Michele Topor, Inc.

The 8 of us thought Beth did a tremendous job, talking for 3 hours and giving us a history of the North End and information on the local foods.

Excellent knowledgeable tour guide, great walking tour of the North End, good food and drink samples, great weather as well.

We enjoyed the tour! Our guide was experienced and older. He loves to cook, so he could explain various ingredients sampled at all the shops we went into. His insights were fabulous, as we ate at a place he described. Overall a wonderful morning exploring the famous Northend!!!

The tour was excellent. The tour guide was very knowledgable regarding the foods and his experience int he food industry. The 3 hour tour went by very quickly with many laughs and enjoyable moments at various grocers and shops. We would recommend this tour to anyone who has an interest in italian foods and loves the North End of Boston. Thanks again and Regards, Cosmo and Angela Sabatino

I enjoyed the walk from shop to shop through the district. I felt I gained a better understanding of the entire neighbourhood and the people that lived in it. The only downside was that it rained all morning, but this did not stop us from having a great time. Our guide was first class. Very knowledgable, very charismatic, very funny. In short he was superb, which made the experience all the more enjoyable. Many thanks Andy & Melanie Garcia

For my parents & myself, it was a history lesson, food tasting of our heritage and a lot of fun. A real connection to the stores used by the Italian people who live there. The candy store brought back special memories for my Dad of his Grandmother. The bakery was a treat as were all the others. We feel like we know the Italian North End better now.

Enjoyed the tour very much-even though we have visited the north end hundreds of times the tour was extremely informative. I never knew how little I actually new about the north end and our guide was fantastic! I can't wait to take the tour of Chinatown-let us know when it's available!

This was one of the best tours we have ever taken! Our tour guide Jim was exceptionally well prepared and knowledgable. His chef background really made a huge difference as we visited the shops and talked about food. We learned so many interesting tips about specific products and name brands of foods. The basic background info on Italy was especially fascinating and would be very helpful if anyone was planning a trip to Italy. The traditional Italian vs. Italian American comparisons were really enlightening. This would be a great couple 's date with dinner after. We are still talking about the tour a week after we took it - we learned so much and loved walking the North End. The shops we visited and the food samples we tasted were terrific!! All the handouts and restaurant recommendations were fabulous! Thanks to the great job that Jim did with our group we are looking forward to many years of revisiting and enjoying the North End neighborhood like we never could have done before ... thanks for sharing your enthusiasm and love of Little Italy with us. We will remember this tour fondly and forever!!

we've done 2 nyc eating/walking tours with zerve, & liked them far more than the boston north end tour. the first 1 & a half hours were mostly standing in 2 liqour stores, hearing a lot more about wines & other info than was necessary, & some of which could have been done while walking. too little time was devoted to the sampling food part - as contrasted with the nyc tours we did (chelsea market & the village).

Our family truly enjoyed this tour, even though the temparature was in the mid 90's. Our tour director, who is a trained shef, really brought out the history & true Italian culture of the North End!!! We would recommend this to all vistors to the Boston area!! Bravo Bravo!!

Learn quite a lot more food tips and history than actual tasting. Definitely need to eat before and after the tour. Bring your own water and hand sanitizer.

We enjoyed the historical approach you used when conducting your tour. The samples of the Italian food was incredible. We when back the next morning to buy the hot clam shells from Maria's. Thank you for a great afternoon.

This tour was everything we were hoping it would be! We got a great overview of the North End, some great places we went back to during our stay in Boston, and an inside look at the various regions in Italy, and their unique characteristics in relation to food and ingredients used in cooking. We sampled some wonderful pastries, the best balsamic vinegar we've ever had, a wonderfully refreshing Italian Ice, and the list goes on...We enjoyed this tour so much, we would probably go on it again when we return in 3 years!

This was a great way to revisit the Boston North End and the indigenous cuisine. I was accompanied by my two adult daughters while on a baseball related trip. (This was their first visit to Boston, and this tour was a great way to spend their first day) The tour guide, an ex-chef in the area, was extremely well informed about the culture and history of the region and the food resources available. His personal acquaintance with the management/owners and their staff gave a real authenticity to his presentation at the many stops on the tour. The samples of products was very well presented and the quality was very good. We were required to re-visit Maria's bakery to gather a small colllection of goodies before we left town. . We were only able to visit two of the restaurants on the recommended list but they were both very good, and as described. We will be better prepared to enjoy the speciality cuisine of the various regions of Italy on our next visit. We also learned how to sex an eggplant!

My past experiences with group tours has been such lousy experiences and a waste of time, I nearly changed my mind several times before showing up for this tour. I have such little patience for walking from one historical and disconnected tourist site to another while tacitly avoiding the present and local life of the area. Michele Topor's tour was such a breath of fresh air! It wasn't about past cultures long gone, but the living culture and just enough history to provide a context to the beliefs and habits. The hands-on and personable experience made it an authentic and relevant learning opportunity. The knowledge shared was something to bring home and act upon. I've found myself reflecting upon my cooking and eating habits days after the tour. When asked about my trip to Boston, the Topor tour comes out as the most memorable event. My only fear is that it might become too popular and negatively impact the intimacy of the experience. If only it could be Boston's best kept secret!