Mattarello Cooking - Cucina Italiana 1295 University Avenue, San Diego, CA 92103

"I highly recommend the night time pasta class. Show up early if you want a private table. And don’t knead your dough too much (I made that mistake but my wife didn’t and her pasta was way better). The complimentary appetizer and dessert were also great!"

"This has been my favorite part of San Diego! The Asparagus Sausage fettuccine was divine and all the flavors blended really well. The Mascarpone & Crudo was equally delicious! The crispy prosciutto bits went amazing on top of the ravioli! We signed up for a cooking class so we got to eat the pasta we made. It was such an amazing experience!"

"I have had a lot of Italian food but this was some of the best. Take the cooking class and enjoy the fruits of your fun labor! I will definitely be coming back. Great for a date night or just a fun evening activity! Most cooking classes everyone eats the same thing. This is not most cooking classes, everyone gets to make their own pasta and have their own flavors!"

"Pasta making class was so much fun. We enjoyed chatting with our instructor and other people that attended the class as well. We learned a lot about pasta and also about one another. Once we finished making the pasta, they started cooking them and served us a three-course meal. Starting with the appetizer bread with ham, cheese, and green paste was tasty. The bread was warm and soft, and I enjoyed it a lot. The second course was our pasta. They came out in a hard texture, as the chef recommends. My partner liked it; I preferred soft texture. It’d be nice to have texture options for future guests. The carbonara was flavourful, and we recommend that. Spinach and Ricotta was just okay. The final course was dessert, and they were sweet and yummy. One thing that bothered me was the toilet. Maybe because the flushing isn’t good, I kept seeing other people’s stuff every time I enter. When you need to flush it, it takes 2-3 times to fully flush it through. Despite that, a little cleaner overall would be more pleasant."

"I'll start with a disclaimer - this is solely regarding dinner, not the cooking lessons that take place at this establishment. We sort of observed those lessons from the flank but were not involved. Anyway, we've been passing this fairly new addition to the area for a while and decided to try it out. Came in at 7 and were immediately seated by the attending server who was both the host and the waitress. She cheerfully informed us of the menu, gave us some water and let us know that alcohol is not served here but we were welcome to pop in the liquor store next door and get a bottle - no extra charge. What a bargain, we thought, so we did get one. The interior resembles a mess hall or a college cafeteria but not in a bad way. It creates a nice, welcoming mood. Food here is an interesting phenomenon. The word my wife used was "original". It is obvious that someone is trying hard to make it look and taste like restaurant food but one of the elements is missing. For example, the ravioli were very nicely presented, but their "skins" were chewy even though they were not thick. The carbonara was a mass held together by a slightly grainy sauce - very edible but definitely not restaurant level, kind of like something one would produce after watching a how to YouTube video. Similarly, the pear and gorgonzola salad was sort of placed together on the dish but the ingredients just had no common purpose, lacking that final professional touch. Thanks to the corkage-free wine though, everything went down well and I can't say it was bad. Dessert was an attempt at tiramisu - a small Mason jar with a few crumbs on the bottom, topped with sweetened whipped mascarpone. Again, it was eaten but tiramisu it was not. The fruit crumble was sweet and had sliced apples. That's all I can say about it. All in all this was a good experience and even though I wouldn't repeat it, I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to have an inexpensive dinner with an unmarked up wine of your choice :). I would stick to focaccia and antipasti and go for dessert to another place. This is definitely a restaurant that has its own place and public and I think it will continue to do well."