Lower East Side Food Tour
About this activity
Highlights
- Explore historic Lower East Side
- Taste iconic New York deli sandwiches
- Visit a traditional Jewish bakery
- Discover hidden speakeasies
- Learn about immigrant history
Full description
Included / Excluded
- Guided walking tour of Lower East Side
- Tastings at 6 local eateries
- Insights into neighborhood history and culture
- Transportation to and from the meeting point
Itinerary
Your tour begins in front of Little Canal Café, located at 26 Canal Street in the Lower East Side. This modern corner café with large street-facing windows is easy to spot as you arrive on Canal Street. Your guide will meet you right outside the main entrance, where the vibrant energy of downtown Manhattan sets the perfect scene for the cultural journey ahead.
We talk about the history of the surrounding area that was once a poor Irish community and before that a polluted pond. You get to see the building that is now most famous for being featured on most episodes of Law & Order
We briefly walk through this park on the edge of Chinatown and talk about what used to be here: the notorious neighborhood of the Five Points. We discuss the Irish immigration and show photos of what the neighborhood used to look like.
We walk through part of the neighborhood, discuss Chinese immigration, and visit a dumpling shop that is a local favorite. We also give tips on where else to visit in the large community.
We head up and around Mulberry Street and discuss Italian immigration. We get to see some amazing modern street art, hear stories about organized crime, and visit an historic local Italian food shop for a delicious tasting.
We cruise through one of the most trendy neighborhoods in New York today and discuss the changing neighborhood. This used to be Little Italy, but today it’s loaded with hip bars and restaurants and we get to see some of the best street art in the city.
As we walk through Nolita, you get a chance to see the original St. Patrick’s and learn about the hardships Catholic immigrants first suffered when coming to this country.
Learn about the history of this park, named for FDR’s mother, and take a quick stroll through the northern end. We’ll also stop at the M’Finda Kalunga Garden inside the park to discuss Latin American immigration and how this neighborhood has changed throughout the decades.
See the transformation of the neighborhood from an area filled with run-down tenements and poverty to one that is currently being gentrified. See lots of great street art and community gardens. Learn about Jewish, German, and Latin American immigration in this neighborhood and sample some traditional food.
Pass by: We share stories about the founding of the museum and its important part in Lower East Side history. Our tour ends very close to the museum, and our guides can give you tips on how to get tickets and explore their excellent gift shop.
Meeting point
Start Location
Unknown location
Important information
Know before you book
- The tour operates rain or shine; cancellations due to weather are rare.
- Please inform the tour operator of any dietary restrictions or allergies in advance.
- Gratuity for the guide is appreciated but not included in the tour price.
Know before you go
- Wear comfortable walking shoes as the tour involves approximately 1.5 miles of walking.
- Bring a bottle of water to stay hydrated throughout the tour.
- Be prepared for varying weather conditions; check the forecast and dress accordingly.
Cancellation policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Accessibility
- Stroller Accessible
- Easy Public Transport
Good to know
- Can dietary requirements be accommodated on this tour? We can accommodate most dietary needs — including vegetarian, vegan, gluten‑free, dairy‑free, nut‑free, and other requirements — as long as we are informed at least 24 hours before the tour. Substitutions can be arranged in most cases but may not be available at every stop. Please note that many foods on this tour are not prepared in nut‑free, dairy‑free, or gluten‑free facilities, and cross‑contamination is possible. Guests with severe allergies should use caution.
- What happens if the weather is bad? This experience runs rain, shine, or snow. In the rare case that weather conditions pose a safety risk, the tour may be postponed or canceled for guest safety.
- Is this tour child-friendly? Yes! This tour is suitable for families. Children under 4 years old can join free of charge. A reduced child price applies for children aged 4 to 11.
- Is this tour suitable for all ages and fitness levels? The tour includes approximately 2.5 miles / 4 km of walking at a relaxed pace.
Reviews
We booked this walking tour on our second day in Boston, and am so glad we did. Travelling from Ireland, we were aware of the connections to Boston, but never really appreciated the deep history and importance of Boston. Our tour guide - Bob - was amazing. He is a true font of knowledge on everything from the background to the American revolution, its key players like Samual Adams and Paul Revere, the City as a centre of trade and commerce, and how it became a home for so many immigrants who transformed the City’s commerce, culture and politics. Best of all we learned all of this while strolling around the best parts of Boston and enjoying the most amazing food. Bob delivered with humour and fun. He was engaging and helpful, and has so much passion and deep historic knowledge which came across at every opportunity. The food aspects were incredible. We spent much of the time in the North End, - little Italy - and were introduced to several amazing multi generational family food businesses that we would never have found otherwise - bakeries, coffee shops and delis - with lots of wonderful food to sample. It was a fantastic tour. Genuinely, it completely enriched my knowledge and perspective on the City and was enjoyable from start to finish. There are lots of tours of the city - bus tours. Duck tours, ghoul tours, walking tours etc and some look a bit gimmicky with tour guides dressed is period costumes. If that’s your thing then fine, but you will miss on a tour like this one which so authentic, educational, fun and engaging. Travelling around the city with a guide with such knowledge and history as a guide like Bob, turned out to be a great privilege. I highly recommend this trip. I doubt you could find a better way to four or five hours in this most fascinating city,
Wow!! We would have given this tour 6 stars if we could. Our tour guide, Dave, was so knowledgeable and spun the stories to weave Chicago's history so clearly for these East Coast visitors. Loved the mixture of interior and street landmarks. We learned so much and will be sure to recommend this tour to others. A true highlight activity of our visit to Chicago.
Laura was awesome and really informative. She answered all our questions and had a lot to say about the city. Loved it!
Traveler reviews
Guide and content of tour...
Guide and content of tour was first rate. Food portions and number of stops were meager. It was a light tastings cultural and history tour.
Cool unique food places
Our guide a was EXTREMELY knowledgeable filled with history info that was relevant to our stops to current events hire the neighborhood was shaped around the Indy he was giving us and it wasn’t just here’s a landmark with facts it was impactful info and unique info such as the hook building and the term hookers coming from it with sailors coming to visit needing a lot of services from the ladies not just the obvious. And a tattoo museum and info about the first electric tattoo machine as it being illegal due to Hepatitis until the 1990s!!! Just so cool. The food was the slight let down for me. I had put down I don’t eat meat but still there was a lot of meat products and a lot of sharing portions with everybody. We had pork dumplings like 9 or more in the same container and everyone was eating out of it to get their allotted 3. Knish same thing 2 large ones in a bag for people to pull out and split and share dipping in mustard they were good but seemed rushed for us very hot still very soft not quite set. Our group voted on tamales which were chicken and I seemed dry cut into two pieces on a same plate. Every time myself or someone else didn’t eat something our guide was very eager to finish it, no coaxing needed. Our pizza slices were definitely not New York slices unlike another Viator tore I did on Greenwich village food tour where food was great and very filling and pizza slices huge. All in all fun day. Learned a lot pinned a lot of places to go back to on our own!
NO Show Guide!!
Tour guide was a NO SHOW!! We were at the location 10 minutes ahead of time and waited 35 minutes after it was supposed to start (along with 2 other couples who had the tour booked). Tour guide NEVER SHOWED UP. I tried contacting the operator while we waited, and they didn't respond.
Great Walking Food Tour
Great tour! Brian did an excellent job of educating us, feeding us, and entertaining us. I thought it was a cultural walking tour with some food…there was a lot of food…all so good. We also stop at Ferrara Bakery for a bathroom stop…if you do, buy some pastries…they were delicious! My only complaint was that two people on our tour were smoking…I think smoking should not be allowed on the tour.
A LOT of walking. Great...
A LOT of walking. Great history. Only four food stops but all yummy. Greg was wonderful. There were four if us and one had a few mobility issues and he was great.