Apulian cooking class fresh pasta and focaccia
Recommended by 100% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Bari, Italy
- 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
What's Included
- apron and kitchen tools
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Via Domenico Nicolai, 105, 70122 Bari BA, Italy
My house is a 15 minute walk from the central train station.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Arranged start time
Confirm time with the local provider in advance of your experience.
- 07/03/2019 - 05/02/2027
Monday : 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday - Friday : 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday : 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday : 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday : 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday : 11:00 AM - 6:00 PM
What To Expect
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infant seats available
- In my Apulian experience you learn to cook typical local recipes. If you have time for a gastronomic experience during your vacation, it will be very informative, fun, but also peaceful. You will learn how to transform good food into a delicious and traditional menu. It will be an engaging and fascinating experience
- if child seats are needed, give timely notice at the time of booking.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Jessica_F
I had an amazing time with Juanita, and would recommend this experience to anyone wanting to get an authentic immersion in Puglian (and specifically Barese) cuisine. We made oricchiette from scratch (then the traditional dish with cimi di rapa), the traditional Barese focaccia, and enjoyed conversation and a bit of wine and some appetizers. Amazing evening, and she is a treasure! Even as an experienced cook/baker, I learned great techniques and interesting how-tos, but this would be equally as good for a total kitchen novice.
Reviews
5.0
based on 72 reviews
kathryn_e, Mar 2026
Juanita was absolutely incredible!! We were lucky enough to be the only 2 on the course so we got a very in depth teaching. Juanita made us feel so at home and she was very funny! I urge everyone to do this course. A million stars!! Very worth the money, we walked out with full belly’s and ready to cook when we get back to Aus. Thank you Juanita x
Vendula_B, Feb 2026
Lovely cooking in a cozy home with a specialist :) great family stories, wonderful experience, great taste of all food
Jessica_F, Feb 2026
I had an amazing time with Juanita, and would recommend this experience to anyone wanting to get an authentic immersion in Puglian (and specifically Barese) cuisine. We made oricchiette from scratch (then the traditional dish with cimi di rapa), the traditional Barese focaccia, and enjoyed conversation and a bit of wine and some appetizers. Amazing evening, and she is a treasure! Even as an experienced cook/baker, I learned great techniques and interesting how-tos, but this would be equally as good for a total kitchen novice.
Sam_M, Sep 2025
Anita was kind and patient; she graciously invited her into her lovely home. She taught us how to make foccacia and pasta and while it rested, we were treated to a charcuterie board with her homemade bread, her father's olive oil, buffalo cheese two kind of olives, meat, and a drink of our choice. Later we both were seated as we practiced making orecchiette pasta. We had a delightful lunch of pasta and focaccia and a drink of choice. We left we new knowlege and recipes, and a very full stomach!
Tracy_B, Sep 2025
Juanita was lovely, very welcoming into her home & taught us so well. We then ate a delicious meal with the 2 other ladies in our class
Sharon_M, Aug 2025
This class was a highlight of my stay in Bari. Juanita is a charming dynamo with a wealth of experience that she is happy to share. She makes the preparation of the focaccia and pasta look so easy!! I don't know what I enjoyed more - learning how to prepare the food or eating it (especially the antipasta she serves).
John_R, May 2025
What a lovely cooking experience in a home environment! Anita worked hard to give us all the instructions to make focaccia-orecchiette-ravioli and tiramisu-we ate what we prepared with wine in the company of 2 other people
Response from Host, May 2025
Thank you so much. You were very kind to come to me, I'll wait for you next season too, we can do other experiences together like the focaccia genovese. A kiss
Deepali_D, May 2025
My wife and I booked a lunch cooking experience with Juanita. She is so sweet and welcoming. My wife loves to cook, so this class was really exciting, and me being a lover of Italian food, it's the perfect combo, to learn to cook from scratch and enjoying it afterwards. She offered us coffee and cake (delicious) to start as we entered. We started on the foccacia first since the dough takes time to prepare. She explained to us the types of flour used for baking pizza vs. pasta. All ingredients we used were fresh, including the yeast. Making the orichette looked easier than it actually is. It takes a good amount of practice and Juanita showed us the proper technique a few times cause my orichette was coming out a bit flat. We laughed and had a good time learning. For lunch, Juanita had prepared a few delicious side dishes and we ate the foccacia and pasta till our stomachs were full. We took the leftover foccacia back with us to enjoy. Would highly recommend this fun learning experience.
Iris_M, Sep 2024
Juanita welcomed us into her home and gave a MASTER CLASS. The pride and love of her culture is contagious. She is very knowledgeable and kind and gives an exquisite offer. She is the absolute BEST!
William_Z, Sep 2024
Great experience! Delicious food! We were given apertivo and vino. Everything was made from scratch.
Linda_B, Sep 2024
This was one of the most authentic Apulian experiences my husband and I had. It was my husband’s birthday and I chose a cooking class at Juanita’s house. She was the most gracious host and with much patience she taught me and my husband how to make orecchiette pasta and foccacia. It felt so personal bc it was just the two of us in Juanita’s house: sitting at her table, sipping wine and eating Apulian delicacies. She served marinated zucchini with olive oil and mint, roasted peppers with garlic and oil, fresh mozzarella and tomatoes, and with much patience she taught us how to make the dough for the foccacia, the dough for the pasta and taught us how to roll the dough with a serrated knife to make the cute “little ears” that are the shape of the pasta. After we sat and ate the orecchiette with pesto (that’s what we chose) and focaccia which had chunks of tomatoes with the tomato juice poured over the foccacia. She added olive oil then baked in the oven. Everything was fresh and delicious and AMAZING!!! Juanita was fantastic! She was funny and had some great stories and history about her family. She was even kind and thoughtful and mad a tiramisu for my husband’s bday. It was a total surprise! I was taken aback by her sweetness. I didn’t want the day to end :’(
Carolyn_W, Sep 2024
The host was such a great teacher and explained the history behind the dishes.
Never had such fresh pasta and the best tiramisu ever.
Thomas_M, Jun 2024
This was a perfect shore excursion opportunity for a cooking class. We started at 1000 and finished just before 1300. The class we in the center of town near the train station and the shopping district.
We made the Focaccia from scratch which we add with our lunch meal. The pasta (orecchiette in our case) was made from scratch and then got to practice technique for making them from the fresh dough.
The provided lunch was outstanding . Recipes and e-mailed photos were were provided. Was a highlight of our extended cruise.
Carly_C, Jun 2024
We loved the entire experience. At the start Juanita provided some appetizers and coffee or wine if desired. Then we moved on to the pasta and focaccia making. It's a small class (max of 6) so everyone gets to take a turn with a step of the recipe and she makes sure everyone understands how to shape the pasta properly. Recipes are provided at the end.
Camille_V, Jun 2024
We loved this cooking class with Juanita (she's a gem) and highly recommend it. We learned to make orecchiette and typical Bari focaccia from scratch. Then, we got to eat everything we made- and it was delicious. This is a hands on class (vs a demo) which I love because it's one thing to watch someone else do it, and another to learn by doing it yourself. The orecchiette especially require a bit of practice to get the technique right and Juanita was there to coach and show us how to do it properly. We had so much fun. Her place is very close to the historic center so not hard to get to. Earlier in the day we had done a walking tour with food tasting which was such a letdown and this cooking class experience resulted in our trip ending on a high note. I can't wait to make these recipes at home. This class is 100% worth it!
Rosemary_M, Jun 2024
We have been to several other cooking classes in different cities, and we all agreed that this was our favorite. It was held at Juanita's apartment-which was an easy 15 minute walk from Old Town Bari. Juanita had antipasti set up for us so we could get to know the other participants in the class, and then we started on the focaccia dough and pasta making. Juanita has the perfect personality for teaching the techniques to a bunch of beginners-patient, yet also freely joking with us that our pasta shapes needed some work! We were all excited if we received a "Bravo" from her! She then baked the focaccia and offered two types of sauce (traditional tomato and also a sweet pepper sauce) for our homemade pasta. We left with the recipe so we could try it at home. The experience lasted 3 hours and was a fun way to end our trip to Bari!
elizabeth_m, Jun 2024
We had such a great experience cooking and creating beautiful Italian food In a authentic Italian home would definitely recommend it. We can’t wait to cook more and we get home.
Mary_F, Jun 2024
Juanita is a kind and gracious host and a wonderful instructor! I learned more in this relatively brief session than I have in other much longer cooking classes. She’s very well-organized so not a moment is wasted. We were learning about types of wheat while sipping wine and enjoying amazing antipasti she had prepared. Then it was off to dough making for the pasta and focaccia. Finally, sitting down to enjoy what we had prepared. Treat yourself and take this class with Juanita.
Thomas_K, Jun 2024
The host Juanita is just as lovely a person as you could hope for. She opens her home to you and teaches you traditional recipes while you have some wine. It was wonderful.
Patricia_A, Jun 2024
This experience was just fabulous! Juanita greeted us so warmly and her apartment is very comfortable and beautiful! Juanita made appetizers of garlic zucchini, eggplant, salami, and provolone. She then showed us how to make a delicious tiramisu and fresh orecchiette pasta, and she demonstrated a wonderful technique for first-timers! Juanita is very patient and explains the recipes very very well! We finally enjoyed our lunch, as she cooked the pasta in a delicate homemade sauce, then served us our Tirimusu, along with homemade Limoncello, water, coffee, and a local white wine. Don’t miss out on this! If this class is available, book it, and you will be delighted to have done so!
Michael_C, Oct 2023
Very knowledgeable and fun instructor guided us through making pasta and focaccia followed by a delicious lunch.
Mark_G, Oct 2023
A perfect family afternoon! My wife and I along with our daughter at her husband fell in love with Juanita as soon as we met her. So personable, so professional, and so funny! She was so organized and was able to set up all four of us to work at the same time, we made pasta, focaccia and several other dishes. Each one of us had so much fun we laughed, we cried we drank some wine, it was absolutely wonderful. I highly recommend Cessarina Juanita for your cooking, baking and pasta making in Bari. So worth the money and the time!
Briana_G, Sep 2023
This was the highlight of our trip! Juanita was amazing and went above and beyond. When we arrived she had apps ready for us along with champagne. We then learned to make fresh pasta and focaccia …which was honestly the best I had! Juanita was informative and made us laugh the whole time. Her place is a quick walk from the train station so very easy to get to. Definitely recommend this if you are spending some time in the area!
Rafael_D, Aug 2023
Juanita was an incredible host, we learned so many things while having fun! Will definitely recommend if you are in the Bari area. This class changed our lives!
Veronika_o, Jun 2023
We enjoyed it so much.
Our host Juanitta was so sweet and welcomed us in her home. She was really good teacher and even gave us some tips, how to make preparation at home easier and how to pick right ingredients.
And the food was just so good and it would be worth it just for it.
It was amazing experience.
Giana_B, Jun 2023
We had such a wonderful time being invited into Juanita’s home and learning to make local dishes with her! The experience was truly unforgettable and we really felt like part of the family.
Mollie_Z, May 2023
Juanita welcomed my partner and I into her home with open arms, and guided us through the steps of traditional Apulian cooking.
We made and ate the most delicious focaccia bread, along with our own handmade orecchiette.
We had a very fun day with lots of laughs, and left with new friends. We would recommend Juanita’s cooking class to anyone who travels to the Apulian coast, to make the trip into Bari, as this day would have to be a very big highlight of our trip!
Thanks again Juanita! 😊😊
Response from Host, May 2023
ciao Mollie ricordo te e il tuo compagno con tanto affetto.
Andreea_S, May 2023
It was awesome!
Juanita is such a lovely person, warm and welcoming; we felt like we were at home.
The aperitif was soooo delicious, then we proceeded to make the pasta & focaccia and Juanita teached us the traditional way to do it. Then, of course we ate everything.
We finished with espresso and Limoncello made by her which was a bliss.
Everything was absolutely perfect and I’d do it again anytime. I highly recommend this experience and want thank Juanita again for her beautiful way to spread the love about food and life!
Response from Host, May 2023
ci siamo divertiti tanto
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