Private Mexican Market Tour and Cooking Lesson in a Local Home
5.0
23 Ratings
Ciudad de México
Embark on a private Mexican market tour and cooking lesson in a local home. Explore the San Juan market, learn to make homemade Mexican dishes, and enjoy a delicious meal with your hosts.
Duration: 4 hours
Cancellation: 2 days learn more
Highlights

Alex is a K3 teacher in the American School Foundation, while Ale is a professional tour guide who is passionate about sharing her Mexican culture and cuisine with guests. Ale has a wealth of knowledge about the country’s history, anthropology, folklore, and of course, culinary traditions - so don’t hesitate to ask her anything you want to know about Mexico!

Alex drew inspiration to cook from his grandfather who would serve delicious nopales (grilled cactus paddles) at his home every Sunday. He learned to cook watching his mother and experimenting in the kitchen after watching food shows on TV. The smells and flavors of his childhood and family meals inspired him to cook more, and now he loves sharing this knowledge with his 6-year old students during their regular cooking class. Both Alex and Ale love sharing meals with friends and family as much as they enjoy cooking.

Enjoy a private market tour of the San Juan market and return to your host’s kitchen to learn to make 3-4 traditional Mexican dishes including a homemade salsa. You might learn dishes such as flatuas, tostadas or enmoladas which are corn tortillas stuffed with chicken in a mole sauce. Mole is a dark chocolate-based sauce with lots of spices that is very popular in Mexico and easy to cook - a great sauce to add to your Mexican cooking repertoire. You can also let Alex and Ale know at the time of booking if you want to learn a particular dish.

Share the homemade Mexican meal you helped prepare in Alex and Ale’s simple yet modern and vibrant apartment. The food that they serve is a mix of modern Mexican dishes as well as Pueblan cuisine, where Ale comes from. Alex and Ale will talk to you about the importance of food in Mexican culture as you enjoy a meal that includes 3-4 dishes and one or two salsas followed by a dessert. Your meal will be accompanied by beverages like fresh hibiscus water and if you select alcohol, beer and mezcal. Your menu may include traditional and modern Mexican dishes such as picadillo tostadas, enmoladas or flautas or a variety of tacos which will be served with a selection of salsas like salsa verde or roja. Your meal will conclude with a dessert like sweet Mexican corn cake.

Please note: This experience is great for travelers traveling with children!

Points of Interest

  • Mexico City
What's Included
  • All taxes, fees, and handling charges included
  • Meals provided: Lunch and Dinner
  • Gratuities included
  • Beverages provided, including alcoholic options
  • Exclusive private market tour
  • Personalized cooking class with hosts Alex and Ale
What's Not Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

Join your guides Alex and Ale for a visit to San Juan market, an old-school Mexican marketplace situated in Mexico City’s historic district, renowned for its gourmet and peculiar food items. Alex will enlighten you about the various commodities available for purchase, ranging from fresh vegetables to dehydrated chiles, seasonings, mole mixtures, and so much more! Enjoy a sampling of a few native dishes before strolling back to kickstart your cooking session.

In your hosts’ cooking area, you will be taught how to prepare 3-4 domestic Mexican meals, including a homemade salsa. You may possibly learn cooking items like flatuas, tostadas, or enmoladas with mole, a famous sauce with base ingredients of dark chocolate and spices - an easy addition to your arsenal of Mexican culinary skills. Because Alex and Ale possess a small-sized kitchen, anticipate handling the cooking preparations in the bar zone and utilizing the kitchen for the ultimate cooking process.

After the cooking session, take a seat and savor the dishes you’ve cooked in a heartwarming conversation with your local hosts.

  • Menu may vary depending on the season
  • If any travelers in your party have any allergies, dietary restrictions or cooking preferences please advise at time of booking
  • Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
  • Private, personalized experience
  • Please note, this is not a commercial cooking class, rather this experience is a visit into a Mexico City home to meet a local who is an expert cook, and share Mexican culture and cuisine together.
Location
Vizcaínas
Please meet Alex at his home in Mexico City. His apartment is 2 blocks northbound from Isabel La Católica Subway Station. It is also 2 blocks away eastbound from the electric trolley (trolebus) Vizcainas Stop. Exact address can be found in your ticket upon booking confirmation.
Cancellation Policy

If you cancel at least 3 day(s) before the scheduled departure time, you will receive a full refund.
If you cancel within 2 day(s) of the scheduled departure, you will receive a 0% refund.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(23 Ratings)
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Sdahuja
Oct 11, 2022
Amazing experience! - Alejandro was a wonderful and gracious host! We got stuck in horrible traffic and were an hour late. He completely accommodated us and was not upset at all. We went on a lovely tour of a market and then had such a nice time cooking in his home. He accommodated our dietary restrictions and was wonderful company. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Patricia_l
Oct 8, 2022
Incredible food - Alejandro was kind, funny, talented, knowledgeable and a marvelous cook/teacher!!!! Loved learning about the different peppers
Review provided by Viator
Emilie_b
May 24, 2022
Dinner with a new friend!! - This experience was wonderful!! We felt welcome and at home immediately, like we came over for a dinner party at a friend's house. Alex has so much great knowledge to share about his culture, food, the city and country, and cooking techniques. We are all experienced home cooks, but still learned multiple new techniques that we will use right away. The meal was delicious and we appreciated the chosen menu because it highlighted food we were not expecting. Thank you!!
Review provided by Viator
Camila_d
May 4, 2022
Cooking with local - One of the best experiences you can book if you want to get to know Mexican cuisine and locals. Our guide was the most wonderful and we had a great time with nice drinks and food. We will definitively book again.
Review provided by Viator
Vtcapecod
Mar 25, 2022
Private cooking class - Our hosts, Mariana and Geraldine could not have been more knowledgeable and nicer. The food market was fun, and we had an enjoyable time cooking, and then, of course sitting down to dinner. Given we were traveling with our somewhat picky teenager, I asked that they limit the menu to pretty straightforward foods. They did, and we made a rice dish, salsa, cochinita pibil, and tostadas. The hands on part was somewhat limited but it was a joy to be in their kitchen. The neighborhood is lovely, so give yourself time to walk around in advance. I only wish that written out recipes would have been given out.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sarah
Nov 17, 2021
Wonderful time! - We had a wonderful time exploring the market and cooking with Ismael - he was nice, knowledgeable, and fun! Definitely recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Debmb
Feb 23, 2020
A Fantastic Culinary Experience - Alex made our cooking lesson a memorable experience.After an interesting and informative visit to a local Mexican market,Alex taught us some very important techniques for creating a delicious three course meal that we enjoyed together accompanied with beer and mezcal. A perfect end to our trip. I must admit that Alex's recipe for mole with chocolate was the best we tasted in Mexico. Thanks to Alex we were very proud of our creations. My friend and I look forward to recreating this delicious meal for family and friends in the near future. I highly recommend cooking with Alex and Ale for anyone that enjoys cooking and is looking for a unique experience while in Mexico City.
Review provided by Viator
U7906tdsamr
Jan 28, 2020
Amazing Experience! - Amazing hosts and experience. It was fun to get an insiders look at the market, and a warm experience in Alex’s and Alejandra’s home. They are very kind hosts. We made chicken mole enchiladas, salsa, chicharones del queso (cheese chips) and pan de elote (sweet corn bread) and everything was delicious! They were happy to speak Spanish with me so I could practice, and shared some Mexican cooking slang as well, and were happy to switch to English whenever I didn’t understand. Over all, it was one of the highlights of my trip :)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tara
Dec 14, 2019
Great time with Ishmael - My mother and I really enjoyed this day! We loved the market and took away great, easy recipes! Fun day!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Melmana2018
Oct 25, 2019
Amazing cooking class - My friends and I had the pleasure of experiencing a hands on cooking class and tour of Mercado de San Juan with Alex (unfortunately his wife could not join us). It all started with a trip to the market and it was a joyous sight here to see- one of the best markets I had been to while in Mexico City. After picking up all the items for our dinner, we went to Alex’a beautiful home where the cooking class began. It was such a joyful and fun experience and Alex was so personable, friendly, and a great teacher. I learned so much about local cuisine and culture. He taught us how to make delectable dishes. I had never participated in a cooking class like this and now I would definitely want this to be part of my future trips. Thank you Alex for adding to our wonderful memories of Mexico City.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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May 2024
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