Costa Rica The Chela Cooking Experience

The most wonderful local experience! Chela was amazing. Everyone helps prepare, cook and we all ate together. It was like having dinner with family ❤️ delicious meal. Highly recommend

Cooking with Chela was easily one of the highlights of our entire trip to Costa Rica. I honestly cannot recommend this experience enough! From the moment we arrived, Chela made us feel completely welcome. This was so much more than a cooking class. It felt like being welcomed into someone’s home and spending the evening cooking, laughing, learning, and sharing a meal together. We made several traditional dishes, including gallo pinto, empanadas, vegetable ceviche, chicken, and arroz con leche. Everything was absolutely delicious. In fact, the meal we cooked with Chela was the best meal we ate during our entire trip! Chela taught us about the ingredients and Costa Rican cooking, and we also got to explore her beautiful property. She showed us the plants and foods she grows, introduced us to the animals, and even took us on a little nighttime walk with flashlights where we spotted several beautiful Costa Rican frogs. It truly felt like a farm-to-table experience. Our entire group loved it, including someone who normally doesn’t even enjoy cooking! Chela has such a warm, fun personality and a heart of gold. She gets everyone involved, makes you feel completely at home, and somehow has you laughing while creating an amazing meal together. I bought her cookbook and can’t wait to recreate some of what we learned at home. Whether you’re traveling as a couple, with friends, or with family, put Cooking with Chela on your Costa Rica itinerary. I would do this again every time I came back. Truly a 100/10 experience!

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We're only on our first day of vacation in Costa Rica, and I guarantee this will be the best experience we'll have in the entire country. I would recommend it to anyone who is going to Costa Rica, even if they weren't planning to go to La Fortuna. Make the trip just for this!! We booked this experience over others because we wanted to try authentic food, and have a relaxing experience during a typical afternoon rain storm, and we hit the jackpot! Cooking with Isela was so fun. Not only did we get to choose which meal to cook, and then cook our meals (with PLENTY of leftovers by the way- saves money for another meal later!), but we had spare time to see her gardens and animals. We were the only people who booked during our time, so we got a very personalized experience, and the whole team made us feel so welcomed. I'm a girl who loves pictures and videos, and they made sure to get tons of us cooking, so I didn't have to worry about doing so! Isela even helped me practice some Spanish vocabulary throughout the class! Once you cook your meals, you get to share it with Isela and the team. We could've sat there for another 4 hours talking, if they didn't have a class coming in shortly after! I could go on and on and on. I wish I could give 10 stars. Just book it now!

Chela was absolutely amazing with our younger kids. We had such a fabulous time learning from her, and really appreciated her extra gentle touch with teaching our kiddos knife skills!

We had such an incredible experience at El Fogón de Chela! My husband and I went with another family, and it ended up being one of the most special experiences of our trip. Chela welcomed us into her world, explained that we would all be cooking together, and shared her story with us. Hearing how she started with very little and managed to build this beautiful place and her cooking classes was truly inspiring. The place itself is so unique and full of character. She also has animals, including goats and a cow, who absolutely love attention and cuddles, which made the experience even more fun and memorable. We learned simple, delicious Costa Rican recipes that we can actually recreate at home, which we loved. It wasn't just about cooking — it was about sharing, learning, laughing and discovering Chila's story and culture. I would recommend this experience to absolutely anyone visiting La Fortuna. Thank you, Chila, for such a special and unforgettable time! ❤️

Delightful evening. Great fun, superb food and company, and learned loads. Our kids loved it. Highly recommended.

What a crazy evening in Costa Rican cuisine, first time for me and my husband in a cooking class, we were together with another family! Well what can I say/ I fell in love with it! Chela is very good, helpful, smiling and passionate! I heartily recommend this experience! The ingredients used are fresh and the dishes we made were super good!!

Fun, interactive and our kids (7,11) had the best time. Chela and her team are amazing and the food was delicious!

We had such a wonderful time with Chela and her team. The cooking experience was family oriented, educational, and so much fun. Chela, Francela, Natalie and the rest of the team made us feel so welcome. We learned how to make many traditional Costa Rican dishes. The food was incredible. I highly recommend this experiment if you're in La Fortuna. It was incredible.

This had to be one of the highlights of our trip! My wife and I both know how to cook, but we learned so much from Chela is amazing! She is a wonderful person who obviously loves what she does! She cares for the Animals on her Farm and gave us a Tour when we arrived. The preparation and explanation as we went along was top notch! Her staff was great and the Food was plentiful and tasted absolutely amazing! This is 100% a must do if you are visiting Costa Rica!!!!