The Capitol Hill Culinary Experience

Had a great time on the Capitol Hill Food Tour. The guide was really great, and the food was excellent. I absolutely recommend this tour to locals and tourists!

Don't eat before you go.

Our group really enjoyed the Capital Hill Culinary Experience. We had a great tour guide who provided us with ample history and lots of fun fact about the food culture as well. I would definitely recommend this tour.

Andrew was a wonderful tour guide! He was upbeat and informative, and an all around nice guy. He had a genuine interest in the group and made it a point to get to know a little bit about each person. He worked hard to find cool spots to give us a break from the heat, and reorganized things to accomodate a summer storm. The food was delicious - adventurous, but not too far out there, and there was plenty of it. Other food tours we have done have been more like 'food tastings' but this was three small meals and a fabulous dessert!

Our guide was energetic and full of culinary and historical information.

My family met Barbara at Eastern Market Metro, along with other people new to us. Barbara was extremely well qualified, as she lives nearby, and led us on a walking historical tour with frequent stops to explain the history of our capitol. We learned so many facts, humourously told along with anecdotes! The tour was mapped out in a similar plan to the posted signs for the neighborhood walk, but we gained so much knowledge about the ethnic groups who have composed the residents, as well as the wonderful food facts at 4 different restaurants! The reason for the restaurant choices was interwoven with explanations about how the food changed after contact with British colonists, then USA, , or not, and the actual ingredients themselves. WE loved the tour, I believe others in our groups were very satisfied as well, and hope to follow another tour led by Barbara. It was a great bargain for the quantity and quality of food and the easily gained knowledge of how the DC was settled. The homes and historic buildings were beautiful, and Barbara recommended several events and places of interest in the tour area, too. Highly Recommended!!! ***** MadameMck

We had a great time on our Capitol Hill dining tour. I went with my son, a pretty mature 13-year old, and we had a great time visiting with the others on the tour (two couples, very friendly) and the guides. We had good food -- my son loved the yucca, and I tried ceviche for the first time (loved it!) and we both loved the North Carolina barbeque -- soul food "prepared with love" by Johnny. The tour/walk around the neighborhood was informative but relaxed, and the entire tour/food combination was a good value. I imagine that the relative enjoyment of the tour depends somewhat on the friendliness and sociability of the others on the tour, and we had a great group. I highly recommend.

We come to Washington DC for business 1-2 times a year and we like to take a few days to sightsee. We have seen all of the museums and monuments and we wanted to do something different. I usually select the activities but I challenged my wife to find something she would like to do. She selected the DC Food Metro Tour at Capitol Hill. Not knowing what I was getting into - I obediently followed her lead. We were directed to go to a Market Metro Station and wait for our guide at 2 pm. Our guide walked at a comfortable pace and was very conscious of our comfort - especially to protect us from the cruel Washington sun. We visited 4 restaurants in total - each having about a 15-20 minute comfortable walk and lots of historical information. Each restaurant was unique from the others but representative of the cuisine in that area. The owner of each resteraunt came to our table, described the food, and answered our questions. What was interesting to me is that half of the group were locals. The group experience was pleasant - we had 8 people in our group. The next morning we were still talking about what a great time we had - and I asked my wife - what would you like to do today? She made arrangements to go on the Alexandria old town tour with DC Food Tours -no problem except we were the only ones signed up. She arranged for a private tour with the owners - Jeff and Sharone (BTW - they are soooo young - surprised me). The cost was about $20 more than the group price but turned out to be well worth it. Once again, lot's of history, comfortable pace, great food. My favorite was the day scallops at the old converted firehouse. Each owner came to answer questions - and I know I will return to several of them in the future. I would expect that if you are entertaining a group of 4-6 - this is a great service for a private tour. In comparing the experiences - they both had advantages. The group tour didn't make you feel like you got lost in the group and it was small enough that you could ask questions. You are walking through private neighborhoods and it didn't seem intrusive at all. The private tour was of course more personal and Jeff and Sharone were great. We are entrepreneurs ourselves and we were very interested in how they had done this and how they make a living while delivering such a great service. As all the previous reviewers said - come hungry - you will not need to eat for the rest of the day. They do private tours and we are already planning a tour for a board that we serve on to do something different. The price is very reasonable. Each place we went to had all the food set up. At first the price sort of turned me off (I'm cheap) - but we really more than got our money's worth. If we had the opportunity - we would have done it a third time. The Ethiopian tour sounds great - and I don't even know what Ethiopian food is. With their guidance - I would be at ease going outside of my comfort level - athough I won't eat liver.

This was my second food tour in the D.C. area. I find the walking food tours to be a great way to be introduced to a particular neighborhood or community. I especially love the opportunity to try ethnic foods and local favorites. I particularly enjoyed the BBQ at at the Port Cafe and samplings of Indian food at the Capitol Hill Tandoor and Grill. Our tour guide, Sarah, was very engaging, likeable and informative.

My husband and I enjoyed the DC tour. Barbara, our guide, was knowledgeable, informative and shared many interesting stories and facts with the group. We tried several new ethnic foods that were new to us and thoroughly enjoyed all that was put before us. We would highly recommend this tour for anyone in the DC area!