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Follow Them to the Food	Follow Them to the Food
2013-07-30 22:20:27 UTC	2013-07-31 02:20:24 UTC (about 4 hours later)
You know it’s there. You’ve seen it on TV. You’ve devoured a few blog posts about it.	You know it’s there. You’ve seen it on TV. You’ve devoured a few blog posts about it.
Maybe it’s that spot in Rome where clandestine tables are set up in an alley and a neighborhood feast comes together beneath the honeyed glow of street lamps. Maybe it’s that tiny shop in a parking lot in Penang that sells the sublime coconut tarts, or the unglamorous strip mall in Los Angeles where Anthony Bourdain once sweated over a bowl of spicy Thai boat noodles.	Maybe it’s that spot in Rome where clandestine tables are set up in an alley and a neighborhood feast comes together beneath the honeyed glow of street lamps. Maybe it’s that tiny shop in a parking lot in Penang that sells the sublime coconut tarts, or the unglamorous strip mall in Los Angeles where Anthony Bourdain once sweated over a bowl of spicy Thai boat noodles.
If there’s one thing you’ve learned from watching all those shows with Mr. Bourdain, the voracious world traveler, it’s that these out-of-the-way treasures do exist. You, too, can eat there.	If there’s one thing you’ve learned from watching all those shows with Mr. Bourdain, the voracious world traveler, it’s that these out-of-the-way treasures do exist. You, too, can eat there.
The only catch? You may need a little help.	The only catch? You may need a little help.
It’s that line of thinking that explains the rise, over the last few years, of a new kind of travel specialist — so new, in fact, that they haven’t coined a name for the job. For now, let’s call them the food sherpas.	It’s that line of thinking that explains the rise, over the last few years, of a new kind of travel specialist — so new, in fact, that they haven’t coined a name for the job. For now, let’s call them the food sherpas.
Just as a traditional Sherpa helps a mountain climber navigate the stresses and mysteries of a Himalayan peak, a food sherpa is a local expert who brings a hungry traveler to pockets of the culinary landscape that may otherwise seem out of reach.	Just as a traditional Sherpa guide helps a mountain climber navigate the stresses and mysteries of a Himalayan peak, a food sherpa is a local expert who brings a hungry traveler to pockets of the culinary landscape that may otherwise seem out of reach.
You’ll find them in Paris and Barcelona, in Malaysia and Mexico. But don’t go looking for a long, tortoise-paced phalanx of tourists in white sneakers trailing behind a guide who’s waving a flag and barking memorized data through a megaphone. Food sherpas pride themselves in offering something different: an experience that gives small groups of visitors (sometimes as few as 2, and rarely more than 12) an intimate encounter with what’s off the eaten path.	You’ll find them in Paris and Barcelona, in Malaysia and Mexico. But don’t go looking for a long, tortoise-paced phalanx of tourists in white sneakers trailing behind a guide who’s waving a flag and barking memorized data through a megaphone. Food sherpas pride themselves in offering something different: an experience that gives small groups of visitors (sometimes as few as 2, and rarely more than 12) an intimate encounter with what’s off the eaten path.
“I usually don’t like tours,” said Lisa Rogovin, the entrepreneur behind a company called Edible Excursions, which oversees 25 to 40 deep dives, every month, into the diverse food scene of the San Francisco Bay Area. “I really need to know that this is going to be real and authentic. I don’t want to be on a bus. I don’t want to be in a herd of cattle.”	“I usually don’t like tours,” said Lisa Rogovin, the entrepreneur behind a company called Edible Excursions, which oversees 25 to 40 deep dives, every month, into the diverse food scene of the San Francisco Bay Area. “I really need to know that this is going to be real and authentic. I don’t want to be on a bus. I don’t want to be in a herd of cattle.”
That has been Rick Gelbard’s goal for decades. “My wife and I had never actually taken a tour,” said Mr. Gelbard, 62, a retired Panavision engineering executive who lives in California. “We have always preferred to travel independently.” But while preparing for a trip to Rome and trying to figure out where to eat, he found the ocean of online data to be overwhelming.	That has been Rick Gelbard’s goal for decades. “My wife and I had never actually taken a tour,” said Mr. Gelbard, 62, a retired Panavision engineering executive who lives in California. “We have always preferred to travel independently.” But while preparing for a trip to Rome and trying to figure out where to eat, he found the ocean of online data to be overwhelming.
Before long, he came across a blog called Elizabeth Minchilli in Rome. He learned that Ms. Minchilli, a food writer and occasional New York Times contributor who has lived in Italy since 1988 (and who spent some of her childhood there), could be hired as a private emissary to gastronomic gems around the city.	Before long, he came across a blog called Elizabeth Minchilli in Rome. He learned that Ms. Minchilli, a food writer and occasional New York Times contributor who has lived in Italy since 1988 (and who spent some of her childhood there), could be hired as a private emissary to gastronomic gems around the city.
“I just thought, ‘Let’s try this out,’ ” Mr. Gelbard said.	“I just thought, ‘Let’s try this out,’ ” Mr. Gelbard said.
What followed, once he and his wife landed in Rome, was a day of dining like a Bourdain-in-training: cappuccinos in a coffeehouse that looked as if it hadn’t changed since the early 1970s; a sampling of fresh mozzarella and burrata; deep-fried artichokes in a working-class osteria; and trays of delicious cured meats from a deli so nondescript that a casual tourist would probably walk right past it.	What followed, once he and his wife landed in Rome, was a day of dining like a Bourdain-in-training: cappuccinos in a coffeehouse that looked as if it hadn’t changed since the early 1970s; a sampling of fresh mozzarella and burrata; deep-fried artichokes in a working-class osteria; and trays of delicious cured meats from a deli so nondescript that a casual tourist would probably walk right past it.
“It was a kind of experience you just don’t get if you’re wandering around by yourself,” Mr. Gelbard said. “What it felt like is, I met up with an old friend who’s been living in Rome for a decade, and she showed us around.”	“It was a kind of experience you just don’t get if you’re wandering around by yourself,” Mr. Gelbard said. “What it felt like is, I met up with an old friend who’s been living in Rome for a decade, and she showed us around.”
The old-friend treatment isn’t cheap. In some cases, enlisting the services of a first-class food sherpa can cost the same as dinner at a Michelin-starred restaurant: from $75 or $100 a person to as much as $1,000 for a small group, for what is often a three- or four-hour excursion. (The food tends to be included.)	The old-friend treatment isn’t cheap. In some cases, enlisting the services of a first-class food sherpa can cost the same as dinner at a Michelin-starred restaurant: from $75 or $100 a person to as much as $1,000 for a small group, for what is often a three- or four-hour excursion. (The food tends to be included.)
Then there’s the inevitable downside of any booming trend: with food tours cropping up all over, you could pick one led by a local chef, an award-winning cookbook author or an experienced blogger, or you could wind up with some food-truck-savvy charlatan who just moved to town.	Then there’s the inevitable downside of any booming trend: with food tours cropping up all over, you could pick one led by a local chef, an award-winning cookbook author or an experienced blogger, or you could wind up with some food-truck-savvy charlatan who just moved to town.
“You get what you pay for,” Ms. Rogovin said. “My tours cost more than the other tours, but I hire informed industry insiders to lead them.”	“You get what you pay for,” Ms. Rogovin said. “My tours cost more than the other tours, but I hire informed industry insiders to lead them.”
Food tours, both the good and the mediocre, are flourishing because food consciousness is, too. Meg Zimbeck, who arranges tours through the Paris by Mouth site, which she founded, has seen “an increase in people who are traveling to eat,” she said. “That is as important for them as going to the Eiffel Tower.”	Food tours, both the good and the mediocre, are flourishing because food consciousness is, too. Meg Zimbeck, who arranges tours through the Paris by Mouth site, which she founded, has seen “an increase in people who are traveling to eat,” she said. “That is as important for them as going to the Eiffel Tower.”
They relish visiting “places that will give them bragging rights when they go back home,” and if they’re feasting on, say, cheese, they want insights that go beyond the rudimentary.	They relish visiting “places that will give them bragging rights when they go back home,” and if they’re feasting on, say, cheese, they want insights that go beyond the rudimentary.
“I see people leading food tours in Paris that are sort of just taking people through the market and being like: ‘So this is cheese! There’s hard cheese, there’s soft cheese!’ ” said Ms. Zimbeck, who, like many of the sherpas, is an American expatriate. “When I’m in a shop and somebody asks me a wild-card question about ‘What’s that cheese over there?’, because cheese is my No. 1 obsession in life, I know.”	“I see people leading food tours in Paris that are sort of just taking people through the market and being like: ‘So this is cheese! There’s hard cheese, there’s soft cheese!’ ” said Ms. Zimbeck, who, like many of the sherpas, is an American expatriate. “When I’m in a shop and somebody asks me a wild-card question about ‘What’s that cheese over there?’, because cheese is my No. 1 obsession in life, I know.”
On one hand, tracking down the world’s most excellent arancini (or arepas or angulas or ambuyat) should be easier than ever, thanks to the profusion of food sites scattered around the Internet. That same profusion, though, can turn into a problem. When thousands of voices are shouting about where to go, it’s often impossible for a layperson to choose which spots genuinely stand out.	On one hand, tracking down the world’s most excellent arancini (or arepas or angulas or ambuyat) should be easier than ever, thanks to the profusion of food sites scattered around the Internet. That same profusion, though, can turn into a problem. When thousands of voices are shouting about where to go, it’s often impossible for a layperson to choose which spots genuinely stand out.
“I filter through all the clutter for them,” said Wendy Lyn, who runs a site called The Paris Kitchen and puts together tours (for no more than four people at a time) of the city she has called home for more than 20 years.	“I filter through all the clutter for them,” said Wendy Lyn, who runs a site called The Paris Kitchen and puts together tours (for no more than four people at a time) of the city she has called home for more than 20 years.
And for a meticulous food sherpa, clutter removal is only the beginning. In Paris, experts like Ms. Lyn and Ms. Zimbeck don’t just bring their charges along to cheese shops and pâtisseries. They school them on how to behave when they get there.	And for a meticulous food sherpa, clutter removal is only the beginning. In Paris, experts like Ms. Lyn and Ms. Zimbeck don’t just bring their charges along to cheese shops and pâtisseries. They school them on how to behave when they get there.
One should not, for instance, barge into a shop and, without exchanging a word with anyone behind the counter, start reaching into a display case to Charmin-squeeze some mille-feuille. “In France, that’s a huge no-no,” Ms. Lyn said.	One should not, for instance, barge into a shop and, without exchanging a word with anyone behind the counter, start reaching into a display case to Charmin-squeeze some mille-feuille. “In France, that’s a huge no-no,” Ms. Lyn said.
Instead, she shows them how to shop (and eat) like a seasoned pro. “I teach,” she said. “It’s more than going into a cheese shop and saying, ‘O.K., this is the right place.’ It’s a cheese consultation. It takes, like, an hour to buy cheese. It’s this whole thing.”	Instead, she shows them how to shop (and eat) like a seasoned pro. “I teach,” she said. “It’s more than going into a cheese shop and saying, ‘O.K., this is the right place.’ It’s a cheese consultation. It takes, like, an hour to buy cheese. It’s this whole thing.”
Skilled food sherpas also protect their hungry broods from one of the classic tourist missteps: going to the right place, but ordering the wrong thing.	Skilled food sherpas also protect their hungry broods from one of the classic tourist missteps: going to the right place, but ordering the wrong thing.
“The way you eat Thai food is not the way you eat any other cuisine,” said Jet Tila, a Los Angeles chef whose Melting Pot tours of Thai Town have attracted a following that includes Mr. Bourdain himself. “Thai people go to a certain restaurant that specializes in a certain dish. If you order wrong at any particular restaurant, you’re hosed. We are obligated to tell people not just where to go, but what to order.”	“The way you eat Thai food is not the way you eat any other cuisine,” said Jet Tila, a Los Angeles chef whose Melting Pot tours of Thai Town have attracted a following that includes Mr. Bourdain himself. “Thai people go to a certain restaurant that specializes in a certain dish. If you order wrong at any particular restaurant, you’re hosed. We are obligated to tell people not just where to go, but what to order.”
So it’s Ruen Pair for green papaya salad, and Sapp Coffee Shop for boat noodles, and no place whatsoever for a certain dish that has become an overexposed, Americanized shadow of its former self. “There’s not a lick of pad thai on my tour,” Mr. Tila said. “I will not allow it to be ordered. Spread your wings a little bit. Try something new.”	So it’s Ruen Pair for green papaya salad, and Sapp Coffee Shop for boat noodles, and no place whatsoever for a certain dish that has become an overexposed, Americanized shadow of its former self. “There’s not a lick of pad thai on my tour,” Mr. Tila said. “I will not allow it to be ordered. Spread your wings a little bit. Try something new.”
If you’re in Istanbul, for instance, perhaps you want a taste of kokorec, a Turkish street food that involves offal, like sweetbreads, that has been wrapped in glistening strips of intestine. The whole thing is usually chopped up and put into a sandwich with a spatula.	If you’re in Istanbul, for instance, perhaps you want a taste of kokorec, a Turkish street food that involves offal, like sweetbreads, that has been wrapped in glistening strips of intestine. The whole thing is usually chopped up and put into a sandwich with a spatula.
“People really love that one,” said Ansel Mullins, of the Istanbul Eats site, whose Culinary Backstreets tours of Istanbul have been booming since he and the journalist Yigal Schleifer hatched them in 2010. (They have since branched out to Athens and Barcelona.)	“People really love that one,” said Ansel Mullins, of the Istanbul Eats site, whose Culinary Backstreets tours of Istanbul have been booming since he and the journalist Yigal Schleifer hatched them in 2010. (They have since branched out to Athens and Barcelona.)
Mr. Mullins and his team can help you find that dish — and an array of “mom-and-pop shops that really matter to the neighborhood” but don’t tend to be part of the cruise-ship circuit. Without him, good luck.	Mr. Mullins and his team can help you find that dish — and an array of “mom-and-pop shops that really matter to the neighborhood” but don’t tend to be part of the cruise-ship circuit. Without him, good luck.
“I think some of the best places to eat in Istanbul are places where it would be difficult for somebody to walk in and manage a meal,” he said. “It’s harder to decipher the dining culture.”	“I think some of the best places to eat in Istanbul are places where it would be difficult for somebody to walk in and manage a meal,” he said. “It’s harder to decipher the dining culture.”
Especially when there’s no menu, and when local shop owners aren’t always sure what to make of these curious new global gastronauts.	Especially when there’s no menu, and when local shop owners aren’t always sure what to make of these curious new global gastronauts.
“They’re like: ‘Wow, why are you bringing these foreigners here? Are you serious? Are you sure?’ ” Mr. Mullins said. “I say, ‘Yeah! They want to talk to you, they want to shake your hand, they want to eat your food and learn about why it’s so important to everybody else in here.’ ”	“They’re like: ‘Wow, why are you bringing these foreigners here? Are you serious? Are you sure?’ ” Mr. Mullins said. “I say, ‘Yeah! They want to talk to you, they want to shake your hand, they want to eat your food and learn about why it’s so important to everybody else in here.’ ”
And more than anything, these visitors want a guarantee that they aren’t going to squander something precious: a great meal in a great city.	And more than anything, these visitors want a guarantee that they aren’t going to squander something precious: a great meal in a great city.
“It’s not just, ‘Let me find a good pastry shop,’ ” said Ms. Zimbeck, of Paris by Mouth. “It’s ‘Which of these hundreds of pastry shops that everyone is writing about is worth my time?’ I think people are attracted to tours because a tour focuses like a laser through all that noise and says, ‘This is the best.’ We’ve done the work. We’ve tasted it. We’ve tested it. We know.”	“It’s not just, ‘Let me find a good pastry shop,’ ” said Ms. Zimbeck, of Paris by Mouth. “It’s ‘Which of these hundreds of pastry shops that everyone is writing about is worth my time?’ I think people are attracted to tours because a tour focuses like a laser through all that noise and says, ‘This is the best.’ We’ve done the work. We’ve tasted it. We’ve tested it. We know.”
A Good Sherpa	A Good Sherpa
You’re traveling to Buenos Aires or Borneo and want an on-the-ground expert to help you eat like a real local. How to make sure you don’t get dragged along to tourist traps by some backpacker from Nebraska who learned how to pronounce Époisses or nuoc cham only three days ago? Here are some things to look for.	You’re traveling to Buenos Aires or Borneo and want an on-the-ground expert to help you eat like a real local. How to make sure you don’t get dragged along to tourist traps by some backpacker from Nebraska who learned how to pronounce Époisses or nuoc cham only three days ago? Here are some things to look for.
Experience	Experience