We had a fantastic fun 4 hour tour eating our way through Santa Barbara today! To start, it's not just a food tasting tour because one learns all about Santa Barbara history. Our guide, Manuel, was not only a great guide but a fun person to talk with, ask questions to and gave the 8 of us on this tour an insight into the city, it's good and much more. One of the great things about this company is they are open to understanding any food issues one has. In our group we had people who don't eat dairy, others who don't eat beef and another who can't have much sugar and when told ahead of time they ordered food that each of us could eat. We started with macarons (not macaroons), had Italian food, wine, Mexican food, empenadas, beer, ice cream and more as we toured State Street and other places in the area on what turned out to be a 4-hour tour. If we had a suggestion, it would be not to start with macarons, but to finish with them, as it seemed a bit weird starting with a cookie-type baked good, although they were delicious. One of the nice things about our tour is that there were just the 8 of us good friends, and Manuel fit right in. So if you're looking for bites of good food and learning about the city, the Santa Barbara Tasting Tour is a great way to do it, and kudos to Allison for setting this up for us! read more

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We've never been to Santa Barbara or a food tour before. After looking around we decided to go with this tour. They do discourage kids, but to contact and let them know upon booking if you will be bringing kids. We have 3 kids (7,5, and 2 years). They did great! It was just enough walking and resting/stopping and eating for them. We met our tour guide Manuel (I think that's what his name was) along with the rest of the group at Arlington theater. He then gave use a quick history of Santa Barbara and the town. He also passed out a summary of the 6 different places that we'll be stopping at. First stop was Renaud's Patisserie and Bistro where we got a quick lesson about macaroons. We tried an assortment of them. We had Lemon, Raspberry, Vanilla, Salted Caramel, pistachio, and strawberry. It was a good start to the day. Second stop was Ca'Dario where we tried brow butter and sage spinach ravioli and a bolognese. This stop was our favorite. It was so good. Even the kids ate the sage! Third stop was II Fustino for Olive oil and balsamic vinegar tasting. Eh, wasn't our cup of tea. Fourth stop, Empty Bowl Gourmet Noodle Bar where we had potsticker (just one potsticker) and yellow chicken thai curry. The potsticker was soft and when you dip it in the spicy sauce it tastes even better. The chicken curry came with some type of noodles. It wasn't too spicy. The kids were able to eat it, but they preferred the potsticker instead. Fifth stop was at Chocolats du CaliBressan where we all had a Buddah shaped chocolate that filled with an ooey creamy caramel that oozed out when you bit into it. SO GOOD! We also got to choose one more chocolate of our choice from the counter. This was our other favorite spot! The last stop was at Cebada Winey where we got to taste some wine. The owner was actually there pouring and presenting the wines. Cebada wines are very light and not too sweet. We got to taste a 2013 Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and a Blueberry dessert wine. All were very light, but me and husband liked the Chardonnay best. We stayed and our kids got to taste the jams. They tried 3 jams. Blueberry, citrus and one more (I forgot). They liked the blueberry one, so we ended up getting a jar. This tour was very informative and a great way to try a bunch of spots Sanata Barbara has to offer. I would suggest having a lite snack before touring. Otherwise, you might still be hungry. We ate a little something before the tour started and we left feeling contented. We weren't full but weren't hungry. Water is offered at most of the stops and there are restrooms practically everywhere. The tour ran about 2.5 hrs. We did a bit of walking so I would suggest comfortable shoes just like their website states. I would suggest this tour especially if it's tour first time to SB. You get to see some cute shops and plazas along the way that you could stop at after the tour is over. You also learn about some of the buildings, statues and history of the town. read more

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I can't recommend Allison and her team highly enough! I went with 50+ girlfriends to Santa Barbara this wknd and we booked a variety of activities, including the Taste of Santa Barbara food tour. Any large group outing can be challenging, but Allison was a dream to work with. She was organized, accommodating, exceedingly knowledgeable, totally on top of it, and tailored an outing just for us. Everyone had rave reviews! As an added bonus, because we're all lawyers, our tour guide (who also happened to be a docent at the Santa Barbara Courthouse) took us by the Courthouse and gave us a mini tour! It was perfect. I highly recommend it! read more

Great tour and great food! Nancy was a tour guide and was great and a lot of fun! She was knowledgeable about the history of Santa Barbara and also about the restaurants of the downtown area. We had a fun group as well! read more

This tour was so great. We had Manual and he gave us a fantastic background of the local history. We even got to go over to the courthouse and walk around inside. All of the food we had was delicious. I'm adding some pictures below of the fish taco and macarons. The pasta was so good we went back again for dinner. We highly recommended this tour, this company and Manuel! read more

Santa Barbara Tasting Tours - Macarons - Food Tours Near Me

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My wife and I took this tour on 1/10/19 as part of our anniversary trip to Santa Barbara. We were lucky enough to be a small tour group of three. We loved it! Not only was the food fantastic, but we felt we really got a local's view of SB. This was our 4th trip to Santa Barbara and it was like we were seeing it for the first time. We were given info on history, architecture, current events, trends, etc. The food selections were all things that we might never had tried on our own but were outstanding! read more

My wife and I had a wonderful time on the Historic Santa Barbara Food Tasting Tour on Sunday!!! Manuel was a fantastic host, as he was personable, very knowledgeable about the local history and had a great way of making everything fun! We not only learned so much about the history of Santa Barbara, but we had some of the best food in town. We started with amazing macarrons at Renaud's Patisserie and Bistro, then moved on to delicious brown butter and sage ravioli and spinach pappardelle with a meat ragout (alla bolognese) at Ca'Dario, then to the SB Public Market and sampled olive oils and balsamic vinegars at Il Fustino and thoroughly enjoyed pork dumplings and Thai chicken curry at the Empty Bowl Gourmet Noodle Bar, stopped by Chocolats du Calibressan for the best chocolates I've had in a very long time, and finished up with a wine flight at Cebada Winery tasting room. And all along the way we discussed and were shown the cultural and architectural history of the Santa Barbara area. It was a perfect mix of culture and food and the little bit of walking was broken up expertly by the stops along the way. We really can't recommend this tour and this company more heartily. The people and the experience made for a wonderful outing and real understanding and appreciation of what makes Santa Barbara such a unique and wonderful place. read more

Our private tour with Manuel was great. An easy walking tour that included a bit of the history of SB with off the beaten track stops. Very well paced and easy walk. Manuel is an exceptional guide who has a talent for making things interesting. Food stops were interesting and a nice variety of establishments. Started with macaroon tasting and ended with wine tasting. In between there was Italian, Spanish, Mexican ice cream. Very enjoyable. read more

This is a walking tour. I am under a doctors care and it was not too hard for me. The stopping points were rather contrived and clearly a ploy to get your money to buy the food or service. Not a lot of background on Santa Barbara's culture and history. We were walked into the Courthouse rotunda. There were amazing motifs in the judges quarters and we did not get to learn more there either. She could have discussed each panel. When she says a Peter Pan figure is in one of the panels, she could eventually reveal where it is located for those like me that didn't see it. We sent a scant few minutes and the exited for more walking. She was a knowledgeable guide and if she had shared more through the walk it would have added some substance. For the kinds of fare we "tasted" and the level of information, it was not worth the cost. read more

Went on this tour with a friend in early April. I was impressed with the amount of face time our tour received from the management of the establishments we visited. The folks we talked to were outgoing and knowledgeable. The assortment of places the tour included came across as a very good range as well. We stopped in to a couple restaurants, one high-end & one simple, but both had tasty offerings. Also we explored a couple of small gourmet food shops and did a wine tasting as well. Add to this a sprinkling of local history and Santa Barbara Tasting Tours was really a fun and informative way to spend the afternoon. I would recommend it to all true foodies. read more

My sister-in-law and I recently took this tour, and it was absolutely wonderful! Our tour guide Bob is a real treasure -- knowledgeable, interesting and great company -- I doubt there is anything he doesn't know about Santa Barbara. We enjoyed all the stops we made, learning about a town I had been to many times but knew little about. We enjoyed meeting some of the proprietors and staff of the shops and restaurants we stopped at and hearing their stories, and we thoroughly loved sampling the food, pastries, olive oil, ice cream, pastrami and wine as we made our way through the tour. It was totally enjoyable, and we'd be happy to recommend it to our friends and family. Thanks again to Bob and to the Ventura Food Tours & Santa Barbara Tasting Tours for such a terrific experience. read more

Love the tour, history and our tour guide. We all wished we didn't start the tour with sweets (macarons) as we were all a little hungry since we didn't eat much of a breakfast - that was our bad :( Loved the fact that the restaurant owners presented to us and allowed us to ask questions. This tour allowed us the opportunity to find hidden gems in Santa Barbara that we probably would not have ever known about. Love the fact that we were given a discount if we purchased anything :) as we were celebrating a birthday, some of the owners were gracias and gave our birthday girl a little extra something, that was perfect and made her feel extra special, please thank them on our behalf. Rachel was an excellent tour guide, kept us on track and well informed, we loved her! Rachel gave us a great recommendation for dinner, please thank her on our behalf. This was the perfect girl's outing. Looking forward to going back to Santa Barbara with my husband. read more

I went with a group of gfs for a birthday celebration and I definitely recommend doing this food tour (especially if you never been to SB). Not only was all the food delicious, we also learned a lot about SB and its history. We also went to a couple cultural sites such as the court house. It was a great experience! read more

We truly enjoyed the Santa Bara Tasting Tour, our group of 5 had a great time and we got to taste some of the best restaurants that Santa Barbara has to offer; our tour guide was very knowledgeable about Santa Barbara and their main attractions as well as the cuisine. We are looking forward to do it again and maybe bring a larger group of friends and family members to truly enjoy this great activity in beautiful Santa Barbara. Highly recommend it and looking forward to do it again!!! read more

I reserved a private tasting tour in Santa Barbara for my Department team builder, and received nothing but rave reviews! Nina was an excellent tour guide, stopping at several historical places especially for my team, and giving us a "taste" at every stop of local history. And, the food! We had several people on our team who are Santa Barbara regulars (all having gone to UCSB), and there were many stops they had never heard of or been to. All were impressive! Everything was arranged perfectly and everyone on the team had an excellent time! Rave reviews all around! I couldn't imagine a more successful team outing. read more

Thoroughly enjoyed spending the afternoon with our guide, Nina. She was friendly and knowledgeable, and it was clear that the owners of the establishments had a great relationship with her. It was a wonderful way to get a little exercise, taste some terrific food, meet some lovely people, and learn a little history. I highly recommend it for visitors and locals alike. read more

What a fun afternoon! Rachel is the best! Great way to get introduced to the Santa Barbara food scene.

Owner Allison is incredibly accommodating. She is easy to contact via email, quick to respond, and incredibly knowledgeable about her tours. I have been on both the Ojai and Ventura tours and am looking forward to going on the SB tour next month. read more

I went on this tour last week and it was great! I have lived in Santa Barbara for a couple of years and had never experienced the restaurants that were on this tour. Also, I learned some new things about the history of Santa Barbara that I have never heard before. I would definately recommend it. read more

Rachel was fantastic. My family said it was the best part of the weekend! Thank you.

Going on a Santa Barbara Tasting Tour was a WONDERFUL way to spend the afternoon! It was a great opportunity to sample some of the fantastic restaurants that occupy Santa Barbara without having to sit down and have a whole meal. I found it super relaxing to stroll throughout the beautiful city for a few hours, learn interesting city history - things I never knew before. Thank you for such a delicious afternoon! read more

This was such a great way to see Santa Barbara. This tour had a little bit of everything, from wine to macaroons and pastrami to amazing local history. If you like great food, fun people and interesting information this is the tour for you. read more

We had the pleasure of experiencing the Funk Zone Tasting Tour in May 2016. This was an interesting, diverse, and fun tour with lots of tasty treats. Allison was the perfect tour guide - welcoming, warm, and knowledgeable. We had a great, delicious time. read more

Allison does a nice job with her tour. Went solo on the Santa Barbara one (she also offers Ojai and Ventura) and it was a fun experience. She's got a great, upbeat and friendly personality and there was none of that awkwardness that you can experience with a group thing like this. She added a bit of local history which was a nice touch, though that's not her main focus. The six food/wine places cover a nice range-- a bakery, a cheese shop, a sit down Italian restaurant, a winery, a deli, and a fancy chocolate place. While I wasn't hungry at the end, you won't be stuffed, and you can definitely expect to want to eat within a couple hours of the end of the tour unless you purchase separate items along the way, at the bakery, for example. I'd definitely try the other tours based on this experience. One minor note-- she gives the participants a sheet of paper with all the details of the stops along the tour. Would be outstanding if she also gave away even a rudimentary map of the area showing the stops. Most people taking the tour probably don't know the area and it would make it so much easier to go back and visit the places later in the day. read more