| Rating |
Date Attended |
Reviewer |
Gender [v] |
Age |
Where From? |
Group Type? |
|
Fun Interesting Beautiful Tasty Enjoyment
|
| Tue, May 5 11:00 AM |
d6d9chotmail |
Male |
40-49 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Other |
| It was a very enjoyable walk through the Near North neighborhoods of Chicago. We observed beautiful and eclectic architecture with tidbits of interesting info on some of them. Stopping on occasion to taste the delights of unique purveyors of foods and spice. Our guide (Nicki) was fantastic. I'd love to get some friends to come along and do it all over again! |
|
|
Well worth it!!!
|
| Mon, May 4 11:00 AM |
kentlee50 |
Male |
50-59 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Individual |
| Loved this tour! What a great idea to combine a walking historical, cultural, architectural tour with food stops! The tour guide, Jenn, was fantastic--very enthusiastic! And the three hours seemed to fly by. Melissa from Tea Gschw.... was great as well. I would certainly recommend this to anyone visiting Chicago. |
|
|
Wife made me go, I realy liked it-alot.
|
| Sun, May 3 11:30 AM |
Stub68776 |
Male |
30-39 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Family Without Children |
| At first, I had the impression we would be going from location to location having tiny samples of things we could not afford, or pronounce. Like some traveling infomercial, or even worse a timeshare experience. When we signed up, it was recommended that we eat prior to attending. What else should I have thought? After all this was a food tour right, why should I eat first? This was our first time to Chicago, the wife wanted to attend, told me it would be a good experience. I settled, besides we wouldn’t know where to go, or what we were looking at on our own anyway.
Turns out the places we went were more like Mom & Pop operations that were wonderful. The Spice Store was the most memorable for the two of us. You could smell the spices from across the street. We spent about ten minutes taking in the fragrances and sampling the test jars. Then the shop owner took time to give us a brief history, both humorous and informative, of how spices came to be. You can tell this man loves his work. The prices were about the same as our local grocery stores, but way better, ask for a catalog. We went back here for more – twice!
The tour starts at the Deli with an orientation and maps handed out of the planned walk. Use the restroom here. If you have never been to a large city, do not pass bathrooms. These are handled like treasured secrets which are few & far between. When choosing shoes for the day go for comfort over cute. Cute will get real ugly about half way into the tour. Walking speed is determined by the group, and is adjusted accordingly. Our group of 15 was well diverse and moved right along. We ranged from the youngest at about 12 to a retired couple. If you have special needs let the guide(s) know. They were very accommodating. My wife has a hearing deficiency; they made a point to keep her close by, and to look in her direction while speaking.
There was a story of the area at each crossing light. A number of the highlighted buildings we passed I would have never given a second look. Jessie and Shane had a way of explaining the architecture design and history that made it interesting. By the end of the three-hour tour, we felt as though we had been fed a reasonable lunch with some quality entertainment. The time seamed to fly by.
I wish we had the time to go on a second tour. The Bucktown was recommended by Jessie; Shane told us we could book it over the phone (212-209-3370), the only open slot we could book on the short notice we couldn’t get into due to our schedule. |
|
|
Great way to see and "taste" Chicago neighborhoods
|
| Sun, May 3 11:30 AM |
LLucas |
Male |
60-69 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Couple on a Date |
| Shane and Jessica took us through Chicago's Gold Coast, Old Town and Lincoln Park for a taste of Deli's, Tea, Spices, Chocolate, Cheese, Snacks and Pizza. They gave us an enthusiastic culinary, cultural and architectural tour of the neighborhoods and charmed us with humor and intelligence. We had a great, attentive and very friendly group. Shane and Jessie turned perfect strangers into a walking family by the end of the tour. |
|
|
#1 thing to do in Chicago!
|
| Mon, Apr 27 11:00 AM |
lukedaddy |
Male |
30-39 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Group of Friends |
| This was definitely the highlight of our trip to Chicago. Our tour guide, Jennifer, provided wonderful insights to the culinary scene & neighborhoods of our tour. I would recommend this as a 'must do' for anyone who enjoys eating, cooking, history, architecture & fun! |
|
|
Informative. Great way to spend time in the city
|
| Sat, Apr 25 12:00 PM |
rkrause |
Male |
60-69 |
Local |
Group of Friends |
| We really enjoyed the walking and food tour. The guide was extremely nice and informative. I would recommend it. |
|
Personable group setting and valuable information
|
| Sat, Apr 25 11:00 AM |
casaredman |
Male |
40-49 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Family Without Children |
| Enjoyed the small group of 17 with our hostess Jenn. Given the small group, it was a refreshing way to tour parts of Chicago (Gold Coast, Old Town and Lincoln Park). The tour was fun, informative, and tasty. Dress appropriately for the variety of weather conditions that can happen all on the same tour: cold, hot, wind and rain (this was the case on our tour). The most valuable thing I learned is the difference between stuffed and deep dish pizza. Stuffed is the way to go....less bread and more toppings! The only downside of the tour was having to navigate our way back to our car - - the tour ends about 2 miles from the place it starts. |
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|
Fun, interesting, and good to eat.
|
| Fri, Apr 24 11:30 AM |
bikingshyste |
Male |
60-69 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Individual |
| A fun way to see some local sights, learn about Chicago, and eat some good food. You will also learn about local restaurants, and food shops. Fun and relaxing. |
|
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Excellent tour, but still hungry at the end
|
| Mon, Apr 20 11:00 AM |
MrGelhs204 |
Male |
40-49 |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Group of Friends |
| It was not hard to figure out why this tour is ranked number #1 on Trip Advisor. The walking tour combines unique food tastings with culture and architecture. We were fortunate to have an energetic small group and an excellent and knowledgeable guide. It is a must do tour in Chicago. However, don't be fooled; enough food is not served on this food, unless you are a very light eater. Be sure to eat a full breakast. Suggested additions to make it close to a real meal: mini sandwiches to go with the potato pancakes at the Jewish Deli; bread and/or salad to go with the delicious combinations of oils and vinegars at Old Town Oil; and an additional thin slice of pizza to go with your deep dish at Bacino's Pizza. |
|
|
Interesting way to discover neighborhoods of Chica
|
| Sun, Apr 19 11:00 AM |
fredchoi |
Male |
Unspecified |
Domestic Tourist(s) |
Couple on a Date |
| The tour guide was very enthusiastic in spite of the less than desirable weather. |
