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One of my favorite things about traveling is the FOOOOOOD! Travel and food are two of my favorite things in life, so combining the two is just amazing. Fun fact – one of the main reasons I booked a trip to Thailand is because I love Thai food, and Thailand did not disappoint! The only downfall was that after eating the REAL thing, it kind of ruined Thai food back at ‘home’ because it just wasn’t as good. I still love it all though!
So, back to New York. NY is a real melting pot of cultures. It’s rich and diverse, and there are so many different options for cuisines from around the world. As with most cities, there are what I would call ‘tourist traps’ – they are conveniently located and look good on the outside, but often the food is mediocre at best. That’s why I highly go by recommendations when visiting somewhere new – ask around if anyone you know can suggest a good place to eat. Failing that, check the Google reviews. They’re not always accurate, but it gives you a better idea than no idea at all.
There are a number of advantages to joining a food tour:
- There are only so many full meals you can eat at a restaurant during a short period of time
Sometimes there just isn’t enough time to eat all the food you want to properly! A tour allows you taste a lot of different things without having to commit to a sit-down meal each time. This is also the cheaper way to try different foods at once.
- Try before you buy
A tour also lets you check out some different places so you can get a feel of what you like and where you would like to go back to another time for a proper meal. Sometimes you can even buy snacks to go on the spot.
- Already recommended
Avoid all the tourist traps because your guide will only take you to great places. You might even visit some back street gems that you would never have found by yourself.
- It’s a tour of the city – with bonus food!
Every food tour I’ve been on has included walking around, interesting history, and lots of tips. If you’re really pressed for time, or deciding between different tours, this is a great way to kill two birds with one stone. Skip the regular tours and take a food tour instead.
- Explore with international company
These are fun to join with friends or alone, and you will certainly have fun travelers in your group. I’ve found this ideal for when I’ve had some free time during the day while my friends were working. I even made a new friend a few years ago who was also traveling by herself – we met up for dinner and champagne brunch on the same trip! And somewhere down the line I met up with her for another champagne brunch when I was visiting Toronto with friends, where she lives. Travel buddies are the best.
Free food tours
If you Google “food tours in New York” (or any city) you’ll see many many options, often costing $100+. I have never signed up for one of these, because I’ve always enjoyed the cheapest tours I can find! Perhaps if I’d had an awful experience on a tour or felt something was missing, I would feel inclined to join a more expensive one. Until then, I will continue to enjoy my low-cost tours and spend those savings on something else fun.
So, I have joined a few food tours in New York over the years, some of them I’ve done more than once. My favorite is by this company:
Free tours by foot – it does exactly what it says. These tours are FREE and you tip what you like at the end. So that hefty fee for the expensive tour? You can still contribute some of that towards your tour guide.
The last time I joined one of these tours was the Lower East Side food tour in October 2022. Fortunately New York was feeling pretty much back to its usual busy and bustly self by then, post COVID19. I joined the Lower East Side Tour that included walking, history, dumplings, ice cream, donuts, and my personal favorite – The Pickle Guys! I do love pickles, and this place is THE place for pickled everything, including dills, tomatoes, okra, and pineapple. My mouth is watering just thinking about it…
Often the guide will tell you the cost of a portion of food – such as 10 dumplings, then either place an order over the phone in advance for the restaurant to get ready, or take cash from you in front of the store to go in and buy portions for everyone. In this way, you don’t have 10 people squeezing in to each place. The food portions are not expensive, maybe $1-5 each time, and you can always order extra if you’re particularly excited about something. Other times there would be two venues that are close together (like the pickle place and the donut place) so we could split up into smaller groups and buy what we wanted. Have some $1s and $5s ready, as well as a cash tip for your guide at the end.
On this particular tour, we stopped by Katz’ Deli and learned about its history (famous for the movie When Harry Met Sally, in case you didn’t know), but didn’t actually go in as the line is always huge and would be too time-consuming. You can always go back later if you want. I have actually eaten there before – it was a very meaty pastrami sandwich. Yum.
They also have food tours in:
- East Village
- Chinatown
- Williamsburg
- Flatbush Brooklyn
- Greenwich Village
- As well as regular non-food tours
You do have to BOOK IN ADVANCE for these tours so make sure you plan ahead and do this online.
As with all tours, I advise taking them as early as possible on your trip. You’ll get to walk around the area, get a feel of the place, and lots of recommendations on the way. This helps you to plan the rest of your trip.
Paid food toursIf you do want to splurge and go on a paid food tour, there are plenty of options that have great reviews and cover some different options beyond the free options, such as:
New York Food Cart Walking Tour (from $60)
NY Gluten-free Food Tour (from $95)
Chelsea Market and Highline Food Tour (from $78)
If, like me, you love FOOD and TRAVEL, then a food tour is definitely the way to go.
Other food experiencesAnother foodie experience that I think would be worthwhile is having a meal on a cruise. I love it because I really feel like I’m on vacation when I’m on a boat! I’ve done this a few times before in other cities – including in Paris and Minnesota. It’s a unique and memorable experience, combining a great meal with a scenic boat ride.
For New York, something like this looks great:
New York Premier Lunch Cruise (from $109)
Eating at restaurants while traveling is always fun, but there are lots of ways to make food a larger and more memorable part of your travel experience. Fortunately there is a range of options to suit your budget and preference. If you haven’t done it already, I hope you will consider a food tour for your future travels.
Written by Shama
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