Thai Cooking with Joy — Local services in Ko Tao

Our experience with Cooking with Joy wasn't what we'd expected from all the positive reviews: first of all, Joy wasn't there (and no one explained why, or who we'd be dealing with). Instead, we had Joe, who initially seemed friendly and helpful but then quickly became impatient and intolerant, as if he wanted to finish everything as quickly as possible. First of all, we weren't told anything about Thai cuisine or how to use the ingredients in front of us: Joe simply told us what we needed to do half-heartedly, not following along, and repeatedly walking away. The pad thai was made in a rush, and I couldn't finish it properly because I had a problem with the heat (the chef simply told me he couldn't help me with that), and I fell behind on the (sparse and unclear) explanations. Even though I was struggling, the chef didn't care and didn't offer any help. My girlfriend pointed out that the onion in the pan was burnt because she hadn't received instructions quickly enough, and the cook insisted on leaving the heat on high. He shrugged, disinterested again, and teased me for not understanding an instruction, repeating it like a chant. Positive notes: the food was still delicious. Cooking on a terrace overlooking the bay was very pleasant, and the "chef helpers" who distributed the ingredients were very kind in helping us. The only possible excuse: it was clear that Joe wasn't feeling well; his leg was in a bandage and he was in pain. We understand the difficulty of conducting a three-hour cooking class in these conditions, but we paid, and it's unacceptable to be treated like this. Unfortunately, we can't recommend it and this is why we put only 1 star; perhaps with Joy or Joe in better physical condition, the overall experience...

Just came back from an amazing private cooking lesson with Joy. This is a must if you come to koh tao!

Joy lives in a beautiful house nestled in the canopy overlooking sairee beach and the pier, already upon arrival we were breath taken by the scenery 😍

We were a bit early, which was great because we got to enjoy the views from Joy’s rooftop terrace while having a drink before the class.

The class takes place on Joy’s rooftop terrace, where she has setup hot plates and cutting boards enough to cater for groups or private lessons.

During the class Joy accompanied us through all the steps and explained all the ingredients of the meals we had chosen.

First we started making a green curry paste with mortar and pestle, then marinated our chicken which we later wrapped in pandan leaves. While the chicken was marinating, we learned how to make pad thai with delicious prawns from today’s catch 😋😋😋😋

We ended the lesson by cooking and devouring a delicious green chicken curry accompanied by our marinated chicken wrapped in pandan leaves😋😋😋😋

Thank you Joy for such a wonderful time😊 hope to be back again soon as I am sure we have much...

I had such a lovely time at Joy’s cooking class! I ended up booking for the afternoon class in the morning and was the only one there due to how hot it was which was lovely!

Joy has such a beautiful energy when she explains the ins and outs of the recipes and reasoning behind each step - she really focuses on making food that YOU like and not something that ticks the boxes of a dish.

I chose menu 2 which was the Massaman curry, pad Thai and stir fried ginger chicken and, even though I didn’t choose the red, green or penang curry, Joy took time to explain how I could make each curry paste back home which was so kind!

And above all, the dishes you make are so tasty! Joy definitely focuses on richness and making the best quality dishes you can with as little ingredients as possible and I think that’s a testament to how great of a cook and a teacher she really is! I also took my food away which was great because the portions are quite generous so go with an empty stomach!

All in all, it was such a relaxed and joyful cooking class and really made me feel like I came out of the class with a new appreciation...