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Host: Catherine

Taipei, Taiwan

USD
$80-$116 per person

Taiwanese cooking demonstration of family recipes

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

Meet Catherine

Catherine learned to cook by watching her mother who is a wonderful cook. Since she was a child Catherine enjoyed helping her mother in the kitchen and later studied at Les Roches Hotel Management School in Switzerland. Catherine continues to experiment in the kitchen, and takes great pride in cooking home-made meals for her family every day. She calls herself a foodie and says that eating and cooking are the ultimate joys of life!

“By hosting travelers in my home, I would like to share more about my culture, my food and my country.”

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: (1-4 guests) Catherine lives in a modest, cozy apartment in a residential Taiwanese suburban neighborhood. Her apartment is decorated with souvenirs from her travels, family photos and lovely plants - giving it a homely and welcoming feel! Catherine has a huge repertoire of traditional Taiwanese dishes, and she takes the trouble to select the dishes to cook based on what’s fresh in the market that day and her guests' food preferences. A few dishes that you might share with Catherine at her dining table are marinated smashed cucumbers, vermicelli with clams and luffa soup (a traditional Taiwanese home-cooked meal, often served in the summer), xiansuji (a Taiwanese night-market favorite – crispy salty chicken bites) or poached squid with spicy tomato sauce (a dish that is served at traditional wedding banquets), pork fried rice and stir-fried white water snowflakes with fresh shiitake mushrooms (white water snowflake is a crunchy local vegetable).

Cooking experience: (1-4 guests) After a warm welcome into her apartment, Catherine will take you to her kitchen to being your cooking demonstration. As is typical in most Taipei homes, Catherine’s kitchen is very small, so she will be doing most of the cooking but you will help her whenever possible. Due to space constraints, this will be more of a cooking demonstration. Catherine will introduce you to the dishes that you be eating and during this one-hour demonstration, you will watch as she prepares 2-3 authentic Taiwanese dishes from scratch. Catherine will walk you through the entire cooking process giving you very clear instructions, and sharing many useful tips along the way. You will then enjoy your meal with Catherine at her dining table.

Market visit: (1-4 guests) Meet your host at the Wende Metro station and together walk to the local, Taipei street market near Catherine's home. She will take you to the vendor shops from where she usually buys her ingredients and explain the local produce available and how it is used in the cooking process. After buying a few ingredients at the market, walk five minutes to Catherine's home. Along the way, she will show you some of her favorite spots and you might even meet her friendly neighbors.

Notes: Please note that Catherine does not have pets but sometimes her friends dogs stays with her. Catherine can offer vegetarian and Gluten free meals on request. Please let her know your preference when you book.

Languages spoken: English, Chinese, Japanese, French

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.
  • Smashed cucumbers
  • Vermicelli with clams and luffa soup
  • Xiansuji, crispy chicken with a spicy tomato sauce
  • Pork fried rice
  • Stir-fried white water snowflakes with fresh shiitake mushrooms
PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

Catherine was very friendly and made me feel welcomed the minute we met. It was very easy to chat with her. Catherine has a huge repertoire of traditional Taiwanese dishes and takes the trouble to select the dishes to cook based on the guest’s background. I’d mentioned in our chat before the visit that I’d just attended a friend’s wedding banquet (hence the squid dish), that I was from Singapore (i.e. summer all year round, hence the Vermicelli dish) and I love Taiwanese stir-fries (hence the white-water snowflake dish). Catherine was very quick in preparing and cooking the five dishes, and lovely smells started to fill the kitchen and soon the apartment. I was truly looking forward to tasting the food. Soon enough, it was time to tuck in. Catherine and I had a lovely meal together as we polished off the delicious food and chatted non-stop about everything under the sun. My favorite was the vermicelli with clams and luffa soup, which was light and satisfying, and something which I’ll definitely be cooking quite regularly back home. Since I had a few more days in Taipei, Catherine also shared with me places to visit and where to buy some of her favorite food ingredients in town. It was a fabulous experience to meet her and dine with her in her apartment. Catherine made me feel very welcome during my visit and I really glad to say I’ve made another friend in Taipei!

Olivia, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

This is a new host who does not yet have any reviews. You can see reviews of our other Taipei Traveling Spoon experiences on TripAdvisor:
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Catherine

$80-$116 USD

per person
100% VETTED
Learn more
  • 100% satisfaction guarantee or your money back
  • Credit card is not charged until the host confirms your booking
  • Private experience
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ ppl
Cooking Experience + Meal
$94 $80 Not offered
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
$116 $100 Not offered
Alcohol
$14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 people 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
$94 $80 Not offered
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
$116 $100 Not offered
Alcohol
$14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
Lunch Dinner
Cooking Experience+ Meal
10:00am-1:00pm 6:00pm-9:00pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
9:30am-1:30pm

Meet Catherine

Catherine learned to cook by watching her mother who is a wonderful cook. Since she was a child Catherine enjoyed helping her mother in the kitchen and later studied at Les Roches Hotel Management School in Switzerland. Catherine continues to experiment in the kitchen, and takes great pride in cooking home-made meals for her family every day. She calls herself a foodie and says that eating and cooking are the ultimate joys of life!

“By hosting travelers in my home, I would like to share more about my culture, my food and my country.”

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: (1-4 guests) Catherine lives in a modest, cozy apartment in a residential Taiwanese suburban neighborhood. Her apartment is decorated with souvenirs from her travels, family photos and lovely plants - giving it a homely and welcoming feel! Catherine has a huge repertoire of traditional Taiwanese dishes, and she takes the trouble to select the dishes to cook based on what’s fresh in the market that day and her guests' food preferences. A few dishes that you might share with Catherine at her dining table are marinated smashed cucumbers, vermicelli with clams and luffa soup (a traditional Taiwanese home-cooked meal, often served in the summer), xiansuji (a Taiwanese night-market favorite – crispy salty chicken bites) or poached squid with spicy tomato sauce (a dish that is served at traditional wedding banquets), pork fried rice and stir-fried white water snowflakes with fresh shiitake mushrooms (white water snowflake is a crunchy local vegetable).

Cooking experience: (1-4 guests) After a warm welcome into her apartment, Catherine will take you to her kitchen to being your cooking demonstration. As is typical in most Taipei homes, Catherine’s kitchen is very small, so she will be doing most of the cooking but you will help her whenever possible. Due to space constraints, this will be more of a cooking demonstration. Catherine will introduce you to the dishes that you be eating and during this one-hour demonstration, you will watch as she prepares 2-3 authentic Taiwanese dishes from scratch. Catherine will walk you through the entire cooking process giving you very clear instructions, and sharing many useful tips along the way. You will then enjoy your meal with Catherine at her dining table.

Market visit: (1-4 guests) Meet your host at the Wende Metro station and together walk to the local, Taipei street market near Catherine's home. She will take you to the vendor shops from where she usually buys her ingredients and explain the local produce available and how it is used in the cooking process. After buying a few ingredients at the market, walk five minutes to Catherine's home. Along the way, she will show you some of her favorite spots and you might even meet her friendly neighbors.

Notes: Please note that Catherine does not have pets but sometimes her friends dogs stays with her. Catherine can offer vegetarian and Gluten free meals on request. Please let her know your preference when you book.

Languages spoken: English, Chinese, Japanese, French

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.
  • Smashed cucumbers
  • Vermicelli with clams and luffa soup
  • Xiansuji, crispy chicken with a spicy tomato sauce
  • Pork fried rice
  • Stir-fried white water snowflakes with fresh shiitake mushrooms
PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

Catherine was very friendly and made me feel welcomed the minute we met. It was very easy to chat with her. Catherine has a huge repertoire of traditional Taiwanese dishes and takes the trouble to select the dishes to cook based on the guest’s background. I’d mentioned in our chat before the visit that I’d just attended a friend’s wedding banquet (hence the squid dish), that I was from Singapore (i.e. summer all year round, hence the Vermicelli dish) and I love Taiwanese stir-fries (hence the white-water snowflake dish). Catherine was very quick in preparing and cooking the five dishes, and lovely smells started to fill the kitchen and soon the apartment. I was truly looking forward to tasting the food. Soon enough, it was time to tuck in. Catherine and I had a lovely meal together as we polished off the delicious food and chatted non-stop about everything under the sun. My favorite was the vermicelli with clams and luffa soup, which was light and satisfying, and something which I’ll definitely be cooking quite regularly back home. Since I had a few more days in Taipei, Catherine also shared with me places to visit and where to buy some of her favorite food ingredients in town. It was a fabulous experience to meet her and dine with her in her apartment. Catherine made me feel very welcome during my visit and I really glad to say I’ve made another friend in Taipei!

Olivia, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

This is a new host who does not yet have any reviews. You can see reviews of our other Taipei Traveling Spoon experiences on TripAdvisor:
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ ppl
Cooking Experience + Meal
$94 $80 Not offered
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
$116 $100 Not offered
Alcohol
$14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 people 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
$94 $80 Not offered
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
$116 $100 Not offered
Alcohol
$14 per person
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
Lunch Dinner
Cooking Experience+ Meal
10:00am-1:00pm 6:00pm-9:00pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
9:30am-1:30pm
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.