Paola's Tomatl Tours and Cooking classes are THE BEST. You definitely get your money's worth (and some!). Paola presents accurate information on the cultural background of each place or dish with enthusiasm and her boundless energy; as a native Mazatleca she speaks from authority and authentic experience. The last tour I took part in was packed with at least six stops at various excellent local food producers, sampling different specialties in each, as well as an exhaustive tour at the Mazatlan shrimp processing plant and a tour of the local shrimp vendors in the historic center. I would have missed all of these fabulous food experiences had I not been on the tour with Paola's. She also taught us how each dish was consumed, something we would have missed entirely without her guidance. Similarly with her cooking classes, and I have attended several; the last one was focused on the Day of the Dead feast; Paola had prepared a traditional altar, complete with all the trimmings, (to which we were invited to participate by adding personal photographs of loved ones); we enjoyed made-from-scratch tamales (one savory filled with a meat stew and one sweet with a fresh blackberry coulis), fresh salsa, mole, rice, and beans and chiken; each dish historical and cultural background was explained and cooked step-by-step with our participation. I would never have had such an enjoyable experience of Mazatlan's gastronomic riches without Paola's Tomatl fun and scholarly classes and tours. I cannot recommend it enough! Sign-up now for the next one!!!
