Experiences
The 6 Best Cooking Classes in London
Wok skills, fresh pasta and Michelin-trained masterclasses: London's best cooking classes.
In short: our top picks are School of Wok, Leiths School of Food and Wine and L'atelier des Chefs. 6 places in total, chosen on merit, with the full reasoning below.
London’s cooking schools cover every appetite, from a quick lunchtime skills class to a full day at the stove. School of Wok is the go-to for pan-Asian technique, Leiths is the serious institution, and Food at 52 does it with free-flowing wine and a supper-club feel. Come to fix your knife skills or just to spend a fun evening in an apron, there is a class for it. Book by cuisine and level, and check if you get to eat what you cook, most let you.
| Place | Area |
|---|---|
| School of Wok | Covent Garden |
| Leiths School of Food and Wine | |
| L'atelier des Chefs | Marylebone |
| Food at 52 | Clerkenwell |
| Waitrose Cookery School | Finchley Road |
| Divertimenti Cookery School | Marylebone |
-
Editor’s choice
School of Wok
Why we pick itAn award-winning Covent Garden school for wok skills, dumplings and pan-Asian cooking, classes from around £60.
Asian cookery school
-
Leiths School of Food and Wine
Why we pick itA revered cookery school running one-day enthusiast workshops through to professional diplomas.
cookery school
-
L'atelier des Chefs
Why we pick itCentral classes from 30-minute street-food sessions to Michelin-trained masterclasses, near Oxford Circus.
drop-in cookery classes
-
Food at 52
Why we pick itA homely Clerkenwell school with free-flowing wine and a supper-club feel, classes across world cuisines.
relaxed cookery school
-
Waitrose Cookery School
Why we pick itHalf-day, full-day and evening courses where you cook then eat your lunch, from knife skills to world food.
cookery school
-
Divertimenti Cookery School
Why we pick itA smart Marylebone school with a packed timetable, from fresh pasta to knife skills and patisserie.
cookery school
Before you book
Classes range from 30-minute skills sessions to full-day courses, and prices scale with length; many end with you eating what you have made. Evening and weekend classes book out first. Check the class level when booking, since some assume more experience than others.
Common questions
What are the top picks in this guide?
School of Wok is our editor's choice: An award-winning Covent Garden school for wok skills, dumplings and pan-Asian cooking, classes from around £60. School of Wok, Leiths School of Food and Wine and L'atelier des Chefs lead the guide, with 6 places in total, all chosen on merit.
How does Lamplit London choose its recommendations?
Every place is chosen on merit, after first-hand visits where possible, with no pay-for-placement. Read our full method at https://www.lamplitlondon.com/how-we-choose/.
Related guides
Experiences The Best Experience Gifts in London
A vintage train lunch, a rug you tuft yourself and the best view in the City: London gifts to do, not unwrap.
6 places Read guide →
Experiences The Best Food Markets in London
Borough to Maltby Street: the best food markets in London for grazing, browsing and a brilliant lunch.
5 places Read guide →
Experiences Things to Do in London
Our considered guide to doing London well: the experiences, views and evenings worth your time.
5 places Read guide →
Experiences best free exhibitions london
Six London galleries with no admission charge, from the National Gallery's Sainsbury Wing to Whitechapel in the east. The permanent collections cost nothing, which is rather the point.
6 places Read guide →
Experiences The Best Ghost Tours in London
Whitechapel murder sites, haunted alleys and a vintage horror bus: London after dark, told badly on purpose.
6 places Read guide →From the Journal
The Art of the London Date Night
Dinner is the easy part. The idea is what people remember. A guide to dates that actually land.
14 Aug 2026Read →
London Off the Script: The Unusual and the Free
The London you remember years later is rarely the one on the list, and the best of it tends to cost nothing at all.
12 Jun 2026Read →
Things to Do for Two: A London Date Beyond Dinner
The most memorable London dates are often the ones where dinner is a footnote and the evening is shaped by something you did together.
4 Jun 2026Read →Readers also viewed
Experiences The Best Parks in London
Royal lawns, wild heaths and hidden gardens: the best parks in London for a walk, a picnic or a pause.
5 places Read guide →
Experiences The Best Hidden Gems in London
Six lesser-known London places a sharp local actually sends people to: a neon warehouse, two house museums, a candlelit time capsule, the oldest music hall, and a Japanese garden.
6 places Read guide →
Experiences The Best Museums in London
World-class and mostly free: the best museums in London, from the great institutions to the hidden gems.
5 places Read guide →
Experiences Immersive Dining Experiences in London
Dinner as theatre: the London immersive dining experiences worth the ticket.
4 places Read guide →