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Beyond the Barrel: From Decadent to Down-home in the Heart of Porto
4.9
240 Ratings
Porto
Explore Porto’s culinary delights on a full-day food tour with 10+ tastings, from éclairs to Port wine. Discover hidden gems and local favorites.
Explore Porto’s culinary delights on a full-day food tour with 10+ tastings, from éclairs to Port wine. Discover hidden gems and local favorites.
Duration:
5 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Praca Gomes Teixeira - A monumental square with the sights of Igreja do Carmo and Igreja das Carmelitas, where we are surrounded by the iconic and historical elements of Porto life that we discuss during the walk, including the Clérigos tower, a genuine baroque masterpiece. From there we will enjoy a delicious pastry with coffee.
- **Miradouro da…
- Praca Gomes Teixeira - A monumental square with the sights of Igreja do Carmo and Igreja das Carmelitas, where we are surrounded by the iconic and historical elements of Porto life that we discuss during the walk, including the Clérigos tower, a genuine baroque masterpiece. From there we will enjoy a delicious pastry with coffee.
- Miradouro da Vitoria - A magnificent viewpoint to enjoy the city and it’s geography, where we can taste a traditional savory pastry.
- Sao Bento Railway Station - We’ll pop into the station for a quick lesson on migration history, before some fresh fruit. Then nearby we will stop into a taverna with an avid local following for a sip of vinho verde and a taste of charcuterie and a salt cod speciality.
- Church of Saint Ildefonso - Nearby we will enjoy one the best sandwiches of the city, a Porto speciality, with the friendliest staff you can find.
- Praça dos Poveiros - Cheese, wine and small plates in a square full of delicious food.
- Fontainhas Viewpoint - Here we will take in the amazing views as we reflect on the amazing food we had during the tour
- Muralha Fernandina - Nearby we will enjoy dessert in a very special bakery.
What's Included
- Breakfast
- Lunch
- Snacks
- Tea and coffee
- Alcoholic beverages
- Breakfast
- Lunch
- Snacks
- Tea and coffee
- Alcoholic beverages
Additional Information
Porto is a picture-perfect city, its beauty easily captured in a single frame — monumental churches dressed in blue tiles line a steep street opening up onto a view over the Douro River to Vila Nova de Gaia on the other side of the river, where the city’s famed Port wine lodges and their iconic billboards dot the hill. Dig deeper into the backstreets…
Porto is a picture-perfect city, its beauty easily captured in a single frame — monumental churches dressed in blue tiles line a steep street opening up onto a view over the Douro River to Vila Nova de Gaia on the other side of the river, where the city’s famed Port wine lodges and their iconic billboards dot the hill. Dig deeper into the backstreets and we find the complexities of city life and the culinary diversity that comes with it. On this full-day food tour, with at least ten tasting stops, we’ll start with the city’s favorite pastry, the éclair, and strong coffee before visiting a 3rd generation chocolate-maker. We’ll stop into a tavern for a quick petisco of smoked meat and whatever’s fresh and then visit a traditional cheese shop for a tasting. We’ll sample one of Porto’s famed sandwiches at a lunch counter crowded with locals and head to a neighborhood restaurant to taste the freshest fish and finish with a tasting Port wine and gooey cakes created in a Portuguese convent.
Location
Rua de Fernandes Tomás 775
Rua de Fernandes Tomás
The meeting point is at Praceta da Palestina, at the red vintage phone booth just across from Pastelaria Imperio located at Rua Fernandes Tomás, 775.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(240 Ratings)
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Intrepid75a
Nov 26, 2025
Excellent food and wine tour of Porto - A great tour. We got a lot of different types of experiences, from an old-fashioned shop selling wine, cheese and other foods, through a restaurant, a workers' bar and a cafe, ending in a very trendy bar/cafe/. I really apprecated that range. We also got to taste a lot of interesting food and drinks. Our guide was excellent, very knowledgeable about the food and wine, the city of Porto, including some of the more unusual aspects of its history in the tour, which we would never have experienced otherwise. I cannot recommend it more highly.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
984christiew
Nov 24, 2025
Perfect Start to our Trip to Porto! - We booked the Beyond the Barrel: From Decadent to Down-home in the Heart of Porto tour for our first full day in the city and couldn’t have chosen better. It was the perfect introduction to Porto’s food culture and history. We loved the mix of traditional venues and newer spots that truly showcased the city.
One thing we appreciated most is that Culinary Backstreets clearly builds real relationships with the owners and teams at each stop. The restaurants and shops featured felt thoughtfully chosen through their own research rather than popularity or social media trends.
Our guide, Marcel, was fantastic—knowledgeable, passionate about food and travel, and genuinely enjoyable to spend several hours with. The experience felt personal, immersive, and incredibly delicious.
Highly recommend this tour to anyone wanting to understand Porto through its food.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Cappy66
Nov 22, 2025
Outstanding Porto walk - Loved this tour. A great way to get to know Porto a little bit and try some of the local specialties. Our guide was superb and continued to give us recommendations and advice even after the tour was over. I even got tours on the best places to find Porto’s 4 essential sandwiches on my own. I highly recommend this tour and this company in general.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dianerr6732cw
Nov 3, 2025
Open your palette and enjoy!! So Yummy! - Absolutely an amazing experience! Our tour guide was the best. She was very knowledgeable and very helpful. At the end I could not fit one more bite. Totally worth it!
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Tammy
Oct 31, 2025
Great intro to Porto - This was an amazing tour, I am thrilled I booked it. More than great food, we got a bit of history and great insider tips. Highly recommend it.
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Y4304msmartinj
Oct 28, 2025
Insights into Porto - The perfect introduction to Porto! Our guide enthusiastically introduced us to a variety of amazing food whilst also sharing information about this beautiful city. Each destination on the tour was superb with fantastic food and a unique setting. As always, a Culinary Backstreet tour is the perfect introduction to a city - we highly recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jacqui759
Oct 24, 2025
Highly recommend - Bruno was a wonderful guide and very knowledgeable- we had the chance to explore some very different neighbourhoods off the tourist areas.
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Otbplover
Oct 22, 2025
The Beyond the Barrel in the Heart of Porto is a must do tour! - My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed our Beyond the Barrel: From Decadent to Down-home in the Heart of Porto tour. led by Carine. It was the two of us and two other couples. A perfect size group. Every place we went was unique from the last. Examples of the stops included a cafe, a traditional grocery store-NOT like at home, the recently renovated Mercado do Bolhão, a small bar/bistro run by a son and his father, a neighborhood restaurant with outdoor eating, and we had Easter cake at a lovely pastry shop. I believe there were 7 stops in total, across 6 hours. We had very tasty sardines at one stop because we mentioned that we had never had them. They were excellent! We even brought some home with us. The food was very good and traditional for Porto. Carine is a fun and engaging guide. She made us all feel welcome and included. She knows her city, the foods found there, and the people who served us at each stop. It felt like we were making new friends and becoming part of the community. Such fun! And the fee was definitely fair for all we learned, tasted, and experienced. Thank you, Carine! We hope to see you again when we return to Porto.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sidneyz521
Oct 21, 2025
A great day in Porto - We had a wonderful day with Corine. She was delightful in leading us and introducing us to Porto and to merchants and restaurants. We got to experience her love for her city and her work. And everything was delicious!!! And exciting!! Culinary Backstreets always allows us to experience the food and the culture of the town in an intimate and personal way. BRAVO!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
O3525wclaurab
Oct 20, 2025
Fantastic Food Tour - What a fabulous tour! Mariana was such a wonderful, knowledgeable guide and we visited places we never would have uncovered on our own. And, of course, the food was delicious!
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