There’s no doubt that Italy is a feast for all the senses. And while Italy is chock-full of ancient monuments, iconic art, and diverse landscapes, it’s admittedly the food that I reminisce most about from my 7 years living in Italy and the food that keeps me returning again and again.
Italy’s culinary traditions are so celebrated that those cooking traditions and culture were awarded recognition on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list. It’s not specific recipes, but rather the culture of fresh and seasonal food and the traditions of both Sundays spent preparing and sitting down to enjoy that food together that earns Italian cooking its’ place on UNESCO’s list.
It’s the many hours spent having meals together. It’s the fact that Italians can spend an entire evening arguing over which pasta shape is best suited for a specific sauce. It’s the emotions that a memory of an Italian meal can evoke.
Matera is jaw-droppingly beautiful, but it’s salivating over the orecchiette alla Materana I had for lunch in a cave restaurant that brings all the memories of that trip from nearly 5 years ago rushing back as I recreate the dish in my own kitchen. Marveling at the ancient monuments in the Roman forum will never not take my breath away, but it’s rolling out pasta dough and making Roman sauces like cacio e pepe and amatricana from a cooking school overlooking Piazza Navona that is one of my favorite memories from all my trips to Rome.
And now, one of my very favorite memories from my countless trips to Tuscany will be my time spent with my fellow Italian food lovers as we learned to make homemade pici pasta, rustic meatballs and eggplant parmigiana with Italian nonnas and Cook in Tuscany owners, George and Linda Meyers.
Cook in Tuscany Culinary Holidays
Cook in Tuscany is the dream of Italian-Americans George and Linda Meyers, two high school sweethearts from New Orleans whose former careers ironically had nothing to do with food. George is a retired US Air Force pilot and Linda is a retired school teacher. But they both had a love for Tuscany and Italian food. They traveled there frequently – even bringing friends and family along and showing them the off-the-beaten-path gems they’d discovered on previous trips – before deciding to move to Tuscany in 2011 and open a cooking school.
They chose Montefollonico to set up their cooking school after falling in love with the idyllic hilltop town. The small village has 13th-century walls, castle gates and cobblestone streets, and it is just a 10 minute drive from popular and heavily visited Montepulciano. In fact, the stunning hilltop 1700-year old olive oil mill George and Linda restored into a luxury boutique hotel and cooking school even overlooks the Val d’Orcia and Montepulciano.
Cook in Tuscany offers 7 days/6 nights all-inclusive cooking holidays that include a daily cooking lesson, accommodation in their boutique hotel, all the food, and immersive excursions on which George and Linda personally join their guests for off-site activities like cheese-making, wine tasting and truffle hunting.
The cooks leading the daily cooking classes are George and Linda, and a team of local Italian nonnas. While not taught in culinary schools, these local women teach the recipes that have been passed down for generations and that they learned from their own Tuscan mothers and grandmothers.
With George playing DJ and a playlist that perfectly fits every step of every recipe, the cooking classes are casual and fun. There’s loads of laughter, dancing, and your fellow classmates quickly become friends you know you’ll keep in touch with for life.
We made recipes like pici pasta from scratch, starting from nothing but flour, water and La Chiusa’s own estate olive oil. We rolled the pici pasta by hand, learning the technique from the nonnas. We made mini meatballs with Linda’s secret ingredient. Abiding by Italy’s cooking traditions to be waste-free, we used old stale bread to make George’s favorite Tuscan bread soup: pappa al pomodoro. And it was a team effort from the battering and frying to layering to make possibly everyone’s favorite dish of the week: eggplant parmigiana.
After cooking, everyone sits down together to enjoy whatever we made that day in class. Every day is like traditional Sunday in Italy at Cook in Tuscany.
And each guest goes home with a recipe book of all the recipes cooked over the week, your own Cook in Tuscany apron that the nonnas will happily autograph, and memories you’ll cherish for a lifetime.
Ristorante La Chiusa
Ristorante La Chiusa is set in the former historic olive mill and the interior has stunning brick arches. When it is warm enough to dine outdoors in the summer months, dinner is served by candlelight on the hilltop terrace overlooking La Chiusa’s vineyard, the mountains and Montepulciano. The restaurant is open to all, no matter whether a guest of Agriturismo La Chiusa or if you’re just passing by.
Linda’s love of food inspires the menu, which is traditional Tuscan fare meets a lighter modern hand. Ristorante La Chiusa focuses on traditional Tuscan cuisine, and uses produce grown in their own gardens at Agriturismo La Chiusa, as well as ingredients sourced from local artisans.
Their own estate-pressed olive oil from La Chiusa’s own olive grove enhances every dish.
One bite and it is immediately clear why Ristorante La Chiusa Tuscany has been distinguished amount the top 10% of restaurants in the world.
I would have liked to order the entire menu, but you can’t come to Tuscany without having one quintessential Tuscan dish: the Bistecca Alla Fiorentina. So simply prepared, yet the thick cut T-bone is one of the best steaks you will ever eat in your life.
As with many traditional Italian foods, there are official guidelines that dictate standards that must be met in order for this steak to be called a Bistecca Alla Fiorentina. The cut must come from the prestigious Chianina cattle breed, weigh between 1.2 – 2 kilograms per steak, and must be 3 fingers thick (4-6 centimeters). And the thickness is, in fact, traditionally measured by fingers.
Even the preparation is regulated. The steak is brought to room temperature for 3-4 hours before cooking. No seasoning, marinades or oil are used before or during cooking. It is seared for 4-5 minutes per side using only tongs so as not to puncture the meat, salted just before removing it from the grill, and stands on its end for 3 minutes before serving. Bistecca Alla Fiorentina is traditionally served rare (al sangue in Italian) for a bright red and juice interior with a drizzle of olive oil.
It is a dish designed to be shared between two people…or when you’re newly single, between you and your dog. Coco was more than happy to help me polish off the 1.3 kilogram Bistecca Alla Fiorentina. And we even had a little left over that was kindly boxed up and tucked away in the mini fridge in our suite until breakfast the next morning.
At Ristorante La Chiusa, Bistecca Alla Fiorentina is served with a generous portion of seasonal sides. Though I didn’t order any starters or desserts with such a large main course, I didn’t feel like I was missing out on the menu offerings like pici pasta with ragù di Chianina or desserts since we had made versions of several dishes at Cook in Tuscany cooking school.
Agriturismo La Chiusa
You don’t have to be a guest of Cook in Tuscany’s all-inclusive culinary holidays to stay at Agriturismo La Chiusa, and you can even book individual cooking classes.
The hotel, restaurant, and cooking school is set in a historic olive oil mill dating back to 1353. The former olive oil mill has been transformed into a luxury boutique hotel, keeping historic character like the wooden beams and brick arches while giving guests all the modern comforts like air-conditioning and wifi.
There are 17 guests rooms and suites, all set inside the former stone walls of the olive oil mill. Each room is unique. All rooms have your own private entrance, a mini fridge, hand carved Tuscan furniture, air-conditioning and wifi.
The deluxe suites and superior rooms all have a bathroom that is like your own mini spa, with a hydromassage tub in every room. My suite also had a walk-in shower in addition to the hydromassage tub.
Breakfast is included for all guests, and is a buffet of Tuscan cakes, pastries, cheese, salumi, and hot dishes like eggs and bacon. There is a selection of juices and teas, and your choice of coffee like a cappuccino is made to order. You can enjoy breakfast inside the restaurant on cooler days or on the gorgeous terrace with a view of the mountains and Montepulciano.
There is a panoramic swimming pool overlooking the Val d’Orcia and the 300 year old olive trees in the olive grove. The pool is for guest use only, and open seasonally from May through October.
La Chiusa also has a 1.5 kilometer walking trail around their property, which leads you through their grove of olive trees, vineyard and has stunning Montepulciano and Montefollonico views. Coco and I enjoyed walking this trail at sunrise each morning, and there are signs posted along the way so you ensure you stay on the trail and avoid entering some of the bordering private properties.
You’ll love discovering the Instagrammable spots George and Linda has created like the chandelier hanging from a tree, the iconic Piaggio Ape hauling demijohns, and the picture frame perfectly framing the hilltop Montepulciano.
Agriturismo La Chiusa is exceptionally dog-friendly, and Coco was welcome throughout the entire property, with obviously the exception being inside the cooking school. Coco napped in our suite while I attended cooking classes, but then joined our group as we sat down for meals.
There is no pet fee or size restrictions at Agrturismo La Chiusa. Simply let them know when booking. I also appreciated that there was a pet waste disposal bin and waste bags in the garden.
Getting to Agriturismo La Chiusa
Agriturismo La Chiusa is located around 1.5 hours drive south of Florence. It is best to visit Agriturismo La Chiusa by car as the area around the Montepulciano countryside is not widely served by trains and public transportation. You can easily rent a car at Florence-Peretola Airport if arriving by flight or from train stations like Firenze Santa Maria Novella or Statzione di Siena. Both train stations have major car rental desks such as Sixt and Hertz.
Agriturismo La Chiusa can also arrange private transfers from the airport or train station to their estate.
No car is necessary if you book the all-inclusive Cook in Tuscany culinary holiday, as all transportation is included.
My trip to La Chiusa was in partnership with Cook in Tuscany in order to bring you this story. However, Luxe Adventure Traveler maintains full editorial control of the content published on this site. As always, all thoughts, opinions, and enthusiasm for travel are entirely my own. This article contains affiliate links. When you book on Expedia or DiscoverCars through my affiliate sites, I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
