Federal Hill Food Tour: Crime and Cuisine
4.7
14 Ratings
Providence
Embark on a tantalizing food tour through Providence's Federal Hill neighborhood, indulging in the best Italian cuisine while uncovering the neighborhood's criminal past. Join us for a feloniously delicious adventure!
Duration: 3 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Trattoria Appia - Pasta tasting
  • DePasquale Plaza - Enjoy the sights and sounds of the plaza!
  • Venda Ravioli - Prosciutto, cheese, and olive tasting
  • Roma Ristorante - Eggplant rollatini tasting
  • Napolitano’s Brooklyn Pizza - Pizza Tasting
  • Pastiche Fine Desserts - Pastry tasting
What's Included
  • Wine tasting experience included
  • Lunch provided
Additional Information

An adventurous culinary experience with a criminal twist!

Federal Hill, a much-visited neighborhood of Providence, is acclaimed for its world-class Italian cuisine. During this tour, you’ll get a chance to taste an array of delightful food and beverages, from authentic Italian wine to homemade pasta. Make sure to arrive with an appetite!

Federal Hill was also known for a few notorious figures who didn’t exactly follow the rules. Explore the fascinating history of the State v. Patriarca case, when an up-and-coming city mayor challenged a mafia leader; discover the malfeasance that led to the collapse of Rhode Island’s banking system in the ‘90s, and get insights into a clandestine dice game raid that resulted in a Providence Police Officer plummeting from a second-story window.

Please note, no alcoholic drinks will be served to guests below the age of 21 on this tour.

Location
Garibaldi Square
Atwells Avenue
Meet at the base of La Pigna gateway in Garibaldi Square.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.7
(14 Ratings)
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1 star
Jodi_p
Nov 28, 2023
A good time - The tour guide was knowledgeable and the food was great! Would recommend for locals and out of town tourists.
Review provided by Viator
Angelady7587wi
Nov 11, 2023
Interesting stories and good food. - Visited Providence for a quick weekend trip with friends and decided to do a food tour. It was a great experience. Highly recommend it if you are looking for something to do in the middle of the day for a few hours and eat great food.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Denise_m
Nov 6, 2023
Learning about the... - Learning about the history of the Petriarca family. I grew up in RI and knew of the presence of the mob, but not the details and impact it had.
Review provided by Viator
Doveb991
Sep 26, 2023
we enjoyed it a lot - We went on this tour in the pouring rain! It was a food tour of an Italian area, so we stopped at Italian restaurants, bakeries and groceries. I would have enjoyed a bit more historic information, but all in all it was a lot of fun (though my friend and I wound up soaked!) Our guide, Brad, was very good.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Robertcu1933xo
Sep 6, 2023
Excellent Food tour. - This was a pretty fantastic tour. The crime stories were pretty cool. Since I am not from here, I was not familiar with most of them. Our tour guide was amazing, but of course I forgot her name. She does this a retirement gig and she grew up there, so there was definitely a connection to the material. Food was the highlight of the tour. Unfortunately, they started with the best food with the wine first. I wish they would have started with the pizza instead of finishing with it. All in all, excellent tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Beverly
Jul 1, 2023
Political crime - Kate was excellent but wish there was more characters in the presentation. There has to be more about the corruption and acts of the wise guys.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Adventure703716
Jul 1, 2023
Good crime time - The tour was so fun with some good history of Patriarca and Cianci. Not to mention the excellent tasty bites and walking off some of the calories. Our guide Kate was very good and had a fun persona.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Julie_m
Nov 26, 2023
Great time - It was nice, Allison was very outgoing. I learned a lot about the area. The food was fabulous. The weather was cold but nothing you can do about that.
Review provided by Viator
Rob1764
Aug 20, 2023
Nice way to learn about the Mafia heritage in Providence - This food and historical tour usually takes place on Saturdays during the warm season in Providence's Federal Hill area. This year the tour will run until the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The focus of the tour is to learn about the mafia personalities of the 20th century in the Italian section of Providence (Federal Hill). Pat was our guide and she gave a great summary of the highlights related to Raymond Petrarca and his relationship with the crime lords in the country, not only New England but also along the East Coast, Midwest and West Coast. Another personality that was highlighted was Buddy Cianci, two times mayor of Providence and larger-than-life figure in Rhode Island history. The tour made a stop at five restaurants for a culinary taste of the Hill...highlighting homemade fresh pasta dishes, meatballs, pizza, eggplant appetizers, mortadella and cheese rolls and dessert. All delicious. The tour runs for about 3.5 hours for the historical and gastronomical experience. Very nice for those into history, mafia and crime.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bethht2283lk
Jul 17, 2023
Some Good, Some Not - We took the tour on a very hot day and the tour guide offered options for taking our time and staying in the shade. The food was excellent. The information was very interesting and complete. But there was something that made us uncomfortable. At one of the food stops we were joined by a man who said he was Raymond Patriarca's grandson and Raymond Junior's nephew. That is not possible because Raymond Patriarca had only one child. This man was loud and crude and told a lot of stories about being with the mob, but I think he was a con man. He was with the group for an hour or two and mostly hung around the younger women in the tour. He seemed to be friends with the tour guide and acted kind of like a second tour guide. I just think it was unprofessional and I wish we could have had just the official guide and a more peaceful tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 15 guests
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May 2024
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