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Brothels, Bites and Booze: A Culinary Tour of San Diego's Questionable Past

Brothels, Bites and Booze: A Culinary Tour of San Diego's Questionable Past

Overview

The Brothels, Bites and Booze culinary tour of San Diego’s historic Gaslamp Quarter will take you back to a time of scandal and debauchery. Marvel at the antique architecture, learn about the early red light district, and sample flavors at 4 local establishments.

City: San Diego

Tue 19 Nov

Other dates

You can choose the date already on the booking website

Starting at $75.00

Make a reservation

Tue 19 Nov

Starting at $75.00

Make a reservation

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What's Included

Drink samples

Food tasting

Additional Info

Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Minimum age is 18 years
There is a minimum of 4 passengers to operate. There is a possibility of cancellation after confirmation if there is not enough passengers to meet requirements. In the event of this occurring, you will be offered an alternative or full refund

What To Expect

Gaslamp Quarter

Often called the Historic Heart of San Diego, the Gaslamp Quarter is the main dining and entertainment district of the city. With more than 150 bars and restaurants and 94 registered historic buildings, this nightlife playground has a lot to see and do, as well as a fascinating past. The Brothels, Bites and Booze tour will introduce you to the beginnings of San Diego as a port town – learn why it became one of the more notorious red light districts of its time, and find out how this once-undesired neighborhood became a fun and vibrant nightlife destination for both locals and visitors. After meeting your guide, you’ll embark on a journey of scandalous tales, unique cocktails and local cuisine. On the tour, you’ll make new friends, hear interesting stories, sing karaoke and explore new tastes at local restaurants*.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews (399)

Marilyn S

Jul 2019

Kirk, our tour guide, was very knowledgeable and lively... He did an excellent job managing everyone and keeping us on schedule... Restaurants were ready to the minute for our arrival. I like that! So much information about the Gaslamp area... Food was delicious too! Perfect way to end our July 4th weekend in San Diego! Would recommend this tour.

Response from Host

Jul 2019

I'm happy you had a great time in the Gaslamp with us! We know Kirk is very passionate about his tours, so it's nice to see that you enjoyed his tour. -Bianca

155marshas

Jul 2019

The tour guide really makes the tour worth it. This was my second time on the food tour. In summer 2018, Kurt was our guide and this year, Mark was our guide. They tell jokes and anecdotes about life in San Diego. The guides also know a lot about the history of the area. The Mexican taco stop was delicious, offering a filet mignon taco and margarita sample (large shot glass size). Next we went to a pizza spot where we were able to pick any slice of pizza and were given a sample sized summer ale. We walked quite a few blocks between stops 1 and 2 and a few more blocks between 2 and 3, but 3 and 4 were close. The highlight was Meze, a Greek fusion restaurant with great decor, serving a gyro quesadilla slice with a full size sangria. The final stop was an ice cream shop around the corner. That was a great ending since it was a bit warm outside. The food samples were good, but not quite enough to fill you up completely for lunch. I would recommend you wear comfy shoes and bring water and hat/sunglasses. We had an older person with a cane, a stroller for a 1 year old and a 3 and 5 year old. Everyone was able to keep up, but the sidewalks get crowded in some spots with other tourists. The slow walkers missed some of the tidbits of information, but made it in time for food. Since we did the 11am tour, the kids did okay, but I'm not sure it would be as pleasant taking kids to the later tour. Overall, I think it was a great way to spend a few hours in San Diego.

Response from Host

Jul 2019

I'm very happy to find you had a great time on our tour! We love that we get to share this amazing city with you, so the positive feedback ensures that we are doing a good job! Thank you for joining us! -Bianca

kspeaker

Jul 2019

We like to do food tours in cities we visit--Nashville, Memphis, New Orleans, Charleston, St Augustine, New York, to name a few. This was one of my least favorite. Our guide was Stephan (Steph on) and he was very personable and knowledgeable about the brothels in town. He was energetic and fun. We only went to 4 restaurants. The first was the best with a gyro and a specialty drink that was actual size. (It would have been nice to get two drink like Stephan drank.) The drink and food was excellent. It went downhill from there. The Mexican restaurant gave us a single taco. Very good. But we got a tall shot glass of a Margarita. The drink was good, but it basically was a sip as it also was full of ice. The third place was a cute Irish bar where we go a small glass of guiness an 2 spoonfuls of Shepards pie. And finally a noisy ice cream place where there was no place for us to sit. I just felt like this was not well organized. There were 15 in the group (too many). The restaurants didn't have places set up for us to sit before we got there. One place tried to crowd us into a large booth. No way we would fit. Once we arrive at our place and ate/drank our tiny portion, we just sat there forever. Not sure what else was suppose to go on. Many other tours give us additional history while we sit and eat. I have been on tours with full glasses of wine at each location. I have been on tours that give you a sampling of a couple dishes the restaurant makes. I would NOT recommend this one unless you are just interested in the buildings and their history. Also we basically walked in circles! I just feel like we were killing time to take up the 2.5 hours.

Response from Host

Jul 2019

Hi there. I'm super bummed to find that you had an underwhelming tour with us. The restaurants we choose are all local spots that we've worked with for a good while. They try to accommodate us as best they can on busy weekends, and typically do as soon as we arrive. I'm not sure what restaurant you're referring to with the booth and trying to fit you it...? The price of our tour determines the sizes of our samples. They are neither small nor large, and restaurants in the Gaslamp can get expensive, so we do our best to create a good array of samples that works for all parties involved. I'm sorry you saw that it was an insufficient amount. I'll see what we can do about this. I do appreciate the feedback, and will strive to make the tour better.