Gold Coast & Old Town Food Tour

Hillary was AWESOME! Thanks so much for your personable tour! So, as to the tour itself... Hmm Definately recommend, and I will be trying another one of their tours... It was a good combination of Food followed by some specialty shops (spices, oils, teas, sweets) and finished up with the Chicago standard of a really deep dish pizza. Of more interest was the walk through the old town and exposure to some of the unique architecture. This tour benefits greatly from the nice weather as it allows you to dwell on some of the city history. I would say to avoid if rainy or very cold, otherwise a great experience.

I travel quite a bit and everywhere I go I try to do a food tour. I love Chicago's food so I was very excited for this one. Wow was I disappointed. It started off great with a ruben sandwich and a local tea company, but after that we sat through a spice lesson and sampled oils & vinegars. I don't know anyone who travels to Chicago because of their great vinegar. The next stop was a fudge shop which would have been great, but we were rushed in, given a piece of toffee (not the fudge which I was surprised) and rushed out. After another stop, we were then going to a pizza shop which I was very excited about. Unfortunately we had to walk 30 minutes to get there! Once we arrived the pizza was brought out and it was a spinach pizza. I get that it's healthy, but seriously, a spinach pizza? I wondered when we were going to get to try a Chicago hot dog, only to learn that it's only on one of their OTHER tours. What a joke. Through all the walking, there was no water bottles given out. I spend nearly $50 and you can throw in a bottle of water while I'm walking for miles? I experienced MUCH better food by just doing a little internet research on my own and going out walking around. This was a HUGE disappointment and I would not recommend it.

Everyone should try it. Price is great.

We had a tour leader, along with a leader in training. They were both knowledgeable, but the trainee was actually better, as she projected her voice better. However, they both need to be more aware of ambient noice, and stop talking when it is impossible to hear, such as when a fire truck is passing or when we are near construction. Tastings were good, with a good selection of shops.

My girlfriends and I just visited Chicago this past weekend. Most of us are "Foodie Types" and I found this tour in my midwest AAA magazine. Suggested it to them and we absolutely loved every second of it. Our wonderful Guide Hillary was so full of energy, and loads of facts about whatever we asked. She was wonderful and would highly recommend requesting her. The tour had a generous amount of all different types of food. We were stuffed at the end and all the facts about the residential architecure was so interesting. All the foodie places we visited were great especially the stuffed pizza at the end. Our tour guide also does 40's swing dancing as we had been to the Drake the night before listening to a 40's swing band and Hillary was there dancing (amazing, i might ad). We recognized her when we met up at your starting point on the tour. Best part of the entire weekend.

I have taken the tour on (2) visits to Chicago and would highly recommend for an afternoon of exercise and gastro delight. The tour guides are knowledgeable about the areas you travel through and foods you taste along the way. The food offerings are generous and explanation of differing foods is educational. I felt the time in the stores/shops was sufficient, with the exception of the Spice Store and Old Town Oil. I felt the time in both shops was longer on my 1st visit and the discussion in Old Town Oil the 1st time was much more informative. We didn't really have time to taste all the vinegars and Olive Oils (I felt rushed). It would have been nice to try some of the spices as well in the Spice Store. I understand the need to keep moving and that there is no time to shop, but I was able to try all the oils and vinegars upon my 1st tour. I was also able to taste some of the spices during my 1st tour.

This tour was so much fun and offered more than just great places to eat. the guide did a great job in pointing out interesting facts about the rout we were on and was also great in recommending other things to do. the food was amazing and we definitely went back to purchase additional items from the stores.

We had a blast and went back to several of the shops after the tour was over. Loved it!

Delicious food and interesting information!

Our original plans were to visit the Shedd Aquarium, however, when reviewing the options on-line, I came across the tour information. There are few words to describe how tremendously pleased my husband and I were with the tour and the guide. Truly,EVERYTHING was special, unique, and completely delightful! I would strongly recommend this tour to anyone wanting to see Chicago from a completely different perspective!