Catalina Food Tour

We booked a quick weekend getaway to Catalina, and since my partner and I are both foodies, I decided to book the Catalina Food Tour. We are SO glad we did — it ended up being one of the highlights of our entire trip. We met our guide, Janet, at Topside by NDMK, a newer restaurant in Avalon. She was waiting for us inside in the air conditioning — thankfully, because even though it was the first weekend of October, it was incredibly hot. After introducing ourselves, we realized we were the only two people booked on the tour that day. Major score! By about the third stop, it honestly stopped feeling like we were on a tour and started feeling like we were spending the afternoon with an old friend. Janet absolutely made the experience. She was knowledgeable, funny, engaging and incredibly personable. She knew so much about Catalina, but it never felt like we were being given a history lesson. Everything came through naturally as we walked, ate, drank and explored. And come hungry! The other reviewers are absolutely right: DO NOT eat breakfast beforehand. We had so much delicious food and drinks along the way that we were completely stuffed by the end and basically needed a nap. What we also loved was that this wasn’t just a food tour. We learned about Catalina’s history, the Wrigley family, Avalon’s quirky architecture, local landmarks, art and some great island stories along the way. We even walked through the historic post office, which was a fun little break from the heat and another interesting part of the tour. You also get a little glimpse into the local community because Janet seems to know everyone in Avalon. We joked that she is basically the mayor — everywhere we went, someone knew her. We would highly recommend the Catalina Food Tour, and Janet specifically. Great food, great drinks, interesting history and a really fun way to experience Avalon beyond just walking around on your own. We’d absolutely do the tour again next year with a group of friends. Or maybe just the two of us again with our new friend Janet.

Bobby was great. Lots of fun and knowledgeable.

If you have not done a food tour before- they are amazing! You get history and facts while enjoying local favorites! If you are looking at the price- trust me- it is worth it! Carol was amazing we had so much fun. We learned things on the tour that you could not learn on your own. My husband can be a picky eater and he loved everything. Go in hungry and thirsty!

You get more food than expected. The drinks were awesome. We even went back after the tour was over to get another one of the drinks. Carel was great - a native of the island with a lot of fun facts.

We had Bobbie for our tour guide and she was AMAZING!! We had so much fun trying food and drinks at all the places. Everything was delicious!! Also all the history and information about Catalina Island was so interesting and fun to learn. I definitely would recommend this tour!!