Entry is Ft150-200 (forints) (40- 50p) per person, but don’t get distracted from your task.A teacup and saucer from the very sweet “FA” (Fleurs des Alpes) service (pictured) at one of the UK’s largest Herend suppliers, Thomas Goode & Co (19 South Audley Street, London W1Y 6BN, 0171-499 2823) would cost pounds 93.At the factory shop in Herend (part of the new Porcelanium Visitor’s Centre), a similar teacup and saucer would cost Ft22,800 (pounds 60) so, pick up six teacups and saucers here, flog them to your friends back home and use the profit to splash out on the current British Airways pounds 199.60 return flight (Bridge The World, 0171-911 0990) to the Hungarian capital, Budapest, to learn how to cook yourself a decent bowl of goulash.Rhiannon Batten. Examples of its most popular designs – mostly a mixture of extraordinarily lavish creations and intricate floral motifs – are set behind glass cases, splayed across elegant dinner services.In 1993, the factory was bought from the state by its workers, and since then it has entertained the 60,000 or so visitors it receives each year with a vast collection of porcelain, photographs, a “technological show” demonstrating the various phases of porcelain manufacture, and a selection of temporary exhibitions, that most recently have included “Original Herend – poor fakes”.The Herend Porcelain Museum, at 8440 Herend, Kossuth Lajos str. You need something high class to scoff from, and what more appropriate place to pick up the proper tableware than Hungary?Not far from Lake Balaton, the small town of Herend is known to international porcelain enthusiasts as the home of the country’s collectable china, and many people make the trip out there simply to admire their way through the factory and museum.Originally constructed in 1839 under Mr Fischer (who later received the French Legion of Honour for his services to the kiln), the staff started work producing imitations of Asian pieces that their wealthy but clumsy owners needed to replace.Soon the factory began making its own pieces and got rather a good name for itself through such high profile admirers as Queen Victoria, Tsar Alexander II of Russia, seemingly the whole Rothschild clan (who even have a pattern named after them), and a rich vein of princesses, countesses, dukes and barons.The Herend Museum was founded in 1964 to house the factory’s own porcelain collection and to provide a permanent exhibition that would explain the history of porcelain manufacturing. If you’re going to learn how to cook proper gourmet food then it’s no use making do with improper plates.

Equally arcane, the Costa Real Coffee College (0171-840 2085) in London offers courses on coffee for pounds 50.JOURNEY TO THE SOURCE: HEREND PORCELAIN, HUNGARYIF “THE Complete Guide to Cooking Holidays” has kickstarted your appetite, it’s worth adding another destination to your itinerary. The price is pounds 50 and includes a cocktail-shaker, recipe booklet and certificate. The course costs pounds 1,475 for five night’s full-board accommodation with tuition. A friend can share your double room (only) for no extra charge.5 Claridges Bar (0171-409 6307) offers a three-hour cocktail masterclass, with places still available in July and September. From pounds 1,000 plus air fares.4 Raymond Blanc offers a celebrity chef course at his Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons Ecole de Cuisine (01844 278881). The five-day courses and cost from pounds 265.3 To elevate the humble barbecue from a much-maligned summer tummy-filler to something a little more sophisticated, try the Global Gourmet’s (01884 32257) Tex-Mex cookery course in New Mexico.

Included in the price of pounds 45 are ingredients and lunch.2 Young Cooks of Britain (0243 779239) has a summer cookery and activity holiday for boys and girls aged 11-16. Based in a school in the West Sussex countryside, guest instructors will include Sophie Grigson. Just remember, you’re not a man until you’ve tasted these meatballs.5 Traditional Icelandic delicacies on the menu at the annual Thorri Banquet, which takes place in February, include pickled ram’s testicles, rotten shark (buried for three months) and bldmor – boiled sheep’s blood, washed down with several shots of a potato and caraway schnapps called “Black Death”.THE FIVE TOP ALTERNATIVE COOKERY HOLIDAYS1 Testosterone is on the menu at Pyon House (01432 830122) near Hereford during Victoria O’Neill’s men-only version of her popular Cooking with Class courses. Though for most foreign visitors, being presented with canine cuisine (dog is the most popular meat in the north) at any time would seem less than auspicious.3 Traditional bush-tucker in the Australian outback doesn’t stop at damper (unleavened bread) and beer.

Witchetty grubs and ants with honey- filled bottoms are the hors-d’oeuvres to be seen with around Alice Springs.4 Prairie Oysters: this red-blooded American ranch cuisine involves rounding-up little boy calves, castrating them and frying up the produce. However, eating it at the wrong time of the year (there are different dog schedules according to the position of the moon and the region of the country) is considered to bring bad luck. Along with traditional home cooking, tuition includes ethnic food (Chinese, Indian, Mexican, Moroccan and Thai), seafood, vegetarian, family food, intensive introductory courses and – a good one for anxious parents – survival courses for teenagers about to leave home.FIVE TOP DINNER PARTY DISRUPTERS1 Head off to West Sumatra for its fiery Padang food – if you still have the stomach for otak – braised brains.2 Eating dog – thit cho or thit cay – in Vietnam brings luck (not for the unfortunate pooch). Courses can be residential and one week costs about Irpounds 315 (pounds 300). The next course runs from 11-12 September and costs pounds 120 per person (accommodation not included).Of the multitudinous cookery courses on offer in Ireland, you could try the Ballymaloe Cookery School (00 353 21 646785) in Shanagarry, Co Cork. Darina Allen started the classes over a decade ago from her home and their success led to expansion, with the school now held in a converted apple barn.In terms of the course’s credibility, you can count six TV series and eight cookery books. Alex Schneideman has set up Market Discoveries (0171-823 8151) which specialises in taking amateur cooks to the hallowed food markets frequented by professionals.Tours include trips to Billingsgate fish market along with other, equally stinky international destinations.Acorn Activity Holidays (01432 830083) offers a two-day course in Hereford where the emphasis is on creating healthy, hearty dishes using local, seasonal ingredients.

It is just 15 minutes from Chiang Mai and they offer a free pick-up service from the city.WHAT IF I WANT TO SAMPLE SOME HOME COOKING?British food enthusiasts may have heard of the family Schneideman who founded Divertimenti, the mail-order food equipment shop, in the 1960s. The centre is located on the beach, overlooking the Gulf of Siam, some 88km south-east of Bangkok.The courses cover fusion cooking as well as Thai, including a fruit- and vegetable-carving class, and prices are from $1,695 (pounds 1,060) for one week with full-board hotel accommodation and tuition. Chiang Mai, in the north, is a very good destination for independent travellers who feel the urge to make an impromptu appearance at a cookery class.You could try cooking the legendary spicy Thai soup at the Tom Yam Cookery School, Lake View Park II, Maejo Rd, T844877. Flights are not included.WHAT ABOUT ARRANGING THINGS INDEPENDENTLY?There are numerous cooking schools in Thailand – the Royal Thai School of Culinary Arts is a member of the World Association of Cooking Societies and offers specialised courses, with very small classes (maximum eight students per class and four per teacher). Prices start from pounds 950 including tuition, full-board accommodation in Thai bungalows, and transfers. There are also visits to local food markets and the all-important time to dive and snorkel on the coral reef and explore the islands.