Rolling, Shaping, And Savoring: My Evening At Aunt Jake's Pasta Experience

 

A hands-on culinary adventure in the heart of Upper East Side that turned me into a pasta maker (for one magical night, at least)

I'll admit it - I've eaten more pasta than I can count, but I'd never actually made it. Sure, I'd watched countless cooking shows and nodded along as chefs effortlessly shaped little ear-shaped orecchiette or delicate ravioli pillows, but the idea of doing it myself? That felt like something reserved for Italian nonnas and culinary school graduates. That all changed this week when I walked into Aunt Jake's on the Upper East Side for their Pasta Experience.

The evening started at 6:30 PM, and I arrived with a mix of excitement and nerves. Would I embarrass myself? Would my pasta look like lumpy dough blobs? The space was warm and inviting, with that perfect neighborhood restaurant energy. Our instructor greeted our group with genuine enthusiasm, and I immediately felt at ease. They handed us aprons, and suddenly, I felt official. The cost was $60 per person, which includes both the pasta-making instruction, take home fresh pasta, and a three-course prix-fixe dinner afterward. Honestly? That felt like a steal for what turned out to be a two-and-a-half-hour experience that was part cooking class, part dinner party, part culinary therapy session.

Here's what I didn't expect: how tactile and meditative pasta-making would be. Our instructor walked us through the techniques step by step, showing us how to work with the dough, how to apply just the right amount of pressure, how to shape pasta forms I'd only ever seen on my plate. I learned to make shapes I'd been ordering for years but had never understood. Each fold, each pinch, each roll felt like unlocking a tiny secret. And yes, my first few attempts were... let's call them "rustic." But the instructor was patient and encouraging, and by the end of the class, I was actually producing recognizable pasta shapes.

After we finished our pasta-making session, it was time to eat. The three-course prix-fixe dinner was absolutely delicious. The food was everything you'd hope for from a neighborhood Italian spot: fresh, flavorful, and generous. And knowing that I'd just spent an hour learning the craft behind what I was eating made every bite taste even better.

One of my favorite surprises? We got to take home the pasta we made. As I left Aunt Jake's that night, carrying my handmade pasta, I felt this unexpected swell of pride. I couldn't wait to cook it at home and tell anyone who'd listen, "Oh, this? I made it myself." The Aunt Jake's Pasta Experience isn't just a cooking class. It's a full evening out. It's a date night, a friend celebration, a way to break out of the dinner-and-a-movie routine. Would I do it again? Absolutely. In fact, I'm already thinking about who I want to bring next time. Because here's the thing about making pasta by hand: it's fun, it's forgiving, and it connects you to centuries of tradition in a way that's both humbling and empowering. If you're in New York and looking for something different to do on a weekend, I can't recommend this enough.

I Went To NYC's Newest Supper Club And It Was Like Sexy Dinner Party Meets Cirque Du Soleil

 

Casa CeCe is turning Midtown into the most unexpected party destination

When I heard about a new "immersive supper club" opening in Midtown Manhattan, I was skeptical. We have all seen the rise of "experiential dining" that's basically just overpriced small plates with some ambient lighting. But Casa CeCe at 315 W. 35th Street is actually delivering on the hype. From the moment you walk in, you know this isn't your average restaurant. The space is stunning with a backlit curved bar that looks like a sculpture and a two-floor layout with a mezzanine that gives you prime views of the action below. The dining tables are at the perfect height to eat AND watch performances. The bar top is literally reinforced for dancers (yes, dancers). The ceilings are rigged for aerial acts. This place was built to evolve from dinner to full-blown party.

The food is designed to be shared while you're watching performances and vibing to music. Some of the highlights from the food and cocktail menu included Thai Chicken Kabobs and CeCe's Dream (Beluga vodka, green tea, elderflower, lemon, egg white). They also have low ABV options.

Starting Thursday through Saturday at 11 PM, DJs turn the place into a full nightclub. But the real draw is their immersive show "Diamond Moon" (created by the team behind MoonRise), which transforms the entire venue into what they describe as "divine femininity, performance art, and sensual cabaret." Without spoiling too much, expect aerial performances, theatrical storytelling, and moments where you're not quite sure if you're at dinner or inside a fever dream. Definitely recommend that everyone checks it out!

Splattered: A Beat The Bomb Story

 Neon lights, pulsing music, and groups of people suiting up in sleek white hazmat gear. Welcome to Beat the Bomb.

I’d heard the rumors: Beat the Bomb wasn’t just an escape room. It was a full-body video game. A mix of spy mission, team challenge, and pure chaos, all ending in one of two ways: victory or a six-gallon paint explosion. Naturally, my friends and I couldn’t resist.

The lobby looked like a cross between a laser tag arena and a futuristic nightclub—neon lights pulsing, walls glowing, and groups of people suiting up in white hazmat gear. A staff member handed us our mission: survive four high-tech game rooms and earn enough time to defuse the final bomb in the final mission. Fail, and we’d get blasted.

Of the 3 games available, we opted for the Paint Bomb Misison. The first room featured glowing computer terminals, each flashing cryptic symbols and color codes. We had to relay instructions across the room to unlock a system, but with everyone shouting different things at once, it was pure chaos. Eventually, we found our rhythm, passing info like an elite code-cracking squad. Every second counted; every mistake cost us time for the final bomb.

Then came Room 2, and instantly, I felt like I’d entered a spy movie. The walls shimmered with red laser beams, and we had to weave, crawl, and leap through without breaking them. Easy at first...until the lasers moved. I felt like a clumsy cat burglar in a Mission Impossible outtake, but when our timer buzzed and we made it across, we all high-fived like champs.

Room 3 took an interesting turn - it was all about sound. We had to listen to rhythmic beeps and recreate them by scanning RFID readers placed around the room. It felt like a bizarre musical memory test meets a rave. When we finally nailed a perfect sequence, the room lit up, and the speakers boomed, “LEVEL COMPLETE!” I couldn’t help but dance a little.

In Room 4, it was all about movement. The floor transformed into a glowing grid, and we had to stand on specific symbols while dodging "fireballs" flying across the screen. The motion sensors tracked every move. Jump too slow, and you’d lose points. We shouted instructions, ducked, and dove like maniacs. By the end, we were laughing and gasping for air.

And then came Room 5: the Paint Bomb Room. This was it. All the time we’d earned was ticking down as we drove a virtual robot through a digital maze to capture a 10-digit code to deactivate the bomb. My hands were shaking on the joystick, and everyone was yelling directions—“Left! No, other left!”—while the clock counted down.

Then BOOM! As the clock hit zero, we were blasted head to toe in a rainbow explosion of paint. Pink, blue, neon green dripping from my goggles. We screamed, laughed, and posed like victorious superheroes in a paint apocalypse.

As we peeled off our suits, we could already see our slow-motion replay on the screens outside—our glorious failure immortalized in full color. The best part? Beat the Bomb sent us all the photos and videos for free.

Would I do it again? Absolutely. Next time, though, I’m disarming that bomb.