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VIEW PHOTOS
VIEW PHOTOS

Host: Martha

Mexico City, Mexico

USD
$42-$112 per person

A traditional pre-Hispanic meal in central Mexico city

Host offerings
  • Apartment
  • Home cook
  • Pets
  • Vegetarian
  • Alcohol
  • Transportation
  • Cooking class
  • Market visit
  • Food tour

Meet Martha

Martha learned to cook at an early age from her very talented grandmother and has a wealth of knowledge about Mexican cuisine - dating back to the pre-Hispanic era. Martha’s husband, Arturo, was a diplomatic representative for Mexico in many parts of the world, so they have wonderful stories to share! Having lived abroad for 35 years in 11 countries, Martha took cooking courses in each of these countries, to learn to cook a new cuisine and develop new cooking skills. She also proudly represented traditional Mexican food and it's culture when they hosted people in their home. Hosting and entertaining comes very naturally to Martha and Arturo, and they love having people over.

“I love to received people from all over the world and I love to share with them my culture and culinary experience. I would like to show and teach our varied and splendid Mexican cuisine!”

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal: (1-6 guests) Martha and Arturo’s home is very cozy and filled with artifacts they have collected from around the world. Each piece of furniture has a story and you can look forward to some very interesting conversations! A lot of Martha’s cooking is considered "pre-Hispanic", using ingredients like huazontle and sauces such as mole. Her grandfather from was from Chihuahua and her grandmother cooked foods that he liked, so that region has some influence on her cooking as well. Martha not only loves to cook family recipes for her guests, but also likes to pay special attention to the way it is served – matching her flowers, table cloth and napkins to her Mexican china!

Join Martha and Arturo at their beautifully set table to enjoy a traditional Mexican meal that might include dishes such as sopecitos de pollo (chicken sopes with beans) or tlacoyos de frijoles (similar to corn tortillas stuffed with cooked ground beans and cheese); cochinita pibil (a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán peninsula) or rajas poblanas con crema (roasted Poblano peppers in a cream sauce) and frijoles charros (pinto beans stewed with onion, garlic, and bacon) or arroz Mexicano rojo (red rice). You will end your meal with a sweet dessert such as flan and arroz con leche (rice pudding plan) or capirotada (bread pudding).

Cooking experience: (1-6 guests) Join Martha in her small kitchen for a hand-on cooking experience. You will help Martha prepare an appetizer and a main dish from scratch. While you peel the onions and cut the peppers, learn secret tips, tricks and hear about the origins of the dishes. The cooking part of your experience will last for 1.5 hours.

Market visit: (1-6 guests) Meet Martha at home and then walk together for 10 minutes to the neighborhood market. Mercado de San Pedro de los Pinos, is a bustling market hall filled with vendors of produce, meat, fish and prepared foods. Walk through this market with Martha and learn about local ingredients used in Mexican cooking and get a chance to meet with Martha's favorite vendors. Buy a few ingredients before walking back to Martha's home for your cooking experience.

Notes: Martha can offer a vegetarian meal on request.

Languages spoken: English, Spanish and Portuguese

Sample menu

This is just a sample menu to give you an idea of the types of dishes the host cooks. Your menu will vary according to seasonal availability.
  • Appetizer: Sopecitos de pollo (chicken sopes with beans) OR Tlacoyos de frijoles (similar to corn tortillas stuffed with cooked ground beans and cheese)
  • Main: Cochinita pibil (Yucatán-Style barbecued pork) OR Rajas poblanas con crema (roasted Poblano peppers in a cream sauce)
  • Side: Arroz Mexicano rojo (red rice) OR Frijoles charros (pinto beans stewed with onion, garlic, and bacon)
  • Dessert: Flan and arroz con leche (rice pudding plan) or Capirotada (bread pudding)
PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

I really liked the experience. Martha and Arturo are fantastic hosts and conversationalists. They have lived all over the world, and can connect with people very easily. We had a great time cooking and enjoying margaritas together. I felt like an old, dear friend being welcomed into their home as we talked about our travels, plus what we loved about Mexico and its cuisine. All of the food was nice, great dishes - and a LOT of food :) Their home is like a living museum, with little treasures from their time around the world, each one with an interesting story. I genuinely feel like I made two new friends through this experience! I highly recommend it for fellow travelers who want to learn more about Mexican cuisine and culture, and are looking to connect with other worldly, like-minded people.

Jessica, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

5.0 (3)
Martha! What a truly incredible host. My family (4 adults and a 6 year old) went for a lunch cooking experience. We are vegetarians and she accommodated us beautifully. She welcomed us into her lovely apartment (her dog was a sweet presence, esp for our daughter), served us hibiscus tea while she told us a bit about herself and her cooking, and then into the kitchen we went. We made flour tortillas, a delicious chili mushroom soup, rajas, guacamole, huitlacoche, and she had prepared a phenomenal flan (made in advance). Martha is outgoing, funny, super friendly and easy to talk to. She's lived all over the world and has incredible stories to tell. Her husband came into the kitchen and spent time with us and ate lunch with us, too. It truly felt like being in a friend's home for an amazing meal. She clearly loves having people in her home and it was the ultimate experience of hospitality. And to top it off, when I accidentally left my phone in the Uber we took when we left her home and the Uber driver returned it to her, she contacted me immediately and held the phone until I was able to come back and pick it up. I can't recommend the experience enough!
- Churros March 31, 2024
I had an amazing experience! Martha and her family welcomed me into their home and hosted this cooking class with warmth. The pre-Hispanic food was delicious and the cooking instruction was very informative. I highly recommend this class for the culinary and cultural experience!
- Chad_A January 25, 2024
Martha is an amazing hostess and teacher. She approaches cooking as an act of love and the experience is infused with that. Learnef about the culinary history of mexico from prehispankc times up to the present day with recipies that have evolved over time.
- Craig_J December 01, 2023
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Martha

$42-$112 USD

per person
100% VETTED
Learn more
  • 100% satisfaction guarantee or your money back
  • Credit card is not charged until the host confirms your booking
  • Private experience
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
In-Home Meal
 $60 $52 $42
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $86 $78 $68
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $112 $104 $96
Alcohol
 $14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
In-Home Meal
 $60 $52 $42
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $86 $78 $68
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $112 $104 $96
Alcohol
 $14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
 Lunch Dinner
In-Home Meal
 12:00pm-2:00pm 7:00pm-9:00pm
Cooking Experience+ Meal
 10:00am-12:00pm 5:00pm-7:00pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 9:00am-1:00pm 4:00pm-8:00pm

Meet Martha

Martha learned to cook at an early age from her very talented grandmother and has a wealth of knowledge about Mexican cuisine - dating back to the pre-Hispanic era. Martha’s husband, Arturo, was a diplomatic representative for Mexico in many parts of the world, so they have wonderful stories to share! Having lived abroad for 35 years in 11 countries, Martha took cooking courses in each of these countries, to learn to cook a new cuisine and develop new cooking skills. She also proudly represented traditional Mexican food and it's culture when they hosted people in their home. Hosting and entertaining comes very naturally to Martha and Arturo, and they love having people over.

“I love to received people from all over the world and I love to share with them my culture and culinary experience. I would like to show and teach our varied and splendid Mexican cuisine!”

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal: (1-6 guests) Martha and Arturo’s home is very cozy and filled with artifacts they have collected from around the world. Each piece of furniture has a story and you can look forward to some very interesting conversations! A lot of Martha’s cooking is considered "pre-Hispanic", using ingredients like huazontle and sauces such as mole. Her grandfather from was from Chihuahua and her grandmother cooked foods that he liked, so that region has some influence on her cooking as well. Martha not only loves to cook family recipes for her guests, but also likes to pay special attention to the way it is served – matching her flowers, table cloth and napkins to her Mexican china!

Join Martha and Arturo at their beautifully set table to enjoy a traditional Mexican meal that might include dishes such as sopecitos de pollo (chicken sopes with beans) or tlacoyos de frijoles (similar to corn tortillas stuffed with cooked ground beans and cheese); cochinita pibil (a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán peninsula) or rajas poblanas con crema (roasted Poblano peppers in a cream sauce) and frijoles charros (pinto beans stewed with onion, garlic, and bacon) or arroz Mexicano rojo (red rice). You will end your meal with a sweet dessert such as flan and arroz con leche (rice pudding plan) or capirotada (bread pudding).

Cooking experience: (1-6 guests) Join Martha in her small kitchen for a hand-on cooking experience. You will help Martha prepare an appetizer and a main dish from scratch. While you peel the onions and cut the peppers, learn secret tips, tricks and hear about the origins of the dishes. The cooking part of your experience will last for 1.5 hours.

Market visit: (1-6 guests) Meet Martha at home and then walk together for 10 minutes to the neighborhood market. Mercado de San Pedro de los Pinos, is a bustling market hall filled with vendors of produce, meat, fish and prepared foods. Walk through this market with Martha and learn about local ingredients used in Mexican cooking and get a chance to meet with Martha's favorite vendors. Buy a few ingredients before walking back to Martha's home for your cooking experience.

Notes: Martha can offer a vegetarian meal on request.

Languages spoken: English, Spanish and Portuguese

Sample menu

This is just a sample menu to give you an idea of the types of dishes the host cooks. Your menu will vary according to seasonal availability.
  • Appetizer: Sopecitos de pollo (chicken sopes with beans) OR Tlacoyos de frijoles (similar to corn tortillas stuffed with cooked ground beans and cheese)
  • Main: Cochinita pibil (Yucatán-Style barbecued pork) OR Rajas poblanas con crema (roasted Poblano peppers in a cream sauce)
  • Side: Arroz Mexicano rojo (red rice) OR Frijoles charros (pinto beans stewed with onion, garlic, and bacon)
  • Dessert: Flan and arroz con leche (rice pudding plan) or Capirotada (bread pudding)
PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

I really liked the experience. Martha and Arturo are fantastic hosts and conversationalists. They have lived all over the world, and can connect with people very easily. We had a great time cooking and enjoying margaritas together. I felt like an old, dear friend being welcomed into their home as we talked about our travels, plus what we loved about Mexico and its cuisine. All of the food was nice, great dishes - and a LOT of food :) Their home is like a living museum, with little treasures from their time around the world, each one with an interesting story. I genuinely feel like I made two new friends through this experience! I highly recommend it for fellow travelers who want to learn more about Mexican cuisine and culture, and are looking to connect with other worldly, like-minded people.

Jessica, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

5.0 (3)
Martha! What a truly incredible host. My family (4 adults and a 6 year old) went for a lunch cooking experience. We are vegetarians and she accommodated us beautifully. She welcomed us into her lovely apartment (her dog was a sweet presence, esp for our daughter), served us hibiscus tea while she told us a bit about herself and her cooking, and then into the kitchen we went. We made flour tortillas, a delicious chili mushroom soup, rajas, guacamole, huitlacoche, and she had prepared a phenomenal flan (made in advance). Martha is outgoing, funny, super friendly and easy to talk to. She's lived all over the world and has incredible stories to tell. Her husband came into the kitchen and spent time with us and ate lunch with us, too. It truly felt like being in a friend's home for an amazing meal. She clearly loves having people in her home and it was the ultimate experience of hospitality. And to top it off, when I accidentally left my phone in the Uber we took when we left her home and the Uber driver returned it to her, she contacted me immediately and held the phone until I was able to come back and pick it up. I can't recommend the experience enough!
- Churros March 31, 2024
I had an amazing experience! Martha and her family welcomed me into their home and hosted this cooking class with warmth. The pre-Hispanic food was delicious and the cooking instruction was very informative. I highly recommend this class for the culinary and cultural experience!
- Chad_A January 25, 2024
Martha is an amazing hostess and teacher. She approaches cooking as an act of love and the experience is infused with that. Learnef about the culinary history of mexico from prehispankc times up to the present day with recipies that have evolved over time.
- Craig_J December 01, 2023
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
In-Home Meal
 $60 $52 $42
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $86 $78 $68
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $112 $104 $96
Alcohol
 $14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
In-Home Meal
 $60 $52 $42
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $86 $78 $68
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $112 $104 $96
Alcohol
 $14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
 Lunch Dinner
In-Home Meal
 12:00pm-2:00pm 7:00pm-9:00pm
Cooking Experience+ Meal
 10:00am-12:00pm 5:00pm-7:00pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 9:00am-1:00pm 4:00pm-8:00pm
ABOUT TRAVELING SPOON

Traveling Spoon connects you with meaningful culinary experiences, from private cooking lessons to homecooked meals in people's homes. Enjoy an immersive cultural experience that gives you a glimpse into the local way of life.

FAQ

    You can cancel your reservation up until 48 hours before your experience for a full refund minus a 3% processing fee. Experiences within 48 hours are not refundable.

    If you have a question for your host, you can include a note in the field "Write a note to your host" during the booking process. Once your booking is confirmed, you will be emailed your host's direct contact information and you will also be able to message the host through your profile. You can always cancel your booking and receive a full refund 48 hours or more before your experience. If you have other questions you can also email us at reservations@travelingspoon.com.

    Most of our hosts are able to accommodate dietary restrictions and allergies, including vegetarian and gluten free options. For vegetarian travelers, we have an icon on each host profile to indicate whether that host can also offer a fully vegetarian menu. There is a section in the booking form to note any allergies or dietary restrictions which will be sent directly to your host.

    Some hosts offer alcohol as an optional add-on for travelers who are of legal drinking age. Pricing for alcohol is visible on the host profile page and includes one to two glasses of wine, beer or local alcohol.

    Have a flight or other tour planned and can’t make the timing provided? If the timing listed on the host’s profile doesn’t work for you, our hosts can often accommodate timing changes. Because all of our experiences are private our hosts are happy to tailor experiences to meet your travel needs. Simply note your request in the booking process.

    Your card will not be charged until your host accepts your booking. Typically hosts respond to bookings within 72 hours. In the event your host is unavailable on your selected date and your host rejects your booking your credit card will not be charged.

    Your host's detailed contact information, including their phone number, address, and direction notes, will all be provided immediately upon successful confirmation of your experience (after your hosts accepts your booking and your credit card is successfully processed). This information will be emailed to you to the email address you used to sign up, and will also be visible on your Traveling Spoon profile.

    All prices are noted per person prices unless otherwise specified. Transportation is typically charged on a per car basis. Children aged 5-11 are 50% off, and infants aged 0-4 are free. Hosts set their own prices and Traveling Spoon marks up the experiences; on average hosts receive over 70% of the price paid by the traveler.

    100% of Traveling Spoon experiences are private! Just you and your host and host’s family.

    Hosts typically respond to booking inquiries within 72 hours. If for some reason you have not heard from your host or if you have any questions you can always contact us at reservations@travelingspoon.com.

    Your safety and security are our top priority. To ensure this, Traveling Spoon personally vets 100% of all hosts, including an in-person host visit, to ensure each host and experience meets our strict quality requirements.

    Some hosts offer transportation as an optional add-on for travelers. Typically this is round trip transportation with pick up and drop off at your hotel. Pricing is quoted per car. Specific instructions for transportation will be provided in your confirmation details when your booking is confirmed.

    Many of our hosts accommodate solo travelers. You can see if a host accepts solo travelers by looking at the traveler range found next to the experience descriptions on the host profile (indicated by the numbers in parentheses next to "In-home meal", "Cooking experience" and "Market visit").

    Most of our Traveling Spoon experiences are incredibly family friendly and can accommodate infants and children. If a host is unable to accommodate children that will be noted in the “Notes” section of their profile. Our child pricing policy is children aged 5-11 are 50% off, and infants aged 0-4 are free.