Open-hearth cooking program
Our open-hearth cooking program features two of our museum’s greatest historical treasures: our fully functioning 1830s open-hearth kitchen, and the Creole Cookery cookbook, one of the oldest cookbooks of New Orleans cuisine, published in 1885 by our parent organization, The Woman’s Exchange.
Hermann-Grima House boasts the only working open-hearth kitchen in the city. The hearth and swinging iron crane are original to the house, and the surrounding kitchen has been carefully restored to its original form. It includes a wood-fired beehive oven and a potager (in English “stew holes”)—a structure that is a precursor to the modern stove-top, featuring a series of four recessed holes fitted with iron baskets to hold coals and embers, with a flue for ventilation and iron grates to control proximity to flame.
In this space, our historical cooking experts prepare recipes from 19th and early 20th century New Orleans, especially those found in Creole Cookery. This cookbook was compiled in 1885 by members of The Woman’s Exchange to raise funds for the establishment of their shop, where local women in financial need could anonymously sell their wares. The recipes were collected by members of the Exchange from household cooks, most of them women of color and many of them formerly enslaved. As a historical source, the book showcases these cooks’ amazing culinary expertise and creativity, giving a snapshot into the development of Creole cuisine and what may have been prepared and eaten in New Orleans homes in the late 19th century. The recipes also present a puzzle for the modern cook, requiring our cooking experts to research antiquated terms and source unusual ingredients to recreate these historical dishes, with often surprising results.
cooking demonstrations
Come see our historical cooking experts in action during one of our open-hearth cooking demonstrations! Demonstrations are available as part of all house tours at Hermann-Grima House on select Saturdays from November to April. When your tour arrives at the open-hearth kitchen, you will see the fire blazing and our cooks busy in the preparation of recipes typical of the season in 19th century New Orleans. From harvest and holiday fare in November and December, to confections like Galette des Rois during Mardi Gras, each demo will showcase different dishes and ingredients. Integrated into our celebrated Urban Enslavement Tour—repeatedly voted one of the best tours in New Orleans by Condé Nast Traveler—our cooking demonstrations will also teach you about the many diverse influences that contributed to Creole cuisine, and the central role of enslaved cooks in developing this world-famous culinary tradition.
For cooking enthusiasts, we offer an add-on at a small additional cost that allows visitors to return to the open-hearth kitchen at the end of their tour to spend more time with our historical cooking experts. Demonstrations are available on select Saturdays from November to April each year.
Galette des Rois
2024-25 demonstration dates:
November 9, 2024
November 23, 2024
December 7, 2024
December 21, 2024
January 18, 2025
February 1, 2025
February 15, 2025
March 15, 2025
March 29, 2025
April 12, 2025
How to book: click the Book Your Tour button and select any of the above-listed demonstration dates. On your selected demonstration date, select and purchase tickets for the Urban Enslavement Tour at Hermann-Grima House. Demonstrations are included on all tours at Hermann-Grima House on the above dates at the regular ticket price.
Add-on: During the booking process, you will also have an opportunity to purchase an optional $5 add-on that will allow you to return to the open-hearth kitchen after your tour, to spend more time observing our historical cooking experts in addition to the demo included in the regular ticket price. Add-ons can also be added to your ticket in-person on the day of your tour. Please speak to a docent in our Exchange Shop when you check in and ask for the add-on.
Private cooking Workshops
Learn the basics of open-hearth cooking in a hands-on cooking workshop! In our private workshops, groups of 2-4 participants will work directly with our historical cooking experts in our open-hearth kitchen to prepare and enjoy a selection of snacks and historical beverages sourced from Creole Cookery and other 19th-century cookbooks. Workshop participants will come away with a keepsake embroidered apron and copies of the recipes prepared. All ingredients and materials are included with the workshop fee, and dietary accommodations are available upon request. Workshops are available on select dates between November and April each year.
*Workshops require a minimum of two registered participants to run. Workshops with fewer than two registered participants will be cancelled, and any booking can be rescheduled to another workshop date or refunded.
Available workshop dates:
Tuesday, December 17, 2024, 1-3pm
Tuesday, January 7, 2025, 1-3pm
Sunday, January 12, 2025, 1-3pm
How to book: click the Register for Workshop button and select any of the above-listed workshop dates. On your selected date, select and purchase tickets for the Private Cooking Workshop.
Education rates
Our cooking workshops are available at a reduced rate for K-12 and higher education class visits and Girl Scout troops. Our education offerings are available on request from November to April each year, pending staff and kitchen availability. All education offerings require a minimum of three weeks advance notice to ensure availability of staff and supplies:
Hands-on workshop:
For a maximum of 10 people.
These workshops are approximately two hours long. Participants will work together to prepare and enjoy between one and three simple recipes, depending on group size.
Girl Scout workshop:
These workshops feature a short tour of the house and a flame-free food preparation activity featuring a 19th-century recipe.
Add a cooking demonstration to a standard education tour:
On a standard education tour at Hermann-Grima House, when your group arrives at the kitchen, our historical cooking experts will give a demonstration of open-hearth techniques featuring one or two 19th-century recipes. Demonstration fee includes samples of the foods prepared and additional time in the kitchen at the end of the tour. Available on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays on request.
How to book: email education@hgghh.org for current pricing or to book any of our K-12, higher education, and Girl Scouts offerings.