2026 The Creole Connection: Gumbo And Beyond In New Orleans

Excellent all around and Matt was wonderful!!

Our tour was fun, delicious and enlightening. Our tour guide was quite excellent!

Matt was a wonderful guide! His expertise with the food and culture was informative and entertaining, and the food was amazing. We loved going to some hidden gems and learning about their history and place in the neighborhood.

Matt was knowledgeable, fun, and very helpful in figuring out what we wanted to do and how much we could possibly eat. He answered our questions with humor and stories that, even though we’ve been to New Orleans many times, provided new and interesting info. We loved the non-touristy places he took us to - lots of walking but we made it!

We did the 6 hour creole tour with Matt and had an absolutely great day. Matt’s deep knowledge of New Orleans, and specifically creole cuisine was outstanding. He was full of great stories and history and took us to some amazing places. We felt like we received great information while having fun, and ended the day not able to eat another bite. This is our third Backstreets tour (the first two being Istanbul and Athens). They have all been just great and totally worth the fee.

We ended up being the only two on the tour so I really appreciate that Matthew still took us out and made it a special day. This is our 6th or 7th Culinary Backstreets tour and the NOLA tour did not disappoint. Highly recommend!

This tour was outstanding! The food was fantastic and we were lucky as it was just my wife and me as guests on the tour. Our guide Kelly was fantastic as well. She’s a local and her knowledge of the local history and culture, and her personal connection to the music scene, all shared while walking between venues made the trip both fun and educational. And the food! Beignets, muffuletta, gumbo, red beans and rice, gator balls. Highly recommend this tour and get Kelly as your guide.

We highly recommend this experience! We spent an extraordinary day with Kelly. She is a wonderful and knowledgeable guide, explaining the history of where we were and what we were seeing and eating. She grew up in the area, lives nearby and has family in the neighborhoods we went to. NOLA is Kelly’s hometown…she knows everyone and everyone knows her! We started at the French Market with praline stuffed beignets, still warm! We learned about the history of that area going back to the indigenous peoples, the French and the Spanish. We continued on with iced drinks and slow walking through the area with Kelly highlighting the history and cultural heritage. She thoroughly answered questions. She is also a terrific storyteller and, as a culture bearer, gave us much background of the traditions of African American and Creole experience in New Orleans. She shared some of her own life story, with her musician father and mother; her father also produced records, including early hits of Little Richard and Sam Cooke. A big tip is to come hungry! Kelly took us to fabulous local bars and restaurants where the food was truly delicious. We are always interested in discovering food made with love, and each spot Kelly took us to was that. We always had a seat, Kelly called ahead of time, and she asked what we would like, offering suggestions that were spot on! We probably would never have found these places on our own and intend to return to them! Overall, this was an incredible day of food, culture, and history. We will definitely use Culinary Backstreets tours in other cities and countries when we can, given our very positive experience today.

Our Culinary Backstreets tour "Roots of a Creole Kitchen: Gumbo and Beyond in New Orleans" was well worth the time and money, not least because of our wonderful guide Kelly. We spent a great deal of time in the neighborhood where she is from (and still lives) and more than once I had someone at one of the stops say to me, “if you’re with Kelly, you’re family here.” The walking was easy and there was so much to learn on every block. We worked our way from the French Market along the river and through parts of the French Quarter we’d passed by without really seeing. We then worked our way into Treme which was the heart of our experience. Kelly was great at connecting place to story, and we even saw the few blocks surrounding our hotel very differently after the tour. Bring an appetite! The food (and beverages) are plentiful along the way, and it was all inclusive. Kelly would suggest certain things to try but always read our preferences before ordering (and paying) for us. We got to try things we never even would have known to order. We were so lucky that we got her to ourselves on the tour, and we managed to hit places when they weren’t crowded so we always managed to find a seat. This is not a culinary tour that is going to put you into fine dining places that show up in food guides. These are neighborhood joints and because Kelly is a true local, you get to meet the proprietors, bartenders and staff that made our day so enjoyable. Along the way, Kelly helped shape the experience by explaining the importance of the places we were visiting and suggesting other spots we passed for future exploration. Her own family connections to New Orleans are deep and fascinating. Her father was a well-respected musician and record producer that worked with some of the giants of R&B, jazz, and rock and roll (think Little Richard, Quincy Jones, and Sam Cooke!) Because there is no set route or fixed itinerary, our tour felt bespoke and designed for our own tastes and experiences. I can’t recommend this one-of-a-kind exploration of the neighborhoods of New Orleans enough.

Kelly curated a delicious culinary experience through neighborhood restaurants and bars. We tried a wide variety of food from praline beignets to boudin, fried green beans to fried chicken, gumbo to muffaletta. But this wasn't just about the food--delicious as it was--it felt like a personal tour of the neighborhood, learning the stories behind what we were seeing as we went. She was greeted so warmly by everyone that we felt like we were regulars instead of tourists--we even joked that we'd just tell people we were with her for the rest of the trip! I have never done a food tour before, and I would highly recommend it, even for those of us with smaller appetites. The experience was a highlight of the trip. Thank you Kelly for sharing your neighborhood with us!

We had a fantastic tour of New Orleans thanks to Kelly! All of the stops felt authentic and like hidden gems, with great food and friendly service. There was no shortage of food and drink, and all of it was amazing! She gave us so many great stories and recommendations for the rest our trip, so we know the rest of our time in New Orleans will be better for it! Rain or shine, this food tour with Kelly was the highlight of our trip!

Kelly was amazing! Felt like a local. Kelly was the best hostess. All restaurants were so yummy. Definitely recommend.

Kelly was a fantastic guide for our culinary adventure through New Orleans. She was a wealth of knowledge on the food, neighborhood and music too! She took us to so many great little gems that we would never had discovered on our own. Everything we ate or drank was delicious and we can’t wait for our next time in NOLA.

We (two couples) joined another couple for a 6 hour walking tour spanning the Quarter, Marigny and Treme. Matt, our guide, provided a wealth of knowledge, including food, culture, history, geography and architecture along the way. We began with the best frozen Irish I've ever had and ended with a superb cocktail experience. The visit were well spaced, the walking was easy and we enjoyed the best of local delights including po'boys, muffulettas, alligator in crawfish sauce, red beans and rice, and likely the best fried chicken and gumbo that we've ever tasted. As longtime visitors to the city, Matt introduced us to new spots that will stay on our future lists. We've been longtime CB fans across the globe and can only say 'CB, you've done it again!' And thanks, Matt, for the Porgy recommendation. We visited the next day and were eurphoric about the crawfish and bbq'ed shrimp. Well done!

We four, (two couples) joined another couple and embarked on a 6 hour walking tour of New Orleans, spanning the Quarter, Marigny and Treme. Matt, our guide, provided a wealth of knowledge on food, culture, geography and history. The visits were spaced well and delivered a variety of food experiences. We began with the best frozen Irish I've ever had and ended with a fabulous cocktail experience. In between we enjoyed the best of local cuisine, including po'boys, muffulettas, alligator in crawfish sauce and (the highlight) the best fried chicken our group had ever eaten. As folks who had been to NOLA many times, we definitely saw a side of the city that we wouldn't otherwise have experienced and many of those spots will remain our lists for future visits. Thanks to Matt for recommending Porgy's where we enjoyed amazing crawfish and bbq'ed shrimp. As longtime CB fans in many locations, we can only say "you've done it again!".

We had a wonderful time on the food tour with Kelly. She introduced us to a variety of excellent local food and some wonderful places that were off the beaten tourist path. Kelly is deeply embedded in the New Orleans music scene and had great tips for bands and venues. We also enjoyed meeting the other tour participants.

KELLY IS AMAZING!!! so friendly and she handled a diverse group with different needs very well. She was a wealth of knowledge and so friendly. An amazing first day in New Orleans.

We loved our Culinary Backstreets Tour in New Orleans. Our guide, Kelly, really made it come alive! We had outstanding food and learned a lot from Kelly. Highly recommend!

This is a fantastic tour. Kelly was a real joy. She knows the food, culture and neighborhoods of New Orleans, and her stories made the day. The food was delicious and plentiful! Highly recommended.

We did the Roots of a Creole Kitchen: Gumbo and Beyond New Orleans tour with Kelly. She was a great guide and took us to many awesome local restaurants. The food was great and plentiful (you won’t leave hungry!). Kelly is a local with wonderful knowledge of the area and history. We loved the tour and had a great time!

Had an amazing tour in New Orleans with Kelly! She was great-we spent 6 hours sampling delicious food and drink around New Orleans, learning about the culture of the city. Our new favorite beverage is the frozen Irish Coffee! On her recommendation we went to a second line which was awesome. This tour deserves 10 stars!

Such a fun day! Kelly, out tour guide was awesome! She created so much more than a food tour for us. She shared the history of New Orleans plus a lot about the music of the area, in addition to trying a lot of great food. She took us off the beaten path to places we would not have discovered on our own. Helpful hint.... don't eat breakfast before you go!