If you’re planning a trip to Europe, the best advice I can give you to truly understand a city is through a cooking class.
A culture tells you exactly who it is in two distinct ways. First, visually in the way it is constructed - architecture, design, and materiality.
And second, through its food.
If you're here, we likely see eye-to-eye on this one already.
So like me, chances are, you’ve spent years absorbing both: food and design as one. Really, they’re a part of the same conversation.
Architecture and design give context to a culture’s setting, values, and history. But the food, oh the food! Tells you how people live. And between the two, you can understand nearly everything about a place.
The more I travel, the more I realize that food is as important as design and architecture, and determines the way you experience a place. This is why we always include a cooking class on our Boxwood Avenue Abroad group trips throughout Europe!
The little details in the way a dish is served (french fries on a silver platter anyone!?). The cadence of a meal, the symphony of ingredients…shows exactly how a culture values simplicity or abundance.
The same philosophy that comes through in their architecture, interiors, and way of living.
This is why whenever I am traveling somewhere new, I go straight to the source and book a cooking class whenever possible.
Pasta making in Florence, a roast in the Cotswolds, galettes in the south of France, paella in Barcelona…
All a chance to truly take in (figuratively and literally) the local culture.
Working alongside a chef passionate about their craft gives you opportunity to learn authentic cooking methods and discover the best markets in ways watching Youtube videos and reading a travel guide simply cannot.
To ask directly where to get the freshest seafood, or ask about the best restaurants that can’t be found on a Substack list.
But truly the most impactful moment is sitting at the table and breaking bread with newfound friends from across the globe. This, is one of the most beautiful human experiences you can have.
If you’re planning a trip to Paris and would like to book a cooking class, I cannot recommend On Rue Tatin highly enough! The experience prompted this post, and I cherish the day spent with Susan.
Perhaps you’re familiar with her cook books? I love her French Farmhouse Cook Book.
For more than three decades, she has written about food, culture, and the art of living well, always with a deep respect for place, tradition, and pleasure. Now, she offers intimate classes in her home in Paris!
I personally attended earlier this month and walked away with new skills, memories, and a deeper appreciation for French cooking.
And if you want to truly experience Europe like a local, to cook in a chateau in Provence, antique at private dealer’s homes, and join a group of women who arrive as strangers and leave as friends…well, that’s exactly what we do on Boxwood Avenue Abroad trips.
I’ve curated our retreats across Europe around the philosophy: that the deepest way into a culture is through what it grows, what it makes, and the people behind the beauty.
But even if (especially if) it’s just you, traveling solo to a new city, I encourage you to spend a day away from the crowds and in the kitchen.
At the end of the day, the recipes you carry home are just souvenirs. What stays with you is the people at the table you shared them with.
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