When Colorado native Samantha Wood decided to quit her job in 2010, she never dreamed her new career would be the purveyor of food tours in Colorado Springs. Thanks in part to her mother, who proposed the idea after experiencing a food tour while traveling. “My mother is a both a foodie and an entrepreneur,” explains Wood. Together they founded what became Rocky Mountain Food Tours.
The initial premise was to create walking tours in downtown Colorado Springs, each featuring a unique collection of restaurant destinations. The original three-hour tour proved to be so popular that over the next 15 years Rocky Mountain Food Tours added three additional options to its menu: the Craft Brewery Tour, the Signature Cocktail Tour, and a one-hour Coffee and Culture Walk (for groups of ten or more only). Wood and her team have also explored new seasonal pop-up tours, such as the “Holiday Lights & Bites” held in December and the “Gold Medal Food Tour” in honor of Colorado Springs’ moniker “Olympic City USA.”
Part of the fun lies in the interaction with the tour guides. According to Wood, they are “passionate and extremely knowledgable about food and art.” Currently, there are six tour guides (including Wood) who entertain tour participants with historical storytelling as they nosh on small bites, beer, cocktails, and plated specials at up to six culinary destinations. Customized group tours are always welcome.
And it’s all for a good cause. Wood reports that since 2018, Rocky Mountain Food Tours has supported dozens of local charities via silent auction donations, in addition to donating $5,000 per year between in-kind and monetary donations.
