When I started the Backyard Bite early 2011, my goal was to introduce Los Angeles natives and visitors of the area to hidden neighborhood gems. Six Taste Tours, the newest and largest food tour company in Los Angeles does just that and more. They take Los Angeles locals and tourists on walking food tours that give a crash course on each neighborhood’s history, culture and food practices.

For around $55 to $65 bucks you get to literally eat your way through a part of the city and discover a few cuisines that you may have never tried before. Current tours include Santa Monica, Little Tokyo, New Chinatown, Thai Town, Hollywood (of course), and the Delicious Dumpling Tour in Arcadia. For the more serious foodies, you can step out of your comfort zone and take on one of their specialty tours, which feature spicy and bizarre foods. These special tours are not for the faint of heart (or stomach!).

I love that an LA resident can go on one of these tours and discover a place that they never knew was there. With so many ethnic pockets around the city, its easy to overlook many great restaurants. I wanted to go on one of these tours to see what the experience was like and see what I might learn. If you are reading this blog, I assume that you are a food lover. Check out this short teaser featuring tour guide, Michael Lin and decide for yourself, are you just a foodie? or a Food Adventurer?

The Delicious Dumpling tour started in the Baldwin shopping center in Arcadia early on a Saturday morning. Michael (@dumplingtour) had a sensei-like knowledge of Taiwanese culture and food. He taught us brief history about Arcadia, the city in which he grew up and then after brief introductions we wasted no time getting our grub on.

The line forming outside the Din Thai Fun Dumpling House at 10 am reassured my suspicion that these tour guides know their stuff! We sampled various dumplings, sausages and Boba teas, not to mention a gang of breads and sweets! After 4 1/2 hours of eating at local Arcadia restaurants and bakeries, we were happily stuffed. Definately a tour I’d recommend for anyone who loves food, meeting new friends and a bit of culture!

Special shout out to my tour mates: @datingadvicegrl, @marianthefoodie, @chef_jay, @aidamollenkamp and @jorgeoswaldoart

To book a tour, visit www.sixtaste.com!

About the author
Amy T. Shuster is an actress, writer, host, and food enthusiast. Her blog is, backyardbite.com, which focuses on creating positive content to help generate awareness of local independent foodie “gems” in the Los Angeles area. Amy lives and dines in Los Angeles, California.