Culinary trips satisfy an appetite for learning about the food and cultures of the world

By Andrea Sachs
The Washington Post

	ALAN SOLOMON / CHICAGO TRIBUNE Fresh produce from street stalls in the heart of Bologna, Italy, tempts shoppers.
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Shannon Smith knew little about cooking before she headed to Northern Italy's Veneto region on a culinary tour. She was a foreigner in her own Southern California kitchen, preferring takeout or restaurants, and her cutlery consisted of a single paring knife.

But after a week of cooking classes mixed with visits to Italian wineries, cheesemakers, an arborio rice farm and an olive-oil producer, she was ready to purchase her first full set of professional knives and eventually prepare an authentic Italian Christmas dinner for her family.

"It's not all about cooking, cooking, cooking, like Cordon Bleu," the 39-year-old mortgage sales broker says about the three trips, including Sardinia and Australia, she has taken with San Francisco chef Joanne Weir. "You learn about the people and how much they love the land and live off it. You see how the farmers are revered, and how there is such a respect for family and heritage, and how it all relates to food."

In the past, tour companies thought a meal in a Venetian trattoria or a visit to a Loire Valley vineyard constituted a gastronomic tour. No longer.

Now, dozens of tour operators with culinary backgrounds offer food-lovers of varied skills and tastes all-you-can-cook-and-eat trips to destinations around the globe — Hawaii, Mexico, Italy, France, Morocco, Vietnam. There are formal lessons on fussy cuisine from master chefs at Relais & Chateau. And more folksy experiences, like To Grandmother's House We Go, whose Oaxaca trips have included hand-grinding mole under the hawkish eye of an 83-year-old Mexican grandmother. Then there's Bike Riders, where travelers shop for their meals via bicycle, filling their baskets (and a van) with foodstuffs from European outdoor markets, farms and orchards.

The major appeal of culinary tours — and what distinguishes them from cooking schools and sightseeing holidays where travelers feast on local cuisine between museum stops — are the special, authentic touches. As in the schools, participants saute and julienne, observe demos and taste-test. But unlike in the institutions, the "students" are highly instrumental in the creative process. They are not just sous-chefs, but also truffle hunters, produce pickers, cheese sniffers and amateur sommeliers. And if an art museum or centuries-old church is squeezed in between lessons, all the better for dinner conversation.

"You really get an in-depth experience, which lets you absorb the culture more," says Dorothy Sacksteder, director of member services of Women Chefs and Restaurateurs, which offers annual cooking trips (next year Thailand). "It's full immersion, like what you would get with a language program, except instead it's learning about the food culture — and not just by stopping in restaurants, but really getting your hands in there."

For newbie chef Smith, her learning could fill a whole notebook.

"We would spend the morning preparing for lunch or dinner in a whole separate kitchen that was part of our apartment-style private 'chateau.' Then we would take a break and eat slices of parmigiano and drink prosecco in the garden," Smith says of her Veneto experience six years ago. "One afternoon, we visited a farm where they handpick the rice, and (the proprietor) made risotto for us to try. On the way over, we stopped at a winery and learned to pair wines with food. After the tours, we went back to the hotel to make final preparations for dinner. We'd then sit at a huge table and enjoy a long Italian meal."

Choosing a tour

Deciding which trip fits your skills and expectations can be as tough as picking the juiciest fig from the tree. Tour operators, chefs and former culinary-tour travelers offer the following guidelines.

• Select a region you're interested in, but research that area's specialties to make sure it's a good match. It may sound obvious, but if you have a dislike for or are allergic to a certain food, stay away from regions where it is a mainstay.

• Let your cooking experience guide you. For beginners, a hands-on approach is preferable, as is an instructor who has a teaching background. For advanced cooks, demonstrations of more complex techniques and repasts with top-tier chefs might be more desirable.

• Decide how much of a culture-cuisine mix you want and how much time in-kitchen vs. sightseeing. Most tours are in tiny villages, so if you want to experience big-city sights, you'll need to squeeze them in before or after the cooking segment. Also view the itinerary beforehand to be sure it's to your liking. Some trips offer unique outings, such as the gelato tours organized by Vegetarian Cooking Tours in Italy. Find out if participation is mandatory or if you can sit out some lessons — preferably in a garden hammock.

• Ask the company about its demographics, including participants' average cooking experience. You don't want to be stuck with Julia Child types when you can barely boil water, or vice versa. Reputable outfitters should be able to give you contact information for past participants, so you can get first-hand accounts.

Copyright © 2003 The Seattle Times Company