Cooking Classes and Food Events in Byron Bay — Belinda Jeffery

Welcome to my cooking classes for 2020

CLASSES AND EVENTS FOR 2020

Hooray, our classes for the remainder of 2020 are now live!

I’m delighted to say that after nearly four months break due to the Covid-19 shutdown we’re now back on deck and our classes are available for bookings. We’ve put the dates for the remainder of the year up, in the hope it will enable you to plan well ahead and perhaps even get friends or family members together for a long weekend away in the beautiful Northern Rivers; make early travel and accommodation arrangements; and then book for a particular class and time of year that suits you best. (Based on our experience of 2018 and 2019 it would be a good idea to book early if any class does appeal as places in each class are limited to eight (8) students only.

As you will notice from the schedule, I don’t teach during the hot summer months as it’s usually so humid here that it’s impossible to even think about cooking or making pastry! The rest of the year however is just about perfect, so I would love to think that I get to meet you in Autumn, Winter, or Spring to spend a great day learning, cooking and laughing together.

I’m deeply humbled and gratified that for the last three years I’ve been meeting people from all around Australia who travel to spend the day at my “pop-up” Cooking School. During this time we’ve had two different venues, both in wonderful and historic village halls and their kitchens – Federal, Coorabell, and now we have a third gorgeous venue…The Burringbar School of Arts Hall (you’ll find out more about it below.)

All of the classes whether for Autumn, Winter, or Spring will of course have different recipes, and the menus will vary from month to month …. and week to week in some cases! Except to say that the menu for the Friday and Saturday on the same weekend will be the same. We have also added in time for me to demonstrate one or two of my favourite recipes. The difference compared with what I’ve previously done lies in the structure and timing of the day and hopefully allows for even more input from me; the opportunity for even more tips and ideas; and a bit less work for you!

If you would like to find out more, just scroll down the page…

What can you expect from our classes in 2020?

Each class is hands-on for a maximum of eight (8) guests only and runs for approximately five (5) hours as follows ….

HANDS-ON CLASS

10.00am

Arrive at Burringbar School of Arts Hall (see below).

10.00am to 10.30am

Meet your fellow guests over tea and/or coffee with homemade cake.

10.30am to 1.30pm’ish

The cooking part. There is always lots of chat and laughter as we cook together in pairs to create a fabulous lunch. I will also demonstrate a few of my favourite cooking techniques and there will be ample opportunity for you to ask questions, and for me to pass on all sorts of tips and tricks gained from my days cooking in restaurants, on television and radio, and writing my cookbooks. You will have all the recipes to take home with you.

1.30pm’ish to 3.00pm

Time now to sit down with us and your companions and enjoy a long table lunch of the wonderful dishes you’ve prepared, accompanied by a glass of wine or a delicious non-alcoholic drink.

3.00pm

Depart for home or your weekend accommodation with … a “goodie bag”, a full tummy, and I hope, a happy heart.

Special notes:

Burringbar Hall is registered as a Covid-19 safe workplace and we do our utmost to ensure that we meet the requirements for registrations, physical distancing, hand sanitising, and appropriate cleaning.

Please let me know on the booking form if you have any particular dietary requirements and I shall do my very best to accommodate them. However, as we’ll be eating ‘family style’ around the table, be aware that we may not be able to especially cater for you. However, rest assured there is always plenty of choice.

What is the cost of this special day?

The cost includes morning tea (and afternoon tea too, if you can possibly fit it in!), cooking with and learning from me, all ingredients, recipe booklet, sit-down lunch with wine, and a “goodie bag” to take home.

Cost per person …. $350.00

Bookings are subject to the cancellation policy.

By the way, if you would like to see some photos from my classes to give you a bit of a “feel” for the goings-on, then you’ll find lots on my Instagram @belindajefferyfood.

Our new location for 2020

The changes in the format and scheduling of classes for 2020 have also required that I change location. The classes will now be held in another iconic, history-filled hall, the Burringbar School of Arts Hall which is over 100 years old. The village of Burringbar is in the hinterland of The Pacific Coast in Tweedshire, but still only 35 minutes from Byron Bay. For a glimpse of the venue, go to it’s Facebook page. This relocation will actually make for relatively little change in terms of travel times, especially for those coming down from Queensland (in fact, it’s a bit closer).

So many people over the last two and a half years have built a long weekend around one of my cooking classes, for as you may well know, Byronshire and the Northern Rivers area are major holiday and weekend destinations year round. For those of you who are coming from inter/intrastate Burringbar itself is only 40 minutes from Coolangatta/Gold Coast Airport.

As an interesting aside I believe that the venue now being Burringbar may well open up different possibilities to be considered for Accommodation. As well as Byron Bay, Mullumbimby or Brunswick Heads you may now also like to consider staying on the lower Gold Coast (e.g Kirra, Coolangatta) or Murwillumbah (Tweed Regional Art Gallery/Margaret Olley Art Centre) or Cabarita Beach (Halcyon House) or Casuarina/Salt (Peppers and others). The possibilities are many and varied.

It might be helpful as a guide if I list here some of the estimated travel times to Burringbar School of Arts Hall from various close-by locations. These include ….

* Byron Bay .. 35 mins. * Brunswick Heads .. 20 mins. * Mullumbimby .. 30 mins.

* Murwillumbah .. 20 mins. * Coolangatta/Kirra .. 40 mins. * Kingscliff .. 40 mins.

* Cabarita Beach ..30 mins.

Closer to the time we shall send you instructions for how best to get to Burringbar Hall coming from various directions. It’s easy.

Cooking Class Gift Vouchers

What a great idea! Give your friends or family members a real treat for a birthday, anniversary or any other special occasion (or just because you want to spoil them) by giving them a Gift Voucher to one of my classes.

Find out more and book

Exclusive private cooking classes: hands-on for 10 people only

We get a number of enquiries about the possibility of doing exclusive hands-on private classes for groups – friends, family, or for corporate development. We’re really happy to do so, as long as there are 8 – 10 people in the group. If you would like to find out more about these special events, please contact me at belindajeffery24@gmail.com

Burringbar Hall, Burringbar NSW
(In the beautiful Tweed Hinterland)
Hands-on cooking classes for 8-10 people
10am – 3pm