In celebration of the Bay Area that we make it our mission to learn and love, Bob Cut has gathered an exemplary group of females at the helm of the restaurant and hospitality field, from Napa to San Francisco and in between.

The Civic Kitchen is an entirely purpose-built (meaning every amenity is built to spec) cookery school in San Francisco’s Mission district. More than just a kitchen, this space is a fully immersive culinary experience for the gourmand...

It was like earning a merit badge — and you would never have a feeling of satisfaction that profound had you just gone on foodnetwork.com.

“Cooking is not difficult,” Nurse said. “It just takes a little know-how and practice. You just need someone to hold your hand a little bit — in my view, anyway.”

Civic Kitchen is the brainchild of former Seattle baker/pastry chef Jen Nurse and Japanese Pantry co-founder Chris Bonomo. It will offer a variety of cooking classes designed for adventurous and ambitious home cooks who are looking to take a deep dive in specific styles of cooking; there are also classes for inexperienced dabblers looking to get a grasp on cooking basics.

Mission Street passersby will be forgiven for confusing The Civic Kitchen, a new cooking school and pop-up venue that’s open for classes this month, with some sort of hip bookstore. Students entering the space at 2961 Mission Street are greeted with 20 feet of book shelves stocked with volumes on cooking and baking technique. “We had a little joke that we had to build the school to house the cookbook library,” says Jen Nurse, who owns the Civic Kitchen with her partner, Chris Bonomo.