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Taste Your Way Through Downtown Delray with Craft Food Tours

March 28, 2017 By takeabiteoutofboca Leave a Comment

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Disclosure: I was invited to take the tour as a guest of Craft Food Tours. No monetary compensation has been received for this post. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.

Craft Food Tours started in 2016, when two guys with an extreme passion for food and travel brought their culinary experiences from all over the world back home with them to Delray Beach. After attending multiple food tours in various cities and countries, Matt Guidice and Anthony Guzman decided this was what they wanted to do in their own backyard. While there are a lot of culinary tour options available all over South Florida, what makes Craft Food Tours different is their dedication to supporting locally owned and small businesses, especially those with the “crafted” lifestyle of locally sourced ingredients and unique flavors and menu choices. You also can tell just how much these guys enjoy what they’re doing. Smiles never leave their faces, and they have really devoted their time to develop real, meaningful relationships with the restaurants they work with. This was evident in just how wonderfully we were treated upon arrival, and how much fun we had at each spot.

A food tour is a really cool way to explore a city while you’re on vacation, or even if you’re a local who just moved to town or want to find new places to eat and drink. Craft Food Tours run every Saturday and Sunday from 11am until around 2pm. The cost is $65 per person (children 12 and under are $50), and I promise you will get your money’s worth. One piece of advice — come hungry! (Note: some tasting options may vary tour to tour.)

The tour starts at one of my favorite restaurants in the Pineapple Grove area, El Camino. After a little history lesson on the design and structure of the place, we sat down to try their new Passion Fruit Margarita paired with chips, salsa, and a veggie quesadilla with swiss chard, herbed mushrooms, queso blanco and ranchero sauce. Hands down, this is the best quesadilla I have ever had. I loved the crunch of the thin, crispy corn tortilla and it was stuffed with so much veggie deliciousness that I had to practically tie my hands down to keep from eating a second piece. After all, there were five more stops on the tour. I’m already dreaming about my next trip back to chow down on an entire order of these babies.

Now let’s discuss the margarita. Passion fruit is a complex flavor — it’s sweet, but not cloyingly so. It’s also tangy and has a super smooth mouthfeel. The drink is made with firewater bitters to lend a bit of spiciness to offset the sweet and sour. This cocktail knocks it out of the park, hits all the bases, and wins the entire game. It’s pretty easy on the eyes too. Right now, you can get the Passion Fruit Margarita for only $5 during El Camino’s happy hour every day from 4-7pm. (And for the night owls, late night happy hour is every day from 12-2am.)

Next stop on the tour was Eat Market, Delray Beach’s answer to fresh, locally sourced deli eats. They have everything from gourmet snacks to prepared salads and sandwiches, juices, desserts and even a large selection of wine. They also cater and are well known for their beautiful displays of food. We tasted a few different items — a beet and goat cheese appetizer and a vegetarian version of their Californication sandwich which is made with pan roasted turkey, Nueske’s bacon, micro greens, tomato, red onion, avocado and spicy mayo — so we had all of that, minus the turkey and bacon, with a little bit of melted cheese added.

Both were good, but the best bite? Deep fried brownies. This dessert is not normally offered on the tour, but the chef was feeling generous that day and surprised us with quite the treat. I’m picky about my sweets lately, since I have to limit them, but a couple bites of that rich, chocolately, fudgy brownie coated in a thin layer of crispy batter was well worth it.

At this point, our full bellies told us it was time for a bit of a break to digest. We strolled down Atlantic Avenue, stopped at The Colony Hotel for a little educational pitstop, and then made our way over to The Original Popcorn House. This family-owned-and-operated store houses over 20 rotating flavors of popcorn, inspired by the famous Garrett Popcorn in Chicago. We watched the popcorn pop (they use coconut oil in the process) and tasted a few of their sweet and savory options — honey Sriracha was my favorite.

After a few bites of popcorn, it was time for another drink. Off to Beer Trade Co., we went! This is the local-est of local spots in downtown Delray. It’s a bit hidden off the Avenue, has an incredible variety of beer and ciders, a super chill-and-laid-back atmosphere and a kitchen pumping out small plates that definitely beat your average bar food. We tried their signature risotto balls — crispy bites of parmesan and rice stuffed with fresh mozzarella and served with roasted pepper aioli.

I mentioned to Anthony, the resident beer snob of the Craft Food Tour duo, that I liked sour beers, so he picked out a couple for me to try. After some taste-testing, the verdict was in — we all agreed that Smuttynose Brewing Company’s Blackberry Sour was a winner! It’s fruit-forward and light — great for beach or poolside drinking. For a girl who doesn’t really like too many beers, I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed it. The thing about sours is that they have a lot of the same characteristics as champagne or prosecco, so I guess that explains it!

Did you think we were done? Not yet — two more restaurants to go! Nancy and I were most excited about the next stop, as neither of us had been there before. The New Vegan is another family-owned establishment that is off the beaten path. Their vegan owners live by the motto, You don’t have to be Vegan to eat Vegan. Their food totally proves this to be true. To ensure we got a good taste of everything, owner/operator Patricia, served us their Sampler Wraps, a platter with their palm toona (“tuna salad” made with hearts of palm, sweet peppers, fennel, almonds and celery), curry plantain (sweet ripe plantains, sun dried tomatoes and seaweed) hummus, rice and salad topped with pistachio cream dressing. She also brought out their broccoli cous cous, chopped broccoli with mixed nuts, raisins, tomatoes, cilantro and lemon juice. While I thoroughly enjoyed everything, the broccoli cous cous was my favorite. After some of the heavier items we had tried earlier, it felt good to be putting something light, fresh and healthy into my body. I’m anxious to go back to The New Vegan to try more of their food.

The next and final stop was Banyan, a new restaurant in Pineapple Grove that’s been about for a few months. Nancy and I hadn’t been here yet either and were eager to check it out. The decor is beautiful, with a black and white hand-stenciled pattern on the wall and a bar back that lights up and changes color. Banyan serves cocktail slushies, rotating daily, and today’s was the Peach Bourbon Iced Tea. I’m not a bourbon girl, but the sweetness from the peach helped to mask its strong flavor and made for a really well-balanced and refreshing drink. Banyan’s chef hails from Maryland, so it’s only fitting that he serve us their crab cake. It was really nice to see a crab cake with all crab meat and zero filler — as they always should be — but unfortunately, I found it to be quite lacking in seasoning. But hey, the place is new and still working out the kinks. I’ll be back for another try, and they better have those Peach Bourbon Ice Tea slushies again!

All in all, Nancy and I really enjoyed our Saturday afternoon with Craft Food Tours. I’d highly recommend it for visitors and locals. On Sundays, the tour swaps out The New Vegan for local hotspot, Dada, where you’ll get a taste of their signature bacon-wrapped dates and receive discounts on their just-as-famous mojitos. BIG shout out to Matt and Anthony for giving us a private tour of the town. If you decide to give it a go, make sure to let them know where you heard about it!

For more information about Craft Food Tours, click here and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

#DiscoverDelicious with West Palm Beach Food Tours

August 9, 2016 By takeabiteoutofboca 1 Comment

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Disclosure: I was invited to attend the West Palm Beach Food Tour as a guest of the company. No monetary compensation has been received for this post. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.

I don’t know about you, but I plan all of my trips around one main thing — food. This should be no surprise coming from a food blogger, but it’s amazing to see how many other travelers feel the same way. When you visit an area like South Florida, the food scene can be a little overwhelming. There are so many choices for brunch, happy hour, dinner, dessert, and even just general sightseeing — how do you choose where to go?! Enter one of the newest tourism crazes, the Food Tour. I’ve gone on several of these tours in Boca Raton, Downtown Delray and even Palm Beach Gardens. And now I can add West Palm Beach to the list.

The West Palm Beach Food Tour is led by Kristl Story. Her last name is perfect because she really does have a knack for telling a great story as you walk through Downtown West Palm Beach on the tour. Kristl is a true foodie — and apparently a pretty awesome baker too. She posts some of her own creations on the West Palm Beach Food Tour’s blog and her Chocolate Kahlua Cake sounds freaking incredible! Sorry, the chocoholic in me took over for a sec. Back to the tour…

As Kristl says, the best way to experience a city is through food, because food tells the story of a neighborhood’s people, history and culture. And when the food is as delicious as it is here in South Florida, you know you’re going to get a good story! West Palm Beach Food Tours are held Tuesday through Saturday, starting at 11am. During the three-hour tour, you’ll enjoy 13 tastings from 6 of the best local restaurants — and yes, you’re walking in between each stop, but the walking amounts to no more than one mile. The tour is suited for most ages and fitness levels so long as you are okay with walking (and if it’s summer, okay with walking in the heat). General tickets (ages 13+) are $65, and $45 for children 12 and under.

We started the tour at the cutest wine bar ever — The Blind Monk. They just recently starting serving brunch, and although we were there on a Saturday morning, we were going to taste a couple of their signature appetizers available on the menu after 5pm. But before we dove into the food, we had to kick off the tour with a cocktail — after all, we were at a wine bar. We had a taste of the Prosecco Mojito, a super light and refreshing drink that would be perfect for weekend brunch or a relaxing day at the pool. I’ve always been a mojito fan, but now I think I’m going to start using prosecco instead of rum. Genius (and really delicious) idea!

So that was good, but now we were all good and hungry and ready to eat! We were served a plate of beautiful round crispy tortillas topped with Ahi tuna tostada and a mango avocado salsa. This dish had summer in Florida written all over it. It was crisp, bright, and bursting with flavor. I only wish there was more of it! But, alas, this is a tasting tour. And there was plenty more tastings to be had! The pan con tomate was next, a classic Spanish tapas dish. A crispy garlic-rubbed baguette is topped with fresh tomato and sea salt. It doesn’t get much more simple than that — but it also doesn’t get much more delicious.

While we walked to our next spot, Hullabaloo, Kristl clued us in on the history behind the railroad tracks, showed us local artwork, and got us ready for our next bite. Hullabaloo is part of the Sub-Culture group (the brains behind Dada, Kapow, Dubliner and more) and Executive Chef Fritz Cassel is a very well-known chef in the area. His fire-roasted Brussels sprouts is one of his most popular dishes and is normally served with bacon aioli and candied pine nuts. Those candied pine nuts might just be my new favorite thing in the world — I must try making them at home and putting them in everything. My Brussels sprouts obviously didn’t have the bacon aioli. Instead, I had a creamy, yet still very light, parsley puree. It felt decadent, but with so much green in the bowl, I couldn’t help but feel good about what I was eating. By the way — this was my favorite dish on the tour.

We took another short walk while Kristl kept us entertained with her antics and eventually found ourselves at Ganache Bakery where we were taught how to open a coconut and then sampled its fresh water. We also learned about the tamarind fruit and sampled its fresh juice, which had a taste somewhere between apple juice and pear juice, and a texture and mouthfeel that reminded me of real apple cider. So what’s with the tropical oasis at a bakery? Owners Joan and Jamal come from the caribbean and brought all of the delicious flavors along with them when they opened Ganache Bakery in 2011. Everything is made from scratch with the finest ingredients. Obviously we weren’t leaving without getting something sweet! Little bite-size key lime tarts were passed around — a classic South Florida dessert that certainly did not disappoint.

Our next stop was at the newest restaurant on Clematis Street, and one I just recently visited — Jardin. (You can read my post about it here!). There are three particular items at Jardin that everyone must have, and that’s what we got to taste. First, Chef Jordan creates a different savory madeleine to serve guests each evening. The one we had was Asian-inspired with lemongrass and ginger. It’s the perfect bite to get you ready for the rest of the deliciousness that is to come. Like the restaurant’s signature appetizer. Even though the menu will change with the season, the crispy hummus is never going anywhere. It’s the perfect marriage of crispy, creamy texture and deep, delicious flavor. Then, as a sweet treat, Jardin always offers guests a Brigadeiro, a dark, decadent Brazilian fudge ball that is so insanely rich, it feels wrong to still order dessert (except that you should because Pastry Chef Stephanie is amazing).

We all needed a breather after that, so down to the waterfront we went! The crisp breeze from the Intracoastal waterway felt so nice after all that walking in the heat. But we knew there were still two more stops… And one of them involved pizza. Obviously we had room left for that…

Pizza Girls is that hole-in-the-wall pizza shop that everyone knows and loves. This New York Style pizza place been visited by several famous celebrities as shown by all the photos mounted on the wall throughout the shop. There were so many yummy slices to choose from, but I went with a simple white pizza with broccoli, spinach and ricotta. Biting into that slice made me feel like I was back in New York City during my college years… Thin, crispy, and just the right amount of toppings to keep it from getting soggy. Pizza Girls is a must for anyone who knows and loves a good NYC-style slice.

Our last stop was at Le Rendez-Vouz, a Parisian restaurant and lounge that sometimes doubles as a pop-up art gallery and becomes a bottle service, dress code-enforced party featuring different DJs on Tuesday and Saturday nights. We happened to be there during the afternoon and had a chance to see some really amazing artwork. While we marveled over the colorful portraits of various significant people in our culture, we enjoyed a French pastry for dessert — Apple Croustade a la Mode.

The West Palm Beach Food Tour is a really fun way to get to know a city you’ve never been to before, or to discover new places in your own backyard. It’d be great for a team-building activity with co-workers, a birthday celebration with friends, or an out-of-the-box date idea with your significant other. Visit West Palm Beach Food Tours for information on tickets and tour schedules, and be sure to follow on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!

Mini Pineapple Grove Tour with Vino Van Gogh

April 27, 2015 By takeabiteoutofboca 6 Comments

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As you all know, I am very well versed in the Savor Our City Culinary Tours and have told you guys about almost every single one I’ve been on. These tours are a great way to become acquainted with the area’s best restaurants — but I’ve discovered something beyond the food. PAINTING! Yes, the girl with no real artistic talent has been able to paint a scenic pond landscape, an adorable and chubby little owl, and the latest — the most beautiful still life image of a bouquet of flowers. Savor Our City has teamed up with Vino Van Gogh yet again for another fun night of food, wine and art.

These “mini” Pineapple Grove tours include three restaurant stops where we get to nosh on yummy signature dishes and sip on a perfectly paired wine selection. Normally, the monthly Pineapple Grove tour stops at four or five restaurants and lingers in Artist Alley for a while where guests can mingle with local artists and see their work up close. These tours happen on the third Thursday of every month — check out Savor Our City for details on upcoming tours.

This particular tour was exciting — we were heading to one of my favorite spots in Pineapple Grove, Brulé Bistro. I used to go to this restaurant frequently, and while I’ll stop in every so often for a glass of wine, it’s been a while since I’ve eaten there. I usually just drool over their Facebook photos. Chef Jay did an incredible job putting together two beautiful dishes for our group to try.

I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me back up a bit and start off with the first restaurant we went to. I know, I’m totally teasing you with that Brulé cliffhanger, but I promise…we will get there shortly. First up was Papa’s Tapas, a regular on the Pineapple Grove tour and always a favorite! Papa’s Tapas is a family-owned and operated Spanish tapas restaurant and they always go out of their way to give us a taste of their best dishes. Guests can choose from either the house-made red or white sangria. I’ve tried both, and like them pretty equally. The white is sweet and the red is bold — it just depends on your preference or mood. I was in the mood for bold flavor that night, so I went for the red.

To compliment our tasty fruit-filled glasses of sangria, we were served an assortment of tapas. Since we were a pretty big group, they arranged the table into a large square so everyone could see each other and talk. We usually sit at a long table and it’s hard to have a conversation with anyone but the few people in your vicinity — everyone really liked having the opportunity to chat while we ate and drank.

What did we eat, you ask? Ah…so many things!

Two kinds of croquetas — one with chicken and one with cheese. All that gooey delicious cheese oozing out of the crispy shells — it’s no wonder everyone reached for seconds. Keeping with the cheese trend, we also had cheese quesadillas — a simple, super flavorful dish. It’s all about the tortillas here. As long as they’ve got the right amount of char and the cheese is perfectly melted, you know it’s going to be good.

We also had the marinated and sautéed mushrooms — one of my favorite things at Papa’s Tapas. I don’t know how they pack so much flavor into those tiny little button ‘shrooms, but they do a fantastic job!

Wait…there’s more. Next we were served grilled Naan flatbread with Serrano ham, cheese and pesto. These slices were snatched up within seconds of hitting the table! I did not try one, obviously, but the way everyone scarfed them down tells me they must have been delicious.

Ok, NOW we can talk more about Brulé. We were seated right smack in the center of the restaurant at the long high top table. Seated comfortably in the cushioned seats, we were welcomed with a glass of Prosecco. The atmosphere in Brulé is super chic and modern. The decor is as unique and tasteful as the food! Chef Jay whipped us up two fabulous dishes — the first was the Farmer’s Salad Slider, a lettuce wrap filled with a blackened Brussels sprouts salad and local heirloom tomatoes and tarragon aioli. The colors were beautiful, and it tasted just as bright and fresh as it looked. The aioli lent the most perfect finishing touch right on top.

Next, each guest was served the ginger chicken meatball in a coconut broth with toasted almonds, toasted garlic breadcrumbs and micro cilantro. My dish came sans meatball and instead was filled with baby bok choy — one of my favorite veggies! The broth was very reminiscent of a curry dish, with just a little kick to it. I like a little bit of heat, but even for those who may not be able to tolerate too much of it, it was not too overwhelming.

Our third and final stop was at Mastino Wood Fired Italian Kitchen and Bar, a staple restaurant on the Savor Our City tours. Mastino is known for its certified Neapolitan pizza, but it is home to one of the most incredible appetizers I have ever tasted, and one they always serve during the tour — the signature Eggplant Stack with crispy eggplant, fresh mozzarella, tomato, arugula, aged balsamic and extra virgin olive oil. My heart melts every time I bite into this stack of yumminess. The flavors, the textures — everything just works so well together. This is a must-have dish when you to go to Mastino, and if you are there on a Wednesday, it’s half off!

Although I’d be perfectly content with just stuffing my face with piece after piece of Eggplant Stack, it’s hard to resist the gorgeous crispy wood fired pizza. The Margherita pizza came out to the table and we all dug right in. Mastino’s General Manager, Sal, paired these two delicious dishes with a Chianti — one of my favorite red wines. It was exactly what we needed to stand up to the bold flavors of the pizza and eggplant.

We were all feeling pretty full and happy at this point. It was time to walk over to Vino Van Gogh where we were greeted by the owner, Matt, and our painting instructor for the evening, Natalie. Our inspiration was a beautiful painting called “Fifty Shades of Grey.” No, we weren’t painting the “Red Room” or Christian Grey, for all you fans out there. The “fifty shades” here described the dark shaded background of two vases filled with red and purple flowers. I am absolutely IN LOVE with my end result and proudly display it on my bedroom wall. This one’s a total keeper! For those of you not familiar with Vino Van Gogh, it’s a super cool concept that brings people together for a fun night of painting with help from an artist who guides you through the steps. Seriously — anyone can paint if you put your mind to it, especially when you have professional help along the way. Wine and beer are available for purchase — this can either help or hinder your artistic abilities, so proceed with caution!

For a full schedule of upcoming Savor Our City Culinary Tours, please visit the website. You can also check out photos and find out more information on the Facebook page. I lead the tours every now and then, and would love to have some of my readers join me!

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