New Orleans School of Cooking on St Louis Street in the French Quarter is the canonical city demo school, with daily gumbo and jambalaya lessons in a renovated 1830s molasses warehouse.
Tip: The demo classes are the cheaper and more entertaining option; hands-on classes run smaller and cost more.
Address: 524 St Louis St, New Orleans, LA 70130
Langlois Culinary Crossroads in New Orleans is the Marigny hands-on cooking school on Pauger Street, with intimate dinner classes covering Creole etouffee, gumbo and Louisiana seasonal cookery.
Tip: The class includes the dinner you cook; pair with a bottle of wine, the school doesn't have a corkage policy.
Cookin' Cajun in New Orleans is the daily demo school inside Riverwalk Outlets on Poydras Street, with chef-led Cajun gumbo, jambalaya and pralines instruction in a riverfront mall setting.
Tip: Daily 11:00 demo class includes lunch portions; cheapest formal class in the city and walks to the streetcar.
Mardi Gras School of Cooking in New Orleans runs hands-on Creole classics in a private kitchen near St Charles Avenue in the Lower Garden District, with small groups and three-course dinners.
Tip: Books in small groups so reservations need 2 to 4 weeks lead time on weekends; weeknights have more space.
Kitchen Witch in New Orleans is the Mid-City cookbook shop on North Broad Street, with author talks, signed-book events and reading-led classes that feature local cookbook authors monthly.
Tip: Sign up to the newsletter; cookbook author events typically run free, and run with a wine pour at the back.
Crescent City Cooks in New Orleans is the French Quarter hands-on school on Chartres Street, with chef Rich Lee leading Cajun and Creole classes that finish with a sit-down communal meal.
Tip: Couples and small groups fit best; private classes run for 4 to 6 people by booking direct on the website.
