Tortellini Class at Local's Home in Bologna

Tortellini takes three hours to master, and you eat it the same afternoon.

A small-group tortellini-making class held in a local cook's home in Bologna, where you learn to shape the city's most iconic pasta by hand. You knead the dough, stretch it thin, fill it with local ingredients, and cook your batch. Lunch or dinner follows at the same table, with wine, water, dessert and espresso included.

The experience

The class starts in a Bolognese home where a Cesarine (a member of Italy's network of home cooks trained by their own mothers and grandmothers) walks you through each step of tortellini-making. You begin by making an egg "fontana" in a mound of flour, then knead the dough until it's elastic enough to stretch almost transparent. The filling comes together with local ingredients you'll recognize. Wine flows while you work, and the other people in the small group become quick acquaintances as hands move around the same table.

Once your tortellini are ready, you sit down to eat them. The meal is Italian-style: the pasta you made, a selection of local wines, water and an aperitif with nibbles and prosecco to start, then tiramisù and espresso to close. Nothing is rushed. You taste the work of your own hands in the place where it was made.

What’s included

• Instruction in tortellini-making from a trained Cesarine guide.
• the fresh pasta you make.
• lunch or dinner (your choice at checkout).
• local wine and water.
• aperitif with nibbles and prosecco.
• tiramisù.
• espresso.
• live guide in English or Italian.

Options for this experience

2 options

Small group class with lunchGuide in English or Italian · 10:00Lunch

Class in a small group with dinnerGuide in English or Italian · 17:00Dinner

You pick the guide language when booking.

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 10:00 and 17:00

Book up to10h before

AgesAdult (9 and older) · Child (4 to 8 years) · Infant (under 4): free

GroupUp to 10 · max 8 per booking

Live guideEnglish and Italian

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Pets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Cesarine: Cooking Class

Is this one for you?Book the lunch option if you're in Bologna in the early part of the day. Choose dinner if you're settling in for the evening. Either way, you're spending three hours in one place with one skill, so you leave knowing how to make tortellini, not just having watched someone else do it.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and Italian.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (4 to 8 years); Infant (under 4): free.

What exactly do I learn to make in this class?

Tortellini, Bologna's signature tiny handmade pasta. You learn to knead the dough, stretch it thin enough to see through, fill each piece with local ingredients, and shape them into the traditional form. The class focuses on this single pasta so you leave knowing how to make it properly.

Do I need cooking experience to join?

No. The Cesarine guide you with each step, from the egg "fontana" through to the final fold. The class is built for people who want to learn, not for people who already know how.

What's included in the meal after the class?

You eat the tortellini you've made, served with local wine, water, an aperitif with nibbles and prosecco at the start, tiramisù for dessert, and espresso at the end. You choose lunch or dinner when you book.

Where does the class take place?

In a local cook's home in Bologna. The Cesarine host the class in their own kitchens, so you're cooking and eating in a real Bolognese household, not a commercial kitchen or studio.

How many people are in the group?

It's a small group, which keeps the pace manageable and gives the guide time to watch your hands and correct your technique. You'll work alongside other travelers, not alone.