2026 Discovering The Culinary Soul Of Old Rio

This was overall a fantastic tour, and Marco is a very kind and knowledgeable guide with full mastery of the English language. Tour lasted about 6 hours and we walked around downtown Rio with 5-6 stops for food. We definitely tried dishes we otherwise would not have tried on our own, and they were delicious. Marco answered all of our questions and provided a ton of historical and personal anecdotes. Overall, we highly recommend the tour.

This tour was amazing. Marco is kind, hilarious, and extremely knowledgeable about his hometown. We learned and experienced so much and can’t wait to get back to Brazil.

We had an amazing time with Juliana! The tour combines great spots for food which we would have not discovered on our own together with explanations from Juliana, who knows the city inside out. She speaks perfect Spanish and brought a great energy and passion for the city. We highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Rio!

The guide was excellent and the food was awesome!

Such an amazing experience. Juliana was an exceptional tour guide. Not only did we visit amazing food spots but she was so knowledgeable about the history and culture of Rio and Brazil that I learned a ton along the way. Everything I ate and every place we visited had a story behind it which made the experience so much better than any other tour. She also graciously ajd patiently answered my MANY questions about neighborhoods, the people, etc. This tour is definitely one of the main highlights of our time in Rio. I can’t recommend the tour and Julianna highly enough!

Excellent tour and guide. good history and food together! Loved the esfiha and the finale at the Museum of Tomorrow.

Marco was a fantastic guide. He had such a depth of knowledge in history and economics that brought the food we tasted to life. Thank you for a wonderful tour!

Another fabulous Culinary Backstreets tour. Our guide, Marco, was a wealth of information about the history, culture, and food of Rio and Brazil and every stop was a treat for the mind and the stomach. From the start at the oldest cafe in Rio, Casa Cave, to dessert at the Museu do Amanha (Museum of Tomorrow), it was all delicious and fascinating. I highly recommend this tour, and Culinary Backstreets in general.

I took my family (including an adventurous 9 year old) on this tour with Marco. This was easily our favorite activity in Rio! Marco was instantly personable and engaged on topics ranging from food to history to race/class in Brazil to more. The day flowed perfectly and Marco thoughtfully checked in on our hunger level- other food tours I have been on can over feed you to the point where you are no longer enjoying the food and just eating out of pure guilt! We walked around city center and tried a wide variety of foods, beveages and desserts. There was nothing I would change about this tour and I have recommended it widely to friends who will be travelling to Rio in the future. 2 of our group were vegetarians and this was no issue at all for them to accomodate. Thank you for an incredible family memory!

This was the best food tour I have ever been on thanks to our guide, Marco. His background in history and business made it more than just a food tour, he provided rich information about the city and even planned some non-food surprise stops that we never would have stumbled upon on our own. Everything was well paced and each stop was unique. We left feeling full (of both food and knowledge), but not uncomfortably full. Marco checked in with us after each stop to determine how much more we wanted to eat and drink. It was nice to not have to worry about the bill as he paid at every stop, and he called each place ahead of time so we didn’t have to wait upon arriving. There was just the right amount of walking between stops to digest but not feel tired too. Everything was delicious! Marco even provided us recommendations before our scheduled tour, which we greatly appreciated. I can’t recommend this tour enough!

The tour was super fun and informative and the food was delicious. It was a real treat to learn more about the beautiful city of Rio and its deep history!

I’ve been following Culinary Backstreets for years, and was excited to finally do a tour — it was just as fantastic as I was expecting. Marco was a fun and informative guide, and I loved the mix of market / cafe / restaurant stops. I don’t think I would have known to go to each of the stops without a local guide like CB and Marco (and I’m a foodie who loves to research!) I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend CB and Marco. Go, go!

The food walking tour with Marco was the highlight of our trip to Rio! We met up with him in the morning and spent the next several hours on a fascinating guided tour with lots of stops for delicious little bites. I wasn’t expecting so much history, that was a lovely surprise. He was so knowledgeable and friendly, tailoring the tour to our interests. The food was absolutely fantastic, truly authentic, and it was so fun to try lots of different things. Some in our group are not adventurous eaters and even they really enjoyed it. We felt very safe walking with Marco and as a result we visited areas I would not have felt comfortable going to on my own. Highly, highly recommend this unique experience to see the city through a different lens. Incredible value for the price!

This was such an amazing tour. Great history, food and company. An outstanding way to see and experience this special city. Marco was outstanding! So knowledgeable and truly brought the entire experience to life! Don't pass the tour up!

This is an exceptional way to discover downtown Rio while learning about Brazil’s complex history. Marco took us to some really great places that I definitely would have not found my way to while, at each spot, giving us historical and political context. This is for the foodies with an interest in history or hungry history buffs.

Had an excellent day with Marco learning about the wonderful food and culture of Brazil. We had a wide variety of great food. We also had a very engaging and educational conversation throughout the day. I would recommend this to everyone.

I met Marco, the excellent guide at the appointed time and place and had the most brilliant food and cultural tour of this amazing city. I'd done a 'sightseeing' tour the previous day and there was no comparison; this was hands down better. Structured around food and food stops, Marco explains the culture, history, economic and social influences on Brazil and Rio visiting markets, cafes, coffee shops, street restaurants, higher end restaurants, museums, churches and even a library! Over 5 or 6 hours you get an amazing insight into Rio and Brazil, all through food. The detail and effort Marco has put into preparing this tour is incredible; it's no set piece tour and I know he constantly refines it based on customer feedback. Very highly recommended, but go early in your trip as you'll want topics up on some of his recomendations!

Juliana was wonderful and so was the food. Highly recommend it.

Marco has a rare talent for bringing together food, history and the soul of a city in a way that feels completely effortless. This is far more than a food tour. Through his stories, insights and deep knowledge of Rio, you begin to understand the city’s many layers — its history, its social fabric, its culture and the forces that have shaped it over time. The culinary journey itself is outstanding. From beloved local institutions to contemporary venues, every stop feels carefully chosen and genuinely representative of Rio’s rich and diverse food scene. The food is delicious throughout, but what makes the experience truly memorable is the context Marco provides along the way. Warm, engaging and incredibly knowledgeable, Marco is the sort of host every traveller hopes to find. He doesn’t simply show you Rio; he helps you understand it. By the end of the tour, we felt we had discovered a side of the city that would have remained invisible to us otherwise. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to experience Rio through both its flavours and its stories.

Marco is a smart and knowledgeable guide. He's able to connect the (culinary) history of the city and the country to your own place of birth. He's also a great source of trivia about basically everything. If you think you can skip this tour because you've been to Rio before, don't. He will most certainly enrich your stay here and make sure that you'll walk away with a full stomach and a full brain. I cannot recommend this tour enough!

10/10 experience, Marco our tour guide was insightful and knowledgeable during our tour, really explaining the culture of the food. The food was absolutely delicious!! I would recommend you do this tour!

My wife and her BFF along with myself spent 5 hours walking and eating. Marco was our guide for the day and he was awesome. His English is exceptional and he has a great sense of humor, plus he is very knowledgeable about the local architecture and history, which we love. We walked through the streets of Rio Center and discovered some of the small quaint enclaves of the local gastronomy. Everything we tried was a tasty discovery, and there were no extra fees. Even our stop for a coffee (Marco knew a place!) was wonderful. We've done a few Culinary Backstreet tours and they never disappoint. If you're a foodie, these people know where to take you! Thanks again Marco.