Bologna Food Tours
A Bologna food tour is three or four hours through the Quadrilatero market streets and the covered markets, with mortadella, Parmigiano, tortellini, tagliatelle and Lambrusco along the way, and it replaces lunch. Compare the top-rated tours below, then read our notes on the formats.
Bologna food tours
Formats: classic walking tours with six to eight tastings through the Quadrilatero and the Mercato delle Erbe; market-focused morning tours; evening tours with a sit-down pasta course and wine; self-guided voucher tours for the budget-minded.
What you will taste: mortadella and prosciutto from a deli, Parmigiano with balsamic, crescentine or tigelle with squacquerone, a plate of tortellini or tagliatelle al ragù, gelato, and Pignoletto or Lambrusco.
Price and time: roughly 60 to 100 euros for three to four hours; morning starts catch the markets.
What the good tours do
They walk the Quadrilatero properly, Via Pescherie Vecchie, Via Drapperie and Via Caprarie, stopping at a deli for mortadella cut thick and thin, a cheese counter for Parmigiano at two ages with a drop of traditional balsamic, and a bakery for crescentine. They go into the Mercato delle Erbe or the Mercato di Mezzo, and they sit down at least once for tagliatelle al ragù or tortellini in brodo with a glass of wine. Eight to twelve guests; a local guide who explains why the ragù is not the sauce you know.
Morning or evening?
Morning tours see the markets at their best and end with lunch. Evening tours skip the markets, which close, and lean on delis, wine bars and a trattoria course; they suit people who spent the day on a producer tour. Sunday is a poor day for either, since the markets are shut.
Budget option
Self-guided tasting tours sell a voucher booklet for a set route of shops and bars at around half the price of a guided walk. You lose the guide and gain flexibility; fine for a second visit.
How we choose
We list only experiences with a strong rating over a meaningful number of reviews and free cancellation where available, and we favour small-group and family-run hosts. FindEatLocal earns a commission when you book through GetYourGuide or Viator links on this page; it doesn’t change the price you pay. More about how we choose.
FAQ about Bologna Food Tours
Frequently asked questions
How much food is on a Bologna food tour?
Enough to replace lunch or dinner: six to eight stops with cured meats, cheese, bread, a pasta course, gelato and wine.
Are there vegetarian Bologna food tours?
Most adapt with notice; cheese, bread, pasta with butter and sage, and gelato cover much of it, but mortadella and prosciutto are central to the city, so expect substitutions rather than a vegetarian route.
Food tour or cooking class in Bologna?
A food tour first; it teaches you what to eat for the rest of the trip. Add a pasta class for the skill.