Flavours Of Tokyo: A Journey Through Time - Private Food Tour

Our guide, Miko, was amazing! She was friendly, knowledgeable, and very accommodating. I highly recommend Hello! Tokyo Tours.

We had the most wonderful day exploring Tokyo with Keiko, and it's easily one of the highlights of our trip. She shared the history and cultural of Japan had incredible food. We didn't just see Tokyo, we understood it a little better by the end of the day. Every recommendation was spot-on, and she made our group of four feel completely taken care of the whole time. Thank you Keiko!

My family of six (including teenagers) had an outstanding experience with a Past, Present & Future Tokyo Food Tours at the end of June, and it was the perfect way to begin our family's Japan adventure. Our guide, Miko, was absolutely amazing! She was punctual, professional, incredibly knowledgeable, and made the entire day enjoyable for our family. Beyond introducing us to delicious local food, she shared fascinating insights into Japanese culture, history, and everyday life, making each stop even more meaningful. We visited five different locations, enjoyed several special treats we never would have found on our own, explored a beautiful shrine, and even stopped at one of Tokyo's major department stores. Miko also pointed out many important landmarks and places of interest throughout the city, giving us a wonderful introduction to Tokyo. One thing that made the tour especially memorable was Miko's thoughtfulness. She took countless family photos throughout the day, allowing all of us to be in the pictures together. She also patiently helped us understand Tokyo's mass transit system, which gave us the confidence to navigate the city on our own for the rest of our trip. If you're visiting Tokyo for the first time—or even if you've been before—we highly recommend this tour. It was informative, delicious, well-organized, and genuinely fun. Thank you, Miko, for making our first day in Tokyo so memorable. It was one of the highlights of our entire Japan vacation!

Wow! That’s the best way to explain it! Keiko was truly the best tour Guide we have ever had, and we have had many! The way she structured the tour, explained both the city sites and the food, and her overall kindness, humor, and demeanor, was just such a joy to spend the day with. And don’t forget about the food! Game changer! Some of the best bites we have ever had in our life, And we travel all over the world for food as the focus. Look no further, book Keiko for your next tour of Tokyo!!

Very well organized tour that introduced us to three parts of the city we may not have gone to otherwise. History and culture were weaved into the discussion, and the stops were well paced. In addition, you got to have both full meals as well as tastings that introduced you to the nuances of how food is prepared and flavored in Japan.

Keiko met as at our hotel and guided us through Tokyo and the metro system. We had so many stops, trying a wide range of food, from many different vendors. Keiko gave us background information on the history of Japan and the changes in Japanese cuisine. It was so interesting, and we loved being in various restaurants and walking through the busy streets and shops. Even though we covered a great distance, it was at a relaxed pace and we had some lovely conversations. It felt like a good friend was showing us around Tokyo, and delighting us with many treats. Highly recommend!

Our food and history tour of Tokyo with our guide Miko was one of the absolute highlights of our trip to Japan. From the moment we started, Miko brought the city to life with an incredible mix of historical insight, local knowledge, and genuine enthusiasm. The tour struck the perfect balance between Tokyo’s rich history and its amazing food culture. Miko guided us through neighborhoods we would never have discovered on our own, explaining the history behind shrines, streets, and markets while introducing us to some truly memorable local dishes. Every stop felt carefully chosen and authentic. What really set the experience apart was Miko herself. She was warm, engaging, and incredibly knowledgeable, answering every question we had and sharing fascinating stories about Tokyo’s past and present. It never felt like a scripted tour—it felt like exploring the city with a knowledgeable local friend who genuinely loves sharing their culture. If you want to experience Tokyo beyond the typical tourist spots and taste some fantastic food along the way, this tour is a must. Ask for Miko if you can—she made the entire experience unforgettable.

SO FUN AND EXPLIANED EVERYTHING SO WELL AND SO KIND. actually the best time ever and helped us navigate through Japan beautifully and totally recommend

We have been on many food tours. We usually begin a visit to a new city with a food tour. Our Tokyo food tour with Keiko was unique. It included a broad range of foods typical for Tokyo and also included visits to a number of neighborhoods. In each location Keiko provided an insightful picture of Japanese culture over a broad time period. We have not experienced this level of cultural discussion on a food tour before. If this is of interest to you take this tour with Keiko.

What makes it special: Keiko connects eras of Tokyo history to what you’re tasting—so it’s not just “eat this,” it’s “here’s why this matters.” The experience: A curated mix of familiar favorites and discoveries, with light sightseeing that ties neighborhoods to the dishes. We tried plenty of new things and loved them. Guide: Keiko is fantastic—kind, organized, and a great storyteller. Route: The itinerary is proprietary, so no specifics—but it balances popular spots with quieter corners for a richer feel. Bottom line: A unique, insightful, and delicious tour that became a trip highlight.

I absolutely loved how this tour was organized. We really felt like we were mixing an historical understanding of Japan with a preview of the everyday life of a Japanese person living in Tokyo. This is just how we want to to experience a city - through food and history! And our tour guide, Keiko was a delight. Not only was she very knowledgeable, but she also did a great job of herding our group of 6 people on and off the train and through the streets of Tokyo. We highly recommend this tour with Keiko!

I could not have been happier with our tour with Keiko. They did an excellent job with answering all our questions and taking us to spots we would have never known to have tried. Not only were the places unique, the food tastings themselves were a great mix of familiar items along with new foods and flavors. We never felt rushed and Keiko handled last minute curve balls with grace and ease.

Not a great experience. Would not recommend it. Guide not very engaging. Some spots wee very touristy and silly.

It was a wonderful way to explore the city and learn about the history and culture through food. Our guide Keiko was fantastic. She was friendly and knowledgeable and made the experience really fun. I highly recommend!

Mikko was an exceptional guide! Not only did we enjoy a wide variety of food, she also taught us history and culture. She quickly became “our friend in Tokyo”.

Our day was incredible. Miko was a fantastic guide and we learned so much about Tokyo - past, present and future. If you have a chance to tour with Miko you will experience a 5 star experience!

We had a wonderful time with Keiko on the food tour. She was very knowledgeable and taught us many things about Japanese cuisine. I learned how to make Dashi and have tried it at home (although the ingredients aren't quite as good as those in Japan). Keiko taught us how to ride the Tokyo subway since it was our first time and gave us recommendations of places to check out while in Tokyo. I always think food tours are a good introduction when you're visiting a new place and this was one of the best food tours I've been on.

Excellent tour. When I Hello Tokyo tours reached out with useful information about having a Suica card to get around and before the tour there was plenty of communication about where to meet and who our tour guide would be. The tour itself was a wonderful balance of food and history. The guide was delightful and we had so much fun.

We had a wonderful experience thanks to Miko! She was engaging, knowledgeable, and personable. We completely enjoyed our tour!

We had a wonderful tour by Yasu, eating our way around Tokyo while learning much about Japanese history: past, present, and future. The food was delicious, and the information was informative and enlightening.

Our tour guide Yasu was fantastic. He was interesting and funny and showed us so many places we would never have found on our own. The udon curry was amazing. We loved hearing his perspective on Japanese food and culture.

Taking the private food tour with Miko was a highlight of our 4 weeks in Japan. We loved that fact that she combined Tokyo history with visits to and tastings in wonderful places. She is so knowledgeable, articulate, warm, interesting and fun to be with. A tour with her is a must for anyone visiting Tokyo.

Our Tokyo food tour with Miko was a true highlight of our month-long trip to Japan. Her knowledge of the history of Japan, and the way Japan's food culture has evolved enriched our understanding of a truly unique country. If you're going to Japan and traveling to any of the places where Miko gives a tour, you will by greatly rewarded by spending time with her!

We had an absolute amazing time with Keiko on our food tour. We went to so many unique special places and tried so many different foods. Highly recommend.

We had an absolute amazing time on this tour. The food experience with our lovely guide was amazing we tried so many varieties of local cuisine and also learnt a little bit of history. Thank you so much for also helping us with the train system.

A trip through the formative years of Japanese tastes and cuisine to modern versions and popular dishes. Couldn't have been more interesting and rewarding. It was a wide ranging walk through the core of Tokyo(Ginza, Nihonbashi, etc). You will walk a lot, this was a walking tour after all. Our guide met us at our hotel and we were in her capable hands for the duration. Our guide, Paiva, was charming, informative, and knowledgeable while speaking perfect English. You couldn't ask for a better guide!

Our day touring Tokyo with Paiva was fantastic from start to finish. Paiva is organized, prompt and professional. Above all she is fun, pleasant and knowledgeable. Paiva planned an engaging itinerary of Tokyo’s past, present and future intertwining delicious snacks and foods that have stood the test of time. In particular a 7 th generation sweets shop that has treats that are made with love. They are both art and food! Owner of the shop even took time out of his busy day to take a photo with us. Paiva has forged friendships with these shop owners and because of her they are extra helpful and kind. Paiva, is a ray of sunshine! Anyone who visits Tokyo and is fortunate enough to have her as a tour guide is in for a PERFECT Tokyo experience. Thanks Paiva K & G visiting from Utah.

This food tour with Paiva was an excellent way to spend a day in Tokyo. We spent over 6 hours explore parts of Tokyo we would never normally get to as tourists. Paiva was an excellent host and ambassador for Tokyo and Hello!Tokyo tours. We stopped at 12 food locations and many areas of historical interest. I would highly recommend this tour. We even learned how to eat Udon noodles with chopsticks!

Miko was extraordinary! We did 3 private tours in Japan but definitely the 7 people in our family agree she was the best! She went above and beyond! She was very gracious to change the date of the tour last minute at our request due to a flight delay. She showed us past present and future times of Tokyo’s food included under the bridges taverns and simple eateries like the one on the portrait of the tour. Arigato gozaimas Miko!!

We signed up for a private food tour with Keiko as a family of four (we have 16 and 13-year-old). Keiko has planned this tour exceptionally well. She is very punctual and she picked us up early from our hotel, It was exciting for us to learn how to use the subway system in Japan and our son picked that up quite quickly. We love the concept of understanding the culture through food based on past, present and future, I believe this is a fantastic way for our family to understand and appreciate the Japanese culture. As far as food, we had fantastic snacks, lunch, appetizers, and everything in between. She has also provided recommendations for lunch and dinner spots for the rest of our stay which we followed closely. We all enjoyed the private food tour by Keiko and highly recommend her to any family or small groups!

This was a outstanding experience both because of the tour design and because of our guide. The tour takes you through three periods of Japanese cuisine - past, present and future. It’s like Disney’s “A Christmas Carol” for food. What’s great is the unique places you visit—things you would not likely find on your own. The curry shop beneath train tracks is shockingly good. Also, our guide Keiko was magnificent. She brought the history to life and had personal thoughts to share on all the amazing food. She was the best!

Paiva was our guide. She was very nice, informative, and all the food was delicious! We are very happy we took this tour. Definitely recommend taking this tour while in Tokyo.

I was absolutely delighted to experience the authentic roots of Japanese cuisine. I had the pleasure of experiencing the true essence of Japanese food, with a particular highlight being the exquisite seaweed and Amasake drink. The sheer quality and craftsmanship behind each delicate strand left me in awe. It was a genuine testament to the dedication and mastery of Japanese culinary traditions. My tour guide made the experience more delightful.

A very informative and enjoyable experience walking around some of Tokyo's iconic neighborhoods and getting to try a great variety of snacks throughout the entire day. Friendly guide, good selection of unique food experiences, and plenty of musings throughout the day. Highly recommended!

We had a great time. Miko, our guide spoke great English and was both extremely kind and knowledgeable. She was especially great with our three kids. The range of foods and places were great and we learned a lot about both Japanese food and about Tokyo. Cannot recommend this tour enough, it was everything we had hoped for.

We had a fabulous experience in Tokyo. The food tour allowed us a glimpse into Japanese culture and the food was delicious. Our guide Laura was amazing. Would highly recommend!

A perfect blend of delicious food, education, and cultural immersion, all thanks to a guide who is clearly a master of their craft.

Miko was an amazing tour guide. She was so patient and attentive- answering all of our questions and being sure no one fell behind as we navigated some of the crowds. I appreciated how knowledgeable she was about the history and the significance of the different foods we tried. I feel like this was a great introduction to Tokyo through food.

This was our best tour on our whole trip to Japan. Rohan was a great guide, and the tour was a wonderful way to kick off our stay in Japan, and get a real feel for customs and layout of Tokyo. We tried so many different types of food and saw such different parts of Japan - got a great feel for the past vs modern life in Tokyo. The highlight for us was the trip to the izakaya, where we had the most delicious meal, and tried things that we never would have ordered ourselves.

We had a wonderful tokyo food tour with Rohan yesterday. He knew everything about the history of Japan snd its food. We learned a lot and tasted so many great things!!!

Super fun activity for our kids (11 and 9) who love Japanese cuisine and trying new things. It was the perfect way to beat jet lag on our first day in Tokyo.

Our family of four, including a 9 year-old, and a 73 year-old enjoyed our day with Sid tasting foods, some we were familiar with and others we were not. Sid was incredibly patient and friendly, answering all of our questions while engaging my son in conversation. The food selections were excellent, going beyond the American ideas of Japanese food, of sushi and ramen. We left the tour full, which says a lot for my husband, who has strong appetite. Highly recommend for families!

We were so lucky to find Sid as our food tour guide! He was a fountain of interesting information, historical perspective and food orientation in Japan. We appreciated that they adjusted their tour for our group ! Even our non foodies tried everything ….this is a find of a tour in Tokyo and we would all recommend highly! Thanks Sid!

Me and my wife went to Tokyo for five days and started off with a private tour by Hello! Tokyo. If you have the slightest interest in food this mix of history combined with texture and umami rich flavors is the ultimate introduction to Japan and Tokyo. Our guide Sid was knowledgeable and just a genuinely nice dude. We had fun and nothing felt rushed or stressful. I have been on a lot of food tours and this is one of the best in the biz. Prior to our arrival I had a lot of contact with Hello! Tokyo because of the pandemic and our trip which kept keeping getting postponed. With Japan taking forever to open up for tourism the staff att was really helpful and gave us tips and suggestions before our arrival. Very grateful for that! I will end the review with three musts for enhancing you stay in Tokyo. 1. Do this tour. It's the perfect introduction to Tokyo! 2. Get a pocket wifi at the airport at arrival. Using the webb and google maps for getting around is easy and saves time. With pocket wifi there is no worry about costs from your carrier. 3. Gett a Pasmo or Sucia pay card for your Apple Pay och Samsung pay or whatever you have. Super smooth to use your phone to pay for public transportation and vending machines and more. 4. Do this food tour. If you have the slightest interest in the country you're traveling to it should be mandatory and a central part of your itinerary.

What a fantastic time. How much we packed in, the quality of the food experience, the care of our Guide. This is the 100% best food tour I have been on across Asia. It opened my eyes up to Tokyo. The best way to visit the city. Very Unique, as it gives a Journey through time - very clever original idea! Would recommend to all my friends and family visiting Tokyo.

I had a very enjoyable day with my two friends on this food tour. Our group is pretty mixed with different backgrounds (one from Finland and one from Philippines and I'm American) so it added quite a lot of fun to share knowledge from different parts of the world on top of learning a lot about Japanese food and culture! We were able to easily understand from our guide Sid's easy and fun explanations. They have sister companies on Hong Kong and Singapore so I would most definitely go with Hello tours again if I visit. Two thumbs up!!

Been to Tokyo a couple times but still had a lot of fun on our tour! My friends and I really love tea and Japanese religion so our guide, Sid took us to a tea house and really good green tea dessert places in Asakusa along with some shrines and temple on the way. 10/10!

My family of 5 have been to Tokyo a few times. We were there on winter break this time again and decided to book this food tour and do not regret it one bit! We ate like locals and went to places that we would probably not have gone on our own. The noodle stand and the man making noodles was so kind too! Sid,our guide was excellent and was very knowledgeable. My family had a memorable day in Tokyo!

Thankyou Sid for a truly fantastic food tour of Tokyo! We enjoyed every second. Your knowledge of Tokyo and food was very insightful and we are all still talking about those sensational udon curry noodles. Thankyou.