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Panama Cooking Class: Local Market Tour & Cuisine
5.0
80 Ratings
Panamá
Embark on a culinary adventure in Casco Viejo, Panama, with a local market tour and hands-on cooking class. Learn traditional Panamanian recipes and techniques from an expert chef. Personalized menu options available.
Embark on a culinary adventure in Casco Viejo, Panama, with a local market tour and hands-on cooking class. Learn traditional Panamanian recipes and techniques from an expert chef. Personalized menu options available.
Duration:
4 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Restaurante El Nacional Sabores de Panamá - Your tour starts at the Restaurante El Nacional in Casco Viejo, the colonial historic center of Panama City. You will walk with your expert local guide to gather your personalized ingredients at the two main markets in Panama’s Old Town. You will first visit the famous Mercado de Mariscos, Panama’s…
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Restaurante El Nacional Sabores de Panamá - Your tour starts at the Restaurante El Nacional in Casco Viejo, the colonial historic center of Panama City. You will walk with your expert local guide to gather your personalized ingredients at the two main markets in Panama’s Old Town. You will first visit the famous Mercado de Mariscos, Panama’s largest seafood market. With the help of your guide, you will select the perfect fish for your ceviche from amongst the many varieties that are delivered here daily from local fisherman on both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Next you will walk a short distance to the Mercado San Felipe Neri. Here you will maneuver amongst the organized chaos of local vendors selling the freshest meats, fruits, and vegetables that Panama has to offer. Once you have your ingredients, you will head back to the cooking studio at El Nacional to begin the cooking class.
During the hands on cooking class, you will create a 5 course menu consisting of classic Panamanian dishes made from scratch while learning about spices and herbs that are unique to Panamanian cuisine. The tour will conclude with a sit down lunch where you can enjoy the food that you just created along with complimentary local drinks.
What's Included
- Cooking class
- Lunch
- Bottled water
- Complimentary drink (sodas, juices, beers, cocktails, wine)
- Cooking class
- Lunch
- Bottled water
- Complimentary drink (sodas, juices, beers, cocktails, wine)
What's Not Included
- Optional Tips
- Optional Tips
Meal Options
- Panamanian Style Ceviche - Made with the fresh corvina that we will get at the seafood market
- Carimañola - A Panamanian staple that consists of mashed yucca (cassava) stuffed with seasoned meat (chicken or vegetarian)
- Pollo Guisado - You will learn how to make this stewed chicken with local herbs and spices. You will use this chicken in the…
- Panamanian Style Ceviche - Made with the fresh corvina that we will get at the seafood market
- Carimañola - A Panamanian staple that consists of mashed yucca (cassava) stuffed with seasoned meat (chicken or vegetarian)
- Pollo Guisado - You will learn how to make this stewed chicken with local herbs and spices. You will use this chicken in the carimañola and tamal recipes.
- Tamale Tipica - The centerpiece of any family dinner in Panama made with a velvety corn masa filled with meat and/or vegetables and wrapped in a plantain leaf
- Plátano en Tentación - Sweet plantain slowly cooked in a cinnamon, molasses and citrus fruit juice.
- Vegetarian, Vegan, and Gluten Free Options - All of the dishes can be substituted with vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free ingredients to fit your dietary needs.
Additional Information
Embark on a culinary journey through Panama’s distinct flavors with a combined market tour and hands-on cooking workshop. Guided by a knowledgeable local culinary expert, you will navigate Casco Viejo’s bustling markets in search of the perfect ingredients for your tailored menu. Immerse yourself in the world of unique Panamanian herbs and spices as you…
Embark on a culinary journey through Panama’s distinct flavors with a combined market tour and hands-on cooking workshop. Guided by a knowledgeable local culinary expert, you will navigate Casco Viejo’s bustling markets in search of the perfect ingredients for your tailored menu. Immerse yourself in the world of unique Panamanian herbs and spices as you prepare a quintet of dishes that would earn the admiration of any Panamanian grandmother. Master the art of crafting the ideal Panamanian tamale and filling a carimañola under the tutelage of a chef whose expertise has been handed down through generations. This cooking adventure is designed to cater to your dietary needs, with options including gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, and pescatarian choices.
- Legal age that can be served alcohol is 18
Location
Restaurante El Nacional Sabores de Panamá
Tour starting point is in Restaurante El Nacional, PH Catedral, located on Plaza de la Independencia, in the former Museo de Esmeralda
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(80 Ratings)
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Danibren
Feb 10, 2025
Delightful cooking experience - This was a great experience overall. We met Jorge at the restaurant, and took a 5 minute walk to the meat/fish/vegetable markets where he walked us through regional produce and products, and we did some purchasing for the food. We walked back to the restaurant and got to work. Jorge is an excellent teacher and has real passion for his work. The 4-course menu included ceviche (one of the best ceviches we had in the trip), pollo guisado which was then used to make carimenolas and a tamal de pollo. Finally we made carmelized plantains for dessert. All of the food was excellent. Also, they provided us with drinks during the class (which they did not charge extra for) which were delicious.
My only complaint is the we are very hands-on cooking class participants (we really like to cook!) and there were some parts of this that were more cooking demonstration than actual cooking class (they cooked/seared the chicken in front of us, they fried the carimenolas in the kitchen rather than having us do it). I totally get why; this class happens in the middle of a busy active restaurant and there are lots of ways those things could go wrong, but it was a little less hands-on than we usually like.
Still, despite that small complaint, we had a fantastic time during this cooking class and wholeheartedly recommend it to anybody who wants to learn about making Panamanian food.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
A4235sykarend
Feb 10, 2025
Fun cooking - Fun class with a professional chef
We had a small class of 7 and enjoyed a walk to the the fresh markets before returning to cook. Chef had a great personality! Highly recommend to learn about authentic Panamanian cuisine.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Southpiseco
Feb 9, 2025
Super fun and we learned a lot of yummy tricks! - Six friends (and 1 extra who we folded in!) took this course from Jorge. GREAT time! Super fun. We started a few min late (due to the tardiness of a few people in the early group — be polite and be on time, folks!), but Jorge spent every minute and more with us to answer our Qs on our tour and to shepard us thru all the steps of the recipes before we ate our fantastic homemade meal. And many thanks to Milka for her assistance along the way. All the staff were super friendly, too. You can tell they all loved what they did.
Six out of five stars! A few members are going to take the class again.
Thanks again Jorge!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sue_b
Jan 29, 2025
Fun Panamanian Cooking class - Enjoyed walking to the markets and learning about the different neighborhoods along the way. Jorge was a good guide and a better cook.
We enjoyed learning how to make ceviche and tamales. We were lucky that the people we met in class were also very nice and we not only had good food, but also good conversation.
Review provided by Viator
David_r
Jan 26, 2025
Great experience.... - Great experience. Delicious and educational and fun! I would definitely recommend this cooking experience.
Review provided by Viator
Tonyabv5738bk
Jan 25, 2025
So much fun - We had a great time. The chef was entertaining as well as very knowledgeable about the ingredients were using. Great experience. If you want to taste Panamanian culture, I highly recommend attending this class.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Joanna_l
Jan 22, 2025
Great time! Jorge was... - Great time! Jorge was amazing and the food prepared was delicious. Unlimited sangria and Panamanian beer was an added bonus!
Review provided by Viator
Dianefirster
Jan 21, 2025
Start to finish great experience - My husband and I like to book cooking experiences when we travel and this was one of the best. We walked to the market and learned about the vegetables and fish that were part of the meal. They offered beer, sangria, water or soda throughout the experience. The food was delicious and the guide kept things fun and lively. I highly recommend. Tremendous value!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nicoles7679
Jan 17, 2025
Do not miss this experience or the restaurant! - Jorge is a master chef I learned so much about Panamanian cooking! Humble tamale will
Never be humble in my eyes after this. And caramelized pal gains will become a staple in our house. Do not miss this wonderful restaurant or this opportunity to see markets, marvel at ingenuity or people who over generations created amazing dishes using local ingredients
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kenneth_m
Jan 14, 2025
If you're hungry it's for you - Very relaxed well planned out. Excellent food pleasant staff clean environment
Great interaction with the host
Review provided by Viator
