From A Great Date To A Thriving Business

Eight years ago, when they were dating, Mica Mahler bought her now husband an interesting gift.

“I got him private cooking classes,” she said.

This month, the now husband and wife team will open Cook, Cork & Fork, a recreational cooking school, in Palatine.

They will open their doors at 11 a.m., March 20.

The facility, at 34 W. Palatine Road, is a combination recreational cooking school and gourmet kitchen store. The road to opening was a long one that had John Mahler and Mica Mahler learning about everything from cooking to business to furniture restoration.

“We signed a lease Feb. 2, 2014,” Mica Mahler said. “Our landlord had to do the demolition.

“It was a frame store. It had been vacant for four or five years.”

The space looks nothing like it did then.

“This whole space had rooms, probably eight rooms, carpet on the walls, carpet on the floor, it was a mess,” Mica Mahler said.

Today, the storefront is open and airy, with wood floors and high, exposed ceilings. The only thing that remains from the time it was a frame store was one of the selling points for the couple - a fireplace in the middle of the store.

The kitchen wares are displayed on pieces of furniture that, for the most part, found new life when John refinished them.

In addition to construction, the couple needed to apply to the village of Palatine for facility that carries wine and beer, hosts cooking classes and has retail space.

The facility will work like this, people will sign up for a particular cooking class. When they arrive, they will have a place at one of the tables in the back. They will learn together how to cook at a full, hands-on set-up for 16 people.

“The way we kind of separated ourselves from the rest of the herd is all of our competitors have a single cooktop. They have four cooktops with four burners on each. When the instruction portion is over, students will have a seat at the table, which will be set with a full place setting and will eat what they have made.

“We tried to design a space like someone’s home,” John Mahler said.

To that end, students can pair their meals with beer or wine from the store.

No matter the menu or class students select, John has one singular goal in mind.

“The most important thing in this classroom is for everyone to have a good time,” he said.

To celebrate its opening, Cook, Cork & Fork will be hosting free cooking demonstrations, but participants must register on the business’ Web site. The business hours are

Sunday: noon to 5 p.m.

Monday: Closed

Tuesday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Friday and Saturday: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.