Pizza Cooking Class

Recommended by 96% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

Taormina, Italy

Great choice

10+ bookings last month.

3 hours (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.9

· TJ_M ·

Oct 2025

This was a blast! Ricardo was an amazing host and teacher. The entire team helped to ensure an amazing time was had. Along with the pizza making, we made pasta too. Can't speak highly enough about the experience. We met two other awesome couples at our table and we're dubbed the Crazy Taromina Crew.

· thepfdgirl ·

Oct 2025

It was incredibly enjoyable learning how to make authentic Sicilian pasta and pizza from scratch. All of the chefs were informative and hands-on. All of the ingredients were very fresh. Such a great vibe with the other participants as well. Strongly recommend it.

Overview

On your visit to Italy, you’ll want to try authentic Italian pizza. Learn the secrets of Sicilian Pizzaioli when you prepare pizza from scratch with a professional chef. Enjoy your lesson in a famous pizzeria in downtown Taormina, where you’ll start with kneading dough and end with a delicious bite. Get a glimpse into the life of a local chef, and immerse yourself in Italian cuisine and culture.

Intimate Italian cooking class and meal
Visit a local chef in his restaurant; learn about his craft and trade
Learn to make authentic, from-scratch pizza and pasta
Enjoy a glass of high-quality wine with your meal

Sample Menu

Main

Pizzaaaaa

Cheese Tasting, Pizzaaaaaa and also a special dessert

What's Included

Lunch
Apron
Certificate
Alcoholic Beverages

Wine included

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Ristorante Pizzeria Porta Messina
Largo Giove Serapide, 4, 98038 Taormina ME, Italy
At Restaurant "Porta Messina"

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Porta Messina Restaurant Cooking Class

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
Stroller accessible

Service animals allowed
Near public transportation
Infant seats available
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 40 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

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Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Niamh_M

We had a fantastic experience learning to make fresh pasta and pizza. The staff were brilliant. They were attentive, helpful, supportive, encouraging and created a fun learning environment. We particularly want to thank Maurizio and Luca who were teaching us. Such wonderful chefs and excellent teachers. We got to enjoy our creations which were delicious. Would highly recommend this cooking class in Taormina for young and old. Thanks guys 😊

Reviews

4.9

based on 225 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

A Fun, Hands-On Cooking Class Perfect for Couples

Nadajalah_B, Dec 2025

We booked this pizza cooking class on a whim the night before while looking for a fun honeymoon activity, and it exceeded our expectations. From the moment we arrived, the experience felt warm and welcoming. We were seated with travelers from all over the world, enjoyed great company, and were treated to generous pours of delicious wine throughout the evening. The class itself was very hands-on and interactive. We learned how to hand-roll pasta, prepare pizza dough, and make our own pizzas from scratch, which made the experience both fun and memorable. Everything was well-paced, engaging, and easy to follow even for beginners. A huge bonus was being sent home with the recipes so we can recreate everything at home. This class is perfect for couples, friends, families, or small groups and is a wonderful way to meet people, learn about the local area, and enjoy amazing food and wine. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a relaxed, social, and immersive experience.

Fun time

Sue_C, Oct 2025

Great place to meet new people. Lots of laughs! The chefs are so nice and make everyone comfortable.

Let's hear it for pizza!

Cyndi_C, Oct 2025

The most fun ever!!!!! Everyone had a great time and everything about this nite was a blast. We got to know our new friends at the table and share a fun night with them... I would definitely recommend this fun activity..

Disappointing

Katinka_B, Oct 2025

This experience has a lot of potential - but there were far too many participants and therefore the experience fell short of our expectations. I think there were over 40 participants, the restaurant was very busy with other guests, so our experience was very chaotic and felt disorganized.

Incredible food, wine, and fun

TJ_M, Oct 2025

It was incredibly...

thepfdgirl, Oct 2025

Definitely a must do in Taormina

Anne_S, Sep 2025

This was such a wonderful and informative experience. Very intimate instruction with only four of us. Lots of laughs, great food and drinks.

A truly wonderful experience we won’t forget

Arooj_H, Sep 2025

We had the most wonderful time with chef Giovanni who led our group with pasta making and pizza dough making at the session. This activity was easily one of the highlights of our holiday in Sicily. We were warmly welcomed, had everything explained to us in English, and were looked after really well throughout the entire experience. For the amount we paid, our expectations had certainly been exceeded by the quality and attentiveness of the entire session from start to finish, and even the generous eating portions to finish, with delicious complimentary connollis! Thank you chef Giovanni for being such a warm and lovely person to work with, and to his team for accommodating for us while juggling your busy day to day restaurant duties. You made our first visit to Sicily and the beautiful town of Taormina really special.

Lively Environment- quality lunch with lots of wine and topped off with Lemoncello

lynda_j, Sep 2025

Luca was a great teacher-great humor and very patient with unskilled students.! Learned how pasta is made without eggs and two different types of flour for pizza too.

Wonderful instructor and...

Donald_T, Sep 2025

Wonderful instructor and assistant provided detailed explanations of every step in making pizza and pasta.

Great Pizza Making Experience

Kathy_S, Sep 2025

This was a fun evening. The chefs helping our group of 18 were lots of fun and very helpful. We really enjoyed our evening.

Such a fun alternative to shopping

Amy_B, Sep 2025

We did it on a whim because we were tired of just walking around a town and shopping. It was a high light of the trip. The instructor is fun and the food was fantastic. We even were able to get up here from a cruise docked in Messina

10/10 experience

Alexis_R, Aug 2025

What an amazing experience , I came in with high expectations and they were exceeded. So much food and laughter to go around and it made the experience top tier. The restaurant was beautiful and was in a great area to shop and explore. Mauricio was exquisite at his job and made my birthday so special. The food was phenomenal, and so much was offered. The staff was very pleasant , helpful and informative throughout the process. I already told them I would be back!

Fantastic cooking class

Niamh_M, Aug 2025

A wonderfull experience

Karin_M, Aug 2025

A wonderfull afternoon and night learning the skills of Pasta and Pizza making. We loved the athmosphere and the skilled and charming cook.

So fun!

AMY_P, Jul 2025

This was our favorite excursion. Mauro and Francesca were engaging and funny. It was great for our kids! Would do it again!

Cooking with family and new friends

David_M, Jul 2025

So much fun. We met people from from all over the world: US, UK, Belgium, Israel and Italy. The instructors were amazing and made the experience enjoyable. I’m confident I can now make fresh pizza and pasta. We are what we made and had plenty of water and wine to go along with the meal. At the end, we had some fresh cannoli. A perfect evening. I highly recommend.

Don’t miss this class, it’s a must for those looking for a great and useful experience!

Laura_M, Jul 2025

We loved it! It was an amazing experience and Chef Giovanni was the GOAT (Greatest Of All Times)! There is no parking where the restaurant is, so we parked at the Lumbi Parking Garage. We were cutting it close, so, instead of waiting for the free shuttle bus to the upper side of town, we took the stairs that start on the top floor of the parking garage and go up to the center. It took us about 5 minutes to climb up. The restaurant is very near to the top of the stairs. When we arrived, we were asked to sit, and, while we waited for the class to start, we were each given an apron (to keep) and a bottle of fresh water. When it was time for the class to start, we put our personal belongings on the chairs by a long table. There were about 15 students. Then, we moved over to a nearby table, where there were little mounds of semolina flour, water and some skewers. Chef Giovanni came to greet us (in great English and Italian) and started explaining what we would be doing. We kneaded the semolina and water together to prep the dough. Then the Chef proceeded to show us what to do with it to create several different shapes (even the ones with a hole, which I always assumed you needed a machine for)! Three French people arrived late (maybe 20 - 30 minutes). Chef Giovanni proceeded to work with them to catch them up. After we were done with the pasta making, we were invited to go sit at the first table where we rested and snacked on local cheeses, cold cuts, olives and different breads. There were also water, red and white wine to drink. Whoever asked for other drinks got them with no problem. Soon it was time to make the pizza dough. Again we worked on making dough. Throughout the process Chef Giovanni would clearly explain the steps, answer every question we had, and walk around to individually check our work and help us. Once the dough was ready, it was sent to rest and rise. We were then given dough that had been prepared in advance (it takes hours to be ready) and Chef Giovanni instructed us on how to spread the dough with your hands and fingers to fit the plate you’ll use. Once ready, in small groups we were sent to the oven prep area, where we were free to put on our pizza whatever ingredients we wanted. If someone wanted special ingredients, they just asked and got them. At that point the pizza maker put the pizzas in the oven, and we went back to our table. We feasted on our self-prepared pizzas and the pasta that we had previously made. Drinks were also freely available. Delicious! At the end of our meal, we also got a certificate, fresh cannolis and limoncello to drink. My normally quiet and reserved teenage son was enthusiastic and had a blast. We all had a blast and will try to attempt this at home. Chef Giovanni is a great teacher! He gives attention to each student and is very patient. All 3 of us would do it again and we totally recommend the experience. After the class, you can visit the center of Taormina.

Delicious pizza, mediocre experience

Megan_R, Jul 2025

The class was very impersonal and didn’t really get into the technique of making pizza. We had taken an earlier cooking class during our trip that was far superior; this may have led to our disappointment with this particular class. At one point in time, we were left to sit at a table while the staff had lunch together. This class was definitely a tourist trap - not for someone looking for a local experience. But, I will say, my pizza was delicious.

Best experience- A Must!

wwmccuaig, Jun 2025

The best experience in our trip through Italy. It should be added as a cruise excursion. Our hosts were friendly helpful knowledgeable but most of all FUN! Even so many extras included we didn’t know about. Only downside was it didn’t include transportation to and from the port. Otherwise fantastic experience, can’t wait to get home to try what we learned.

9 ladies on tour

Kerry_V, May 2025

Excellent and fun experience, very relaxing and more included than we thought. Apron was special to takeaway and the food on top of pizza added to the experience. Excellent restaurant. The man taking the class was excellent

Bellissimo!

Paula_H, May 2025

This was a wonderful experience. We learned how to make several different shapes of pasta, drank wine then learned how to make a Sicilyn pizza, drank more wine and ate the pizza. Giovanni and his staff were amazing. The restaurant is charming and I highly recommend this experience.

An amazing night! Luca...

Matthew_C, May 2025

We had an amazing night making pizza, pasta, drinking wine and meeting new people! Luca and Francesca were great - would highly recommend 🍕🍷🤌🏻

Great pizza making

julie_c, May 2025

Staff was very knowledgeable and FriendLy. He was very informative. The small class size was awesome.

Best day un Taoromina

Peter_D, Apr 2025

This was the most fun we had in Taomina. The staff was fantastic, the food was phenomenal. Then we got to taste the pasta a d pizza we made

Fun fun and food!

Sam_D, Apr 2025

What a fun way to spend an evening! We made all different kinds of pasta, our own pizza, had food and drinks and lots of laughs! Luca and Mary were awesome instructors. So much fun and a great memory!

Perfect pasta and pizza class

Kimberly_M, Nov 2024

This was such a fun class! AND we learned so much! The chefs took time to help individually as needed and they explained thoroughly the how’s and the whys! We chose the pasta and pizza making, and I can’t wait to go home to make both! I have been struggling making my own pizza dough, but now I have confidence that I can impress everyone with my Italian dough skills!!

The experience was...

Evelina_H, Oct 2024

The experience was definitely worth it. The staff were very friendly and knowledgeable and explained every step and the end result was delicious. Each participant got an apron, a certificate and the recipe. Bonus part, we also made some fresh pasta which they cooked for us to try along with our pizzas.

Better than your typical shore excursion

Grace_S, Oct 2024

This was such a fun experience! The instructors were engaging and helpful. The end result was delicious too. I was especially pleased that my husband enjoyed it so much. A great surprise was the wonderful cannoli and limoncello sample, a prefect ending to a laughter-filled activity. We all left there with our souvenir aprons, certificates of completion, and a greater appreciation of paste and pizza making.

Fun activity!

Annicka_O, Oct 2024

We had a fun and interesting experience and Mauricio was a good instructor and had a great sense of humour. The pizza and the pasta we made was very tasty as well!