Enrique Chavelas and his family taught us so much. Fresh tortillas, tortilla soup, tomatilla salsa (with the fabulous spice mix), amazingly interesting stuffed ancho peppers, and fun with friends. We will definitely be back.

My husband and I joined six other ladies on a cooking journey with Chef Enrique yesterday. We met at the mall and then were driven to a produce/fish/meat market area. Chef explained to us the safety standards for the market which keeps the food fresh and healthy for everyone. We shopped for fish, chicken and cheese then headed over for produce. Chef E showed us how to pick the best tomatillos, chilies, avocados and cactus. After we had our ingredients, we stopped at a taco stand for a quick bite before our ride to his home. We were welcomed by Enrique’s wife and sister (plus Tequila!) and felt very at ease. We made a great guacamole mashing the seasonings and fruit. Next we made a salad of pineapple, tomatillos, cactus and jicama. Delicious. We learned how to warm our seasonings first to get more flavor then ground pumpkin seeds for the masa for tamales. We cut banana leaves for appetizer tamales then let them cook. The marinated fish and chicken were wonderful. Eddie, the chef’s wife, taught us how to make tortillas..a lot of work but fun. We sat down to a lovely dinner topped with homemade flan. It was a great day! Thanks Chef and all your crew

We were on a Princess Cruise, and had a full day in Puerto Vallarta. I have always wanted to take a cooking class there, so looked for one on Trip Advisor. I decided on Cookin’ Vallarta since it had great reviews. It was a great choice. Enrique met us at Starbucks right across the street from the ship. Because it was low season, we were the only ones that day....a private class! Enrique took us in his air-conditioned van, ( it was very hot when we were there) to the marketplace where we shopped for the food we were going to cook. Enrique showed us lots of local fruits and vegetables, and explained how to use them. We actually went to three different shops to gather all the ingredients we would need. I was able to purchase the Mexican vanilla that I always bring home, at a very low price. Enrique then drove us to his lovely home, where we met his charming wife and sister. His cooking area is spotlessly clean, and complete with an overhead camera and large screen. We were given aprons to keep, and we helped prep the ingredients for tortilla soup and chilis rellenos, Both recipes very different from any we’ve ever had, and very delicious. He also showed us how to make the presentation beautiful and appetizing. We then ate the resulting lunch. Enrique then took us back to the ship, but dropped us off at Walmart so I could buy flip flops, which I had forgotten to pack! It was a fun day, full of local color, and Enrique emailed me all of his recipes when we got home.