Courtesy of Nettelhorst School, NBC and Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce

Have you ever eaten a dish at your favorite restaurant, dying to know the recipe with every savory bite? Well, covet no longer: A new cooking series hosted by the Lakeview East Chamber of Commerce is about to reveal local chef’s secretes.

The renowned chefs from some of Lakeview’s favorite eateries–Chilam Balam, Wilde Bar and Restaurant, and Yuki Hana–are leading user-friendly international cooking classes at Nettelhorst School’s newly revealed community kitchen, starting Thursday at 6 p.m.

Observers, who are also treated to the dish they learn to prepare, can buy individual tickets for $20 or splurge for the entire series, learning to make a Mexican, Irish and Japanese meal, for $50.

“We hope residents have fun with some of the dishes they prepare and have a little bit more interaction between the chefs,” LVECC director, Maureen Martino said.

The three class series kicks off with Frontera Grill alum and acclaimed local chef, Chuy Valencia of Chilam Balam at Broadway and Barry Avenue. He’ll show his fans how to make “home style” braised Mexican tamales and duck leg in mole sauce, he said.

“I wanted to pick something that was interesting and easy for someone to make,” Valencia said. “It’s mostly how to make tamales, which is a mystery for most people … and an important technique to learn.”

Local resident Jason Gilmore said he found out about the classes on Facebook and thought it would be a unique experience. He signed up for Valencia’s class.

“From the class [I hope to have] a better understanding of advanced cooking techniques,” Gilmore, 34, said. “And, most importantly, how to have fun in the kitchen.”

The chefs and chamber of commerce also hope this will be a way to connect locals to their favorite chefs, they say.

“If I could connect to one customer, it’s worth it,” Valencia said. “I want people to learn how to cook good food and walk out feeling confident.”

The Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” with Guy Fieri just finished filming at Chilam Balam last week, with a possible Cooking Channel production in the future as well, so organizers were excited to get Valencia to launch the first class.

“Oprah” show regular and celebrity designer Nate Berkus designed the new, $130,000 community kitchen at Nettelhorst. The Chamber is looking forward to breaking it in with more cooking events in the future, Martino said.

More chefs have already expressed interest in becoming part of the neighborhood cooking series; the Chamber is also looking into a healthy cooking series and a “farm to the table” series during Nettelhorst’s annual farmers market, if ticket sales to this event do well, Martino added.

Following Valencia’s Mexican cuisine class on March 24th, David Eschler from Wilde Bar and Restaurant will show locals how to make Irish beef short ribs with the gastropub’s signature mac and cheese on March 31. Chef Muugii Tumee of Yuki Hana will complete the series on April 7th with a Japanese sushi rolling lesson. Seating is limited to the first 50 ticket requests.

“We’re hoping this is the beginning of many more to come,” Martino said.