Aura Cocina Mexicana — Local services in Mexico City

Overall Experience: I've been spending the summer in CDMX and asked my parents if they'd want to take a cooking class when they came to visit me. We are all SO happy we did! When booking, I wasn't sure that I wanted to do the market tour, as I've spent a lot of time in Mexican markets and didn't think it was necessary- I was so wrong. The market tour and brief visits to street vendors for a morning snack were worth it on their own, and things only got better from there. Graciela herself was absolutely delightful- she delivered the tour and class in English for my dad, the only non-Spanish speaker in the group, and conversed seamlessly with the rest of us in both English and Spanish. We learned, we danced, we cooked, we ate, and, overall, we had a phenomenal time! I cannot wait to take my next class and only wish I'd have gone sooner!

Vibe/Space: The vibe at Aura is charming, homey, and happy. A converted garage, Graciela has decorated the space with colorful Mexican artesania and kitchenware. From the moment you walk in, her staff (we met Santiago and Claridad) are welcoming and entirely focused on making your experience smooth and comfortable.

Cooking/Structure: The class itself is well-structured and well-paced. My dad (a veteran NON-cook) was concerned that he would have to make and eat his own tacos, which he was sure would turn out terribly. Instead, the prep, cooking, and eating are done family style, which makes for a more relaxing learning experience (it's also GREAT as a team building exercise!). Once we returned from the market tour (where we learned about chiles, meats, produce, insects, and the particular ingredients we would use for the class), Graciela walked us through the prep of ingredients for the three salsas and marinades for the meats. From there, we prepped the meat before moving on to pressing and cooking our own tortillas. I found the level of prep work/hands on cooking to be perfect- she and her staff take care of some small things ahead of time or during the class to save time, but Graciela was totally open to us taking a more hands on role where we wanted to. Within our group, we had two people who had never cooked anything before, a veteran cook (my mom), and one person somewhere in the middle (me), and we all learned a ton and had a great time.

Above and Beyond: As much as we loved learning and cooking and eating, the best thing about the class is arguably Graciela herself. Graciela was incredibly intentional about engaging with each of us individually, asking us where we were from, what we did for a living, our experience level and interest in cooking, hobbies, and more. By the end of the class, we had all exchanged phone numbers and made plans to visit one another at our respective homes. After learning that several of us in the group love dancing/listening to Salsa music, she put on her salsa playlist and we all danced while we cooked at the stove. She took pictures and videos for us throughout the tour/class and shared them all with us before we left. I had shared that my parents were celebrating a wedding anniversary and that I was celebrating a new job offer, and the staff surprised us with mini-cakes and other Mexican sweet treats after we ate our meal. It could not have felt more personalized, and the care, attention, and passion that Graciela puts into food/cooking was certainly shown to each of us, as well. Finally, it is clear that Graciela is intentional about giving business to local vendors and shining light on families who have been making their fare for decades/generations. She also buys masa (prepared cornmeal) for the classes from a local vendor that is organic and fair trade.

Bottom Line: We haven't stopped raving about the class since we left, and we'll definitely be back. Book a class- you...

AURA Cocina Mexicana is a gastronomical experience with photo opps

Yes, AURA’s cooking class is much more than that. Once the blue door on Avenida Medellin opened, I felt I had entered into a Mexican fairy tale. The space is creatively decorated with an authentic Mexican taste. We learned the recipes of salsas, and all the different kinds of chiles to make “salsas típicas,” the region where they are from, and the type of salsa that is best combined according to the meal. The five-hour how to make salsa class started with a warm cup of Mexican coffee while geographical facts about where each chile comes from in Mexico and how to cultivate a “milpa” were shared by our Chef. We went to the Roma neighborhood to get the ingredients at “Mercado Medellin.” On the way, we stopped to watch the beauty of a busy “tortilleria” and a “quesadilla” stand. Since I hadn’t had breakfast, the“flor de calabaza quesadilla” was a perfect comfort and energizer starter for the day before the market tour. We touched and smelled “chile pasilla, chipotle, de árbol, ancho, guajillo”, and many others at the Chile stand. I didn’t pass up the opportunity to buy a packet of Mole already sealed to travel and take a few close-ups of the beautiful chiles and their textures. At the Oaxaca stand, a tray of bugs was passed around for everyone to experiment with the exotic taste of insects like “chapulines, gusanos y escarabajos”. However, this new strong flavor felt closed to strong salty pistachios. The fruit stand offered us a piece of sweet mamey, while I also bought a mature one to eat later. Finally, the flower shop gave us a pretty blooming flower. I really valued being able to shoot my camera with the vendors' permission, with whom AURA has a relationship.

The Mercado experience was great, but it was time to put hands-on at the cooking studio. The recipe booklet included salsa “diabla, morita, verde, roja, borracha, ranchera, de mango,” and more. We did everything, from dicing the onions, garlic, and other vegetables to dissecting, roasting, grilling, and blending the chiles. Finally, we had to peel them and find the vein used to control the spiciness of the killer salsas we prepared. So fun!

The class ended up with an excellent “taquiza” with high quality organic mini tortillas and delicious dishes made by the AURA chefs, like “carnitas, tinga, chicharron” and cooked vegetables. We proudly added our salsas to each taco we ate; I enjoyed each bite and wished I could come back “a la hora de la Comida” every day. The experience included “Cerveza, Mezcal, and postre.”

AURA Cocina Mexicana is a cultural gastronomical experience that goes beyond the kitchen. No te lo pierdas if you...

Unique, interactive, and fun experience that I would recommend that you do when you visit Mexico City or for special occasions.

I was looking for a family activity for a birthday celebration, and found Aura Cocina Mexicana. I contacted them via email and the communication was swift and easy. They were very flexible with the course, menu, and dietary restrictions, and we were able to finalize the details quickly.

The classroom itself is really beautiful and conveniently located near Mercado Medellín (where the market tour is). There are many personalized touches, from name cards to preparing a gluten-free cake and playing the birthday song in the background. Everything was so thoughtful and we all loved it.

Our instructor is Pame, and she is absolutely amazing! She is fun, experienced, and great with the kids. Everyone was able to participate in making the food, from cutting the ingredients (they have kids-friendly utensils) to cooking. Her assistant, Alan, is also very kind and helpful. We felt so welcomed and were really impressed by how attentive and well organized everything is.

We are so happy that we did this private class and cannot recommend it more 🤗 I have done cooking classes in different countries, and this is one of the most memorable and enjoyable cooking classes...