Traditional Filipino family recipes with a local foodie

Isi is such a sweet woman! She was so hospitable and a great hostess. She emailed me in advance to find out what some of my favorite ingredients were - I said avocado and mushrooms :) Sure enough, when I got there, there were a ton of those items. Since I'm not a person who cooks, she explained all the ingredients that she used. I was a little nervous about some of the ingredients (tofu and vinegar) but the tastes came out perfect! All the ingredients that she used (minus the chicken and tofu) came from her garden so they were incredibly fresh. I highly recommend Isi's Cooking Class!!

Great experience to get to know the insights of Philippine’s food surroundings by visiting a local market, and seeing the variety of fresh products was incredible and exciting! Isi was a great host but also a great cook! We cook by utilising fresh ingredients and everything was delicious:). Isi is kind, professional and I would strongly recommend to explore this tour. Great for a solo traveler but I am sure that a big group will have fun as well! She can also adapt to your eating habits, fish, meat, vegetables, etc. It was a memorable day, thank you Isi!

Hello 🙂 My wife and I have traveled to various countries in Asia, but it is this experience that has brought us the closest to what we love most in this part of the world - people. From the first moment we felt a friendly relationship with Isi, and the moments spent together - the shopping done in the beautiful local market where you see the daily shopping done by the locals, the road from the market to its location and of course the "cooking lesson" crowned with a delicious meal and a cold San Miguel - all contributed to a unique, extraordinary experience that we will always remember with pleasure. Isi, you are the perfect ambassador for the warmth and kindness of the Filipino people. Thank you for everything ! 🤗🙏🏻🇵🇭🇷🇴

We very much enjoyed our time with Isi and her boyfriend and their warm hospitality. We learned a few things about the cuisine of the Philippines, and were cooking some tasty local dishes like Adobo. Isi also shared a lot of insider tips for good food and places to visit in the Philippines. We recommend to start your trip in the Philippines with such an experience!

This isn't just a cooking class but a true experience that encompasses heritage, history, and culture. Isi doesn't just share food, she also shares stories and connection. Even locals will enjoy taking this cooking class because it's a chance to delve into food beyond just eating and to truly appreciate what is behind a shared meal and culture. Highly recommend!

Isi’s three ways of cooking adobo was very informative and a lot of fun! Even if the class was online, ISI’s warmth and energy made the class very engaging. We learned new things about adobo, and the recipes are delicious.

Being Pinoy, we already know this dish by heart. We booked Isi's class because we were looking for something different in doing this national dish. Let's just say, we got so much more than what we expected! We were taught the history of the dish, a "tour" of the different methods of the three major island groups, but most of all, we got to meet a cool Filipino in chef Isi. We will definitely book again and recommend to friends.

Great cooking class (amazing results!) and a very warm and genuine cultural exchange! I had a truely great time at Isi's! We went through a bunch of recipes from scratch, using awesome ingredients and discussed in detail anything from origin, food handling and preparation. She hooked me up with some very solid basics of filipino cooking as well; I'll definitely keep on cooking the dishes I learned today! I was familiar with filipino cooking before, but Isi really knows how to bring it to the next level by adding just that extra touch or condiment - it was inspiring how confident she was in the kitchen. Next to that, through food and cooking, Isi shared so much about Filipino culture and society, both provincial life and the hip Manila scene! Time flew really! and then the food was served - it was delicious.

Our family had a wonderful lunch prepared by Isi at their home in QC. Isi was warm, wonderful and knowledgeable on food and philippine products. Her house was beautiful and relaxing my kids did not want to leave. She even accommodated our requests for food and even took into consideration that I have small, picky kids. My husband is from Singapore and though I'm a Filipino myself I'm still wowed by the food she prepared. We have eggplant cooked with egg omelette, bbq pork, baked boneless milkfish with salted egg (superb!), chicken bao, spring roll, adobong sitaw (this was also delicious), calamansi pie and a refreshing honey lemon ginger drink. Everything was my favorite, i could not decide which one is the best or the least of my favorite. My husband was extremely satisfied and full even my mom. We even urge her to share the salted egg since it was a very good combination with the baked milkfish. I'd go and try this again to venture more food discoveries.

Isi is a wonderful cooking teacher and also gave me a lot of information about Filipino history and culture. We walked around the market near her home, which definitely gave me a deeper insight of Philippines. And then cooked three Filipino dishes at her beautiful home. I loved everything about this experience with her. She also suggested a lot of Filipino restaurants near my hotel in Makati and Cebu! It was also great to hear her family’s story while we were on the way to the market. So kind and charming Isi is!!! I recommend everyone coming to Manila experience her wonderful cooking class in order to know more about the local culture which you can never have with normal sight seeing.

Isi is an absolute delight: friendly, knowledgeable, experienced and passionate. This is a wonderful, relaxed way to spend a couple of hours and an excellent way to learn about not only Filipino cuisine, but also gain some insider tips about what to see and where to go (including where to eat!) in Manila and beyond.

Thank you Isi for showing us the filipino kitchen and for the amazing dinner. We will definitely visit again.

I had the most amazing, fun time and left absolutely stuffed full of delicious, vegetarian food. Thanks for accommodating my preferences Isi! Isi’s friends from overseas also attended which made things super fun.

Forget the Zagat-rated restaurants in Manila. Enjoy this authentic experience. I can’t rave enough. Now I will incorporate Traveling Spoon into all my international adventures.

Isi wies uns in einige Besonderheiten und Geheimnisse der philippinischen Küche ein und war eine exzellente Gastgeberin.

This was a great find, because there aren't many vegetarian cooking classes available in Manila. I appreciated Isi's willingness to adapt the menu to my dietary restrictions and cooking in her family's outdoor kitchen was a new experience for me. She offered interesting information about her food sources and generously suggested vegetarian restaurants in town. I'd have liked to receive a printed copy of the recipes we made!

Had a fabulous time learning about Filipino cuisine and the Philippines as well. Isi is a tremendous ambassador for her country and provided us with a mouthwatering lunch. Come hungry.

I enjoyed learning what knowledge Isi has to share about Filipino culture and food. Isi accommodated my vegetarian diet and even added a dished a wanted to learn to the menu. I enjoyed the process and loved the second cooking area. Everything that we made was soooo delicious! I would love to take another class on a future trip. I highly recommend this class; stop your search and book it!

We had the dinner cooking experience with Isi on Valentine's Day. She even accommodated our short-notice request to make Shrimp Sinigang plus we got to savor 2 family recipes, a beef dish and a kind of sweet pork meatloaf. Everything tasted amazing. Calamansi pie for desert was heavenly. We appreciated to be guests at a local family home (the area and the house are VERY nice!) and Isi managed so well to create a relaxed, enjoyable atmosphere while being the perfect host at the same time. She gave us lots of great info on the Philippines' cuisine and heritage, as well as what to do and where to eat in Manila, which considerably enriched the 2nd half of our stay in town. I was assuming we would be more actively involved in the cooking process, but as it was Valentine's we were also very ok with just being spoiled ;) Would definitely participate again any time!

Isi was patient and happy to share culinary knowledge with us. Isi prepped two dishes beforehand and we had the opportunity to participate (with a lot of hands-on guidance and demonstration from Isi herself) in cooking/prepping another two! Food was delicious, of generous portions and we were happy that it was manageable for learners like us! The calamansi pie was wonderful too. Isi also shared stories about Filipino food, cooking and culture over lunch and gave us recommendation on what to do and eat around Manila.

- Valuable information on local food and herbs.- Learned a lot about Filipino kitchen & culture..- Had a perfect meal.- Wonderful private atmosphere with gracious and warm hospitality..This is more than can be expected or wished.Even learned a lot about local goods and production.

Had an afternoon class. The food was fabulous. Loved the experience and the knowledge shared by Chef Isi.

Isi is a fantastic chef who balances instruction and background beautifully and ensures everyone has an opportunity to participate. Isi is also a gracious and knowledgeable hostess who goes above and beyond to provide a fabulous experience.

Isi is a wonderful chef and had the right amount of instruction mixed with local information. Not only does she have a beautiful home that can accommodate up to 10 guests comfortably, but there is a small army of fluffy puppies (friendly and fenced in for safety) in the back that enjoy cuddles! Today we created some incredibly flavourful and simple dishes that we hope to be able to re-create back home. Thank you for our special day!

Isi was such a great host - it was rainy when I visited, so we actually started by having breakfast in her home, a very welcoming, bright place! We went to the market and saw a lot of fresh seafood, vegetables and Filipino delicacies - she explained what certain ingredients/foods were that I wasn't familiar with. Then, back to her home to prepare the baby squid we purchased for adobo, a traditional Filipino dish. Chatted a lot along the way about local food culture today (I grew up in Manila, but live in Canada now) and Isi shared interesting insights - ask her about chilies, too! :)

Isi was a great host and the food was lovely.

Isi prepared a delicious feast of seasonal, local produce blending traditional and contemporary cooking styles. She also supplemented the meal with locally produced liqueurs and desserts. It was a fun and informative (and filling) survey of Filipino food past and present.