Want to explore your city without getting lost and finding yourself in the wrong part of town? Easy-peasy. Introducing: Food Tours, aka fun little events that are both informative AND tasty! Culinary tours have been around for decades, and can be found in a slew of cities around the world. The general format includes meeting up with the tour guide at a previously disclosed location, walking through a particular neighborhood tasting foods from multiple stores, and learning historic facts and secrets.

Such tasting tours are actually very popular in Chicago. Take your pick of a variety of companies offering food tours. For a list of tours, many of which focus on Chicago’s famous pizza, check out Chicago Traveler. They even have a food tours chart that allows you to easily compare tour features! One newly advertised tour company is Tastebud Tours.  Tastebud Tours does not limit itself to pizza, but also opens your eyes to Chicago’s special hot dogs, unique restaurants, bars and specialty food shops! If you’re lucky, you might find discounts on their website. (Ahem!) For a limited time, you can save $4.00 per ticket when you use the coupon code: TBWS

Seattle also offers a variety of culinary tours, the most popular being Savor Seattle food tours.  Their tours are said to tantalize your taste buds with Pacific Northwest seafood, fresh roasted coffee, artisan hand-made cheese, microbrew beer, gourmet chocolate, fine wine, and more! Even better, all 3 tours offered by Savor Seattle (the Pike Place Market Tour, Gourmet Seattle Tour, and Chocolate Indulgence Tour) focus on tasting fresh, local, organic, seasonal, and sustainable foods and beverages. Not only do you receive the food and beverage tastings with purchase, but also seasonal recipes, and a 10-15% discount card to use at all of their food partners!

Think you know all the best places to eat in San Francisco? Think again. Not only are there simply too many great restaurants to try, but there are so many gems hidden in unlikely places. Thanks to walking tour guides like GraceAnn Walden and Lisa Rogovin of In The Kitchen with Lisa, you can check a few of these gems off your list in one meal! GraceAnn conducts history-food walking tours of San Francisco neighborhoods, and publishes a free email magazine, the Yummy report.  And you’re in luck, her Fall Sale has just begun! Book 2, 4, or 6 people, and receive $20 off each pair of tickets! In the Kitchen with Lisa offers culinary tours in San Francisco, Berkeley, and West Marin in Sonoma County.

Great news! On October 16, 2010, Parties That Cook is teaming up with Lisa Rogovin to host a one-time-only, unique event sure immerse guests in culture! During this Mouthwatering Mission, guests will first meet with Lisa for a culinary tour of San Francisco’s famous Mission District. In addition to sampling authentic foods from local shops, guests take a guided mural tour! The moving tour concludes at La Victoria Bakery, where guests will be broken into teams to work on a recipe from the day’s Latin-inspired Sumptuous Small Plates menu while listening to lively music. After the cooking portion, the group savors their culinary creations together. For tickets, and more information on where you will go and what you will make during Mouthwatering Mission, click here. Want to know more about PTC cooking classes in general? Check out our cooking classes page!