ChefShop.com

Can't remember which unique item I was searching for when I first found the ChefShop website. I do know that if I lived near the storefront, I'd probably spend way too much time there. The website is very informative and easy to navigate to find the specialty items I need for certain recipes and can't find elsewhere, or a special treat. Prices are as expected and often lower than other online specialty stores, especially when you consider their reasonable shipping. Customer service communcation has been excellent. It is a site I trust and I enjoy shopping there.

Foodies of Seattle rejoice!! Every ingredient or staple you need, from all parts of the world, are here! Hard to find, unique, tasty! Sign up for their newsletter...there's too much you can learn, and add to your Wish or Must-Make List. Just too much to mention here. Oh, the chocolate options are amazing!! Be the best gift-giver in your friend circle or family; gifts from Chefshop win every time!!

The secret to my coffee is Chefshop's cocoa. I've been buying it for more than a decade because it's consistently rich, powdery-fresh and delicious. That's nothing compared to their fresh cherries! They offer several varieties and ship as the trees yield their fruit. But my annual purchase of those orchard-grown, organic cherries are nothing compared to Chefshop's service. Do you remember when cocoa became a bit scarce? Chefshop shipped a small amount of my order to keep me going while they waited for their big shipment to arrive. They took the few pallets they had and shipped a couple of bags to customers. They wanted to help ease the pain of waiting for the backorder. This week the shipping carrier had a delivery failure and held my overnight order of cherries - my once-a-year treat - in a hot warehouse until the following day. Chefshop's Sharon overnighted a new order of cherries to me and I got to taste the cherries at their peak. The cherries were still cool when I opened the box. So, the carrier failed to deliver but Sharon and Chefshop came through! I've trust them because they consistently consider their customers and they offer the coolest products (Beluga lentils anyone? How about Italian panettone or French chocolate cherries with Armagnac?). It's refreshing to shop where they care about our feelings and experiences. I wish every company was like this. Thanks Sharon, for representing Chefshop in its best light and for encouraging me to feel even better about buying from Chefshop!

Very cool store. My first time here. They have a lot of cool stuff that are not available anywhere else. Could be pricy though...

I don’t recommend this shop. If you’re looking for quality gourmet food items, I recommend Big John’s PFI. While browsing, I found several expired items and many items expiring in the next month or two. That speaks to slow turnover of the products. Also, the pricing system is very disorganized and lazy. A few items have prices, some items are included on print outs hanging from the shelves (all noted to ask about the price because it frequently changes), and half of the items you have to ask directly for the price. It seems like a hobby shop for the owner, and it’s not for people truly interested in food.

Nice chef store with large variety specialty vinagers.

Walking in, the shop is tidy and organized. The employees are helpful, friendly, and cheerful. If there is a cooking class in session, the store is closed, which I wasn't aware of on my first walk-in visit. Made me sad, because I needed an ingredient that day, but oh well. Went in and I was cheerfully greeted. She asked if I needed anything, and helped me find it. Let me look around on my own, and see what was there, without pestering me about what I needed, just told me her name was Megan, and that she was happy to help me out. She offered me a drink, told me I got a discount because I am a culinary student (10%!) and told me about this awesome new Olive Oil they're getting in from Greece, which she thought I should try (and it was amazing, I'll be back to get some once that shipment comes in!). Overall, an awesome experience. Great for specialty products that you can't find in restaurant supply stores, or grocery stores. They work directly with a lot of producers, and many local farmers and butchers, which I think is just great. What a wonderful store.

This little specialty food shop is nestled among some nearby urban gems—a bakery, wine shop, brewery, upscale diner, a waterfront park…— it’s a great area to spend a late morning or afternoon. I discovered the shop while exploring here. Stepping through the door is like having several different countries and cultures suddenly at your fingertips. The newsletter is written in a warm, inviting tone with a love of food that keeps me looking forward to its stories and stopping in for ingredients from recipes shared there.

I got some shiitake mushroom powder and a bottle of John Dory fish stock from the ChefShop and made miso soup with it and wow it added such deep and delicious flavors. It's the best tasting miso soup that I've had hands down. I added kelp, garlic, shiitake mushroom powder, fish stock, miso paste and tofu. The miso soup was 10/10. While there I also picked up 0.5 gallon of rice bran oil for cooking and gourmet marshmallows from France. Can't wait to try tomorrow with Cinco de Mayo treats! I love perusing their unique international ingredients that are uncommon. I've also purchased cooking oils and spices from there previously and it was all quality stuff. Friendly & welcoming, highly recommend especially if you're looking for hard to find ingredients.

This is a great little shop filled with tons of specialty items and high quality ingredients for your next meal. It is the perfect place if you are a serious foodie or chef! They have every spice you can imagine and lots of gourmet condiments too. The owner is friendly and they send out a very lengthy e-mail every week highlighting some of their products and providing recipes to try. The first time I came was for a fun tasting event where we got to sample some of their Mediterranean herbs and spices used on hummus. The next time I came here was for a Too Goo to Go pickup where they had a special recipe surprise bag. It came with the recipe and some of the ingredients needed to make a pasta dinner. They regularly have pickups available on Too Good to Go so that's a great way to try some of their products at a discount. The only drawback here is that the prices can be a bit steep, and sometimes items are not priced clearly so you might need to ask.

So much good stuff. Outstanding customer service. Your online order is packaged like a priceless treasure. Even their emails are welcomed.

Right now my mouth is salivating, as I think about those huge, juicy cherries that Chefshop shipped to me from the orchard where they grew! Yes, I bought cherries from big box stores and supermarkets during season. I used to think they were great, but now Chefshop and Stennes' Family Farms ruined that for me. Still, I have no regrets! It's like buying supermarket tomatoes and liking them until you taste a homegrown tomato. From that point on, the experience of eating store-bought is ruined! It wasn't even the 1 inch size of the fruit or the beautiful dark red color of the cherries. It was the burst of cherry flavor! It was the pop of biting through the fruit's skin. It was everything. Here I sit, enjoying my coffee with cocoa from Chefshop so it's not like I depend on them for only one thing. I buy cocoa from them and, for years, they've consistently delivered their finely ground cocoa powder - without damage, ever. I've since learned about and purchased black quinoa (nutty and delicious), red quinoa (nearly sweet and great mixed with amaranth for breakfast!), cranberry beans (we're growing plants after taking a few soaked beans prepared for a recipe!) and Madeleine green and petite black lentils. Through the years, I've purchased my favorite, Sun Brands' Madras curry powder, and a variety of hard to find delicacies. Still, my mind keeps wandering back to those Lapin cherries. I tried to get the Sweetheart cherries that ripen after the Lapin, but I was too late. Next year, you can be sure I'll order more. Especially now that I know about cherry varieties beyond Rainier (WAS my favorite but now it's a toss up) and Bing! Yes, you can buy cheaper cherries but you'll shortchange yourself on flavor and quality. That's what I learned! Special shout out to Drew T., who alerted me to a shortage of lentils in a recent order and reduced my shipping fee to apologize. Not only do they pack each order to deliver every package without damage, they are courteous from the front of the house to the back! Ok, the only thing I love more than the cherries and product diversity is their culture!

They stock a very hard to find Demi glacé product that I am thrilled to have in my pantry again. Fantastic customer service and follow-up. I left a message after hours to add to my previous days order and received a follow-up call first thing the next morning. My updated order shipped that same morning. I'm a new loyal customer.

I have been a fan of ChefShop for a long time but will NEVER go there again. I was able to look past their pretentious lack of price labeling and horrible location because of the hard-to-find specialty ingredients, particularly the Italian cocoa. Today I went in there and was barely greeted with a cold and unsmiling, "hello" from the shorthaired older woman with glasses behind the counter. The store was not busy and after circling it a couple times she finally asked in an almost irritated tone if I knew what I was looking for (a weird question in and of itself). When I asked if they have the Italian cocoa she rudely replied, "You mean the ChefShop one that we're out of?" When I said yes, she said, "hopefully we'll have it next week" and turned and walked off. WTF?! No, "I'm sorry, we're out of that right now", just a snotty attitude as if I should have known they were out of it. Why would I have made the trip there if I knew it was "the one they're out of"? There is no excuse to treat people so badly, let alone a customer. You never know what a person is going through, a little basic kindness can go a long way. I was not rude to her; I was happy to be at my favorite gourmet shop at a really low point and greeted her with a smile when I walked in. I left there feeling worse than ever. So much for turning to baking to put me in a happier place. That horrible woman made me wished I'd stayed curled up depressed in my bed all day.

It's kind of like an old-fashioned general store--but for people with lots of gold. The old fashioned charm of the interior is undeniable. The old wood floor and the old fashioned wooden retail cabinets and shelving make this a very warm and inviting place. Of course, all the specialty foods don't hurt either. And that's this place's real appeal. An all-in-one place collection of speciality foods that can be hard to find. In fact, ChefShop specializes in hard-to-find items. Need La Vecchia Dispansa 100-YR Balsamic? Mexican Coffee Blossom Honey? Tasmanian Leatherwood Honey? Mangalitsa Pig Leaf Lard? Edible Moroccan Pink Rose Buds? Pianogrillo Extra Virgin Italian Olive Oil from Sicily? Acetoria Tomato Vinegar? Dried hawthorne berries? Or any one or more of hundreds of other speciality items all in one place? Then, ChefShop is the stop for you. The staff is friendly and helpful. Many things are available for sampling before purchase. And looking around here is just plain fun, even if you only came in for that one odd ingredient that no one else carries. But, hold on to your wallet because that sucking sound is the cash leaving it as you pay for your discoveries. Can't be beat, as long as you have the money.

We went to a holiday appetizer class and while the food was fairly basic it was tasty. We felt bad for the chef as the shop owner talked over her time and time again and the class wasn't really about the cooking. We didn't get to actually learn any cooking tips and the whole "class" seemed to be centered around selling products from the store. The class started late, ran very long and you didn't try things along the way, they waited until the end to put food out to try. Many people had to leave quickly because of the time. I don't think we'll be back for another class but if you're looking for unique spices, oils, vinegar, etc they have a good selection.

Saw this store driving by and we're excited to go in. We thought there were several food items we wanted to buy. However the owners believe that putting prices on any of there products is not necessary!! So if you want to buy something you have to take the product off the shelf, go to the counter stand in line and then ask for a price check. We did this 2 times and lost patience. The counter employee even said everyone complained but the owners won't change. If you want people to buy something they need to know the prices. If your not in business to sell close the damn store. We left refusing to buy anything due to this asinine policy.

CAREFUL!! Their stuff has MOLD in it !!! Health hazard! Bought some goodies from this place and it was full of mold. I had opened the package partially to eat at the brewery (Holy Mountain) next door and found mold in it. I walked back to the ChefShop to tell the lady at the desk that there was mold in it. She confidently said that that's how it's supposed to look, it's sugar sprinkled on top. So I came back to the brewery and opened the whole package to share with my friends only to find that it was full of mold. I went back to the shop and returned it. It's appalling how the lady at the desk completely dismissed me when I went the first time. She didn't even bother checking it. If I hadn't noticed it I would have eaten it !

I ordered on 11/14/21.... then no word for a week. So I called, and I called, and I called. This would have been my 3rd order but there are to many companies that want my business, so goodbye ChefShop. A great idea requires good customer service & that is not what I received. The lack of communication has disrupted my holiday plans & that is not acceptable. Even when I called, D.... did not seem to care & did nothing to retain the account. So sad. JJ

There are some places that I just cannot sing enough praises. This place is definitely one of them! A couple of my friends and I gathered for a cooking class for something like "Farmer's Market cooking" or something like that awhile ago. This review is so late but it should speak volumes how strongly I still feel about that experience! At the time, I really didn't know what I was walking into. To be honest, it didn't feel particularly promising when I got to the location... Fortunately, as the night progressed, I made more and more of a mental note to come back. It was so much fun! I'm cheap so I'm hard-pressed to wanna spend money on most things that seem frivolous... This class (which I bought on Groupon) certainly seemed, at first, to fall under that category. But for the price you pay, you get wine, a cooking class, a meal and you get to discover this wonderful treasure trove of a place for cooks. It was totally worth every penny! I think it helps that I subscribe to the same philosophy they do when it comes to cooking -- that the American diet focuses a little too heavily on either salt or sugar, and that we'd do well to get away from that. We almost forget what vegetables taste like. The teacher focused on how you want to use high quality, seasonal and local produce and season those things with minimal, high quality ingredients. She did just that and I honestly had never been happier with cooking class food as I was here. And to think, I'm frequently very skeptical of cooking classes because I think I was born with a (potentially unjustified) superiority complex when it comes to cooking... After dinner, I naturally gravitated towards picking up some amazing things here. Morrocan olive oil which I didn't know existed but which was amazingly -- dare I say it? -- buttery. Vanilla bean paste that worked beautifully in many baked goods. Basically drinkable red wine vinegar. My wallet hurt after my mini-shopping spree, but whoever said money can't buy you happiness was totally wrong. I was so happy and inspired after my experience here and after my purchases. But my wallet did hurt just enough that i realized how dangerous this place is and even though I made a note to comr back, it's been a couple years... Either way, highly recommend this for cooks -- both professionals and otherwise!

Bought a voucher for this class originally thinking it was hands on instead of a presentation. Semi disappointed because I love to cook and was prepared to. I shouldn't have assumed. That's ok. Once a friend and I arrived, we were greeted with appetizers and wine. There were 12 or so seats in a semi circle around the demo table with a clipboard and recipes attached. The owner introduced herself and the staff including the chef once everyone arrived. It was polite they waited for everyone confirmed on the list for as long as they could past the hour. We then got a mini lesson on how the store started and the type of products they sell. The owner had a few "lectures" for us throughout the demo but we only got two lectures because the owner had to leave. Wish she could have stayed, she's very knowledgable and I enjoyed diving deeper into topics such as kosher salt and olive oil. We covered four recipes in three hours. Chef was setup at a demo table with burners and a convection oven. They mentioned there's a real kitchen in the back but for demos, they setup mid-store. The downside to this was we were sitting for three hours while everything cooked. In order to get desired textures and flavor depths it required a longer cook time. Chef mentioned it takes longer to cook on burners they had (both cooked at different rates) and the convection oven burned the top rack of desserts. While it was great to discuss the recipes this much in depth, I felt there were different skill levels in the class and ultimately it was a little slow for my pace because I've been cooking since I was a little bub. The recipes were a very basic way to showcase such beautiful vegetables. Would have liked something a little bit more complicated in technique. When everything was done cooking they presented the dishes well and everyone lined up to eat. Dinner was served at 9:15pm. A little late in my books. I would rate the food 3 stars except one dish which I'd give 4 stars. I felt three of the four dishes were underseasoned/lacked flavor. I was expecting more flavor from cooking for 3 hours. They also made the dessert from a different chocolate than the recipe said since they were out. I did really enjoy the different textures each dish had to offer. I did feel like the entire class was a sales pitch for their products though. Each time they would add an ingredient to the dish, they would ask one of the staff to find the bottle and wave it around then put it on a display table. It's helpful to see what the product looks like, but each product was waved around at the group to indicate what was used and why it's the best. Overall, this class was good but I'm not sure I can sit for three hours and watch a cooking demo if there isn't more of a high level conversation going on about food (aka the owners lectures- mix of detail, chemistry, chemical reactions, etc.). Even at home, I flip channels back and forth through cooking shows and research different foods at the same time to maximize learning. They have an awesome stock of items but nothing has a price tag on it. It'd be nice to know how much items cost instead of asking individually or bringing everything I may want to the counter to find a price. I may be back to purchase a few of the unique and high quality items. Ps. Parking is tight. It took me almost 8 minutes and a 50 point turn to get out of the space.

We were looking for drinking vinegars. Yes, I said drinking Vinegars, stop laughing. We went to Pok Pok in Portland a few weeks ago and they had a bunch of homemade versions on the menu. It's basically fruit, macerated in Rice Vinegar for several days with sugar added and then mixed with seltzer. Excellent with Thai food. By coincidence there was an article in the NY Times about something called Raspberry Shrub which turns out to be drinking. Anyway, lots of googling later we found out that there are several commercial vinegars that are used for drinking which led us to Chef Shop where I haven't been in a long time. The store is very nicely laid out, almost like a real world version of their catalog. It looks like an elegant pantry with lots of amazing looking foods like pasta, condiments and drinking vinegar. Almost all of it is available to sample, or they'll grab a similiar product if the product you want to sample can't be opened. A really nice guy came out of the back and at first he looked like we'd probably interrupted his packing orders for shipment. But he knew what we were talking about and grabbed us 5 bottles to sample. He treated it almost like a wine tasting and answered all of our questions. We opted for an Apple Balsmaic, a honey, honeydew and raspberry vinegar. The Apple Balsamic has a fresh taste like hard cider. Anyway, the point is, aside from being a great website this is an often overlooked local resource when you're not looking for the crowds at place De Laurentis, or Big Johns, but want some reasonably priced gourmet treats.

Here's Five Reasons to visit The Chefshop.com in the flesh. 1. It is a respected, well known, online retailer open to the public Mon-Fri, 10-4:50 & 1st Sat of the month (afaik, call before you go to get their schedule) 2. You may meet Tim (Owner) or any of the helpful staff and get tips / howto's for what you buy or what is particularly amazing and should buy! 3. You can try pretty much everything in the store! 4. You don't pay shipping & handling! 5. They remember you and what you like and let you in on wonderful new stuff! They also have periodic foodie events which I manage to miss from time to time. (subscribe to their newsletter!) I'm just asking... why hasn't this place been reviewed?

A wide range of unusual and delicious products for the home cook or professional chef. A true gourmet shop with incredibly good customer support. Highly recommended.

Purchased a Groupon for a 2.5 hour cooking class for two. A girlfriend and I signed up for the "Cooking the Farmers Market" with Chef Pam and it was one of the BEST cooking classes we've EVER taken! I loved how they educated you about the ingredients, down to the oils and spices. We didn't get to "hands on" cook the items but I was so busy taking notes I didn't mind! The instructor (Pam) and the gal who runs the shop (Elise?) were excellent about explaining and educating! Would be thrilled to go to another cooking class here and am looking at their "in home" cooking class option! Chef Shop is so good about letting you taste things before you buy them. They have a full tasting bar where you can sample the oils and vinegars, and the knowledge that you'll walk out the door with is INVALUABLE!

Ugh. Fine place, whatever. Cooking class? Paying for a demo and some snacks... Not one's money's worth. Make sure to ask to sample some of these - high end - advertised products, at least one can make an educated decision to purchase.

Went to a Moroccan cooking class here and it was great! It wasn't hands on but I wasn't bored. There was a lot of information given about different ingredients and giving alternatives was also helpful for some of the hard to find items. It wasn't the best set up because the people who got there later were stuck sitting on stools without a back that would have been uncomfortable to sit like that for the 2-3 hour class. The store was great there were a lot of ingredients you couldn't find elsewhere I found hazelnut flower! Prices were reasonable on most items, but the negative was the prices were not on the shelves or packages for most items so you had to scan QR code to get to a section of their website via your smartphone then try to find the item. There is free parking available and a good description of how to find it on their website.

I want to warn people that the cooking "classes" are actually cooking demonstrations. So you will not be doing any hands on learning. I have taken actual cooking classes so this was not what I was expecting, and I was disappointed. The owner seems quite knowledgeable about ingredients but between that discussion and an obnoxiously loud attendee, the chef doing the demo had a hard time getting a word in edgewise about the actual cooking techniques.

We happened upon this place during one of our walks. Stopping in I was impressed with the range of pantry ingredients available in the shop. The woman who helped (Maria) us was knowledgeable and gave good guidance as well as allowing us to taste a number of items we were interested in. While we were checking out I noticed the flyer on the classes and signed both my husband I for a Moroccan cooking class. I am a fairly serious home cook and have taken a number of classes in a number of cities. I have to say, I like the format at ChefShop. We were highly appreciative of the deep knowledge Eliza (owner) was able to share with us during the demo. Chef Erin Coopey was excellent in her explanations and techniques. We were able to taste many types of oils, salts and harissa which we found valuable. I was able to replicate the menu Erin Coopey demonstrated at home the next week. So many times I have been to classes where the recipes are so complicated that you never end up making the recipe but that is not the case here. We took a second class on cooking with Bitters. It is based on a book that Chef Erin Coopey wrote and my husband and I were really impressed with this class. I would say we liked this one even more than the Moroccan class from a pure learning of ingredients and techniques on how to infuse flavors that we have never considered. Coming to ChefShop has driven home to me the importance of the quality of the ingredients you use in your cooking to gain maximum taste and health benefits. Eliza so carefully curates her product from quality growers and we get the benefit of her many years of experience. Being new to Seattle, we are so happy to have found ChefShop and look forward to all the seasonal and new products they have to offer.

I have rarely had a more unpleasent expirence than I did today when I walked into chef shop. I had purchased a pressure cooker at this shop in 1999. I was looking for cookware. The clerk working in the store insisted that they never sold machines. I expalined that I was not speaking about a machine but an old style pressure cooker. She became adamant that a pressure cooker was a machine and turned and walked into the back room. I looked around for a few minutes. She returned to the room did not address me. I left very dissatisfiied. It was at all a welcoming enviornment. I do not recommend this store at all.

This is a nice place to visit to pick up hard to find and exceptional ingredients. I stopped in for a cooking class. It was a little different than I was imagining. It's more like a live cooking show using fairly basic technique that cooking nooblets can take on and do themselves. Think of this as a protip session from cheftypes that actually cook for a living. You can watch them do their thing. You can ask questions. They pimp their products pretty hard, but they're good products. I left with some french mustard, some cool spicy tomato paste, and a luxurious balsamic after picking up a few tips and eating a nice dinner with some amicable wine during my visit.

It is so hard to write a review about this place and score it. I feel like I kinda enjoyed my time here, yet I have some big criticisms towards how the cooking class was handled. Thus, I am torn between giving it three stars or five. We got a deal on Groupon and were able to book two spots for the next day (the classes are held every Wednesday and Thursday, It is 85 per person, but with the Groupon deal came down to thirty something) and each week, they teach a different cuisine. This week, the theme was Mexican. We were told to arrive 15 minutes early to enjoy the appetizer and drinks. We got there on time and were greeted warmly by the owner of the place (Eliza), had some drinks and then the class started. It was a small cozy setting, the students ( a total of 12) sat in front of the chef as she explained each dish while cooking it. The downsides were that I could not see what was going on in each pot and pan and had to rely on her explanations only. There were no hands-on which is understandable considering the price is a little bit lower than other places, but my big issue was that the owner would talk about the importance of the ingredients that are used in each dish and she would spend so much time talking about them that the chef was left with but minimal time to talk about the cooking steps; as a result, for the most part, I was flustered and could not follow through. I wish the owner would leave the discussion about the ingredients for those who were interested in that and let the chef talk in more detail about the dishes she was preparing. I felt like the whole point of talking so much about the ingredients was to talk the students into buying those items from the store. It took the chef (Erin) 2 hours to prepare a salad ( Ensalada de Nopales Asados), Yellow rice, some sort of fish, beans as well as an ice cream. Here is the good part. Those dishes were amazing. They were amazingly flavorful, but not too spicy and hot. She had an amazing skill in using the spices in the dishes in the most perfect way. She cooked to perfection. We also ended up buying some of the ingredients used in the dishes. Here is my final verdict. I loved the shop, it was a fun cozy place, I loved the dishes prepared by Erin. But did not love the class. It did not meet my expectations of a cooking class, but more of an ingredient mastership which was not my focus. Would I go back? Hmmm, I might...

Do you cook? You do cook. I cook. I'm fairly good. At least, I thought I was until I discovered www.chefshop.com. You can't be good without the best stuff (ingredients and such) with which to cook. This place. has. the. best. ingredients for cooks. period. It's amazing. In addition the Pralus Chocolate pyramids (uh, yea, with tasting notes), they have sipping vinegar, incredible salts, spices and fresh offerings. In addition to interesting and different foods from around the world each offering includes recommendations and stories about how to use the item. I've developed new favorites by trying the suggestions on the website. Their monthly e-letter highlights a new offering, some delectable oil, an organic bean, chocolate that makes you want to, well, you know. I can't recommend them enough. I have shopped with Chefshop for years now and have never come away less than totally satisfied with their offerings. Amazing. Really. Besides the incredible food their service is impeccable. I have split shipped, canceled, changed and otherwise tested their customer service in a variety of ways. I always get a person on the phone and I'm always happy when the conversation ends. Really. Amazing.

Had such a FUN time at a French cooking class with Erin Coopey, making chocolate mouse, a rice pilaf, a to die-for truffled potato soup, and poulet a la moutarde (mustard chicken). The staff were so generous with information about ingredients and it was lovely to watch Chef Erin at work. We were also treated to an olive oil tasting. I learned a lot and now have a new place to go to find unique premium cooking ingredients.

My wife and I have been to several cooking classes over the years and the experience was satisfying, even though the main theme was to push the products they sell. However, visits to the shop have been far less rewarding. First of all there are no prices on the products. Second, many of the products can be purchased at other stores, Asian, or even at Metropolitan Market, Third, my last visit on Friday 3/9 ended with me walking out and leaving my shopping behind. First I patiently waited until the lady (elderly) behind the counter had a long chat with a female customer and then told that customer she would find a free sample of sorts for her, This ended with me waiting there for many long minutes while they sauntered around the shop and I finally walked out. I have decided not to go there again. Ever. Except (maybe) for another cooking class.

I had the pleasure of taking my first cooking class here last night with Chef Erin cooking greek food. What a fun time! Erin was entertaining and enjoyable to watch cook. She explained what she was doing and gave us pointers. We even made dolmades! After we feasted on delicious food. Eliza also gave us valuable information on the products she carries in the stores. As someone who is starting to eat clean, knowing the ingredients and origin really helps. I found the store to be charming and it carries many special items. I do think the pricing should be on the shelves as others have pointed out, but I am not above asking. I will be going back for more classes.

Sign up for a class with Karen. She is so funny and informative! I went to the Mediterranean cooking class last night, and it was so much fun. I learned so much more about good olive oil and salts. I didn't realize how much a basic ingredient can have such a big impact on a dish. Karen walks you through each dish with tips and tricks, and why she picks each ingredient she does. I also love everything for sale in the shop. I could easily spend my next pay check there. Cant wait for my next class!

Had a great time at our first cooking demo class with Chef Pam. I must admit that I thought this would be more hands-on, but I did enjoy it nonetheless. Sometimes you gain just as much knowledge watching as you do doing. The shop itself was also surprisingly smaller than I expected, and I was also hoping they would sell knifes and other gadgets considering the name "chefshop". Once again though, as I learned what their mission was for the business I gained even more appreciation for the goods that they were selling. The staff and the store owners are very nice and EXTREMELY knowledgeable about their products. Very very impressed. This store will be visited for many times to come!

Great products, but be aware that if you order them online, they'll come surrounded by acres of non-biodegradable styrofoam packing peanuts. I was looking forward to cooking with my new ingredients, but immediately regretted the purchase after looking inside the box. Hard to enjoy cooking with this stuff knowing that for my little pleasure, it's going to be leaching toxins into the environment for 500 years. I won't order again until Chefshop announces a more sustainable shipping policy.

I picked up a panettone I had pre-ordered (you can have anything you buy from this shop shipped if you want, though) during my lunch hour, and was happy with their Covid safety measures. The staff were all masked, hand sanitizer was available, and sanitized pens were provided for signing at checkout. I asked for some recommendations for hot chocolate products as well as a stocking stuffer theme I had in mind, and the person who helped me was knowledgeable and friendly. They had a wide selection, and I quickly found what I needed.

I stopped in to Chef Shop on the suggestion of a friend. I had an Italian recipe in hand and decided to check them out. The owner greeted me at the door and quickly found all the items I needed - with an insightful story or explanation behind each one. When it was time to pick out olive oil, she allowed me to sample several and told me about the pros and cons of each one. These people are very knowledgeable about their products, they are passionate about quality, and they are customer-service oriented. I will definitely return in the future.

One of the most informative and useful cooking classes I've ever attended, combined with beautiful, high-quality hard to find ingredients in the store. 5 stars for sure. Took a class with Chef Karen, and I don't think I will ever take a class with anyone else again! While the recipes were practical, easy to follow and quite delicious, she also did a ton of educating about ingredients and gave super useful kitchen skills from chopping to knife handling to knife sharpening to interesting uses for parts of the food that we don't normally use like rinds and stems. BUT the ingredients were really the main focus, and it was taught in an entertaining and educational way that made sense and helped us learn. she also talked about food waste and how we can do a better job eliminating wastefulness, leaving less of a carbon footprint, and saving thousands of dollars annually. Both Karen and eliza (chefshop owner) did an incredible job of not just focusing on the ingredients but educating the class on what to use, how to look for things and why certain foods/brands are not just important for cooking but for health. they explained polyphenols and Omegas and which foods don't have a long shelf life and how to find out and all sorts of things like that. it was a lot of information but taught in a way that was easy to remember. shopping at that store is a treat in and of itself, which you get to do after the class for a discounted price. i'm already planning my next visit there.

Just made my Mediterranean fish with chic pea sauce. Oh so good. And enough sauce to do a chicken redo. Yummy

Love the tidbits you can buy here. Some recent purchases: honey (so many to choose from), caramel sauce, licorice, olive oil. Love this place. Will shop online until they reopen after Covid.

I used to shop here often until they raised the flat shipping fees. They carry so many unique and high quality items, which have made great gifts over the years. And many items, believe it or not, are not easily found even in Los Angeles. I love their descriptions, newsletters which gives you an intimate relationship with your food. I searched far and wide for bucatini, squid ink pasta, Israeli couscous...and ended up ordering it from ChefShop in spite of the steep shipping fee. If I lived in Seattle, I'd be a regular.

ChefShop are very quick to send goods and also quick to communicate. They have great customer service and great quality product.

ChefShop is a great place to find new pantry items. The service is outstanding and informative. My husband and I are excited to try the things we found. You'll spend a pretty penny shopping here, but you'll also have quality products. I'll be back.

I needed some chili powders and ordered them on Amazon, to be shipped by ChefShop. Well, they called me and sold me they are in Seattle, so why not come by myself and pick them up? I did that and bought my chili powders. While I was there I was talking to one of the clerks and found out we had just made the same recipe off of Chow.com. They are very friendly and helpful. I really enjoyed my time there and will visit again. The chili powder comes in nice, re-seal-able packages, so I don't have to put them into a sealed container.

Better to shop online. They don't care about posting the actual prices in the store, so it's a total waste of your time and completely confusing to shop in person. They expect you to scan in some QR type codes on your smartphone, which brings you to their webpage, where you can SEARCH for the item to find out how much an item costs. While you are IN THE STORE. Either be an online shop, or a retail shop, but don't make your customers work extra because you're too lazy to post actual prices in a storefront. Totally aggravating and so disrespectful to your in-store customers. Nothing that I saw was particularly mind-blowing, either. Many of their products can be found at well-known shops in Pike Place Market or in SoDo, or even higher-end grocery stores. If they don't feel like they should make shopping a pleasant, easy experience, I see no reason to ever shop there again.

Eliza is a great host and made a memorable experience for my husband and I. We especially appreciated the educational part - learning about spices, oils and our pantry - and the importance on how all parts work together. I particularly would have loved to take part in the cooking itself, or have have been asked to jump up and help with a portion to make it more interactive, but the class was great spectating regardless. Great for date night, girls night or just trying something new!

Having been to a class at Diane's Market Kitchen (see my review), I was skeptical to go to another one of these expensive cooking classes where I was afraid the only goal is to peddle artisanal food items. But I was pleasantly surprised for a few reasons: 1. Yes, it is a presentation style cooking class (but you know that before you go there) but it is extremely involved and educational. Lesa was cheerful and her culinary training added to her credibility considerably. I liked that the class covered standard French bistro recipes but also changed some. For example, the coq au vin with white and figs was quite a revelation. I will certainly be making that soon. 2. Yes, they do peddle their ingredients but as noted by other reviewers, they are good products. For instance, rice bran oil is healthy and hard to find and they sell a giant container of it for just $13. All the recommendations are backed up by knowledge of cooking processes and sourcing of ingredients so it all seemed pretty logical and scientific to me (avoiding GMO ingredients, info about canning processes, ripening fruits on the wine vs. gas ripening etc.). Most importantly, I didn't feel pressured by anyone to buy the things I did (my fiance and I bought quite a few things!). 3. They serve you a bunch of appetizers to start (delicious escargot too!) and as much as wine as you want as well as the lovely dishes that were prepared. It's not just a cooking class, it's also an eating class. And I am all for that, especially at 6.30pm on a weekday when I've spent the whole day at work! My only quibble is that they gave you recipe print outs. Seriously, in a digital world, where I keep a file of my recipes on my computer, I don't want to have to pay for an expensive cooking class and then keep withering pieces of paper to refer to recipes or type them up again. If they would just IRM (information rights protect) the Word documents, they would avoid people copying and printing and circulating the recipes. Although, frankly, that is not something that they should be concerned about because the real value is in the demonstration of the cooking and the experience of the class.

I went into this store today expecting to see culinary tools. What I found instead were some spices and some dried goods. Most of what was in the store were pre-made spreads and jams. They had good quality items that would be perfect in gift baskets or care packages just not what I was expecting. All that said however the reason I'm giving the store a one star review is upon walking in the store my husband and I were never greeted or asked if we needed any help. Instead I had to stand at the counter and flag the worker down to ask a simple question. I inquired about two salts both of which they were out of. Why the samples remained out then is beyond me. I found nothing else of interest and as we were walking out I noticed another worker on her phone. She said have a nice day, I guess to her phone because she never once looked up. I will not be returning to this store.

I went here for a cooking class, and was disappointed to find out it was a demo class - i.e., not hands-on. I can't blame them, though - I admittedly did not ask when I signed up. While the food at the end was very good, the class itself was sub-par. They don't have an actual kitchen they use to teach, but rather use portable electric burners and convection oven in lieu of a stove/oven! This meant everything that was cooked "stovetop" took much longer than it would in actuality - not great for learning, and also not a great use of my time. The items that were put in the convection oven burned b/c it was not working properly. On top of that, the class felt a bit like a sales pitch for the items they have in the store. It is clear that the employees/owner are very knowledgeable about the products and health benefits, and the goods do seem to be quality, but it was clear they are a store first and provide cooking classes as an after thought. Again, good food and good products - just be aware what you're signing up for!

It was one of the few places that carried smoked salt, so we took the journey from south King County to check it out. More of a boutique than a well stocked "shop". Odd brands, imported brands and a few local brands. No prices on most items. $10+ for a jar of mustard, and 17oz of dry pasta. The salt was around $7 for 4oz. Some balsamic vinegars and various bags of spices - again -- without prices. I guess if you have to ask you should go else where. Some items in there were available at any Asian market place. You may taste just about anything, they did ask us to try a few things. I found the selection of goods in there kinda weird and very expensive, no theme really.

I love this shop! They carry lots of rare honey from around the world and tons of gourmet condiments. The staff and owner are very gracious and helpful - they let us taste every item we were curious about before we committed to buying anything. The next time I need a fancy balsamic vinegar or unique olive oil, I'm going right back.

Fantastic cooking classes! Checked out a Morroccan cooking class on a Wednesday night, after having bought it on living social. In preparation for the class, they serve wine and appetizers, and the staff sits around ready to lend a hand. Chef Erin led the class, and was really great. I learned a lot about a type of food that I have long been in love with, left with recipes (I tried the Bessara the next day, to rave reviews!) and a discount for the next class. I will absolutely be back, for the classes, for the incredible selection of gourmet products that they stock, or just to be in the presence of other foodies. Loved it!

I couldn't be more impressed with Lauren's teaching or the set up for cooking classes at ChefShop. Lauren is obviously a talented, creative chef who is also an excellent and easily approachable teacher. The class is intimate and relaxed with tasty treats of food and wine to accompany your evening. When I first researched cooking classes in Seattle I sought out a class where the students could be cooking, thinking that was the best way to learn. I quickly discovered that such classes only lead to me cooking the way I already know - just with new recipes. WIth Lauren's classes you glean knife skills, preparation and plating skills along with her cooking wisdom. Finally, the ChefShop is full of gourmet delectables not easily found in in easy to find location with plenty of free parking. For what you would typically spend on a nice dinner you get that and much much more!