Handmade Fettuccine Pasta Cooking Class on Piazza Navona Rome

Piazza Navona, Rome's Baroque showpiece

Piazza Navona is built directly on the outline of a first-century stadium where Romans once watched athletics, which is why it is so long and oval. In the 1600s it became the grand stage of Baroque Rome, framed by palaces and the church of Sant'Agnese in Agone with its elegant curved façade and dome.

Today the square is car-free and lively from morning until late at night, with painters, portrait artists and street performers around the fountains. Visiting is free and it is open at all hours; the best time to visit Piazza Navona is early morning for calm photos or at dusk, when the fountains are lit. To get there, walk five minutes from the Pantheon, or take a bus to Corso Rinascimento, which runs along the eastern side of the square.

The fountains of Piazza Navona

Three fountains line the square. In the centre stands the Fountain of the Four Rivers, completed in 1651, where giant marble figures represent the Nile, the Ganges, the Danube and the Río de la Plata, the great rivers of the four continents then known, around an ancient Egyptian-style obelisk.

At the southern end is the Fountain of the Moor, with a figure wrestling a dolphin, and at the northern end the Fountain of Neptune, whose sculptures were added in the nineteenth century. During your meal at the outdoor table you look straight onto this scene, which is why many travellers call this the most beautiful setting for a cooking class in Rome. Take a few minutes after the class to walk around them and notice the details.

The fettuccine class

The class takes place inside the restaurant at Piazza Navona 94. Your chef starts with the basics: a mound of flour, fresh eggs in the centre and a fork to bring them together. Then comes the kneading, the step that gives handmade pasta its silky texture, and a short rest for the dough.

Next you roll the dough into a thin sheet and fold and cut it into fettuccine, the flat ribbons that are central to Roman cooking. The chef shows you how to dust and loosen the strands so they do not stick, and explains how fresh egg pasta differs from dried pasta. No experience is needed, and the hands-on part takes about an hour. This Rome pasta cooking class is relaxed and social, with plenty of time for questions and photos.

Your sauce and the meal facing the fountains

Once your fettuccine is ready, you choose the sauce. Carbonara blends egg yolk, pecorino and black pepper with crisp cured pork cheek; cacio e pepe is simply pecorino, pepper and pasta water; pomodoro is a fresh tomato sauce with basil; and pesto is the bright basil and pine-nut sauce of northern Italy. If you avoid pork, choose one of the last three.

The restaurant kitchen cooks your pasta while you take a seat at an outdoor table on the square. You start with bruschetta, toasted bread topped with tomato, garlic and olive oil, then enjoy your own fettuccine and finish with an espresso. Vegetarian diets are easy to accommodate; tell us any needs when booking.