New Orleans is the only American city where the local cuisine is its own distinct tradition, not a regional variant of something else. 20 bookable food tours below — plus the neighbourhoods and dishes the city is built around.
Top picks
What we’d book first
Editorial picks · live inventory
Disclosure When you click Book on Viator, we may earn a commission if you complete a booking. Picks are editorial, not by commission rate. Tour details come from Viator’s feed, which we check for changes every 20 minutes; each listing shows Viator’s most recent revision. Confirm the current price and availability on Viator before booking.
The guide
New Orleans is the only American city where the local cuisine is its own distinct tradition, not a regional variant of something else. Creole and Cajun cooking emerged from a four-century mix of French, West African, Spanish, German, Italian, and Choctaw kitchens, and the result is a vocabulary of dishes that exists nowhere else: gumbo, jambalaya, étouffée, the muffuletta, the po-boy, beignets at 3am. The city eats at restaurants more than American cities its size, partly because there's a deep tradition of it and partly because Sunday brunch with a brass band is genuinely worth dressing for. The high end is haute Creole at Commander's Palace; the low end is the corner shop where the man behind the counter knows exactly how much hot sauce you take. Both are equally serious.
Where to focus
Four neighbourhoods to anchor a few days of eating
French Quarter
The original colonial grid. Café du Monde at the river end for beignets at any hour, antique oyster bars on Bourbon's edges, Creole institutions that have been there since the 1840s. Tourist-dense but the food survives.
Garden District & Uptown
St. Charles Avenue and the streetcar that runs along it. Commander's Palace anchors the centre; smaller bistros and corner po-boy shops fill in. The neighbourhood Sunday brunch is a New Orleans institution.
Marigny & Bywater
Downriver from the Quarter, less polished, more local. Small-plate restaurants, vinyl bars, the city's best new openings of the last decade. Frenchmen Street for jazz with a plate.
Tremé & Mid-City
Historically Black neighbourhoods with the city's deepest soul-food and gumbo traditions. The old Creole counters, the boulevards lined with snowball stands in summer, the brass bands rehearsing in the park.
What to eat
The dishes the city is known for
- 01
Gumbo
· A roux-based stew of seafood or chicken-and-andouille with okra or filé powder, served over rice. The single most important dish in the city. Every restaurant's version is judged against everyone's grandmother's. - 02
Po-boy
· Fried shrimp, oysters, or roast beef on a soft New Orleans baguette. 'Dressed' means lettuce, tomato, pickles, mayo. The lunch sandwich of the city; six dollars at the corner shop. - 03
Jambalaya
· Rice cooked with stock, the trinity (onion, celery, bell pepper), and any combination of shrimp, sausage, chicken, ham. The Creole version is red with tomato; the Cajun version isn't. - 04
Beignets
· Square fried dough dusted with a powdered-sugar avalanche. Eaten with chicory coffee, traditionally at Café du Monde in the French Quarter, open since 1862 and still running with the same menu. - 05
Muffuletta
· A round Sicilian-American sandwich with mortadella, salami, ham, provolone, and olive salad, on a sesame loaf. Invented in the Quarter at the start of the 1900s. Order a quarter unless you're starving. - 06
Crawfish boil
· Spring tradition. Crawfish, corn, potatoes, sausage, all boiled in a heavily-spiced pot, dumped on newspaper, eaten with hands and beer. Season is roughly January through June.
Practical notes
Meal timing, tipping, payment
Lunch noon to 2:30, dinner 6:00 to 10:00. Reservations through Resy or OpenTable for Commander's Palace and the other haute spots, weeks ahead for Saturday-night seatings. Sunday brunch is the brunch; book it. Tipping in the US is 18–20%, more for the brunch jazz brass band. Mardi Gras (late winter) and Jazz Fest (late April) raise prices and queues citywide; book lodging and tables months ahead.
All 20 food tours
Viator last revised 2026-11-09The full list · sponsored partner links
- 01
Seven Three Distilling Tour and Tasting
Our North Claiborne Avenue distillery reflects our love of New Orleans and commitment to making spirits with a sense of place. We have a lot of fun here and we’d love to welcome you for a tour and spirits tasting. The di
0.8h - 02
Hands-on Cajun Roux Cooking Class in New Orleans
The Mardi Gras School of Cooking does small, intimate hands-on classes in the French Quarter. Classes are more like a dinner party with friends. Feel welcomed into our kitchens by the Chefs themselves. From the moment yo
3h from $164 - 03
New Orleans Hands-On Cooking Class with Meal
Learn how to cook an authentic Louisiana meal in this 3-Hour New Orleans cooking class. An expert chef will guide you and a group of, at most, 10 people through various recipes. Wine and beer are included in the price, a
3h from $168 - 04
New Orleans Cocktail History Walking Tour in the French Quarter
Savor tasty cocktails in the French Quarter of New Orleans on a walking tour with an expert local guide. Visit hidden gems enjoyed by locals for centuries, learning from your fun and knowledgeable guide about the histori
3h - 05
New Orleans Sweet Treats Food Tour: Beignets, Donuts, & Much More
Recently voted one of TripAdvisor's top food tours in the US. Most people are familiar with Bourbon Street and the French Quarter, but many people don’t know Magazine Street, where our tour takes place and has a rich h
2h - 06
New Orleans Cocktail and Food History Tour
Combining the history of Louisiana cuisine and New Orleans-style cocktails, this event is a feast for the senses! Along with your guide you will visit up 6 locations: award-winning seafood restaurants, James Beard-nomi
4h - 07
New Orleans Food and History Walking Tour
This New Orleans food tour has every culinary taste covered. With a history-savvy guide leading the way, you’ll walk from classic Creole restaurants and neighborhood sandwich shops to hot sauce bars and artisanal candy s
3h - 08
Magazine St Foodie Tour: 9 guests or less
SEMI-PRIVATE - Just 9 People or Less! Indulge in an unforgettable adventure that goes beyond the ordinary! Get out of the French Quarter and join us in Uptown to experience where -- and what -- locals eat in New Orleans
3h from $149 - 09
Hands-on Cajun Traditions Cooking Class
The Mardi Gras School of Cooking does small, intimate hands-on classes in the French Quarter. Classes are more like a dinner party with friends. Feel welcomed into our kitchens by the Chefs themselves. From the moment yo
3h from $164 - 10
French Quarter Food Tour: 5 Classic Bites and NOLA Stories
Dig into the rich and varied flavors that make New Orleans one of the USA’s top foodie destinations. From the most famous local haunts to some delectable hidden gems, you’ll leave with not only a full stomach and a smile
2.5h - 11
New Orleans True Crime and Coffee Walking Tour: Adults Only
Do you like to start your mornings with murder and mayhem? Do you prefer to walk with the dead at the crack of dawn? As the old saying goes... The early bird gets the worm-infested corpse. Are you ready to experience ou
1.8h from $42 - 12
New Orleans Culinary Bike Tour
Biking, talking and eating. It's what we love and what we do. If our company ceased to exist, you would find us still biking, talking, and eating, without missing a beat. We are lucky to be in a place where that is a fu
3h from $108 - 13
French Quarter Walking Food Tour: Famous Flavors of New Orleans
Best in the French Quarter! Celebrating 15 Years! Most economical, Family and Veteran Owned. The oldest Food Tour in New Orleans, 5000 plus 5 star reviews ! Simply the Best Food Tour in New Orleans! We have your table re
3h from $80 - 14
New Orleans Demonstration Cooking Class with Meal
Take an entertaining and informative cooking class at the New Orleans School of Cooking! Located in a renovated molasses warehouse built in the early 1800s, this cooking class brings you to the heart of New Orleans’ Fren
2h - 15
Private Airboat Ride and Plantations Tour with Gourmet Lunch from New Orleans
A grand mélange of Cajun and Creole cultures for private groups of up to 12, starting with a private airboat tour of the cypress swamps. Visit Laura, a Creole Plantation and explore her historic slave quarters surrounded
9h from $1395 - 16
Haunted French Quarter Original Cocktail Tour
Experience the heart of New Orleans booming cocktail scene like an insider by visiting the top historical bars in the French Quarter. New Orleans is a true cocktail town, both for classic and cutting-edge libations, and
2h from $44 - 17
Pub Crawl: New Orleans Cocktail and Ghost Tour
I've served more pub crawls, by far, than any guide in New Orleans. This provides me preferential, or exclusive, access to select venues that will help aid the tour's narrative and propel our exploration of New Orleans'
2h from $30 - 18
French Quarter Food Tour
On our 3 hour walking food tour of New Orleans French Quarter, you will savor delicious foods from 5 restaurants, mom-and-pop shops and bakeries. In addition to all the delectable food, your guide will discuss the histor
3h from $89 - 19
Ghost Tour and Haunted Pub Crawl Party with Free Shot
Join the ultimate Ghost Tour & Haunted Pub Crawl Party—chilling tales, real haunted bars, and free shots! Drink, scream, and laugh your way through New Orleans’ spooky, boozy nightlife adventure! Itinerary: Meet and Mi
2h - 20
New Orleans Food Walking Tour of the French Quarter with Small-Group Option
Fall head over heels for the French Quarter, one delicious bite at a time! What pops your cork more than gumbo, oysters, and 300 years of history? This half day food tour -where flavor meets legacy and how we roll in New
3h
Frequently asked
- How much do food tours in New Orleans cost?
- Roughly $30–$1395 per person, with the median around $108.
- When should I book?
- One to two weeks ahead in peak season; same-day is sometimes possible off-peak but limits choice.