Cooking and dining with Paula is like catching up with an old friend (who is a much better chef than you). It's casual, there's a lot of laughs, some wide ranging conversations, and hey, you learn a little as well. 🤓 Loved the modified pastel de nata récipe (less sugar in the custard, tastes twice as good ironically). The pastels de bacalao, pork and potato, and tempura beans were also stars. ✨ If you're lucky, you might pop across the road for a drink as well 🍷 Also Mozart is a very cute cat who deserves lots of pats. 🐈‍⬛

We had a great time cooking with Paula, our group of 6 including young children (aged 7 and 8), their parents and grandparents. Paula was warm, accommodating and full of great stories and recipies. Highly reccomended!

This was a wonderful way to begin my adventures in Lisbon. Defne is a fantastic host and a great cook. She walked me through two recipes and then we shared a delicious meal in the garden. Defne has a wealth of local and culinary knowledge to share which made this experience really special.

We recently did the Private Market Tour & Cooking Class with Paula as a family - which included my two children (ages 5 and 10). Paula was absolutely amazing. She was warm, welcoming, and incredibly accommodating with the kids. She made them feel involved in every step of the cooking process, from choosing ingredients at the market to stirring pots in the kitchen. The market tour was both fun and informative; Paula gave us insights into local produce and ingredients while also sharing a bit about Portuguese traditions. Once back in her kitchen, she created a relaxed environment where everyone could take part. When my 5 year old son complained about being left out because his sister was doing a task, she was quick to involve him in another cooking task. Plus, we all I learned so much & the food was AMAZING. This was a memorable experience for our family, and I would highly recommend it for anyone looking for a personal, hands-on cooking class & meal. Thank you, Paula, for making our day so special!

Paula was a lovely and pleasant host. We cooked a fish stew, green bean tempura and desert. When everything was done, we had a nice dinner.

Such a wonderful time! I am so grateful to Paula for opening up her home to me. We made a Goan chicken curry and clam curry and pastel de nata. She shared cooking tips and stories. It was a lovely evening and I would absolutely recommend it, even if you’re solo!

We loved everything about this class. Learning aboutvand making goan food with Paula. She was super accommodating to all our interests. It was fascinating to learn of her history The food was all delicious and we look forward to making the clam and fish curries at home for our friends Highly recommend this food experience!

Christina is a wonderful hostess and very kind person. She showed me accessible home meals that I can easily replicate at home in the U.S. I am looking forward to making these Portuguese meals again on my own. It was great to spend the evening with Christina and hear about her life as well as learn to make simple meals that are yummy and replicable. Would highly highly recommend taking a cooking class with Christina. Not complicate, and something you’ll be able to take home with you!

My partner and I did a cooking class with Paula a few days ago and it’s been a highlight of our trip to Lisbon! After a short ferry ride to Cacilhas, Paula greeted us, walked us through her home town, and let us accompany her to a few markets for our ingredients. We were invited into her home for the cooking class, which made for a personable and intimate experience…her sweet cat, Mozart, even made an appearance! We made four different dishes and Paula was terrific about accommodating any food allergies or dietary restrictions. We ended the experience by sharing our meal and wine in her dining room and laughing and swapping stories. I like to think we came in as students and left as friends! I highly recommend this class! To be clear, this is an intimate experience in Paula’s home and, unlike many cooking classes, NOT in a commercial kitchen. She has a cat, personal belongings, and similar space restrictions that many of us have in our home kitchens. This is part of what we loved so much about the experience…in addition to the wonderful food and conversations. Paula’s communication before and after the experience is thorough and clear. I can’t wait to remake these recipes at home!

Sadly, this cooking class did not meet our expectations. We knew it would be different in someone's home vs. a commercial kitchen (something we were looking forward to). Unfortunately, it was unsanitary, including a litter box a few feet away that was used during our class. The cooking for the main dish was basic, mostly involving chopping, making a rue and tossing in frozen ingredients. We did not make a starter dish. The recipe for the Pasteis de Nata had been altered to be less sweet and non-traditional. We had hoped for more authentic portugese cooking. Despite the positive reviews online we left feeling disappointed.

It was a very nice evening with nice conversations, Good food and helpful explanations, especially when it comes to the "Pastel de Nata", we would like to do it again.

Paula gave us a sensational day of stories , cooking advice and cooking experiences that we will treasure. Making Pasteis da Nata ‘s in Lisbon is one off the bucket list … the visit to the markets and walk around town was fun and such a great “locals” experience… Paula is a wonderful host and it was a delight to share her kitchen and dining table , highly recommended 👏👏👏

Paula tailored the cooking class to our needs — avoiding foods we don’t eat. She was appropriately communicative from the time we did our booking. She engaged our kids well and imparted wonderful cooking tips throughout the lesson. We feel well equipped to host a pescatarian Portuguese dinner. Thank you Paula.

This was perfect. There's always a small degree of risk with things like this because our family and the host family might not click. That said, I was pretty confident because of previous reviews. It turned out perfect for our Sunday lunch. The home is about 25 minutes from the tourist centre of Lisbon, which makes it feel like you are in the countryside but still quick to get to. The family totally got it in terms of making it work for our two kids (11 and 7). They were a delightful family (husband, wife and adult son) and we all had a great time. It was cool to cook and eat as we went. Couldn't recommend more highly.

We absolutely loved our experience with Cristina! She warmly met us at the door, welcomed us into her home and took the time to get to know us. We were delighted to learn a traditional meal with many courses and be so hands on in all stages of prep. But even more so, we savored the cultural exchange of stories and laughter and life advice offered between sips of vino verde. Cristina knows her craft and is proud to teach others in a way that is fun, educational, and full of rich history. She even kept in touch during our trip to offer recommendations to fill our travels. Not only would we highly recommend her, we ourselves hope to keep in touch and share a meal again someday!