14 schools · Updated November 2026
We list 14 places in and around Washington that teach cooking to the public. The classes you'll find most often are baking, knife skills and French.
Of those, 7 host private parties, 4 teach kids and 5 run date-night classes.
A typical class costs $89 to $129 a person, going by the schools that publish prices.
The list is ordered by our quality score, so Chestnut Underground sits near the top with 5.0 stars from 212 Google reviews.
Ordered by our quality score. Ratings are from Google, with the review count beside each one.
Chef’s studio · Washington
Chestnut Underground is a Washington, DC personal chef and chocolatier that advertises cooking lessons, private dinner parties, and custom menus.
Kitchen store with classes · Alexandria, VA
King Street kitchen store with hands-on classes in groups of four, from $49
Kitchen store with classes · Arlington, VA
Pentagon Row kitchen store with hands-on classes cooked at four-person workstations
Cooking school · Washington
Tiny DC classes of four or five that teach home cooks technique, not just recipes
Kitchen store with classes · Washington
Hill's Kitchen is a gourmet cookware store in DC's Eastern Market run by two Michelin-trained chefs.
Cooking school · Washington
French and global classes, weekend kids baking, and Chopped-style team challenges
Cooking school · Arlington, VA
Ballston Quarter school with themed weeknights, kids' classes and team cook-offs
Chef’s studio · Washington
Latin American cooking classes in DC, from Peruvian to Argentine grilling
Chef’s studio · Alexandria, VA
Chef’s studio in Alexandria, VA.
Culinary college · Arlington, VA
Career culinary and pastry certificates in 4 or 6 months at Ballston Quarter
Cooking school · Washington
Italian cooking school in the DC area with two-hour classes and private events
Kids’ cooking school · Washington
Week-long DC cooking camp for teens 12 to 17, built around global cuisine
Cooking school · Washington
Seasonal, hands-on classes in a Woodley Park home kitchen with its own organic garden
Cooking school · Washington
Join Selfup for hands-on cooking classes, team building events, and private celebrations in Washington, DC.
These platforms book independent chefs into restaurants, wineries and rented kitchens around town. Handy for choice, but the chef and the venue change from class to class, so we list them apart from the schools above.
Pop-up class marketplace · Washington
Booking platform for D.C.-area chefs teaching pasta, sushi and global menus in their venues
4.9on Google, 786 reviewsBy our quality score (rating, number of reviews and how complete and current the listing is), the top 3 are Chestnut Underground (5.0 stars, 212 reviews), Sur La Table (4.7 stars, 680 reviews) and Sur La Table (4.7 stars, 500 reviews).
How we rank schoolsMost published prices start around $89 a person and go up to about $129. Multi-week courses and private events cost more.
Compare prices across WashingtonSur La Table, Sur La Table and FoodFirst Culinary School run couples’ or date-night classes.
All date-night classes in WashingtonYes. FoodFirst Culinary School, DC Cooking School and Cookology Culinary School teach kids or teens, and 4 schools in the area do in total.
All kids’ classes in Washington7 schools take private bookings for birthdays, team events and parties, including Sur La Table, Sur La Table and FoodFirst Culinary School.
Group and birthday classes in WashingtonMissing a school, or run one of these? Tell us and we’ll add or fix it, usually within a week.