Cooking Retreat in the Algarve: Meet our Hosts

With experiential and activity holidays becoming more popular, it is no surprise that Cheryl and Graham have been extra busy lately with the cooking retreat in their Algarve.

Cheryl and Graham host both painting and cooking retreats in the Algarve, at their award-winning countryside boutique retreat, where the soothing sounds of buzzing bees, chirping birds, and sizzling frying pans fill the air. If you’re considering a cooking holiday, my conversation with Cheryl and Graham will surely convince you. When I first spoke with Cheryl, she was sitting at home on an unusually overcast day—perfect weather for tending to their vibrant vegetable and herb gardens.

NITGB: Tell me about yourself. How did you come to run a cooking retreat in the Algarve?

Cheryl: “Graham and I both worked as IT consultants in London. One day, while stuck in traffic on London’s M25 – running late as usual, to pick up my daughter from school – I had a thought: I can’t wait to retire. But then, another question followed, ‘What will I do when I retire?’ I had spent so many years focused on raising a family and building a career that I never truly made time for myself. That’s when it hit me – I’d like to learn how to paint.

Since we already had a villa in Portugal, I figured it was the perfect starting point! All I needed were tutors to help host painting holidays. What began as one holiday a year grew to two, then four, and now we run five painting holidays annually.

Cheryl added, “Graham loves cooking and is always exploring new culinary ideas. He’s a huge fan of Ottolenghi, and when we were running our art holidays, our guests would always ask for a recipe book. They would say, ‘Please, please, please write a recipe book!'”

Cheryl also mentioned how their cooking style is heavily inspired by Ottolenghi’s bold flavours and spices. “A lot of people look at his recipes and think, ‘That’s too complicated for me.’ But once they come on our cooking holidays, they realize that while the ingredients list may seem long, it’s mostly just spices. And once you know where to get them, cooking becomes an absolute joy.”

NITGB: What was it specifically about the Algarve that inspired you to take on this food adventure?

Cheryl: “I suppose because we’re so immersed in nature here, it’s easy to unwind. The views are so calming, with the hills, the river flowing past, and the birds chirping in the trees. There’s a real sense of tranquillity, and people tend to relax very quickly, start chatting, and making friends.”

Graham: “The Algarve’s culinary history is deeply influenced by the country’s past, particularly the Portuguese spice route. This resonates with us personally as we both grew up in Africa—Cheryl in South Africa and I in Zimbabwe. As a child, my family spent our holidays in Mozambique, a former Portuguese colony, before the outbreak of the civil war.

There’s a strong Portuguese influence in South Africa and Zimbabwe so we were exposed to Portuguese flavours from a young age. Our neighbours were often Portuguese, and we went to school with many of them. In fact, recently I reconnected with one of my Portuguese neighbours, whom I hadn’t seen in 40 years!”

Cheryl: “So from an early age, we were influence by Portuguese food, flavours, and spices. We thought it would be exciting to weave that into our cooking retreats – not just by showcasing traditional Algarvian flavours but also incorporating dishes from the countries along the spice route, including those we had roots in.”

Cheryl and Graham speak so passionately, not only about the local produce and food, but also about the rich history of the cuisine. It’s clear how much thought and care they’ve put into curating their cooking retreats. They even share a few of their favourite dishes and describe how they’ve crafted unique flavour combinations by blending recipes from various regions along the Portuguese spice route.