French Quarter Culinary History and Tasting Tour

Our guide was a history student and New Orleans native, and was very knowledgeable about not only the culinary history of the city, but its history in general. The tour was well-paced and covered a lot of sites, although not a lot of ground as everything is close in the French Quarter. And we sampled some really good food! Appealed to my husband and I who are big "foodies", but also had a lot to offer folks not that into the food scene. We would highly recomend it!

Our quarter adventure was most enjoyable and informative. Our guide added so much to the tour; he was pleasant, entertaining and very knowledgeable. Even though we are local residents and come to the quarter quite often, we found that we learned a great deal about the origin of the local food and other interesting aspects of the city. We enjoyed everything about the tour...................................................

I booked the tour for my husband and was under the mistaken impression that we would actually get to see some of the dishes being prepared. I did like the history but our tour guide was somewhat of a "drama queen". In fact, she got into a shouting match with a man who thought she was talking about a slave exchange when she was actually talking about a coffee shop as a place for an exchange of ideas. It was fun, but I think it could have been a little better if I had known the exact places we were going to tour and the activities involved.

If you are a first time visitor to the French Quarter, this is a great tour to become familiar with both the cuisine and the history of the Quarter. I have been to the Quarter many times and I wish this tour would have been available the first time I went. The guide was very well informed and fun.

My mom and I decided to take this tour as we both love food and are interested in learning about the history of what we are eating. Though the tour is a bit pricey, we did get a lot of samples from different places. This is not a meal by any means- more of an afternoon snack drawn out over the course of three hours. We really enjoyed the behind the scenes tour of Antoine's- in fact, we booked dinner there that night. The Hermann-Grima house was closed because it was a Saturday (though we were told that will be changing in 2008), so we didn't get to go in there. Wish we had known that before the tour started. Also, one of the bakeries we went to claimed they had not received the email that a group was coming through so they didn't have anything for us. Seems like they should have given us SOMETHING, even if it wasn't the French pastry that was described. Our tour guide, Renee, was very knowledgeable and seemed to really enjoy her job. There was a LOT of walking and standing. THere were three times we had a chance to sit which was greatly enjoyed. My mom is 75 with bad knees and made it through, but she was definitely sore afterwards and it couldn't have ended too soon for her little old legs. All in all we were glad we went. Bring a bottle of water and do some good stretching (if you are not used to walking like us Los Angeles folk).

Great to learn about the history of New Orleans and get an introduction to Cajun/Creole food. However, there were a few places we were supposed to stop and sample some food but they were closed so we didn't get to sample any gumbo. Overall a good experience a little too pricey for what you get.

The tour guide was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. His review of the history of New Orleans, both political and social, was easy to follow and really let the group understand how this history has influenced the culinary traditions of the region. The sample servings of the food was sufficient for the cost of the tour. The majority of stops that include food are placed near the end of the tour so don't arrive too hungry. I recommend bringing a bottle of water with you, especially if the tour takes place during the warmer months. The only beverage that is offered for free is the sample of the cocktail Sazerac at the end of the tour. There is the opportunity to purchase beverages at a few stops along the way, however. I would recommend this tour to anyone visiting New Orleans. It is a fun and unique way to learn the history of the city.

My daughter and I took this culinary trip and both thought iit waqs marvelous. The docent was well prepared and told us much more information then we expected. All the stops were both interesting and delicious. She gave us some culinary history and answered all questions. The tour was one of the highlights of our trip and we would highly reccommend it. Sincerely, Beverlee Levie and Karen Mandel.

We got to go behind the scenes to see areas and rooms we'd not get to see as restaurant patrons only. Our guide gave us lots of interesting info. The tour included a wide range of restaurants.

A friend and I went on the walking tour with Kelly on Friday. We had a great time! Kelly (our guide) is a New Orleans local and history buff who seems to know everyone in the restaurant business! I thoroughly enjoyed each tasting. If you would like to "get to know" New Orleans cooking, you need to take this tour. You will also learn other neat facts about the city.