Friday, September 23rd, could have been our typical Date Night Couples Cooking Class in San Francisco, but we had big plans. One guest in particular was a little more excited — and probably a lot more anxious — than the rest. This guest, Ray, had reached out to us over a month before the class asking if we could help him set up a marriage proposal. We could tell he was excited, feeling very positive and eager to pop the question. (Our all-woman office was buzzing with anticipation!) Ideas bounced back and forth about when he would want to ask, how he wanted to do it, and what we could do to make it happen. With the help of Chef Irfan Dama, we finally landed on the means.

Couples arrived at the venue by 6:30pm and all were excited to get started. Chef Irfan began his usual demo, teaching some helpful tips and tricks pertaining to the evening’s recipes. He had set up camera equipment, and casually explained it away as the filming of a training video for our chefs.

**BLOG UPDATE**
We have now received the video for this proposal! Check it out below…

During the demo, Chef Irfan spoke on the similarities between peppers and love. “If there is a vegetable that symbolizes love, which would that be? No, not onions… though onions make you cry. I would have to go with the pepper. Just like love, peppers come in several shapes and forms. Just like love, you will find that peppers can be sweet, sometimes bitter and sometimes fiery. Peppers add interesting and complex flavors to your food, and love does the same to your life —  a little sweetness, a little spice, a little color and LOT’S of flavor. If you don’t handle a pepper correctly, it could be disastrous; you could end up with a real mess. But if you take care of and foster the love in your life, like you correctly add peppers to your food, you’re sure to have the most interesting and adventurous experiences.”

Chef Irfan called upon Ray and his girlfriend, Cassie, for assistance… He had quietly hidden the ring inside a bell pepper. (It’s really easy to cut around the stem and slip the ring through.) Chef Irfan stressed that correctly chopping the pepper is KEY to successful integration in the dish. How true that is was less pressing than how carefully Cassie had to slice the pepper without hitting the ring!

After a month of planning, hoping, and holding our breath, we can now relax and say Mission Accomplished. Cassie found the ring, and said YES!!!! Surprisingly, class proceeded as usual, with the exception of one new bride-to-be beaming around the kitchen and one very, very happy fiance.

Congratulations Ray and Cassie!!! We are so glad to have played a part in this special moment. We wish you the best of luck, and hope you always remember how it all went down.