Flavors of Oaxaca: Cooking Class with No Set Menu and Local Market Tour

Recommended by 90% of travelers

Oaxaca City, Mexico

Great choice

10+ bookings last month.

4 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.7

· Barbara_J ·

Feb 2026

Really well organized, lovely trip to the market and great selection of food prepared. We really enjoyed this experience and the food was delicious. Highly recommend!

· Sam_W ·

Jan 2026

Very organized experience. The class flowed well. Oscar is a good teacher, and I definitely learned some things in the market tour and during the cooking.

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Overview

Discover the tastes and textures of Oaxaca during a cooking workshop right in the heart of the city. Join a small group and visit a local market to gather ingredients for your class. There's no set menu, so the group can select which traditional dishes to make. Learn about the origins of each dish and several techniques during your hands-on class. Your tour end with the delicious meal that you've created.

Learn how to prepare traditional Oaxacan recipes
Special dietary restrictions can be accommodated
Sip on complimentary drinks while you cook and eat
A small group means more attention from your instructor

Sample Menu

Main

Mole negro

What's Included

All ingredients
Complimentary drinks
Gluten free option available
Vegetarian applicable menu
Tour to a local market

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Casa Crespo
Reforma 808, RUTA INDEPENDENCIA, Centro, 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez, Oax., Mexico
Casa Crespo en la parte noreste del jardín Conzatti, casa verde portón negro

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Operating hours
.10:00 am

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed

Near public transportation
Infants must sit on laps
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

This experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. If you cancel or ask for an amendment, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

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Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Gordon_E

Great way to learn about the ingredients and cooking methods used in Oaxaca. The market tour was fascinating and the cooking class was very interesting. Perhaps the best part was enjoying the incredible meal at the end.

Reviews

4.7

based on 343 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Great way to learn about Oaxaca cooking

Gordon_E, Mar 2026

So much fun!

Sam_J, Mar 2026

We loved this experience! At the start we got to vote which dishes we were going to make. We chose tamales, cold avocado soup (delicious), taco al pastor and chocolate ice cream with oaxacan chocolate.

Market , cooking and lunch with Oscar

Lise_M, Feb 2026

It was a very professional workshop , informative , interactive , generous . We wished we had planned it earlier on our trip as we would have returned.

Cooking class with visit to market

Barbara_J, Feb 2026

Really well organized, lovely trip to the market and great selection of food prepared. We really enjoyed this experience and the food was delicious. Highly recommend!

Very organized...

Sam_W, Jan 2026

Very organized experience. The class flowed well. Oscar is a good teacher, and I definitely learned some things in the market tour and during the cooking.

Good food, but a very uncomfortable and rushed experience

Fiaz_H, Dec 2025

Unfortunately, the experience was very disappointing due to the guide’s behavior. He came across as rude, rushed, and overly scripted, which made the experience feel forced and unnatural. When questions were asked, he either ignored them or responded with visible frustration. At times, he spoke very quickly and with a strong accent, making it hard to follow, and he seemed irritated when asked to repeat himself. There was little to no engagement, no smiles, and no sense of enthusiasm for teaching. After the cooking was finished, he disappeared and never checked in with us or asked how the food turned out. For the price paid, this felt unacceptable. The only positives were the food itself, which turned out good, and the company in our group, which saved the experience somewhat.

Amazing experience-please send the recipes!!!!

Elisa_E, Dec 2025

It was an amazing experience. Probably my favorite thing we did on the trip. The food we cooked with our instructor Oscar was absolutely delicious. I’m just waiting patiently for him to send me the recipes like he said he would.

Very informative and...

Natalie_L, Sep 2025

Very informative and interactive! Food was excellent and filling. Very warm and hospitable people and the tour guide was very friendly

very lovely experience

Ferdinand_M, Jul 2025

I thought this was really great – the information, the cooking, the flavours – and I would recommend it!

100% worth doing,...

brian_c, Mar 2025

100% worth doing, definitely exceeded my expectations. Our guide and translator was excellent, she took us on a great tour of a local market and the cooking part of the class was well organized and of course delicious. It was great fun meeting people from across the globe all wanting to take this class.

Great experience

Bronwyn_B, Feb 2025

Great experience! We were lucky and had a small group of only five of us which made the class intimate. It was a good balance of market tour, information and learning the recipes. The food was authentic and tasted amazing. Highly recommend!

Yummy foods, good pacing, and mix variety between market tour and cooking class

Michelle_F, Feb 2025

Nicely paced market tour and cooking class! The different settings and pacing made it easy to stay engaged. We also enjoyed the balance between hands-on opportunities to cook and Oscar and the staff helping with clean up and set up to keep the class moving along efficiently. We had a nice group of just 6 of us and we enjoyed lunch together. They also served us a margarita, some mezcal, and iced tea. No complaints!

Shop, Cook, Eat and Cultural Immersion

Anne_H, Feb 2025

What a GREAT experience!! The pacing and interactivity was perfect! Menu decisions were based on majority votes, and while we started a dish, we then went to the market where corn was dropped off for grinding into masa for the tortillas, and walking through the market was awesome! Back to the kitchen where we made ceviche, marinated pork, tortillas (plain and with vegs), soup with squash blossoms and mole. A finish of chocolate ice cream—all accompanied by a margarita we made, mezcal and aqua fresca. Making all these items seemed to “easy” to replicate at home! Thank you so much, Oscar!!

Fun but not an in depth cooking class. More of a fun lunch.

JeanJacques_C, Jan 2025

Market walk was nice, it was not what I was expecting for a cooking class. Felt rushed as lots of stuff was prepared by staff and cooked by staff. Maybe 45% of the cooking was done by us. The table we ate at was beautiful but I was hoping to really go from 0-100 cooking the authentic meal. In hindsight I would go for a more expensive, longer class for a more full experience. Oscar is very nice and the staff were friendly. Just not what I was hoping.

Best foodie experience in Oaxaca

AndomYA_A, Jan 2025

The experience was really complete and very interesting. Oscar was a great guide and host. For foodie or people interested in the local culture, this a must-do experience! We started with a tour at the local market where Oscar introduced us to the local greens, fruits and other flavours. Once we head back to the Restourant we cooked about 5 different dishes from starters to dessert. Eventually the group was a bit too big for having a completely understanding, but overall it worth it!

Great class - would recommend

The_S, Dec 2024

We really enjoyed this cooking class, it was great to see the market and learn things such as the sellers outside the market sell from their own organic farms and not resale of wholesale items. The cooking was fun and Oscar made sure to get everyone involved. Especially enjoyed the frozen margaritas!!

Oscar Time!

Gordon_M, Nov 2024

It was amazing. The walk to the mercado is pleasant, the mercado itself great because there aren't (or at leat weren't) other tourists there, prepping and making the food is a blast and, mostly importantly, the finished products are absolutely delicious.

Delicious daytime activity

Nadine_F, Nov 2024

We had a great few hours! Our course leader Oscar was very nice and competent and his English was very good. The visit to the market and the subsequent cooking in the group were fun. However, it would have been nice if we had been offered something to drink while we were cooking. However, we got something when we asked. When we were eating together as a group, it would have been nice if Oscar had sat down with us, eaten with us and explained in more detail how things were eaten. After cooking, he left very quickly and then went to another group.

Good learning experience

Alla_B, Oct 2024

Trip to the market was very informative. We liked that we could actively patriciate in the cooking. Instructions were very detailed and we learned a lot. Atmosphere was friendly and encouraging. Highly recommended.

Must do in Oaxaca 😊

Ebony_C, Jul 2024

Amazing day! We had a great group, the chef was fantastic & the food we cooked was delicious. We also bought Oaxacan chocolate from upstairs.

Great time!

Annette_H, Jul 2024

This class was so much fun! I went with my adult daughter that lives in the eastern part of th US. Very involving and clear. Everyone was so attentive and sweet and our enjoyment was number 1.

A worthwhile experience

Connie_D, Jun 2024

Very fun few hours! There were 6 of us in the class. Oscar was a good teacher but very no nonsense and not too approachable. I was a bit disappointed that considering how much food we made, we were only served tiny portions and I left still hungry. Worth doing though!

Fun afternoon but did not receive the recipes!

Hayley_P, Jun 2024

If you are hoping to actually cook, this may not be the class for you. Due to the volume of people taking the class (12 on this occasion) and the multiple dishes involved, you are there to help prep, rather than cook a dish from scratch yourself. While Oscar is very knowledgeable, he did appear to be ‘going through the motions’ & even left while we were eating (he also had a member of the class buy him a drink while we were at the market! I hope my classmate got his money back 🤣) The class also only took 3.5 hours (including eating the meal) rather than the 4.5 advertised. We were also told we would receive the recipes via email but have not received anything (3 days later…) We did, however, have an enjoyable few hours & the food was tasty. I would recommend Flavours of Oaxaca.

Wonderful experience.

Linda_R, May 2024

The market trip was very cool and informative and the flavours of the food were incredible. Great experience with a great group. Oscar was fantastic.

Flavorful Class

Dante_M, Apr 2024

Oscar was our tour guide/chef, he was amazing! Oscar took us on a tour through the market and talked about all the different seasonings, spices, plants, vegetables that make up the great cuisine of Oaxaca. Would definitely recommend the class with Casa Crespo.

Fantastic cooking class & market tour!

Nancy_M, Mar 2024

We loved the entire experience! Beautiful market tour, then we prepared & enjoyed a delicious meal! Chef Oscar was very knowledgeable and helpful and made sure we all were able to participate.

A trip highlight!

Samantha_T, Mar 2024

This tour was a clear highlight on our four day trip to Oaxaca. The guide was kind and had a very accommodating and experienced team. You could tell they are a well-oiled machine. Atmosphere was friendly and the food was delicious! We loved sitting down to dine with the other guests. Perfect for any type of travellers other than young kids who may find it long. Cannot recommend this enough.

Be careful if you book this tour. No refunds, book a tour that does, there are lots of options.

Robert_W, Mar 2024

Broke my foot and had to cancel my trip to Oaxaca. Very disappointed that I didn’t get my money back. Had plenty of time to fill my space. Have some compassion for God’s sake. Be very careful before you book this tour, there are others that will provide a refund for the same type of event.

wow! pretty great tbh!

Andrew_S, Feb 2024

what an incredible experience! we made way more than mole (tamales, al pastor tacos, shrimp soup, & corn ice cream). oscar was pretty chill and explained things well! this surprisingly far exceeded out expectations!

A most informative and enjoyable tour

John_K, Feb 2024

This was a fabulous tour. Thank you Oscar! Such an informative guide in the market, explaining so much about all the various ingredients that are integral to Mexican cuisine and then patiently showing us how to make complex dishes. We enjoyed every aspect of the tour but of course the best bit was eating the fruits of our labour - all absolutely delicious!