New Orleans Culinary History Tours

You complete this tour feeling like you have the "inside scoop" on some great restaurants, and knowing why New Orleans' cuisine is unique. Randy, our tour guide was entertaining, endearingly funny and informative. This was my second time to go on this tour -- the restaurants were changed up a bit -- so it was just as interesting as the first tour. This tour gives you a great overview and whets your appetite for going back to these restaurants to dine on your own. The three hours go by too quickly and there are plenty of chances to sit down and rest. I highly recommend this tour!

This was the best tour I booked for this mini vacation. The tour guide Randy was wonderful and very knowledgeable. Answered all questions and was very pleasant. I loved the fact that they took us inside a number of the restaurants into the exclusive back rooms.. and kitchens to see the inner workings of these famous establishments. At most stops we were treated with a sample of the various foods, drinks and sweets. I especially loved hearing the history of the restaurants and other interesting facts about the history of new orleans. it was a great experience and I would recommend this tour. I plan on taking it again next year when I return to NOLA!

My husband and I really liked going "behind the scenes" at some of the most famous restaurants in New Orleans. This tour offers you views and history of private rooms that you would never get otherwise. The historical aspect of the tour was extremely interesting as well, as you get a private tour of the traditional kitchen rooms of the ridiculously wealthy of the 1800s. The tour guide is very entertaining and knowledgeable. The food tastings were great too. We highly recommend for anyone interested in the cuisine of New Orleans.

My husband and I really enjoyed our tour with Randy. The food was delicious and we learned a lot about the food of New Orleans, the restaurant backgrounds and history. Too bad the weather stunk, but Randy worked around that taking us to an inside activity when it poured.

This tour was great. My mom and I have been to New Orleans a couple of times, but never really did a lot of French Quarter activities. The food was great and you get a nice workout walking though out the quarter. We learned a lot of interesting information about the history of New Orleans as well as the food. It is wise to have lunch before the 2pm tour as you get just enough to sample.

This tour was our favorite while visiting New Orleans. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable. We even went back to a couple of the restaurants on the tour for meals. And, the food was delicious.

This is an excellent tour through the French Quarter highlighting a variety of old and new restaurants. Take this tour early in your stay to find restaurants where you will want to dine and food that you will want to try while you are in town. Our tour guide was knowledgeable, pleasant, and accommodating as were the restaurant owners, chefs, bartenders and servers we met. We took the tour on a day that was cool and cloudy, but this cannot be counted on. Take a bottle of water, a hat, and an umbrella since the weather can range from sunny to rainy during the course of a few hours in New Orleans. One last comment - Go to New Orleans for a vacation. There are many attractions and activities, the French Quarter is lively, the food is good beyond description, the locals are friendly, and the Vieux Carre has the enchanting artists and musicians at Jackson Square, Pirates Alley, along streets and at street corners that you would have found before Katrina.

Met with our guide Ellen as arranged and spent a little over three hours walking through the French Quarter touring the diverse culinary environment of New Orleans. Ellen was fantastic with the history of the French Quarter and its food and the food samples were absolutely great. Ellen even offered to extend the tour, gratis, for those interested and was able to introduce us to the CEO and direct descendent of "Antoine's" who added a unexpected welcome and conversation during our tour of the establishments' numerous dining rooms.. You definitely get introduced to the real New Orleans and away from the tourist traps. Recommend taking the tour early during your stay so that you can return to some of the restaurants visited during the tour. Highly recommend "Petunia's" on St. Louis for the home quality, great prices, and great crepes!

Ellen was very interesting, funny and had lots of good New Orleans Culinary history. We sampled cuisine and talked about culture and food. Very nice walking pace. Perfect stops and timing. Ellen knows the local business people, so it is very personal and covivial. I enjoyed the time, learned a lot and told people to take this! For someone who grew up here, but haven't lived here for over 30 years and have family in the restaurant business here and in other states, I was very impressed! It is a MUST DO!!!

My girlfriend & I loved this tour. We were in town for a convention, (July '08) and stayed for vacation - we recommended the tour to everyone. Randy, our tour guide was warm, friendly, funny, very knowledgeable & very proud of New Oreans -- he made the tour fabulous. After the tour he sat down with us & answered my girlfriend & my questions about New Orleans, & suggested other things we might like to see in the area. We took him up on visiting everywhere he suggested on Algiers Point -- I highly recommend it too! I would recommend this tour to anyone who is interested in history, food, culture &/or New Orleans in general. It will satisfy everyone's curiousity. Randy shared lots of info on the founding of New Orleans, its history & how its unique culture developed. He wove in local stories & folklore - never overwhelming with facts. The restaurant visits were interesting - a great opportunity to see even more of New Orleans! We appreciated learning about Antoine's which we otherwise would not have visited. The food samples were plentiful & delicious. We were so impressed with the flavours, we went back to try some of the restaurants/visits sites during the remainder of our trip. (Make sure you try the calla cake & seafood gumbo at The Old Coffee Pot on Peter St.) While walking from place to place on the tour, Randy told us about/recommended other stores/historic sites as we passed them, always providing interesting details. He took us into the local grocery store, & pointed out products unique to New Orleans. He suggested we buy them there as they were less expensive than in the souvenier shops. We thought the entire experience was exceptional value for the cost. The time passed much too quickly. I could go on an on about how much my girlfriend and I loved this tour. The best testament to how feel about this tour is that we are still reminiscing about what we learned/tasted! If you're wavering about whether to take this tour, I hope this review convinces you to not miss out on a unique & fun New Orleans learning experience.

There were approximately 14 - 16 on our tour. The tour was very interesting and time seemed to fly by. I would take the tour again and would love to go to some of the restaurants for more than a sample. The tour was a great way to learn the history of New Orleans.

If anything, you will experience "behind the scene" of the some of the most famous restaurants!

We had a great family time. My teenagers even liked it. My husband is a history teacher and said everything was "right on". We really enjoyed Antoines and had lots of time to look everything over.

My wife and I enjoyed the tour...a good mix of New Orleans history and how the culture and food developed over time. Also gives you a nice sampling of some of the local food at quality establishments with a lot of history to them. Our guide was knowledgeable and fun. Would recommend this activity to anyone going to New Orleans who isn't just there for the 'Bourbon Street Liquid Diet'.

Thought it was a good tour. Would have liked to sample more food based on the fact this was a culinary tour.