Why Cocktail Classes Are the Perfect Add-On to a Cooking Experience
Going to a cooking class should do more than put food in your belly. In a sense, it should teach you how to fish.
It should instruct you on the rhythm and feeling that comes with cooking in New Orleans. There are stories and lore that go much further than the recipes that provide essential insight into how these drinks are crafted and why.
That’s where these cocktail classes become an imperative add-on to the cooking classes we teach. It’s hard to gain a full New Orleans cooking experience without the proper drinks that would come with the authentic dinner party in this famous city!
Cooking Sets the Foundation, Cocktails Provide the Atmosphere
Our goal with the cooking classes we host is to train you to make the proper food. We’ll show you how to chop, taste, and correct. Your hands will be busy, and your attention will be focused.
But a part of that training is teaching you to deliver the full experience to your guests. That‘s where the cocktails come into play. When you start making cocktails to go with your dinner party, you’ll find that when you drink them in our classes, you look up more and have the time and interest to engage with the people around you and the culture that serves as a foundation for the reason we make these dishes in the first place – connection.
Now you’re passing step-by-step processes and graduating to the artist’s perspective. One of the experiences is the point of the food.
Why Food and Drinks Belong Together in Learning
Food is a great reason to sit down with each other, but you can only sit and eat for so long. It is the drinks that keep people around the table, conversing and connecting beyond their need for sustenance.
A cooking class recreates that dynamic — and a cocktail class completes it.
In many ways, you’ll learn how different flavors and smells pair well with certain things. For example, acid balances richness, sweetness softens spice levels, and herbs bring people into the atmosphere of a kitchen.
As it goes with balancing out the flavors of different foods, you will learn to balance and even accentuate food flavors with the drinks that are served alongside them.
Cocktails are the Perfect Casual Class to Find Comfort with New Orleans Cooking
One of the best things about cocktail classes is how accessible they are.
Cocktails are a great way to ease into the idea of larger cooking projects. It’s much faster and often more straightforward. Getting you into the mode of measuring things out and getting an instant result is satisfying and will help you gain enough confidence to take on more ambitious projects.
That lowers the stakes.
People ask more questions. They experiment. They laugh when a pour isn’t perfect. The room loosens up in a way that carries back into the kitchen.
For groups, especially, that shift matters. It turns a class into a shared experience instead of parallel learning.
Cocktails are an Inherent Part of New Orleans Cooking
In New Orleans, we put a large emphasis on hospitality. Not only is it a part of southern culture to be hospitable, but it is common knowledge that providing people with a well-made drink will improve the flavor of our cooking, as well as the mood that surrounds the meal.
So, cocktail classes go hand in hand with the cooking classes we have. It fits naturally into the hands of our tradition by emphasizing the easygoing love for life and eccentricity that New Orleans projects onto its residents.
The point of cooking for people is to grant them enjoyment, and we know that cocktails will almost certainly refine your enjoyment, especially when made right, New Orleans style!
The Social Glue That Brings Everything Together
Cooking classes bring people together physically. Cocktail classes bring them together socially.
Once glasses are in hand, conversation becomes easier. Strangers start talking. Friends loosen up. Couples lean into the moment instead of watching the clock.
That social ease changes how people remember the experience. It’s no longer just “a class we took.” It becomes “a night we shared.”
For celebrations, vacations, and group outings, that distinction matters.
Learning That Extends Beyond the Classroom
One of the best things about the cocktail classes is the ubiquitous usefulness of the skill.
For most of us, it’s far easier to organize a couple of drinks for your friends than it is to prepare an entire meal for them. You’ll have tons of opportunities throughout your life to make a quick drink for people, and stunning them with something quick and delicious will almost always serve to make your life better!
You can learn more about the drinks you’ll learn to make on our Courtyard Cocktails page!
A Better Rhythm for the Whole Experience
Cooking alone can feel fast. There’s timing to manage, steps to remember, and dishes to finish.
Cocktails introduce pauses.
They give people permission to slow down, taste thoughtfully, and enjoy the process instead of rushing toward the result. The class breathes more. The experience stretches instead of sprinting.
That rhythm is what makes the combination feel complete.
More Than an Add-On — A Natural Extension
The goal of the cocktail class is to add to your cooking class experience. To give you a piece of knowledge that will only strengthen the experience you give to people when you serve them.
Drinks have a tendency to provide people with comfort as they learn to cook. You’ll still have structure, but the drinks will siphon some of the pressure. One must learn that a major part of being a good cook is providing people with a comforting experience, and a properly made drink is often the perfect key to a guest’s ease. It’s also an ideal tool for making your cocktail classes smoother and more fun!
If you’re looking to take your cooking class further, cocktail class add-ons are not extra, so sign up now for your full New Orleans experience.