Taste Tours founder and CEO Lesley Unsworth’s top 10 food tours
Taste Tours founder and CEO Lesley Unsworth has done a lot of food tours while researching best practice around the world.
Lesley, who is a die-hard food and culture fiend has done over 35 short and two multi-day food tours in the past six years (and loved them all!).
Part of this is research for her social enterprise, Taste Tours, and part of it is due to a lifelong love affair with food.
Lesley laughs, “My mother was a terrible cook. I’m from the north of England on chips and mushy peas and I have two siblings. We all grew up with a terror of mum’s cooking but bizarrely, a real love of food. Must have been my Dad’s genes.”
Here are ten of the best tours she has taken around the world in no particular order:
1. Flavourhoods, Melbourne
Tour: Sydney Road tour
“This was a journey outside the city, in the multi-culti suburbs, the places I love and feel familiar. I loved Raffaella’s passion for her neighbourhood, the business owners’ generosity, and the hidden gems.”
2. Scranchester Tours, Manchester UK
Tour: Eat the City
“Rob is delightful. He starts off a little shy but warms up into a funny and charming host. The tour is delicious varied and delightful, and told a new story about a city I once knew well. He told a great story about the origins of tea as an English brew.”
3. New Orleans Tabasco factory tour, New Orleans
Tour: No longer available
“Mr. George was told by his boss to make up a food tour so he takes people to his local favourites for Cajun classics. It was local and intimate and felt totally foreign – with cafes with guns and animal heads, and Trump posters that welcomed us in!”
Tour: Thonburi Food and Canals Adventure (Combo Food + Boat Tour) Bangkok
“This was an all-day adventure on the non-tourist side of Bangkok. It offered varied experiences and more food than anyone should eat in a day. We went to temples, galleries, sailed the canal, and ate street food, market food, café food, and more food.”
Tour: Daytime original
“This was a little quirky, a bit mainstream (I tried herrings), generous and delicious. The guides are all owners and the guide, Ester, was fun and smart and full of stories. It was also sentimental as I had lived in Amsterdam for a while.”
6. Eating Europe, East End of London
“This was my first experience of great curation of experience, food, relationship and story. It had a lovely structure and flow, and the guide was charming. I learned a lot and ate a lot (and copied a lot in the design of our tours for tourists).”
“Eveleen, the owner, had an obvious passion for Irish food, and sharing the story. The tour was varied, tasty and generous with markets , pubs and prawns – a truly lovely experience.”
Tour: Gracia Neighbourhood and market tour
“Off the tourist beaten track again! Local, intimate and delicious. Beautifully curated and full of local stories. I took my brother on his first food tour and he loved it. The food was truly delicious and I still dream of a very special olive!”
Tour: Beyond the Market
“Another quirky non-touristy company. The tour was out of the main city, and included a great range of food and experiences, including market tastings and new migrant businesses (my favourites).”
Tour: Saigon to Stockholm
“Tours are run by Phyllis, the owner. I was the solo guest and she shared a great generosity and we bonded over food tourism. There were some real gems and new experiences, including ghosts!”
About Lesley’s business, Taste Tours
Taste Cultural Food Tours Inc. is a charity and social enterprise providing training to Australian migrants and refugees and local youth. We offer employment leading local tours which promote cross-cultural understanding.
Want to know more about Taste Tours? Here’s a review of the Lakemba Ramadan Festival tour.
