Tabasco: A Cuisine of Water & Smoke | Gastronomy Workshop with Chef Lupita Vidal

Chef Lupita Vidal leads an immersive workshop on the cuisine of Tabasco, Mexico, exploring how the region’s rivers, lagoons, wetlands, tropical environment, and ancestral cooking traditions shape its flavors. The experience combines live cooking demonstrations, storytelling, tasting, and hands-on participation, with a focus on the ingredients and techniques that define Tabascan food.

Participants will sample preparations made during the workshop and encounter ingredients and traditional culinary elements from Tabasco, including cacao, chiles, spices, jícaras, and clay vessels. Vidal, a chef and culinary director from Villahermosa, brings the culinary heritage of her home state to Washington, D.C.; she was named Mexico’s Best Chef in 2025.

When: Thursday, October 15, 2026

Showtimes: The workshop begins at 6:00 PM and the event listing runs until 9:00 PM.

Duration: Approximately 60–90 minutes

Format: Live cooking demonstrations, culinary storytelling, tasting, and hands-on participation

Language: Spanglish

Tickets: $60 per participant

Capacity: Limited to 35 participants

Venue: Mexican Cultural Institute, 2829 16th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20009

Featured chef: Lupita Vidal, chef, culinary director, and co-founder of Grupo Chef Lupita Vidal in Villahermosa, Tabasco

What to expect: Chef Vidal will discuss traditional Tabascan ingredients, cooking methods, and the region’s culinary heritage while preparing food for the group. The workshop includes a tasting of the preparations made during the session.

Ingredients and materials: The presentation may feature cacao, chiles, spices, jícaras, and traditional clay vessels brought from Tabasco.

Menu note: The final menu and workshop activities may change according to ingredient availability.