Chicago Food Planet Food Tours

My husband and our two grown children did this tour and loved it. We all had a great time and found some wonderful new restaurants and shops. We returned to two of the shops the next day as customers.

We thoroughly enjoyed this tour and had an excellent experience. Our guide, Jen was fantastic. She was a great speaker and very connected to Chicago. It was very informative and intersting. We will definitely recommend this to other people, and we plan on doing the other tour as well.

My husband's parents were in town and we decided to take them on the food tour to get a better feel of our neighborhood. Little did I know what I was missing in my own area. We discovered fabulous places that we walk by everyday, as well as great food, great history and story-telling. And the tour guide was awesome at keeping everyone interested and entertained!

We visited Chicago last weekend, and had a SUPER time on Friday on a "tasting & architectural overview" tour of Chicago's Gold Coast, Old Town and Lincoln Park. Our tour guide was Jessie, who did an excellent job of enthusiastically explaining the great tastes that were offered, and filled us in on some fascinating aspects of Chicago history and architecture. My wife and I would now like to go on the other Chicago Food Planet tour (in another set of Chicago neighborhoods). Next trip, , , , Thanks for a fun experience ! Regards, Dave B. from Cincinnati

This was one of the highlights of our recent trip to Chicago which says quite a bit as we could not love the city more and packed a lot into three days. Kent was a knowledgable and enthusiastic tour guide and we loved hearing his tales of Bucktown/Wicker Park along the way. We enjoyed each of the tastings and are mourning the distance between us and the falafel from Sultan's since we're now back at home. Seriously...the stuff from my regular take out place just doesn't cut it anymore. Book this tour without hesitation and leave plenty of time to explore the rest of the neighborhood afterwards.

Aside from tasting good food, spices, tea, etc. from the stops on the tour, our tour guide (Jessie) did an excellent job of pointing out various local architecture. The shop owners on the tour took great pride in their shops and took the time to provide detailed information about their products. From tea, to spices, to oils and vinegars, to fudge, the information we gained on this tour was priceless. Not too mention, getting to see unique part of Chicago off the "Michigan Ave" path. Great tour!!

Kate was a delightful and knowledgeable guide. The tour captured the attention of at least one patron of the sites we visited who was fascinated by the discussion and history and asked for more information on the tour. The food started with a delicious pastrami reuben, continued with tea, spices, oil and vinegar, chocolate, pizza, and lots of background and architecture on the way. You won't be disappointed.

Having taken the Near North tour last summer, I was glad to see this new tour advertised. I thoroughly enjoyed the Bucktown/Wicker park tour. Our guide lives in the neighborhood and knew much of the history and architecture of the area. She pointed out other restaurants, stores, movie and TV shooting locations, and landmarks along the way. We even stopped to talk to the owner of one of the houses we passed. The food samples were delicious and generous in portion size. Everyone on our tour was full by the last stop. In fact, several took the sandwich from Sultans Market to go. Thank goodness they saved the ice cream until last. iCream was the most unusual stop; everyone watched as the staff mixed and froze the ice cream per each customers order. At the end of the tour, our guide stuck around to answer questions and assist guests with their sightseeing plans. I grew up in the near west suburbs but had rarely gone anywhere in Chicago outside of the Loop and museum campus. These tours are a great way to get away from the usual tourist destinations and see where the locals live, shop, and eat. My only regret is that I won't be back in Chicago for several months to revisit these places.

The Near North tour was an incredible experience from buying the tickets to buying from some of the great establishments after the tour was over. First of all, I bought my two tickets over the phone. Both times I called (I had called earlier that morning to simply ask some questions), the person on the other end was very helpful, patient with my many questions, and professional. Arriving at initial meeting place of the tour, Ashkenaz Deli, the tour guide, Jennifer, came out to greet us. Noticing we had run to get there on time and that I was fanning myself fervently, she offered that I use the restroom in the next establishment to freshen up. She gave me a token so that I could get into the restroom and told me not to worry; I had some time. When I joined the group a few minutes later, she asked if I wanted a bottle of water and got it for me from the deli. Jennifer started off by introducing herself and then having us nine tourists do the same. This made for a comfortable, sociable atmosphere throughout our tour. The six locations we went to had, for the most part, very unique tasters that were very enjoyable. At each place, Jennifer and/or someone who worked there would teach us rather interesting information about their product (cinnamon comes from the bark of particular trees), and those who worked there were always excited and proud of what they served. Almost every place was so special in some way, with its own character that we felt couldn't be found in other cities, except for perhaps the world market deli. Certainly, this was a nice stop, but it did not compare to the others, in either historical interest or food. There we were served gouda and hummus, which are pretty common in any deli in any city. Some of us also agreed that we had tried better hummus before. However, if the rest of the stops were around a 9 or 10 out of 10, the world market was still at a 7. All along our walk, Jennifer had us stop in front of buildings of particular interest and she would explain the story behind each. She was an incredible story-teller, and clearly excited in the information she herself presented to us. We asked questions, and she usually knew the answer, but if she didn't, she mentioned that she would have to find out. Considering her overall passion for her city, I don't doubt that she will! Our last stop of the tour was Bacino's pizza, where our server was personable and hospitable, chatting with us, filling up our waters frequently, taking group pictures for us, and breaking change for me to tip our guide, which he so discretely returned to me. After the tour, my boyfriend and I returned to two of the places we had visited with the group, the tea shop and the spice shop, and were again treated very hospitably by people who showed great interest and knowledge of their products. Overall, this tour was an amazing experience, and well worth the price. In fact, we plan to try the other tour during our next trip to Chicago!

The food tour was one of the best choices we made on our vacation. We will do it again the next time we are in Chicago! There was something for everyone in our group.

We have lived in the NW suburbs for 18 yrs. and really didnt know where Bucktown or Wicker Park were. We have heard of them but never went. My friend was visiting from MI and my son who goes to Inst. of Art International Culinary school went with me on this tour. I was nervous about taking the Metra and getting off at Clybourn. It was a piece of cake ! Walk down Cortland and you run right into the 1st stop. We loved all the tastings, but we all agreed the Hotdog killed our appitite. We were all hungry not eating breakfast,and we ate the whole hotdog. Everyone really knows what a hotdog tastes like, so I would either put it at the end or find something a little different. That was the only thing that we didnt like and others on the tour felt the same. Our guide was very fun and interesting (Kent) I would return to Bucktown and Wicker Park, Dont miss this tour, it is really fun and filling!

I'm a local and about to move out of the area, so I was glad I got to experience these places and learn more about the neighborhood before I leave. I thought it was a nice variety of food options, and the serving sizes are great, if not too much. The walking was not too long and rather pleasant, and we learned some interesting facts about local architecture and history. We even got to speak personally to one of the historical home's owners. Our guide was friendly and kept our tour group safe and engaged. The only stop I didn't really enjoy was the Goddess and Grocer. The serving of pasta salad was nothing special and otherwise it was much like your average specialty food mart. We learned that the owner also owned a restaurant next door; it might have been better to go there. Also wouldn't have minded a larger serving of beer at Piece. But all in all, we were quite satisfied.

Excellent food, excellent history and Kent was a wonderful, personable and knowledgeable guide. Being from Chicago, we learned about things we didn't know and tried foods that we hadn't had previously. One of the restaurants we had been too, but the food served to us was all new to us. Definitely a must while in the city!

A lot of fun and history in this "promenade" around Chicago streets and shops. Some shop owners were more than entertaining, our guide Jen, was great as well. Next time, we'll do the other tour for sure !

My family was thinking it was a all-U-cane-eat tour and not excited. However, they enjoyed it tremendously. The stops on the tour were original and unique. We've already ordered stuff from the shops. Highly recommend doing this. Niki was a great tour guide.