The weather cooperated with us giving us some beautiful spring days with comfortable tempatures throughout the week.  The rain that we did receive came at night and never interupted a day of activities. 

Our group arrived on Monday and we enjoyed a our get together dinner at our Newport, RI hotel.  Dinner was folliowed by a program orientation that included a description of the weeks activities.  

On Tuesday following breakfast we gathered for a short ride to Kingston, RI where we were met with Paul III & Paul Drum, SR., at their Kenyon Grist Mill operation.  Paul Sr., gave an excellent prestation on the milling of their white corn meal  and the history of the operation.  Paul III, met with the group where he talked about their commercial ventures at fairs and The Big E.  Dick Donnelly concluded our program with an excellent cooking demonstration on making Johnny Cakes or Journey Cakes in other parts of the country.  He also shared many of his wonderful Johnny Cake recipes that include coconut almond, chocolate and hot dogs in Johnny Cake batter. 

We then transported everyone to the Rhode Island Quahog Company restaurant where our group was treated to a delicious Rhode Island chowder (clear broth) and one of the best I ever had.  Our main course consisted of a very nice lobster and we finished this outstanding meal with a wonderful creme brulee. 

Our afternoon program took us to the Newport Vineyard where we met with Craig Corsetti who shared his expansive knowlede of grape growing and wine making.  He concluded our program with with a tasting that included five of their top wines.

On Wednesday we said good-bye to Rhode Island and made our journey north to Hamilton, MA where we made a stop at the Green Meadows Organic Farm.  Here we met with Dave & Dianne, the farm managers for the Patton family (decendents of George Patton) who own this marvelous farm.  We were treated to an excellent presentation on organic farming and CSA farming.  They served us a lunch that included their organic egss, chicken, produce and breads from a local organic bakery. 

We arrived in Maine under beautiful blue skies where we boarded the Finest Kind Lobster Boat for a cruise along the Ogunquit coast.  We pulled three traps, the first had zero lobsters but a bunch of hermit crabs, starfish and sea weed.  The second pot hit the mother load and we were able to get five keepers with the largest weighing about two pounds.  The mate gave an excellent talk on fishing, the lobsters and history of the industry. 

Our next day in Maine we started with a visit to the Portland Fish Exchange where we learned about Maine ground fishing and the aution and sale process of the boats fishing George’s Bank off the coast of Maine. We had a quick coffee stop at Borealis Bread who was our speaker the night before on at art of artisian bread making.  We concluded the day with a visit Wilbur’s Chocolate for a candy sampling and making demo.  What would a visit to Maine be without a traditional lobster dinner and Foster’s Lobster Bake in York did an awesome job serving us one of the best lobster dinners that I have had in a long time. 

We said good-bye to Maine the following day and traveled to Lee, NH where we made a stop at the Flag Hill Winery and Distillery.  Our presenter was one of the most energetic people we met all week.  What a detailed program on the art of making of vodka with local apples and wines from their 25 acre vineyard.  We continued to Vermont where we spend the next two evenings at the historic Brandon Inn. 

The Brandon Inn is listed on the National Historic Register and was built in the 1780’s.  The owner Chef Louis Pattis was trained in Europe and has operated the inn for over 15 years.  They are located in the center of town and offer outstanding dining and simple accommodations.  

While in Vermont we traveled to Neighborly Farms, an organic cheese farm where we where split into two groups.  The first part of the presentation was the art of cheese making both raw and pasturized colby style cheddars, feta and flavored cheddars.  The second part of the presentation included a visit to their barns and dairy where they milk 50 holstein cows that supply the milk for the cheese making operation.  The group enjoyed this visit due to the size of the operation and the philosophy on quality cheese.

Our afternoon visit took us to Cold Hollow Cider Mill where we were greeted by Bob who is one of the part time managers of the mill.  Cold Hollow Cider is the largest producer of cider in New England and they also make some of the best baked apple goods in their in store bakery.  Our group enjoy a sample of their gourmet spiced cider doughnuts which were rated by Gourmet Magazine as the best doughnut in New England.  A visit to Vermont would not be complete without a visit to a Sugarhouse to learn about maple sugaring. 

We traveled to Montpelier (Vermont’s State Capital) where we visited the Morse Sugar Farm.  The Morse Farm is an eighth generation farm who’s operation dates back to the early settlers in Vermont.  We enjoyed a presentation by Burr Morse who spoke about their operation and Vermont syrup.  We concluded our visit with a tradional sugar-on-snow, maple syrup heated to 234 degrees and then poured over ice where it forms into a delicious taffy type treat.  A sugar on snow would not be complete unlessed it was served with doughnuts (the unlevened kind) and pickles, yes pickles it cuts the sweetness. 

Our final night dinner is served in the Main Dining Room followed by entertainment in the living room presented by Brad Morgan a local musician. 

We now journey to the TF Green Airport in Rhode Island for a drop off of the group.  I will miss this group as they were wonderful to travel with and enjoyed all the components offered on this diverse program.

Until our next journey, have happy travels.

Our guests will be starting their week of culinary education with a visit to the Kenyon Grist Mill where they will be meet by the Drumm Family who will conduct a tour of the mill and then feature a cooking demonstration of white corn meal johnny cakes.  Our afternoon will include a wine tour and tasting at the Newport Vineyards and a Rhode Island Clambake.

We continue to Maine for a lobster pulling cruise, talk with fisherman on ground fishing, a visit to a potato vodka distillery and organic bread maker.

Our next destination takes us to the Green Mountains of Vermont.  In Vermont our group will have the opportunity to visit an organic cheese maker at Neighborly Farms.  This property has forty eight head of holstein cows and produce both raw and pasturized colby style cheddar cheeses. 

We visit the state capitol and the Morse Sugar Farm, an eight generation sugar producer who will treat the group to a traditional sugar-on-snow.  We complete our day with a visit to the Cold Hollow Cider for a in depth look at cider and cider product production.

This program is an unforgettable experince that explores coastal New England to the mountains of Vermont. 

San Gennaro Festival

Featuring

Guy Fieri – Food Network Star

Tony Danza – “Who’s The Boss” & “Taxi”

Francis Anthony “The Love Chef” 

&

Much More

Friday, September 18, 2009

Check in and arrival at the Turning Stone Resort in Verona, NY.  Upon check in you will receive a $10 meal credit and a $30 casino free play.  Enjoy dinner on your own and an evening of gaming at the resort.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Today we enjoy a resort wide Feast of San Gennaro Celebration.  San Gennaro The day will be filled with food and entertainment featuring a culinary demonstration with Guy Fieri on Saturday and Francis Anthony “The Love Chef” on Sunday.  Other entertainment includes the Pepperoni Brothers, the Jimmy Cavallo Band, La Banda Rossa and Saturday evening headliner TV Star, Tony Danza.   Your package today includes a $30 free play in the casino, $10 breakfast voucher and $30 in Food Coupons for the Festival. 

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Today the festival continues starting with “The Voice of New Italy” with Joe Putrelli and Joe Graziano, Italian Radio Show.  The highlight today includes a culinary demonstration with Francis Anthony, “The Love Chef”.  Your package today includes a $25 casino free play and breakfast voucher. 

Inclusions:

Two nights deluxe accommodations at the Turning Stone Resort Casino     Verona, NY

$85 in Casino Free Plays

$30 in Meal Vouchers

$30 in Festival Food Coupons

All entertainment and culinary demonstrations are available during your stay

Tax and service charges

Price Per Person

Single Occupancy                  $460.00

Double Occupancy                $265.00

Feast of San Gennaro Festival

Turning Stone Resort

September 18 – 20, 2009

Friday September 18, 2009

After 3:00 PM                Check in and registration

                                    Dinner on your own at one of the resort’s fine restaurants

Saturday September 19, 2009

                                    Breakfast on your own (Voucher Included)

                                    Food Festival ($30 in Coupons Included)

12:00 – 1:15 PM            Pepperoni Brothers (Performance Stage)

1:30 – 3:00 PM              Guy Fieri – Food Network Star (Main Stage)

3:00 – 5:15 PM              Franco Gallelli Band (Performance Stage)

5:45 – 8:00 PM              Jimmy Cavallo Band (Performance Stage)

8:00 – 9:30 PM              The Tony Danza Show (Main Stage)

Sunday September 20, 2009

                                    Breakfast on your own (Voucher Included)

                                    Food Festival  

10:00 AM – 12:00 PM     “The Voice of New Italy Radio Show”  with Joe Putrelli (Satellite Stage)

12:00 – 1:15 PM            Pepperoni Brothers (Performance Stage)

1:30 – 3:00 PM              Francis Anthony Culinary Show (Main Stage)

3:00 – 5:00 PM              LaBanda Rossa (Main Stage)

                                    Festival Ends

Our week is featuring foods that are made, grown and produced in Vermont.  The program features a component of ground to table foods. 

We started our day with a visit to the Lake Champlain Chocolate Company which produces fine truffles and other specialty chocolates and they are a part of the Vermont Fresh Network.  As a part of the network your company must buy and feature locally produced and grown products.  We sample many of their wonderful chocolates as part of the tour.

In the afternoon we had the pleasure to visit Dakin Farms (Vermont’s Tastiest Attraction) in Ferrishburg, VT. We were greeted by the owner Sam Cutting, Jr. who gave a talk on maple sugaring, cob smoking of cheese and meets and concluded with a guided tour of their shipping and packaging facility. 

Our day concluded with a pastry demonstration at The Essex where we participated in making orange zest crepes with a brandy chantilly cream.  

The evening meal featured a wonderful cider reduction pork loin and vegetable napolean. 

This is a typical day on a Vermont culinary tour with Creative Culinary Tours. 

August 16 – 20, 2009

Boston & Vermont

August 16, 2009

Individual arrivals at Logan International Airport in Boston.  Overnight accommodations will be provided in the Boston area.   Dinner is included at one of Boston’s top restaurants.  Meet with local tourism and culinary tourism professionals.  (D)

August 17, 2009

Today we travel to Boston’s Famed North End.  We start our day with a traditional Italian Pastry and coffee.  The secret of Italian cuisine is the high quality of ingredients, a sense of regional tradition, and that very Italian love of life. Sources for ingredients abound in the narrow streets of the North End. But for the outsider, finding the finest is not always easy. Join us on Michele Topor’s original award-winning North End Market Tour and let us unlock for you the secrets of the cuisine and of America’s oldest Italian neighborhood.  Discover the pasticcerias that offer the best biscotti, amaretti, sfogliatelle, cassata, taralli, cannoli and other confections.  Visit an authentic salumeria in search of the best olive oil, balsamic vinegar, olives, salami, cheese, prosciutto and pasta.  Savor the scents of a 70-year-old coffee and spice shop and an Old World candy store.  Learn and be inspired by how the Mediterranean diet has influenced peoples’ health since antiquity.  Tour an enoteca to learn how to select aperitivi to begin, wine to complement, and digestivi to conclude your meal. Enjoy the colorful sights, the tantalizing aromas and authentic tastes of America’s most vibrant Italian neighborhood.  Learn and be inspired by how the Mediterranean diet has influenced people’s health since antiquity. Understand how the Italians adapted their dishes to their new country and created the familiar Italian-American cuisine.  The North End Market Tour has been designed to reflect Michele Topor’s passion for all things Italian. Trained as a professional chef, Michele has taught cooking, catered, and consulted on Italian food since 1979. Michele’s cooking classes, market tours and culinary trips to Italy have been featured on television (including the Food Network, HGTV and CNN), on the radio, and in various national and international publications.  Following the tour we enjoy a delicious lunch in one of the North End’s top restaurants.   This afternoon we’ll enjoy a guided tour of the city followed by some free time to explore Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall.  Dinner is on your own this evening.  (B,L)

August 18, 2009

Today we board the coach for our journey to Vermont.  Our first stop takes us to southern Vermont where we enjoy a progressive dining experience that will feature three to four of the top restaurants and inn’s in the valley.  We will visit the Hermitage Inn, West Dover Inn, The Inn at Sawmill Farms and possibly two other venues before continuing to the Vermont Water Buffalo Company.  At the Vermont Water Buffalo Company you will learn about the production of their gourmet mozzarella and yogurt.

We continue to The Essex, Vermont’s Four Diamond Culinary Resort and Spa.  This evening we will enjoy a delicious gourmet cooking demonstration dinner.  (L,D) 

August 19, 2009

After a hearty breakfast, we board the coach for a day of touring some of Vermont’s best culinary attractions.  Our first stop today takes us to the Morse Sugar Farm where we meet with Burr Morse.  We will learn about maple syrup production followed by a traditional sugar-on-snow.   Next we travel to the Cold Hollow Cider Mill where we learn about the production of their wonderful apple cider and sample some award winning cider doughnuts.  We will give you free time for lunch on your own in the charming village of Stowe.  This afternoon we visit the Cabot Cheese & Lake Champlain Chocolate Annex and conclude our day with a tour of the Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Factory.  A farewell dinner is served at the inn followed by a bon fire and smore’s roast.  (B,D)

August 20, 2009

After breakfast, transportation will be provided to the Burlington International Airport and Logan International Airport in Boston.  (B)

Inclusions: 

Two nights Boston area hotel

Two nights at The Essex, Vermont’s Culinary Resort & Spa

Three dinners

Three breakfasts

Two lunches

Guided tour of Boston

Culinary tour of Boston’s North End

Progressive lunch tour of Dover, VT

Visit the Vermont Water Buffalo

Visit Morse Sugar Farm

Visit Cold Hollow Cider Mill

Visit Cabot Cheese and Lake Champlain Chocolate Annex

Visit Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream

Fully escorted by culinary tourism experts

Deluxe motorcoach transportation

Estimated Cost for Qualified Journalists:  $675.00

Estimated Cost for Culinary Travel Professionals: $675.00

By JAMES ASKEW

Do you want to know what’s hot when it comes to vacation travel? How about a sautéed salmon? Or, a lobster bisque? Or maybe, a pumpkin ravioli would better suit your palate?

Food — that’s what’s hot. And not just what’s on the menu but who, exactly, is doing the cooking. No more waiting to be served, napkin in hand. Travelers are now looking to dig in, get their hands dirty, maybe even learn a little something while away from home.

Through the growing popularity of the Food Network and a whole stew of culinary programs, this one-time side dish of a great vacation has been elevated to the main course.

Just ask Chris Donnelly, owner of Creative Culinary Tours and Sugar Tours based in West Dover. In the last six years, Donnelly has witnessed, firsthand, the sizzling sensation of culinary travel, and he has the burns to prove it.

“Culinary travel is hot,” declares Donnelly.

Donnelly, who has a background in the food service industry, has been part of the group travel industry for more than 20 years. For the past 11, Donnelly has been a wholesale tour provider for tour operators and organizations like Elderhostel out of Boston.

Elderhostel provides educational travel experiences for travelers 55 and over and Donnelly had started out providing American history tours of the region: the Battle of Bennington, Fort Ticonderoga, etc. That is, at least, until his pot of good ideas one day boiled over.

Back in 2002, Donnelly offered a tour package to Elderhostel called “Vermont: A Week of Fine Foods.” The concept was to spend a couple days in the Brandon area, visiting places like King Arthur Flour in Norwich and local cheese makers, attending a cooking class provided by a local chef and , of course, enjoying some of the best fine foods.

“Being on the farm that makes the cheese, then eating it in a meal that evening; that’s what we consider culinary travel,” says Donnelly.

And, from that nascent idea, Donnelly saw a business ripen to perfection. Once employing only himself and one office worker, Donnelly’s business has expanded to include five to six program operators and four people in the office. Between his two businesses, Creative Culinary Tours, the retail side, and Sugar Tours, still operating as a wholesale tour provider, Donnelly says he has more than 1,000 culinary travel clients per year.

That first tour, “Vermont: A Week of Fine Foods,” sold out three times the following year, then five the next, followed by 10 the year after. Now, says Donnelly, they’re planning for 2009 with all tours sold out with a waiting list. Donnelly has also added a number of other tours to his menu, either through Elderhostel or on his own, including “Lobster, Wineries and Foods of New England,” which tours Rhode Island, Maine and Vermont, as well as “A Culinary Adventure of Three Great Cities,” sampling the best foods of Philadelphia, New York and Boston, all in seven days.

Visit Creative Culinary Tours online at www.creativeculinarytours.com. The e-mail address is vttours@sover.net, and the phone number is 888.889.8681. Elderhostel’s Web site is www.elderhostel.org and its phone number is 800.454.5768.

Some other Vermont culinary opportunities

Deborah Kransner’s Vermont Culinary Vacations — Putney, 802.387.6610, www.culinaryvermont.com. A number of four-day package holidays are offered through the year, each focusing on different culinary theme, with an award-winning cookbook author.

New England Culinary Institute — Essex, 802.878.1100, www.vtculinaryresort.com. NECI offers single-session cooking classes as well as a two-day, one-night “Chef Inn Training” getaway package at one the nation’s finest culinary schools.

Rabbit Hill Inn — Lower Waterford, 802.748.5168, www.rabbithillinn.com. The inn offers a three-day, two-night, Sunday-to-Tuesday getaway featuring a Sunday evening wine pairing and three-hour cooking course on Monday.

The Inn on Park Street — Brandon, 800.394.7239, www.theinnonparkstreet.com. Full weekend sessions are available throughout the year, with a Friday-night arrival and three to four hours with the chef, chipping in or simply sipping wine and watching.

Inn at Baldwin Creek — Bristol, 888.424.2432, www.innatbaldwincreek.com. Single-day cooking classes are offered throughout the year. The inn doesn’t offer a package , but accommodation is available.

Kids Culinary Camp of Vermont — Highgate Center, 802.868.3030, www.kidculinary.com. Yes, that’s right, a cooking camp for kids. It offers one- and two-week summer sessions and now offers eight, one-week homeschooling sessions through the winter.

I came; I saw; I tasted water buffalo mozzarella cheese in Vermont and it was delicious.  You may ask: what are South-East Asian animals doing in New England?  My answer: living on a dairy farm, producing quality Italian-style mozzarella cheese, and helping to promote sustainable agriculture in Vermont.  While that may seem like a tall order for creatures thousands of miles from their native land, water buffalo at Vermont Buffalo in South Woodstock, Vermont seem to get the easy end of the deal when compared to the humans who have to run the economic end of the business (hooves are poor tools for crunching numbers on calculators).  “The girls,” as farm owner David Muller calls them, live in climate-controlled barns, and when they aren’t socializing and being milked in the farm’s 5×5 tandem milking parlor, they are free to serenely graze, grunt, and dream of being lost in the dark chocolate eyes of male buffalo. 

Water buffalo were first brought to Vermont for their thick, creamy milk which is high in fat and rich in flavor.  The Vermont Water Buffalo Company uses buffalo milk to create an assortment of cheese and yogurt products free from preservatives and artificial thickeners.  The company’s cheese makers are Italian-trained Vermont artisans.  Let’s recap: what do you get when you mix south-Asian animals, Italian techniques, and Vermonters?  Cheese that pleases everybody.

 The Vermont Water Buffalo Company also promotes sustainable land usage and agricultural conservation and encourages others to do the same by starting up their own water buffalo dairy-farms. (The company also hosts an annual meeting of the American Water Buffalo Association which provides a forum to discuss the raising, breeding, and marketing of water buffaloes.)   While cows typically only produce milk for three or four years, water buffalo yield milk for twelve to fourteen.  So while cow-print patterns may currently cover everything from milk cartons to notebooks, the wooly faces of water buffalo are slowly rising in fame and may soon claim prominence on cheese packages.  With prices for cows’ milk steadily decreasing, raising water buffalo for high-end dairy products is a way to keep Vermont’s economy alive and eco-friendly, and this new form of sustainable agriculture has attracted the attention of cheese connoisseurs across the nation.   

Although water buffalo are warm-weather creatures, they quickly adapted to the cushy conditions at the Vermont Dairy.  In the winter, the climate-controlled barn offers a heated escape from harsh VT snowstorms that can turn water buffalo into yetis; in the summer, misters in the barn’s ceiling release puffs of cooling water to refresh and revive the buffalo to keep them from melting under the weight of their shaggy brunette locks.  In addition, each stall contains a climate-controlled “water bed” – also heated in the winter and cooled in the summer – which provides the domesticated, water-loving buffalo with a sense of their natural habitat (note the “water” part of the name “water buffalo”).

  Despite the fact that other organic Vermont creations such as Otter Creek beer, Vermont cheddar cheese (it’s white!), New England coffee, maple syrup, and Lake Champlain chocolates all compete for grocery shelf space, the Vermont Water Buffalo Co. has carved out its own sliver of the market due to one simple fact: gourmet taste.  And they don’t just offer mozzarella and ricotta cheese; they also produce a variety of yogurt flavors including honey, maple, cappuccino, black currant, blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, vanilla, and chai.  My job in culinary tourism means that I get to mix-and-match samples like these while knowing that I’m supporting local artisan producers and the advancement of sustainable agriculture.  Nothing could be better, except for maybe installing climate-controlled waterbeds on the tour busses . . .

Chris Donnelly, is the owner of Creative Culinary Tours.  With the rise of culinary travel in the United States it was time to create a company that totally focuses on culinary travel.  With more and more Americans planning travel around food and the popularity of the Food Network and other cable cooking and food related travel it was the perfect time. 

A first-of-its-kind national survey on the popular culinary travel niche market shows that 27 million travelers, or 17% of American leisure travelers, engaged in culinary or wine-related activities while traveling within the past three years, based on a new report from the Travel Industry Association (TIA), in partnership with Gourmet and the International Culinary Tourism Association.  Another study shows, these travelers are younger, more affluent and better educated than non-culinary travelers. They are clearly motivated by unique experiences, reinforcing the benefits of focusing on a destination’s individual environmental and cultural elements. The survey was conducted by Edge Research among a representative sample of 2,364 U.S. leisure traveler respondents.

The backbone of Chris’s culinary experience comes from working in many fine restaurants throughout the East Coast.  The majority of his training came from working  at Cinelli’s Country House in Cherry Hill, NJ.  This is where Chris perfected the art of tableside and fine dining.  Chris also worked many years at the Hermitage Inn, a Wine Spectator Gold Award Winning restaurant.   Here he was able to learn about fine wines from around the world through the knowledge of James McGovern, owner and proprietor. 

Chris began planning educational programs for Elderhostel (Adult Ongoing Education) over eight years ago offering programs featuring Revolutionary War History.  In 2003, he was looking for some new programs and came up with a program entitled Vermont: A Week of Fine Foods.  This was the start of culinary programs for Sugar Tours.  In 2005 we started another culinary related program entitled Lobsters, Wineries and Fine Foods.  The first year we offered two programs and now offer six which are always completely sold out.   For the tour market he is offering similar programs to his educational programs but he has deleted a small portion of the educational factor.  

My idea of a culinary tour is not just a visit to a culinary school for a meal or a winery for a wine tasting; it’s more about a total experience.  If you visit a Rhode Island winery you don’t just do a tour and tasting, add a traditional Rhode Island clambake along with the tasting.  In the evening try working with state gourmet food associations to bring in speakers for an evening program.  Chris has also established working relationships with many off the beaten path food producers where he is able to visit for programs including a water buffalo dairy, an organic cheese maker and other boutique wineries in New England.   His belief is that this is the trend for the baby boomer market and the new trend should be entitled Agri-culinary tourism.  He considers his programs a cruise on wheels. 

Creative Culinary Tours is now offering programs throughout New England including a six night culinary adventure, Country Inn Cooking Weekends featuring different cuisines, as well as selling the Celebrity Chef Weekends at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville.   Programs are now also available in Boston, New York and Philadelphia.  It takes time to be creative!!

Chris is actively involved in many different travel associations and has been a featured speaker on culinary travel at the Boston Globe Travel Marketplace, Taste for Travel, New England Harvest Meeting, Massachusett’s Governors Conference on Travel and Tourism and has spoken at the International Culinary Tourism Association Symposium in Sturbridge, MA.   

Chris Donnelly

Creative Culinary Tours

888-889-8681

Our plan is to develop this three night package and offer it starting in the fall of 2009. 

If interested in this type of excluisve small group tour give us a shout at Creative Culinary Tours. 

Each city offers many different culinary activities.  Philadelphia of course is famous for cheese steaks and hoagies but also offers one of the oldest Chinese communities in the United States.  While in Philadelphia we work with Celebrity Chef Joe Poon who takes us on a guided culinary adventure of Chinatown.  We also enjoy a visit to the historic Reading Terminal where you can sample some of the other famous foods of Philadlephia that include scrapple, pepper pot and snapper soups, peanut nuggets and more. 

On our visit to NYC we explore the Chelsea Market, Home of the Food Network, enjoy ethnic cuisine of the lower east side and some of the best chocolate in the US with our visit to SoHo.

In Boston learn the history of the North End as you enjoy a guided tour of this Italian neighborhood and sample many of their fine foods.  Boston is also famous for chowder, Necco Wafers, Boston Cream Pie and of course beer. 

We love food and these great cities sure have allot to offer.