Gourmet Getaway Tours - Allambie Heights, New South Wales

Celine K.

Jimmy’s tour was amazing! By far the best tour I’ve ever been on. 
You can feel and see his care for people and love for food during the whole day. It was such an unique experience and I loved that the day was filled with different elements. We started the day early at the fish market (where we even got to try some Sydney Rock oysters!!) had breakfast all together and visited three unique vineyards in the Hunter Valley. The wines, Jimmy’s food and stories of the local producers were the highlight of the day for me. Would highly recommend for everyone who’s traveling to Sydney! Thanks for the best day Jimmy!

管野希一

This tour is really fantastic. And tour guide Jimmy is kind and friendly for everyone. I could spend wonderful time with him. And We can try many kinds of wines at beautiful places. Price is really reasonable.
I can’t speak English well but I could enjoy the tour.

Brenda N.

We had such a great time on Jimmy’s Hunter Valley Tour. We met early in the morning and all went to the fish market where he gave us a quick tour and enough time for some coffee. He then drove us to a pretty picnic spot and made us a morning meal - which was delicious! Afterwards, he drove us to 3 different wineries and gave us a food pairing at 2 out of the 3 wineries. It was all really amazing food and the wineries he picked were perfect! We left nice and tipsy with several bottles of wine to take on the rest of our holiday. I highly recommend this tour and would do it again.

Lockie H.

Truly magical Hunter valley food/wine tour. We make a point of taking a cooking class or a chef-led tour in every city we visit. From Panama to Paris, we find that education in local food and working with a chef is one of the best methods of understanding a culture.
Jimmy was one of the best tour guides we have ever experienced. He was funny, creative, and able to accommodate a variety of needs, and he was also a heck of a chef! Every dish was wonderful. Nothing was off-balance or mediocre. Every…single…dish was well thought out, well executed, and full of umami.
The itinerary was also excellent, combining not just a wine tour, but a stop at the Fishmarket and a stop for chocolates.
Let’s start at the beginning. Jimmy took us to the fishmarket, where he purchased some wonderful scallops and oysters and other items for later in the day. Jimmy explained the auction and gave us some context. I saw some seafood, specifically “bugs” (similar to lobsters) that I had never seen before.

Then we were off to have breakfast and roll our own sushi at a lovely place by a river (or body of water that I wish I remembered the name of). What a sweet seaside town! Jimmy dropped us off at a spot where we could walk around this wonderful body of water and then walk up gorgeous mossy rocks to the top where he had already begun preparing our breakfast. It was great to take a little walk and stretch out legs along the way. There was also the option of driving to the top with Jimmy for folks who were unable to take the walk up the steps. We all rolled our own sushi, including adding some of the “bugs” that he had purchased from the fishmarket. Jimmy was very patient with our rolling technique, and I was surprised at how beautifully they turned out when we ate them at our last stop. I thought that the breakfast would be a bit of an afterthought, and the wonderful chef-inspired dishes would come later, but this breakfast had salmon offerings and mushroom offerings. Fresh fruit! Breads! Truly a bountiful breakfast!

Then we were off to the Hunter Valley, the real gem of the trip and why we came. The vineyards were thoughtfully chosen, and we received quite an education at them, especially the first vineyard, where the person clearly knew her viticulture and enology. At the first vineyard, we saw kangaroos and Jimmy talked to us about the biology and habits of kangaroos.

Our next stop was at a chocolate shop where we bought some of the wonderful banana spread that Jimmy had used on the banana bread for breakfast. We also purchased some chocolates, of course. Jimmy had an arranged for a tasting and a bit of an explanation of some select chocolates for our group.

The second and third Vineyards were where the food pairings really came out. At the second vineyard, Jimmy brought out asparagus and oysters and mushrooms and cheese and bread and more! All perfectly paired with the wines. At the third stop, we experienced our sushi that we had prepared earlier, and Jimmy brought out some Wagyu beef sliders that were among one of the best sliders I’ve ever had. And scallops in the shell. Wow! He finished it off with torching crème brûlée at tableside. This was a vineyard that was lovely and definitely worth strolling around in as well. I was stuffed by the end of of this tour. It was more food than I expected.

At the end, Jimmy was kind enough to drop us off at a different stop, because we are staying in one of the suburbs of Sydney, and it was much easier for us to be dropped off at an area that was not downtown. I’m so happy that I chose this as our first excursion. We also had escaped some of the flooding from a hurricane in our hometown in Western North Carolina, so unfortunately, there were a lot of phone calls, back-and-forth and logistics and things we needed to handle that were, distressing that day, but having this day with Jimmy, and the wine country (as both the start to our Australia adventure and as a balm for everything that was happening back home) was more than I expected. It was healing. It was magical. It was a perfect day.

Jeremy Y.

Hands down this is one of the best food tours you'll ever do. Jimmy is first an amazing chef and he really whips up a storm in this tour. There is so much food all personally prepared by him and you'll be stuffed by the quantity and blown away by the amazing quality. Jimmy is also an amazing guide and he'll share some amazing insights and take you on a lovely journey to see some of the best parts of Sydney outside the city center, including the beaches, a brewery, look out points and many more. This tour is definitely a must do for anyone.

I've done both of Jimmy's tours across the years and both are amazing. One of the best experiences you could possibly ever do in Sydney.

Michelle S.

This review is for the Hunter Valley wine tour. Before I start my long winded overshare about how much I loved this tour, if you’re looking for the short and sweet here it is: book this tour! If you’ve only set aside one day for wine, just do this tour! You will have a wonderful authentically Australian experience! From the hotel pick up to drop off I felt well cared for, entertained, wined and dined! We started off at the fish market, and even though I had been before I learned so much more! After that we had a beautiful breakfast by the river outside of Sydney, there was an optional very short nature walk to the breakfast area and lovely views. Besides some fabulous birdwatching we got a yummy breakfast and a sushi making lesson. Our guide Jimmy made me laugh out loud several times, he’s such a wonderful chef, but also seems like a wonderful person. I usually hate being on tours and being herded here and there, but Jimmy was so kind and gentle with keeping us on schedule I hardly felt like I was on a tour at all! In fact it felt more like your very organized friend with a giant van decided to plan the loveliest day possible. Ok…back on track, the ride to Hunter Valley was longish, but between the stop for breakfast and the great commentary when something interesting came up it didn’t feel too bad. We visited 3 great wineries, and had food pairings at the last 2. The food was excellent, as good as anything you’ll get in Sydney. I know I’m just an internet lady, but I have had the good fortune to be able to visit lots of Michelin star restaurants, I can confidently say the food is up to par, and thoughtfully paired with the wine. Lots of good pairings and SEVERAL great pairings. All the wineries were happy to have us, everything felt well organized and orchestrated. My husband was working so I was traveling by myself and I truly felt well cared for! I was never bored, certainly never hungry, but definitely a little tipsy by the end! Please do go on this tour, you will enjoy it!

Eric C.

Incredible day tour of all the wineries of the hunter valley - you will NOT regret doing this! You get more than enough incredible food and wine and Jimmy is hands down the best tour guide I’ve ever had. He’s kind, knowledgeable and very fun. He ensures you have a stellar time and makes you feel part of the group. He’s also an incredible chef! Very fun day

J D.

What a wonderful day we had exploring the Hunter Valley and enjoying food and wine pairings at several wineries. We even happened upon some wild kangaroos in a vineyard. We highly recommend this tour. We arranged ours through Trip Advisor. Pick up and drop off at our Sydney hotel was very convenient.