Exploring London’s Soho through food: A food tour review
Soho is a bustling, vibrant part of central London, known for its mix of bars, restaurants, cafés, and small boutique shops. These sit alongside theatres and music venues, all within a relatively small area.
Located in the West End, it’s within easy walking distance of major attractions like Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and Oxford Street, so it’s somewhere most visitors naturally end up at some point during a trip to London.
If you do find yourself there, a food tour is a great way to explore Soho. It’s packed with small, independent eateries serving all kinds of cuisines. A tour gives you the opportunity to sample a variety of them while getting a better feel for the area.
I’m a big fan of food tours, especially when you’re on short trips and time is limited. They’re a practical way to see parts of a city, learn about its history, and try some of the local food.
So, I was keen to experience one in my home city when I was lucky enough to be invited to join a Soho food tour.
My Soho food tour
Hosted by Jet2.com and Chubby Fellow, the tour showcased some of the diverse European cuisines London has to offer, and which can now also be experienced during a short break booked through Jet2.com and Jet2holidays from its new Gatwick airport base. The base adds a further choice of carriers for those flying from the West Sussex-based terminal, as I often do.
You can check out the destinations Jet2.holidays and will start offering flights to from Gatwick from March 2026 here.
You can also read my review of the food tour below. Note that all views are entirely my own and reflect my personal experience. Although I received a free place on the tour in exchange for highlighting Jet2.com’s new Gatwick airport base, I did not receive any further payment for this post.
This post contains affiliate links
The food tour
Our group tour started in Golden Square. This small square is in the heart of Soho, just a five-minute walk from Piccadilly Circus tube station.
After a round of introductions led by our enthusiastic tour guides and a small homemade welcome gin cocktail down us (designed to signify Croatia as a new Jet2holidays destination from Gatwick airport), and we were instantly at ease and knew we had a fun couple of hours ahead.
Spain: croquettes and vermouth
Having briefly focused on Croatia, our next stop was Spain and a visit to the small Bar Kroketa on Beak Street. Over a glass of Spanish vermouth, our guides told us a few historical facts about Soho, including where its name comes from (apparently from an ancient hunting cry, although other theories also exist).
We then got to sample two croquettes, one with Jamon Iberico and another with prawns (a substitute was provided for vegetarians). These were absolutely delicious: light and delicate, and not at all like some of the heavy fried food that can be served as part of tapas plates.
I’ve recently been to Spain, so I was particularly interested in trying the food on offer here. I’d not had either croquettes or vermouth on my visit to Seville – and in Jerez had focused on the city’s famous sherry – so I really enjoyed trying both.
Italy: chocolate, prosciutto, and cheese
We then moved on to two stops that showcased Italy (there will be flights to Verona and Naples from May with Jet2holidays, both of which are fantastic cities and worth putting on your list for a short European break).
We were taken to Smiths Court, a small, attractive square just off Brewer Street. Here, we congregated outside William Curley, a bright, colourful chocolate shop that proudly states on the window that it has the accolade of being a four-time winner of the ‘Best British Chocolatier’ by the Academy of Chocolate.
While here, we were given two small chocolates to try: one Tuscan raspberry and one rosemary and olive oil. Based at least on the chocolates we tried, I can see why it’s an award winner. We stood around in the square, soaking up the vibe and discussing what a lovely place this would be to return to for a longer visit in their café.
We then popped into Lina Stores, just a short walk away. This delightful Italian deli reminded me a lot of the shops we browsed around in our trip to Bologna: think cabinets of fresh cheese and meat, hams hanging down from the ceiling, and fresh pasta in the windows.
Lina Stores also has shelves lining the walls crammed with a plethora of other Italian products on sale: from olive oil to chocolate, to big, wrapped panettone. It would be a perfect place to pick up gifts for any foodie in your life.
Our food samples here were nibbles of prosciutto San Daniele and Ubriaco rossi cheese. I didn’t try the prosciutto, but was told it was delicious. The same can certainly be said of the cheese!
Greece: souvlaki, fritters, and Greek wine
The sun was shining during our tour, a reminder that summer is approaching. So, a stop to sample some Greek food was a good reminder that Greece offers some perfect summer destinations (I note that Jet2holidays will be flying to Heraklion in Crete, bringing back fond memories of my trip a couple of years ago to Elounda. You can read more about this here, including our excursion to the fascinating historical island of Spinalonga).
This was a sit-down stop at Suvlaki with a refreshing glass of Greek wine. There were courgette fritters on offer with a small side dip, followed by a pork souvlaki: grilled marinated meat served in pitta bread.
As a non-meat eater, I got a vegetarian souvlaki filled with mastelo, a tasty cheese similar to haloumi. And as with everything so far on the tour, the food was delicious.
Portugal: Pastel de nata
The last stop was dessert: a brief stop at the Portuguese Café de Nata on Old Compton Street.
Here we tried a warm pasteis de natas, the traditional Portuguese custard tart invented in the local monastery in Belem in Lisbon in the 1830s (if you visit Lisbon, visiting the Pasteis de Belem to try these custard tarts is a must. You can read more about additional things to do in Belem here).
Having been to Belem a few times, I’m never quite sure whether another version of the tart will live up to the traditional one, but I have to say these were pretty damn good! Fortunately, we weren’t offered a second one because I’d have probably eaten it…
Final thoughts
I thought this was a great tour. As I mentioned earlier, I’m a big fan of food tours, and have recently been booking one when I’m in a city for a short break. They give me a time-efficient way to sightsee, while ensuring I’m not missing out on experiencing a few different bars and eateries in a city and exploring the local food scene.
While this tour didn’t take in the main London sights (arguably, this would be hard to do on a food tour in such a big city), it does allow you to see the famous Soho area and appreciate some of the city’s diverse cultures.
The quantities of food offered were also generous. We ate a fair amount over the course of two hours – we certainly didn’t go hungry – and sampled a couple of drinks.
The energy and warmth of the guides were also a real bonus. Their love of food and drink was evident, and they mastered the art of putting everyone at ease and bringing together a group of strangers for a truly enjoyable experience.
Other food tours
If you want to explore more food tours on offer from Chubby Fellow, you can check out their website.
There is also a good selection of other food tours and experiences available in London, some of which may be more affordable options. These include food cruises down the River Thames, and afternoon tea bus tours.
Browse the full range of food experiences in London here.
Ideas for short European and UK breaks
For guides on European and UK short breaks, click here. These cover a range of destination guides, itineraries, and reviews of top attractions.
I also have a range of specific posts on the top attractions in London if you’re visiting the capital.
To explore more destinations that Jet2.com and Jet2holidays will fly to from London Gatwick, click here.
