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VIEW PHOTOS
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Host: Tonya

Melbourne, Australia

USD
$170-$240 per person

Modern Australian cooking class in Melbourne with a professional chef

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

Meet Tonya

Tonya’s passion for food and cooking is evident from her training as a chef in Melbourne and at prestigious international cooking schools including Le Cordon Bleu and the Ritz Escoffier in Paris and La Varenne l’Ecole de Cuisine in Burgundy. She has an extensive personal culinary library of over 3,000 cookbooks and books related to food! Tonya loves teaching cooking and enthusiastically shares her knowledge of food through her cooking classes conducted in her home. She enjoys talking about Australia's food, culture, history and way of life and is thrilled to be able to share this with travelers from around the world.

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: (2-6 guests) Tonya lives in a beautiful, modern apartment with antique styling in St Kilda, Melbourne. Her apartment is opposite the St Kilda boat marina and from her balcony you can enjoy stunning views across Port Phillip Bay. St Kilda is a bayside city suburb, very easily accessible via public transport and just 8 km from Melbourne's city center. Tonya warmly welcomes you into her apartment with tea and cake to experience her modern Australian food. Her food philosophy is to cook with fresh, seasonal, locally-produced ingredients using simple recipes that help enhance the natural flavors of the food, making the food look and taste delicious. Your meal, served with wine, is enjoyed at her dining table with views overlooking the bay. Enjoy seasonal dishes like scallop ceviche with a pear, ginger and lime dressing, slow-roasted ocean trout served with creamy, lemony aioili and garnished with native Australian finger limes, or herb-marinated pork fillet, pan fried and finished in the oven. Your meal will end with a dessert such as pavlova-style meringue rolled with vanilla bean cream or chocolate fondant with seasonal berries accompanied by a cranberry jelly or ice-cream. Tea or coffee will be available upon request.

Cooking experience: (2-6 guests) During your hands-on Melbourne cooking class, learn to make three modern Australian dishes that you will enjoy together, with wine. Tonya starts this 3-hour cooking lesson by giving you an overview of the menu that you will be preparing, and providing helpful tips for the preparation and cooking process. A few dishes that you might prepare are oysters and verjus jelly with a shallot dressing, green peppercorn and chive jus, slow-roasted ocean trout with creamy, lemony mayonnaise and native finger limes, or hazelnut torte with blueberries. At the end of your cooking class you will be given a folder to take home with all the recipes and tips that you learned so you can easily recreate the meal at home.

Market visit: (2-4 guests) Please note the market tour is available only on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, when the market is open. For market tour experiences, meet Tonya at her apartment for a quick refreshment. She will then drive you to the local South Melbourne market, 10-minutes away. This is a wonderful opportunity for you to experience one of the biggest local markets close to the city. On this tour you will have the opportunity peruse and buy from the wide variety of wonderful local fish, meat, poultry, vegetable, dairy, cheese and chocolate purveyors. After you buy a few ingredients needed for your class, Tonya will drive you back to her apartment so that you can join her in the kitchen to prepare your modern Australian meal.

Notes: Tonya can offer vegetarian, low-carb and gluten free meals on request. A glass of Australian wine is included in your experience cost. Please note the market tour is available only on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, when the market is open.

Languages spoken: English

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.
  • Welcome tea and coffee with apple cake
  • Entrée: slow roasted ocean trout with creamy, lemony mayonnaise and Australian native finger limes OR cheese choux pastry puffs
  • Main: herb-marinated pork fillet, marinated in garlic, rosemary and lemon served with seasonal, wok-fried greens
  • Dessert: a pavlova-style meringue rolled with vanilla bean cream or cranberry jelly shots
  • Glass of wine with the meal
PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

Tonya was engaging, patient, encouraging and very generous with sharing of her passion and knowledge. Her home was spotless, bright and airy. The entire meal was delicious - the taste, balance and presentation were outstanding. Everything was done to an exceptionally high standard and clearly a lot of detailed planning goes into every class Tonya holds. I have to admit on first seeing the menu, I though there is some very technical and difficult elements to the menu and wondered if I would be able to prepare and cook them – however, I need not have worried. Tonya’s advice to break up the preparation steps into chunks and work through the chunks systematically - made preparing technically difficult processes easy and very doable. This was a hands-on cooking class and we prepared every item from scratch using locally sourced ingredients from Tonya’s favourite local market. At the end, we all sat around and enjoyed the beautiful, balanced and delicious meal we had created and there was a feeling of pride around the table! I found Tonya’s class inspiring as it built my confidence in the kitchen, to be able to prepare a technically difficult meal from scratch with so much ease; this is an absolute credit to Tonya and her infectious enthusiasm, passion, skill and teaching. I will definitely make these dishes again, and again!

Violetta and Gary, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

5.0 (3)
Great learning, delicious dinner, fun time, delightful host/chef, on the harbor - what's not to like? Tonya is a real pro - she was welcoming, adjusted quickly to our skill and knowledge level, had a keen sense of when to just give a direction and when to demonstrate, maintained a relaxed learning climate and provided material to take home to make home meals easy. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, in a lovely home, and we have several new techniques to try and dishes to prepare. Plus, she steered us to a remarkable art show in Melbourne which made our visit all the better. We are off to our next Traveling Spoon in Morocco.
- Richard March 27, 2023
Great learning, delicious dinner, fun time, delightful host/chef, on the harbor - what's not to like? Tonya is a real pro - she was welcoming, adjusted quickly to our skill and knowledge level, had a keen sense of when to just give a direction and when to demonstrate, maintained a relaxed learning climate and provided material to take home to make home meals easy. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, in a lovely home, and we have several new techniques to try and dishes to prepare. Plus, she steered us to a remarkable art show in Melbourne which made our visit all the better. We are off to our next Traveling Spoon in Morocco.
- Cricket March 27, 2023
My family and I enjoyed our day with Tonya at the Cooking on the Bay class and trip to the South Market. Superb food there. We tried a couple of recipes and were happy with them on Xmas Day. Wonderful. Thank you Tonya.
- Caroline January 06, 2020
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Tonya

$170-$240 USD

per person
100% VETTED
Learn more
  • No waiting! Booking confirmed instantly
  • 100% satisfaction guarantee or your money back
  • Private experience
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $200 $170
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $240 Not offered
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $200 $170
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $240 Not offered
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
 Lunch Dinner
Cooking Experience+ Meal
 9:30am-2:30pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 9:00am-3:00pm

Meet Tonya

Tonya’s passion for food and cooking is evident from her training as a chef in Melbourne and at prestigious international cooking schools including Le Cordon Bleu and the Ritz Escoffier in Paris and La Varenne l’Ecole de Cuisine in Burgundy. She has an extensive personal culinary library of over 3,000 cookbooks and books related to food! Tonya loves teaching cooking and enthusiastically shares her knowledge of food through her cooking classes conducted in her home. She enjoys talking about Australia's food, culture, history and way of life and is thrilled to be able to share this with travelers from around the world.

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: (2-6 guests) Tonya lives in a beautiful, modern apartment with antique styling in St Kilda, Melbourne. Her apartment is opposite the St Kilda boat marina and from her balcony you can enjoy stunning views across Port Phillip Bay. St Kilda is a bayside city suburb, very easily accessible via public transport and just 8 km from Melbourne's city center. Tonya warmly welcomes you into her apartment with tea and cake to experience her modern Australian food. Her food philosophy is to cook with fresh, seasonal, locally-produced ingredients using simple recipes that help enhance the natural flavors of the food, making the food look and taste delicious. Your meal, served with wine, is enjoyed at her dining table with views overlooking the bay. Enjoy seasonal dishes like scallop ceviche with a pear, ginger and lime dressing, slow-roasted ocean trout served with creamy, lemony aioili and garnished with native Australian finger limes, or herb-marinated pork fillet, pan fried and finished in the oven. Your meal will end with a dessert such as pavlova-style meringue rolled with vanilla bean cream or chocolate fondant with seasonal berries accompanied by a cranberry jelly or ice-cream. Tea or coffee will be available upon request.

Cooking experience: (2-6 guests) During your hands-on Melbourne cooking class, learn to make three modern Australian dishes that you will enjoy together, with wine. Tonya starts this 3-hour cooking lesson by giving you an overview of the menu that you will be preparing, and providing helpful tips for the preparation and cooking process. A few dishes that you might prepare are oysters and verjus jelly with a shallot dressing, green peppercorn and chive jus, slow-roasted ocean trout with creamy, lemony mayonnaise and native finger limes, or hazelnut torte with blueberries. At the end of your cooking class you will be given a folder to take home with all the recipes and tips that you learned so you can easily recreate the meal at home.

Market visit: (2-4 guests) Please note the market tour is available only on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, when the market is open. For market tour experiences, meet Tonya at her apartment for a quick refreshment. She will then drive you to the local South Melbourne market, 10-minutes away. This is a wonderful opportunity for you to experience one of the biggest local markets close to the city. On this tour you will have the opportunity peruse and buy from the wide variety of wonderful local fish, meat, poultry, vegetable, dairy, cheese and chocolate purveyors. After you buy a few ingredients needed for your class, Tonya will drive you back to her apartment so that you can join her in the kitchen to prepare your modern Australian meal.

Notes: Tonya can offer vegetarian, low-carb and gluten free meals on request. A glass of Australian wine is included in your experience cost. Please note the market tour is available only on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, when the market is open.

Languages spoken: English

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.
  • Welcome tea and coffee with apple cake
  • Entrée: slow roasted ocean trout with creamy, lemony mayonnaise and Australian native finger limes OR cheese choux pastry puffs
  • Main: herb-marinated pork fillet, marinated in garlic, rosemary and lemon served with seasonal, wok-fried greens
  • Dessert: a pavlova-style meringue rolled with vanilla bean cream or cranberry jelly shots
  • Glass of wine with the meal
PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

Tonya was engaging, patient, encouraging and very generous with sharing of her passion and knowledge. Her home was spotless, bright and airy. The entire meal was delicious - the taste, balance and presentation were outstanding. Everything was done to an exceptionally high standard and clearly a lot of detailed planning goes into every class Tonya holds. I have to admit on first seeing the menu, I though there is some very technical and difficult elements to the menu and wondered if I would be able to prepare and cook them – however, I need not have worried. Tonya’s advice to break up the preparation steps into chunks and work through the chunks systematically - made preparing technically difficult processes easy and very doable. This was a hands-on cooking class and we prepared every item from scratch using locally sourced ingredients from Tonya’s favourite local market. At the end, we all sat around and enjoyed the beautiful, balanced and delicious meal we had created and there was a feeling of pride around the table! I found Tonya’s class inspiring as it built my confidence in the kitchen, to be able to prepare a technically difficult meal from scratch with so much ease; this is an absolute credit to Tonya and her infectious enthusiasm, passion, skill and teaching. I will definitely make these dishes again, and again!

Violetta and Gary, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

5.0 (3)
Great learning, delicious dinner, fun time, delightful host/chef, on the harbor - what's not to like? Tonya is a real pro - she was welcoming, adjusted quickly to our skill and knowledge level, had a keen sense of when to just give a direction and when to demonstrate, maintained a relaxed learning climate and provided material to take home to make home meals easy. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, in a lovely home, and we have several new techniques to try and dishes to prepare. Plus, she steered us to a remarkable art show in Melbourne which made our visit all the better. We are off to our next Traveling Spoon in Morocco.
- Richard March 27, 2023
Great learning, delicious dinner, fun time, delightful host/chef, on the harbor - what's not to like? Tonya is a real pro - she was welcoming, adjusted quickly to our skill and knowledge level, had a keen sense of when to just give a direction and when to demonstrate, maintained a relaxed learning climate and provided material to take home to make home meals easy. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, in a lovely home, and we have several new techniques to try and dishes to prepare. Plus, she steered us to a remarkable art show in Melbourne which made our visit all the better. We are off to our next Traveling Spoon in Morocco.
- Cricket March 27, 2023
My family and I enjoyed our day with Tonya at the Cooking on the Bay class and trip to the South Market. Superb food there. We tried a couple of recipes and were happy with them on Xmas Day. Wonderful. Thank you Tonya.
- Caroline January 06, 2020
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $200 $170
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $240 Not offered
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $200 $170
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 Not offered $240 Not offered
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
 Lunch Dinner
Cooking Experience+ Meal
 9:30am-2:30pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 9:00am-3:00pm
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.