The Second City, Chicago

Some cities are known for mostly one thing. Chicago for its deep-dish pizza. New Orleans for its gumbo. San Francisco for its Ghirardelli chocolate. But the Windy City, the Big Easy, and the Golden Gate City have so much more to offer visitors searching for great food. That's where Second City Tours comes in. Its guides lead out-of-towners and locals alike to both popular eateries and hidden gems on food tours.

The Chicago walking tours include the Pizza Parade, the Beer and Bacon tour, and the Chicago Food Crawl, which includes stops at two local icons—Portillo's for a Chicago-style hot dog and Al's for an italian-beef sandwich. Most tours take place around the trendy River North neighborhood, though some, such as the Belmont Food Binge, explore other neighborhoods. In New Orleans, tour goers cruise around the historic French Quarter neighborhood snacking on po boys, gumbo, Central Grocery's famous muffaletta, and beignets at Cafe Du Monde, and in San Francisco visitors sample sourdough bread and gourmet chocolates throughout the hilly burg.