San Francisco: Chinatown & Litte Italy Food Tour with 5 Dishes
Description
On our Secret Food Tour: San Francisco - North Beach and Chinatown, you’ll experience the most iconic parts of “The City by the Bay.” Our experienced guides will take you on a delicious journey through the Gold Rush days of the Barbary Coast. While most tour companies only focus on one neighborhood over the other, we dive deep into both to offer you a taste of the best of both worlds. On your journey, you’ll bite into pizza with a surprise topping straight from the Pacific bay! You will explore West Coast coffee culture and find yourself wanting more of our secret bite! You’ll also discover the inner workings of our world famous cable cars, investigate the naughty red light district, uncover where the “The Godfather” was written and conceived, and wander through the alleys where the original miner 49’ers cashed in their sacks of new found gold. All in one afternoon!
Tour Options
Itinerary
The Cable Car Museum is a free museum in the Nob Hill neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Located at 1201 Mason Street, it contains historical and explanatory exhibits on the San Francisco cable car system, which can itself be regarded as a working museum.
North Beach, a buzzy neighborhood steeped in Italian heritage, draws locals and tourists to its checked-tablecloth trattorias, coffee shops and retro-flavored bars. The spirit of the Beat Generation can be felt at the storied City Lights bookstore and the memorabilia-filled Vesuvio Cafe bar. In Telegraph Hill the Filbert Steps offer a scenic hike to the iconic Coit Tower, with WPA-era murals and panoramic views.
San Francisco's Little Italy, is the city’s bohemian heart. Settled by Italian immigrants, it’s the birthplace of Cioppino and a pioneer of U.S. espresso culture. Beyond food, it gained global fame as the 1950s epicenter of the Beat Generation at City Lights Bookstore. Today, it’s a hub of "California-Italian" fusion, where legacy bakeries and sidewalk cafes preserve an Old World charm against a backdrop of literary history and iconic views of Washington Square Park.
Chinatown is North America’s oldest Chinese enclave and the historic heart of San Francisco. Founded in the 1850s, it’s a symbol of resilience that survived the 1906 quake and discriminatory laws. It revolutionized SF's food culture by introducing dim sum, the fortune cookie, and vibrant wet markets to the West. Today, it remains a dense, bustling hub where pagoda architecture, hidden alleyways, and legacy eateries blend immigrant traditions with modern Cantonese fine dining.
Coit Tower is a 210-foot tower in the Telegraph Hill neighborhood of San Francisco, California, offering panoramic views over the city and the bay. The tower, in the city's Pioneer Park, was built between 1932 and 1933 using Lillie Hitchcock Coit's bequest to beautify the city of San Francisco.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Please note: the itinerary and menu is subject to change, based on the locations' availability, weather, and other circumstances.
- Please ensure to contact us in advance of the tour for any dietary requirement, to ensure we can cater for them the best we can.
- This tour involves a fair amount of walking; comfortable shoes are recommended.
Reviews(168)
Went on this tour with my teen daughter and absolutely loved the entire experience. We had a small group and the best tour director, Mark. He is a 4th generation San Franciscan and a chef. His passion for his city and food was evident in his fabulous storytelling ability. I strongly recommend this tour.
A few hours around the city can open up a whole different side of it. We’re glad you chose to spend those hours with Secret Food Tours. Thanks for being part of the journey!
Excellent! Informative and entertaining!
Thank you for choosing Secret Food Tours! We hope the experience gave you an enjoyable introduction to the city and its local food scene. We were pleased to have you with us.
Fantastic tour with Zachary! Entire group of four thought it was the best activity we did all week.
We’re glad the day gave you something to enjoy. There’s always more to discover once you get beyond the main sights, and we hope Secret Food Tours helped you find some of it. Thanks for joining us!
My cousin and I really enjoyed the Chinatown and Little Italy Food Tour. Our guide, Jamie, was great and very informative. In addition to tasting delicious food, we walked our 10,000 steps for the day!
Thank you for being our guest! It's always rewarding to know Secret Food Tours became part of a visit that you'll remember positively. We look forward to seeing you again.
The tour with Zachary was a fun experience. We were able to see parts of Chinatown that I had not seen before
Discovering new corners of a neighborhood you already know is one of our favorite things to hear! We're glad Zachary made that happen on this San Francisco tour. We hope you'll join Secret Food Tours again on a future trip.
Zachary was quite knowledgeable about the area and the places we had tastings from. This was our 3rd food tour and we highly recommend recommend all of them! We like going outside the touristy venues as Zachary did not disappoint!
Thank you for being with us! We truly appreciated the opportunity to share the day with you and are so pleased you enjoyed it. We'd be happy to welcome you back to Secret Food Tours.
Great afternoon of learning history and local tales with delicious snacks! Cable car museum was a great addition.
It was wonderful having you with us. We're pleased to know the tour became one of the highlights of your time in the city and appreciate you sharing that with us. We look forward to welcoming you back to Secret Food Tours!
We had a really great time on this food tour! Our tour guide Jamie was so nice and made the experience even better. The food was really good, and I liked all the places we stopped at. It was not only a fun way to explore San Francisco, but also very educational. We learned a lot about the city’s history and the neighborhoods we visited. We also got to try places we probably wouldn’t have gone to on our own. I definitely recommend this tour!
We're grateful you chose to join us! It's wonderful to know the tour became such an enjoyable part of your time in the city, and we're glad you took a moment to let us know. We'd love to welcome you back to Secret Food Tours.
Amazing guide! Great energy! Amazing facts, knowledge and food! Great solo, great with friends. Do not skip this tour!!
Thank you for sharing your kind words. It’s always rewarding to hear from guests after their tour. We look forward to welcoming you back to Secret Food Tours!
This tour was great! Some hills, but mostly flat! Our guide, "D", was so nice, knowledgeable of the historical spots we walked past/through! The food choices were great! We were all full at the end! Try the Purple Rice smoothie! Tasty...
We always enjoy hearing what guests take away from their experience. It's great to know yours left you with so many positive memories. We hope you'll join Secret Food Tours again soon!
