Most visitors to New York want the ‘real’ tour, but very few are willing to venture out of their comfort zones. I mean, its a pain in the butt to forgo an airconditioned coach and wander the streets looking for a small street vendor who sells some cheese, even if it does happen to be the best cheese in New York. But if you want to get to know the real New York, ain’t no bus going to take you there. You’ll have to take the subway or a cab and work out a sweat walking the streets and talking to people in bars, cafes and restaurants.

A more palatable option, if the thought of getting lost in NYC intimidates you, is to tag along with the Greenwich Village food and culture walking tour, organized by the Food of New York Tours, Inc., which takes you along on a guided tour of the West Village, with halts at quaint food shops hawking specialty foods along Bleeker Street which you won’t find anywhere else, Italian eateries and charming neighbourhood restaurants, all sprinkled liberally with a dose of culture, customs and the historic landmarks found along the way.

Tour info: Available 7 days a week, starts late in the morning and lasts for 3 hours. Meet up at 6th and Bleecker St., one tour guide assigned for a group of 16 people. Included in the ticket cost ($42) are all the food tastings and a ‘Foods of New York Neighbourhood Guide’. Wear clothing and shoes comfortable for walking. Advance booking recommended.

If you’re going along on this tour, a few more recommendations. For foodies, the tastings might not be enough to be called a proper lunch, so you might want to have an early brunch before you head off for the tour. You might also want to buy some takeaways and specialty foods and gifts when you hit these famed eateries and walk the streets, so take along a fairly big size bag or something to carry along all the stuff you buy.  Believe me, you walk Bleeker Street, you come out with a bag full of goodies. Take along a bag if you don’t want people to stare at all the things you’re carrying… 

Also, the tour involves a slightly strenous walk of around 2 miles all put together, so it might not be advisable to take along kids (unless they’re small enough to be carried) or anyone who has a problem walking long distances. The tour doesn’t stop for bad weather, so you might want to check the weather forecasts to see if you’re up to it. Featured stops along the way include Murray’s Cheese Shop (254 Bleeker St.), with a mind-boggling display of heaping baskets of fresh ricotta, basket cheese, buffalo mozzarella and specialty foods including Lillie Belle handmade chocolates and Rosebud spiced plum chutney.

Another stop on this gastronomic odyssey is at Rocco’s Pastry Shop and Espresso Cafe (243 Bleeker St.), where you’ll find cakes which are the stuff of dreams. You take one step into Rocco’s and the sight of the loaded racks of cookies, baked goods and freezers chock-a-bloc full of cakes, not to mention the heavenly aroma of fresh baked breads, is enough to set your mouth watering worse than a bull dog with a bone just out of reach of his leash. Eat your fill, wash it down with a strong espresso, and take along a few slices of cakes and some cookies for later consumption, and maybe a gift basket for someone you want to make really, really happy.

Some more stops at a couple of Italian pizzerias and a Mediterranean olive oil shop rounds of the Greenwich Village food tour, and you can take home a slice of New York with you. The company also offers tours of Chelsea Market, Soho and Chinatown, so if you have a full week, I suggest you wrap up Lady Liberty, Times Square attractions, Fifth Avenue shopping and other cookie-cutter tourist options in a day or two and spend a couple of days stomping around with the Food of New York tours.