The gems of Mexican cuisine, tomatoes, vanilla and beans

Paola and her team are wonderful! As we took a special Día de los muertos class Paola took the time to explain some if the finer details of the celebration to us. Then the food was delicious and we all had a good time working together learning about Mexican cooking. The class was an absolute delight!

Era perfecta, era deliciosa. Muchisimas gracias Paola. Voy a cocinar las receitas por el resto de mi vida!

This is a review specifically for Tomatl's cooking class, "The Gems of Mexican Cuisine: Tomatoes, Vanilla and Beans." We met with Paola at the building, a very beautiful condominium complex, and were graciously welcomed into her home. If you're intimidated by looking for the building, or worried that this takes place in someone's home rather than a more traditionally "professional" setting, DON'T BE WORRIED! Paola is an absolute professional and you will be so well taken care of. The setting made me feel so comfortable and at home, and heightened the experience. The class started with introductions and a video + PowerPoint presentation on Mexico's key agricultural imports, some of which we used to cook several easy and delicious dishes. The presentation was really nice, in that it made us more appreciative of the ingredients we used. I swear, the food tasted better because I was so invested! The cooking time itself was a good blend of group work, demonstration, and hands on experience. It was very informal, yet extremely informational. If you want to take more, or less, control of the cooking, just ask. Once the food was complete, we all ate together and very pleasantly chatted. Paola speaks fluent English and Spanish, So if you're still working on your command of the native language, no worries! Paola herself was an absolute gem. She's kind and accommodating, and great at what she does--all perfect qualities for a teacher. If there's any doubt, as to whether or not you should take a class or book a tour, doubt no more! Highly recommend.

I should start by saying my partner and I booked the Mazatlán taste and tradition food tour - but I can’t express enough that the tour was just the tip of the iceberg of how Paola enriched our experience in Mazatlan. For our tour date, it was just the two of us and Paola and it was such an amazing few hours touring around the city. I won’t spoil the stops we made on the tour - because in my opinion one of the best parts is how Paola wove together a story of the city of Mazatlán and both the current and historic influences that you find throughout. Overall, I can’t recommend the tour enough. In my opinion, that was just the start as the places we visited, the knowledge of the city gained, and the recommendations Paola provides visitors on the Tomatl blog gave us a direction to better shape the remaining three days of our visit. We valued Paola’s knowledge so much we made it a point to visit as many of the restaurants on her “Delightful Bites A Culinary Journey Through My Favorite Mazatlán Eateries” blog post and we got to 4 out of the 5 recommendations. Each time we were affirmed that Paola never led us wrong when making culinary suggestions. (And I can also attest that the shrimp morita taco at Mariscos Piquillas and the crafted tasting at ATOL are outstanding). Thank you so much Paola and Tomatl for everything!

What a wonderful day during our week in Mazatlan! Although only a few hours, it was genuinely the highlight of my visit. In town to view the eclipse (FANTASTIC event!) on Monday, our trio easily found the location for our worldly experience in a private home with an experienced chef and teacher. Hands on, very casual and delicious. From holding the corn cobs, slicing the vegetables and making our own tortillas from scratch, this is a must-do experience. Reserve your spot early and anticipate a delicious lunch that you helped to create. Thank you so much for the opportunity to experience Mexican cuisine!

This cooking class was so fun! In addition to learning how to make delicious food, Paola shared history and facts about Mexico that were really interesting. Learning about the ingredients we used has increased my confidence in being able to make these recipes at home. I would highly recommend this class!

Highlight of our trip to Mazatlan was their routes of food history & food tour. Paola and her team were so helpful and full of information. we saw and tasted foods we never would have found on our own. Lots of shrimp! and the best birria yet!

Paula was an amazing guide. Tons of knowledge of the city and such a joy to tour the food and gastronomy of her native Mazatlán. I truly had a wonderful experience and would recommend any of her tours or classes! I might even do another one during my short week in the city!

Awesome experience! We especially liked the historical and geographical overview in the beginning. Food tasted amazing and it was well taken care of my food intolerance.

Romina was our Chef for the Chiles! class and she was outstanding. Funny, personable, and knowledgeable. In addition to being able to discuss the meals we were cooking, she also has deep knowledge about culinary history of Mexico. A quick FYI, don’t be thrown off that the class is in a private apartment. It proved to be an intimate and cozy setting. (They are also careful about not booking too many people per class.) I highly recommend taking this class to anyone and, personally, would consider taking it again!