This review is for the bacon making class that is offered through Wurst Haus. I'll start with the Pros: The proprietor is affable & easy going, the venue is spacious, the food is appetizing with many samples & and a meal, and the class makes...a really fun date night or family event. Plus, it's good to think about where your food comes from and how it's made.
Now for the Cons: This was less a class and more a fun, quirky thing to do on a Friday night. You get a meal and an interesting activity. The owner spent the bulk of the time either good naturedly bragging about his accomplishments or giving us a verbal commercial for his other products and classes. No harm, no foul, but there was very little instruction either verbally, or in the packet of papers that was provided. Very little discussion of method, ingredients, tips, tricks, troubleshooting, or anything that goes into what I consider a formal class. Most of the "meat" (if you'll pardon the pun) of his instruction was rushed through and given in an offhand manner as if we already knew what he was talking about. It was, however, fascinating to watch him butcher - he's very, very talented with a knife!
Again, this made a fun date night but we were hoping for actual instruction, even if it was brief (given that this was a one evening class). I had intended to attend his entire series of classes but I think it will be more instructive to look on YouTube or find another teacher.
One other thing should be noted for those considering these classes in potential inclement weather. We were supposed to attend this class last year; we rented a room because we live such a distance away, arranged for babysitting, and made the drive. There was a snow storm but the morning of the class the roads had cleared, so we were surprised when we got an email canceling the class for that night. We expressed dismay and confusion but were simply told, without much apology, that the class wasn't happening.
When we asked for a refund we were told no. It does say on the registration page that refunds for cancellations are not given. However, when you, the purveyor, cancel the class and then refuse to offer a refund, that's just poor customer service. The owner said he's never felt the need to provide refunds because his business is so popular. That was an interesting response, to be sure, but to be fair and measured in our review, we did reschedule the class for this year and tried to keep an open mind.
In short, I would give this experience 2.5 to 3 stars. It was cute and fun but they really inconvenienced and disappointed us last year and made a very poor impression of their customer service. If you're in Hermann, stop by and enjoy the bacon and the ambience. If you'd like some actual instruction, perhaps try some other resource before you spend your money here. And don't bother to schedule a class when there's even a remote possibility of bad weather.More
