Costa Rica Culinary Tours

Culinary Paradise Weekat Villa Punto Vista

September 8 - 14, 2014

www.CostaRicaCulinaryTours.comor call (+1) 510-473-5989

Whether you’re a passionate home chef hungry for new skills. Aninsatiable Epicurean in search of edible thrills. Or wondering what the alternative is to yet another vacation with nothing to do but bake in the sun.

There will be plenty to feast on, as well as fun, when Bay

Area Chefs MikeC. and Gilad Chud ler launch Cos-

ta Rica Culinary Tours early this fall.

Costa Rica Culinary Tours debuts on September 8 - 14, 2014, with Culinary Paradise Week at Villa Punto Vista, based at the architecturally-riveting Villa Punto Vista private estate (pic-tured here) overlooking the Pa-cific Ocean and the world-famous Manual Antonio National Park.

On November 24-30, 2014, they will present Surf N’ Turf Culinary Week at Hotel Sugar Beach, located at this award-winning eco-resort perched on a sprawling 24-acre beach in the heart of a dry tropical forest. Priced at $3295 per person (double occupancy), the all-inclusive seven-day /six-night vacation packages include first-class accommodations, three chef-prepared meals a day, all beverages, tastings and pairings of regional hand-produced edible treasures, topped off by a daily themed multi-course dinner fusing artisan and indig-enous ingredients with classic Costa Rican and modern cooking techniques.

Through each tour’s three hands-on cook-ing classes, participants not only learn to how to cook Tico-style, mas-ter instructors MikeC. and Chud ler share their secrets for perfect pair-ings and the virtues of cooking by technique

vs. recipes. Indeed, MikeC. helped pioneer the latter through his renowned Kitchen On Fire cooking schools in Berkeley; landmark book, Kitchen on Fire! Mastering the Art of Cooking in 12 Weeks (Or Less); and original 12-part basic series, named by San Francisco Magazine as one of the best cooking classes in the Bay Area.

Their decision to create Costa Rica Culinary Tours is not surprising, considering that Chud ler, Kitchen On Fire’s former general manager, has lived in Costa Rica much of the time since 2007. “Ironically, Costa Rica is one of the most beloved destinations in the world, despite its reputation for unremarkable food - simply because that’s all restaurants serve where most tourists hang out,” says MikeC.‘Through Costa Rica Culinary Tours, we hope to change that,” adds Chud ler.

“Everything we offer is in tribute to the legacy, the people, and the amazing natural ingredients that make this Central American destination one of the world’s most vibrant emerging food scenes.” Over two years in the planning, Costa Rica Culinary Tours is based on extensive research into the region’s best accommodations, edible delicacies, indigenous ingredients, and world-class artisans. Chud ler has also cooked side by side with many of Costa Rica’s top chefs, and spent countless hours exploring the nooks and crannies of local produce, fish, and meat markets in search of ingredients sometimes so rare that English translations don’t yet exist.