Tour Details
Duration
2.5 hours
Product Type
Tour
Venues
- Left Bank
- Saint-Germain specialty shops
Photos & Highlights
- Gain insider knowledge about French cuisine, traditions, and the best places to taste from a gastronome, chef, or food writer
- Bring home stories of otherworldly artisanal chocolates, charming neighborhood cheese shops, and the history of Parisian food culture
Select a date
Tour Description
It would be unusual to recount a trip to Paris without a single mention of the food–French cuisine is too revered a subject to simply gloss over it. And yet, so many visitors to the city return home with tales of disappointment, of rude waiters, of tourist traps, and half-frozen bowls of French onion soup.
Context food experts are passionate about sharing authentic and undeniably delicious French cuisine with clients. Each tasting on this journey through French cuisine varies by expert, reflecting the personal relationships they have built with local vendors, and their own favorite tastes and trends. You won't visit a prescribed list of stops with a frugally controlled number of tastings, but rather experience curated and generous visits to a local expert’s favorite purveyors-from historic or modern chocolate shops, to bustling neighborhood bakeries, to cheesemongers stacked from floor to ceiling with the finest of each French region.
Let our experts ensure that you return home with only positive memories of French food, and a list of addresses and bites you’ll be eager to share with friends and family.
Let our experts ensure that you return home with only positive memories of French food, and a list of addresses and bites you’ll be eager to share with friends and family.
Choose this tour if…
- You want to avoid tourist traps and be certain you are tasting the real deal, hand-picked and vetted for you by a local expert
- You’d like to learn how to approach the rest of your trip like a local, gathering tips on where to go and what to order
- You want to learn about Paris in a different and deeply enjoyable way, like going on a hunt for delicious snacks with an old friend
- You want to discover hidden food spots you’ll be proud to recommend (or keep as your little secret)
Starting off in the heart of the Left Bank, your route for the day will be in the hands of your expert, influenced by both your tastes and the season. You may head directly for your first sweet taste of the day, experiencing a bite of the same chocolate that helped to make Marie-Antoinette’s morning medicines a bit more palatable. Or perhaps you will start off in search of the unmistakable odor of a freshly baked baguette wafting down a narrow, cobbled street.
Whatever route you take, you can be certain that your expert will treat you both to the finest version of French classics, as well as surprise you with new or different flavors you may not have dared to try without their seal of approval. You will discuss the importance of cheese in French culture, and perhaps witness some locals as they go about their weekly cheese purchases. You might have a bite of a new and trendy macaron flavor or perhaps tuck into a classic and comforting apple tart. But whatever you taste on this unique and curated visit, you will most definitely get a window into local neighborhood life, fill your stomach with high-quality, delicious foods, and finally understand what it is that makes French cuisine just so special.
Whatever route you take, you can be certain that your expert will treat you both to the finest version of French classics, as well as surprise you with new or different flavors you may not have dared to try without their seal of approval. You will discuss the importance of cheese in French culture, and perhaps witness some locals as they go about their weekly cheese purchases. You might have a bite of a new and trendy macaron flavor or perhaps tuck into a classic and comforting apple tart. But whatever you taste on this unique and curated visit, you will most definitely get a window into local neighborhood life, fill your stomach with high-quality, delicious foods, and finally understand what it is that makes French cuisine just so special.
What you’ll taste
Please note all tastings are expert and availability-dependent. Each tour is truly an individual experience, but please let us know in your reservation notes if there is anything in particular you would love to taste or prefer to avoid! Here is a sampling of what previous travelers have tasted on this experience:
- Samples of French artisanal breads
- Freshly baked goods, from fine pastries to rustic apple tarts
- Decadent cheeses of all ages and origins
- Charcuterie + pâtés
- Chocolate, both modern and traditional
- Wine or armagnac
Logistics
Tastings
All tastings are covered in the cost of the tour, except should you wish to indulge in a treat or two to take home with you (we wouldn’t blame you!).
Transportation
This is an all-outdoor walking door. If you’d like a transfer service from your hotel to the tour meeting point, please check the ‘Private Car from Your Hotel in Paris’ option at check-out.
We understand that some of our valued guests may have mobility concerns, and we want to ensure you have a comfortable and enjoyable experience throughout your tour. If there are any accessibility concerns that your tour guide will need to be aware of, please let our team know at the time of booking.
Wheelchair accessibility
Some of the shops we visit are small and many will have a step up to access them. The general route may include small streets with narrow sidewalks. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding accessibility. We have routes that can be adapted to all levels of accessibility.
Service dog accommodations
This is an outdoor walking tour, therefore service dogs are welcome. Please let us know if you are attending the tour with a service animal so we can be sure to choose accommodating shops and restaurants.
Can I participate in your Paris food tours if I have food allergies?
Yes. If you have any specific allergies/intolerances please indicate these in the Notes section when you're booking and your guide will do his or her best to accommodate. Vegetarian, gluten-free, and nut-free diets can certainly be accommodated, although the shops we visit do use wheat flour and nuts in the kitchen for other items. Vegan diets are more difficult to accommodate.
How much food will I taste on this tour?
While exact tastings vary by guide and your tastes and interests, we can guarantee that you will come away from this tour with a full and happy belly. You could likely skip a meal following your tour, but you are in Paris, so why would you?
Will this tour include a sit-down lunch in a bistro?
The duration of the tour will not allow enough time for a sit-down lunch in a bistro, however, we will do tastings along the way and we might also stop in a local bakery for a sit-down tasting or end our tour with a picnic.
What if it’s raining?
Tours operate rain or shine, but in the case of inclement weather, your guide will modify the tour so more time is spent indoors. It never hurts to have an umbrella on hand.
There are 7 in my group but your website won't allow me to include more than 6 participants. Can't you make an exception?
Unfortunately not. The mom & pop shops we visit on our tour are small and prefer we keep our group sizes to 6 maximum for the best experience.
Cancellation Policy
Book with confidence — see Context's flexible cancellation policy here.
Where You'll Start
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973 Reviews
Reviews can only be left by Context customers after they have completed a tour. For more information about our reviews, please see our FAQ.
Preston was very polite and personable. He was knowledgeable and attempted to answer all questions and make certain that we were all comfortable. It was a great tour of places of which I was previously unfamiliar. He was great. The unexpected rain kind of dampened my spirits. The forecast had not called for rain...........maybe tell people to bring a bottle of water and an umbrella (just in case).I would love to see a fashion tour, an antique tour, and other food related tours.
I
Gail
Reviewed on:
Sep 18, 2013
This was a fun tour and Laurel was off the charts great!!
Bill
Reviewed on:
Sep 13, 2013
Laurel was the most enthusiastic guide we have experienced! She paced the walk well and we ended with a picnic in the park!
Here's the review I sent my family....
"We met Laurel, a pastry chef originally from Charleston, South Carolina, living the past 20 years in Paris. She owned a wedding cake shop that she recently closed and is working on a new project--a pie shop that will feature meat pies (her husband is British) but also introduce Paris to delicious standards of the American South--pecan pie and buttermilk pie!
We met at a sidewalk cafe where Mariana, a diabetes educator from Los Angeles joined us and we set out to discover foods of Paris.
Laurel began by discussing the importance of bread in French history--particularly the baguette. There are French laws governing the length, weight and price of a baguette. At one point we went to a French bakery where a young baker was hand sculpting baguettes and placing them in a hot oven. He had 10 small ovens and 3 proofing ovens he was working around. He handled the baguettes with his bare hands when they were hot out of the oven! Laurel told us that people in his job usually start about age 14.
She explained the role of food guilds in France and the separation of types of food into special guilds--there was a beef guild, a poultry guild, a seafood guild, a bread guild, a pastry guild, etc. You could not serve an item in your establishment unless you had a member of that guild working for you.
Josephine bakery was our next stop. The owner had apprenticed under Laurel and she was very pleased to take us inside and explain the specialties--one of which was chocolate bread. She bought some items for us to eat later and placed them in her bag and we were off to.....
Lauderee--famous macaroon shop. Beautiful pastries as well as macaroons were totally a work of art. No photos allowed inside so you will just have to take our word for it. This year's special flavor to mix with desserts--MINT. Laurel purchased some macaroon for our picnic after pointing out specific items that were specialties at Lauderee.
PAUL is a chain of bakeries in Paris but has high standards according to Laurel. It was here that we watched the baguette maker in the window and it was here we obtained a baguette for our picnic.
We visited a chocolatier and caramelier-Henri Reoux. The only caramelier in Paris! We tasted exquisite chocolate and luscious caramels and made a few purchases here.
Next was to be the cheese shop. Laurel had stopped by early this morning and the sign said the owners would be back from holiday today and the shop would be open. When we stopped by, however, the sign was gone and the neighboring butcher said they had called and decided to spend another week away at the beach! We tried a wine and cheese shop but the owner said his cheese had not come in yet. No cheese shop today!!!!
Well, since we were by the butcher shop, we went to visit his establishment. He had been to Corsica on vacation and had a very special ham given him there. It was not for sale but he cut off a few slices for us to taste.
We did take 3 pates from the butcher but I cannot tell you what was in them as it appears to be a highly guarded secret by each butcher. The butcher spoke only French but was very knowledgeable and very helpful as Laurel translated for us and interacted with him.
From here we walked to Luxembourg park and gathered chairs around a park bench and spread out our picnic goods. We had 3 types of breads, 3 pates and 3 flavors of macaroons. We ate while Laurel explained more about the Paris food industry, the evolution of food shopping and food eating in Paris and enjoyed the beauty of the park."
Cindy
Reviewed on:
Sep 5, 2013
