Gold Coast & Old Town Food Tasting & Cultural Tour

This tour was one of the best ways to 'break down' the overwhelming task of experiencing Chicago for the first time! The Cultural Walking Tour was an excellent MICRO way of understanding and appreciating the amazing complexity of the Second City in a fun, personal way. Besides the excellent choices of food and architectural stops, the talented tour guide was enthusiastic, responsive, knowledgable and eager to make it fun for everybody in the group. The hospitable store owners were willing to share their knowledge and time with the group as we invaded their space... and I plan to use my coupons online in the near future! I liked the fact that the owners were steeped in the tradition of their chosen profession - no fast food here!

I very much enjoyed the tour and all the information I got to hear about the city. Chicago is an amazing city and the boat tour is a great way to see it. I would definetly recommend the tour to anyone going to see Chicago.

It was great to walk around the Gold Coast and Lincoln Park neighborhoods, which I might not have otherwise done. I enjoyed looking at the architecture and learning a little bit of the history of the area. Kate seemed a knowledgeable guide and the shops were interesting, especially the oil shop. The chocolate shop with the toffee was good too, but I could have eaten more! I think there needs to be more food tastings however. The Catering Shop was a bit of a disappointment with just humus and Gouda cheese cubes - something different would have been good. All in all it's worth your time and you'll learn some new things.

The Near North Tour was so informative and fun. Our tour guide Kate was AMAZING. She was so personable and articulate, guiding us along the sunny streets of chicago. I have lived here in the city for almost five years and was delighted to discover many new sights and tastes!

We had a blast on the Food Plant's Near North Food Tasting & Cultural Walking Tour. I can't recommend it enough. My mom and I expected to eat good food, get a sampling of the northern neighborhoods and get some good exercise but we got that and even more! Our tour guide Nicole transformed our understanding of the cultural climate of Chicago by enlightening us to the foods, the housing, the architecture, the sights, the people, and the beauty found in these neighborhoods. For 3 hours I felt like I was a Chicago native. I highly recommend this tour...their is no other way to get this kind of hospitality, knowledge of the culture and sample great foods and drinks than through this experience. I felt like someone invited me into their home and wined and dined me. I have already to my friends and family members about the tour and have shared some of the spices, oils and chocolates I brought back with me. I loved it so much I find myself trying to convince them to take a trip to Chicago just for the tour! Thank you for offering an affordable and unique way to experience the city.

My husband and I attended the near north tour with another couple while on vacation. We loved it. It was informative, fun, and yummy. We liked several of the places so much that we went back on another day and used coupons that we were given on the tour. Our favorite places were the Spice Merchant (with a huge variety of fresh spices and employees that could answer all our cooking questions) and the Fudge Pot (a fudge and chocolate shop with amazing toffee). It was a great experience and we will be attending the other food tour they offer when we return to Chicago.

For locals this is a great activity to learn more about our city and a fun activity with visiting guests. The tour provided a glimps of the city culture, history of the neighborhoods, and architecture. The local shops provided a wealth of information and one does not need to be a culinary professional to enjoy this savory experience.

I'm a local, and really into food in general. We didn't really eat that much on the tour, but I really enjoyed the little shops we went to, ones we pass by often as locals but never go into. I would say that the food part wasn't that exciting, but the overall experience was nice.

Chicago can be intimidating. Small mom and pop places can make one feel like an outsider. But participating in a food tour was like hanging out with a local friend that was showing you the best local treasures.

Either more food, or higher quality would have been better.