Chicago Food Planet Food Tours

I signed up to go with an out of town guest.... Ho-Hum...I thought... what could you teach me about Chicago that I did not already know.... was I in for a surprise.... I learned that I love pastrami with sour kraut...did you say reuben 2???.... that I could actually enjoy tea... I thought that was for all those woosies at the office... except for you, David Carradine, oh, how I miss thee.... that chocolate is more than kisses and santas... ok, I knew that already.... that my Polish heritage makes a pirogi that rivals the Italian gnocchi...hey, talk to my mother, she's the reason I'm a retard..... that oil is not just another lube... yes, ok, I know, and at the same time, uh, no.... and that pizza is not just another fast food that upsets my stomach... it can be non greasy so that you don't need 5 napkins to sop up the grease before you dive in... our guide, a youthful soul, obviously from the southern most tip of Costa Rica, was entertaining and filled with tid bits of know-how... without being pretentious or over-bearing... hey who can explain to a person twice their age how the gold coast got its name with a straight face? I know what you're thinking... this is another bs review by an insider... ok, you go ahead and believe that.... just remember I'm the guy downing the pastrami sandwich in a seat at the counter at Ashkenaz deli on Cedar at the start of the next tour, while you are sitting at home wondering what would be fun to do and good to eat. Boo - Yah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't wait to try the other tours! I was expecting great food and fun restaurants/shops that I wouldn't find on my own, which is exactly what I got. What I didn't expect was the fun and incredibly interesting 5 minute lessons on the food we were tasting. My parents and I are into food, but much of the information was brand new to us. The tourguide was fun and personable, and didn't give all of the obnoxious tourist anecdotes I've heard a million times because the tour was much more neighborhood-specific, and even included some architecture commentary. Also, I appreciated that there was enough walking and small enough portions that I didn't feel stuffed, just full. The price sounded steep at first but was incredibly cheap for the entirety of the experience. What a great way to spend 3 hours!

Jess was an amazing tour guide. The places were unique and the group was fun. It is worth the money.

This tour was a gift for my boyfriend's birthday, and we were not disappointed. We had a great time; learned a lot about the food at the establishments we visited, as well as the architecture we passed along the way. We are both Foodies so learning about food we know little of, and even learning new things about old goodies is always appreciated. The treats we tasted along the way were delightful, and I plan to visit these places again. Our tour guide, Jess, was friendly and interested in what she talked about and it showed. We never felt like she was tired of answering, what must have been, frequently asked questions. I have already begun recommending the Near North Tour, and look forward to trying the others! Thanks for a fantastic experience!

I have lived and worked in Chicago all my life (as a chef, nonetheless). I found the tour to be enlightening, exciting and interesting. The guide was well-versed, the establishments we visited were welcoming and enjoyable, and I saw parts of Chicago I have never seen before. Thank you!

I had a great experience and will definitely recommend the tour to friends visiting Chicago for the first time and locals alike. Ariana was a great guide and very knowledgeable about the food, architecture and history relevant to the tour.

I really enjoyed this tour overall. Our guide, Chris, was great. Very nice and enthusiastic. With some of the restaurants, there was more history on the restaurant itself, and others more history on the food. I prefer the restaurant history, i.e. when it opened, the signature dish, etc. I wish there was more of that with the restaurants that were focused more on the actual food, or at least information specific to chicago. The tea place was my least favorite; it wasn't local, and the info was all about tea which i'm not that into. i don't consider it food, although i appreciated a warm drink. I would find a local coffee shop instead to substitute or combine with the pastry (for a hot drink) and add another location. Maybe a hot dog place? In the spice store, although it was interesting to hear about the different spices, I was also interesting in hearing about the owner, how we got started, if he sells to different local restaurants, maybe some recipes, etc. Overall I did really enjoy this tour. I learned a lot and visited places i normally wouldn't.

This was a truly delightful experience. The food tastings were thoughtfully selected and offered a nice variety. The guide was excellent and enhanced the total experience. Would highly recommend - even to a local!

Our tour guide was great and the food was very good. Overall a good experience but the price was high enough that we wouldn't do it again. If you purchased all of the food on the tour on it's own it would probably be about $20/person. The tour guide was great and all but when half the price is going towards just the tour guide, it doesn't make it that attractive.

We took my mom, 76, and my kid, 10, on this tour and LOVED. IT!!! The pacing between walks and food was really great for my mom, whose knees aren't what they used to be, and for my kid, whose attention isn't what it will be later. ;) The food is fantastic, of course, and PLENTIFUL. The tour guide, Kent - WOW, was he knowledgeable and very funny! Just a fantastic day, very interesting tour, and DEEEEEElicious!

Every year we have a sisters trip to a place of special interest. We have family history in Chicago so decided to do our trip in Chicago. The food tour was great - a nice walk on a beautiful day with an outstanding tour guide who explained the historical significance of the area, fun facts, and the food was excellent. The walk was well planned with tastings of filling foods, followed by beverages, rest stops and local stories, all in a well balanced and timed tour. Lots of fun and an eye opener to history that I appreciated since I am active in genealogical societies that relate to the area. I even learned a bit about my own history from stories heard years ago that were now put into context. I'd highly recommend this tour and plan to do it again with my husband, who especially loves Chicago and Italian ethnic cooking, so he can enjoy it too.

Our tour leader was Arianna. She was very knowledgeable and gave us many interesting facts about the neighborhoods. I live in the suburbs of Chicago, but never took a tour and enjoyed the city through the eyes of a tourist. I took the tour with my two sisters and thoroughly enjoyed it! The stops along the way were very interesting and we were served large portions, so take the tour on an empty stomach! We ate breakfast first and were surprised when the first stop we ate a reuben sandwich! All the food was delicious, plus we learned many interesting facts. I would love to take the other tours offered.

We loved all of it. Even things we did not think we would be very intersted in, the tea, but we still managed to learn a lot, wich was a healthy surprise, and genuinly enjoyed our tea. I think i expected there to be more junk food on the tour, since Chicago is known for that sort of thing. Perhaps a vienna beef hot dog and tamalee would be a good addition. The walking and information portion was so great and could not have happend without our gracious, guide, Chris. he was so energetic, genuine and sincere. You could almost feel his love of Chicago and it's food/culture though his enthusiasm. He made up for the lack of hot dogs ;) Would def do it again (maybe in Bucktown). Thank for everything!

My Mom and I went on this tour. We went on the Gold Coast/Old Town tour a few years ago. In both cases we noticed that the caterer/deli places that occured midway through the trip were a disappointment. This weekend, the deli served a soggy chopped salad while we looked at all the really good looking food in the case. The rest of the tour was nice and overall the food was very good.

I was absolutely impressed with everything about the tour. Our tour guide Lauren was extremely knowledgable on the areas we passed through and stopped to give us interesting facts about houses and establishments along our route many times. I am from Chicago and did not know anything she shared with us. It was a pleasure to gain some local knowledge and history along with our food tour. Beyond that, each food stop was unique and different from the one before it. We weren't left too full or too hungry. It was the perfect amount of food and my mom and I will definitely be going back to make purchases at several of the stops like the oil and vinegar shop, the spice house, and the tea shop. I loved everything about this and recommend it as a gift for someone who lovesfood, history, and a little bit of walking!