Relish Culinary Adventures stands out as the only “roving” culinary program that brings together talented chefs and fabulous cuisine at a variety of captivating wine country locations to create one-of-a-kind hands-on and demonstration cooking experiences. Based in Healdsburg, California, in the
heart of the Sonoma County wine country, Relish offers events on a wide range of topics from wine country cuisine to ethnic specialties, wine and spirits education to children's cooking workshops. In addition, Relish hosts events that bring people together in the kitchen such as private cooking parties and corporate team-building events.All events are entertaining, fun and delicious while
providing practical techniques, ideas and information that you can use
at home.
Some of our favorite Healdsburg area locations include stylish wineries, scenic vineyards, sustainable family farms, notable restaurants and beautiful private homes. Most recently, we opened the Relish Culinary Center in downtown Healdsburg, enabling Relish to offer a wider variety of events.
For each event, we thoughtfully match each location with a skilled chef and class theme, resulting in a unique “personality” for each event. Most classes include a full meal of the featured recipes (no skimpy tastes here) paired with excellent local wines specially selected for the menu.
Relish supports the bounty of local chefs,
farmers,
wine experts and food purveyors in Sonoma County from whom we build an impressive list of class
instructors. We pride ourselves in highlighting local and organic
ingredients whenever possible and encourage guests to support sustainable farms.
In addition to our scheduled cooking classes, Relish offers private
events for groups and businesses, organizes culinary tours, is a
responsive operator for tour groups, and sponsors chef demonstrations at
a variety of culinary events in Sonoma County including the Gravenstein Apple Fair and the Russian
River Food and Winefest.
To explore the level of interest in a local culinary education
program, Relish began offering cooking classes in 2003 at a variety of locations
in and around Healdsburg, including private homes, wineries, art galleries,
cafes and farms. The concept of the "roving" cooking school was so popular,
Relish purchased a 1952 Chevy Panel Truck to transport equipment to the wide variety of scenic and
memorable wine country locations where classes are offered. |
Donna del Rey created
Relish
Culinary School to share her passion for food and wine with
others. Her business background includes working for more than 20 years in various marketing
and business development roles for an industry-leading high tech company. An avid 'foodie' and adventurous home chef, Donna
hopes to inspire others. “A Relish event is so much more than a cooking class,"
says del Rey. "We combine fresh ingredients, a talented chef with
creative recipes, and a beautiful, unique location to create a convivial
culinary adventure that, hopefully, inspires you to be more adventurous
in your own kitchen." After
two decades in
the Bay Area business world, Donna and her husband Jim Morris, who is
the General Manager and Chief Evangelist at
Martin Family Winery,
have become a classic example of a food (Donna) and wine (Jim) pairing.
Janis
Frey is the Relish Culinary Manager, assisting chef-instructors with
ingredient purchasing, food preparation, class planning and execution,
in addition to leading classes herself. After graduating at the top of
her class from the Art Institute of Seattle's Culinary Arts Program,
Janis cooked at the Sooke Harbour House and the Art Institute of Seattle
before shifting gears to become an assistant instructor at the Blue
Ribbon Cooking School. Upon moving to Sonoma County in 2004, Janis
familiarized herself with local chefs and ingredients as the Assistant
Program Coordinator at Sur La Table in Santa Rosa before joining Relish
in 2005. Janis' husband Larry often mans the grill at Relish events.
With a B.B.S. (Bachelor of Barbeque Science) he is a master of cooking
en fuego.
Patty
Schroeder and Laura Mack share the title of Relish Office
Manager with responsibilities that include event planning and
coordination, registration management, and other activities critical to
the business.
Patty has worked
with a variety of food businesses and caterers in Sonoma County
including the Downtown Bakery in Healdsburg. When she's not working at
Relish, she's enjoying time with her two young sons.
Prior to working
with Relish, Laura held a variety of management roles at QUALCOMM in San
Diego. Upon moving to Sonoma County, she has become active in a number
of philanthropic projects including the Boys and Girls Club of
Cloverdale, the Cloverdale Arts Alliance, and the Girl Scouts.
About Our Chef-Instructors
