Make your next meal out a interactive affair, urges Joburg blogger

Whether it’s the growing traction of the real food movement, tightening our belts so we’re eating out less, or the fact that Joburgers love to be social, the popularity of the cooking class concept in Jozi continues to grow.

Paul Maciel, former owner of award-winning Italian eatery Pronto and blogger at The Secret Jozi Chef, has reinvented himself once again by tapping into this trend.

His cooking school, The Cookery, hosts social cooking classes and interactive chef’s table events out of a state-of-the-art yet welcoming kitchen space in Craighall.

We chat with him to find out more.

What are your social cooking classes all about?

The original idea for the venue came from a holiday I took with some friends. Our favourite time was when we all gathered in the beautiful kitchen and cooked together, laughing, snacking and learning. That’s what we recreate in every class: a welcoming, relaxed, happy social space, where guests cook a menu usually with 12 to 15 different dishes, and then we all sit down and share the meal together.

What makes The Cookery different?

Our focus isn’t so much on teaching people to cook, but more on showing them that they can cook and that they just need to trust themselves in the kitchen, and to relax and enjoy the process. We show people that with the right preparation, absolutely anyone can cook delicious food.

Tell us more about your kitchen space in Craighall.

It’s a happy place. From a technical point of view, the kitchen has pretty much everything you could need to cook amazing food. I was lucky enough to get the most amazing support from KitchenAid and Whirlpool. But I think the reason they were so happy to partner with us is that we create so much more than just a cooking class; we try to create a total experience just like a fabulous dinner party at a friend’s home.

What interactive chef's table events are coming up?

We’re in the middle of our winter schedule, so our classes are about decadent food from around the globe that are ideal for cold weather.

In July, we’ll revisit our popular Christmas in July class: a chance to dress up in silly sweaters and to indulge in Christmas food we can’t normally eat because of the heat of our summers. 

• Visit The Secret Jozi Chef blog.

This article was originally published in one of the Sunday Times Neighbourhood: Property and Lifestyle guides. Visit Yourneighbourhood.co.za, like YourNeighbourhoodZA on Facebook and follow YourHoodZA on Twitter.