in a breathtaking landscape with views of the Little Lucanian Dolomites and the Gallipoli Cognato and Foresta Mantenera Park. Here, away from the chaos, you will breathe pure and uncontaminated air, surrounded by the scents of the earth. You will discover the secrets of the cultivation and production of our organic oils, appreciating their quality and unique characteristics. The tasting will take place under the olive groves, where you will taste our fine oils accompanied by platters of cold cuts and cheeses at km 0, the result of the passion and tradition of local companies. A journey into the authentic flavors of Basilicata, between taste and well-being.

1 - Large historical location of 300sqm of typical houses of the Sassi di Matera 2 - Over 300 types of selected local products 3 - Experience unique flavors among the rocks of the Sassi di Matera

Southern Italy is famous for its cuisine across the globe. Connect with a local home cook and discover the secrets to turning out traditional fresh pasta with this hands-on cooking class in Matera. Roll up your sleeves and prepare three different specialties under the guidance of your host and instructor, then sample your handiwork served with wine at the end of the class.

Take a break from sightseeing and discover Matera’s rural heart with this private cooking class at a traditional farm. Connect with a local family to visit their olive and orange groves, then roll up your sleeves and get to work in the kitchen preparing fresh pasta and other classic dishes. Enjoy a country-style lunch featuring the recipes you’ve prepared at the end of the class.

The UNESCO-listed Sassi di Matera is both captivating and mysterious. With this guided tour, take a deep dive into the history of this unique rupestrian city, named a 2019 European Capital of Culture. Explore its hidden dwellings and churches carved directly into the cliff, the setting for a number of films, including Ben Hur.

Unveil the secrets of the ancient “cave city” of Matera with this in-depth walking tour through the UNESCO-listed Sassi. Delve into the history of this unique city dug into the cliffside and visit a cave house and rupestrian churches in its two oldest districts. Learn about how residents once lived, marvel at the cathedral set at the town’s upper square, and take in sweeping views over the Murgia Materana Park.

Cover more ground and explore the UNESCO-listed Sassi di Matera cave churches and dwellings in less than an hour with this Ape Calessino tour. Buzz through the steep, narrow lanes to see highlights in the Barisano and Caveoso districts plus Civita, the town's historic center. Learn about the history of this unique cliffside town from your driver and guide and pause to admire the top sights and snap photos.

This cooking class captures the true essence of Matera — a blend of ancient traditions, warm hospitality, and simple, genuine flavors. In a kitchen carved into the city’s iconic stone dwellings, you’ll prepare time-honored recipes passed down through generations, using fresh ingredients from the local countryside. Each dish tells a story of resilience and community, seasoned with olive oil, laughter, and southern sunshine. It’s more than a class — it’s a journey into the heart of Lucanian culture, one bite at a time!

Step inside a historic cave in the heart of Sassi di Matera, once used as an ancient olive oil mill, and discover Matera’s rural food traditions through a hands-on pasta-making class. Begin with a welcome glass of prosecco while exploring the original stone milling spaces carved into the rock. Then learn how to make handmade cavatelli or orecchiette alongside a local expert using traditional techniques passed down through generations. Choose between two options: the “Pasta Class” experience includes the pasta workshop, welcome prosecco, a souvenir participation certificate, and the chance to take home the handmade pasta prepared during the class. Or select the “Pasta Class with Lunch” option to enjoy a complete cave dining experience inside the historic cave setting. This small-group experience embraces a true farm-to-table philosophy, with seasonal ingredients and authentic local recipes inspired by southern Italian rural cuisine.

Don't lose the opportunity to become a "pizzaiolo" (pizza-maker) and a great tiramisu maker! Enter a local home, connect with an expert home cook and discover how Italian mamma and nonnas used to prepare awesome pizza at home. With this private hands-on cooking class, you will learn how to make pizza and tiramisù from scratch from a real Italian family. To complete your feast, enjoy what you have prepared for lunch or dinner with a selection of local wine included. Have fun putting your cooking skills to the test and amaze your friends and family with a pizza party once you come back home! This experience is suitable for families with children of all ages. Le Cesarine is Italy’s oldest network of home cooks all over the country in more than 120 cities. They are passionate and welcoming hosts that open the doors of their own homes to curious travellers for immersive culinary experiences.

Location: A private olive estate just 50 minutes from Matera city center (shuttle service available on request). • Perfect For: Foodies, couples seeking romance, and families looking for a hands-on cultural escape. • What to Bring: A healthy appetite and your camera—the golden hour light through the olive trees is a photographer’s dream!

Learn about the art of cheese making with a master cheesemaker in Matera. Enjoy a typical farmer's breakfast of organic dairies, try to make your mozzarella and taste lots of cheeses.

Come relax in the shade of centuries-old olive trees enjoying a picnic completely set up for you You will walk among the centuries-old olive trees enjoying a wonderful view of the Little Lucanian Dolomites and the Mantenera Forest In the shadow of our Majatica, the queen of our 350-year-old certified olive grove and Patriarch Lucan, a picnic awaits you with a selection of Podolic cheeses from wild-bred cows, local cured meats, focaccia, the famous bread of Matera with which you can taste our organic oils, taralli olives drinking red wine Aglianico del Vulture immersed in a private location away from disturbing noises with only the sounds of nature and birdsong You can relax on pillows or swing in the hammock, walk among olive trees and enjoy the beautiful food at your own pace

Walking through an olive grove brings a profound sense of serenity, no matter the season or time of day. We invite you to step away from the crowds and immerse yourself in nature with this unforgettable walking and picnic experience. Your journey begins by wandering among ancient, century-old olive trees, discovering the stories of the people who cultivate them and learning the fascinating process behind our extra virgin olive oil production. As we travel through our lands, you will be treated to breathtaking views of the Piccole Dolomiti Lucane and the protected natural area of Gallipoli Cognato Park. The experience culminates in a moment of pure bliss: a rich, authentic picnic prepared exclusively for you in the gentle shade of our precious trees. Savor locally produced cured meats, artisan cheeses, EVOO bruschetta, and delicious desserts made with our homemade jams for a total immersion into the flavors and tranquility of Basilicata.

For me, hosting and home is a whole other thing from a simple restaurant that can be as hospitable as you want but will never be able to welcome you with the serene and informal conviviality of "my home". Here I relive the experiences lived in my grandparents' house before and my parents later. Perfumes from boiling pots, the same but always different voices and gestures of my mother and my aunt who repeat rituals that have unknowingly marked me. Over time I have accumulated a treasure trove of sensations and knowledge that intertwine between the countryside and the kitchen and from which I am indelibly marked. Today I find myself chasing cookbooks and recipes to reproduce in an attempt to relive that experience and I ask for your help in order to succeed. We will prepare various dishes of the Matera tradition together, depending on the period in which we meet, and then we will taste them in the convivial and "Slow" atmosphere that has always distinguished me.