January 7, 2012 Culinary Tour: Ancient-style Neapolitan Pizza premiered

The Taste History Culinary Tour  held on January 7, 2012, hosted a private group for the tour's first visit to its newest addition for the New Year, Scuola Vecchia. This eatery is a Neapolitan pizzeria located in Downtown Delray Beach, FL.  It's the first certified Neapolitan pizzeria in the State of Florida.  Scuola Vecchia is certified by the Associazion Pizzaiouli Napoletani.

Certified pizza oven from Naples, Italy



Pizza Margherita at Scuola Vecchia.
Scuola Vecchia creates certified Neapolitan pizzas.

Pizza Margherita resembles the colors of Italian Flag.  Mozzarella is homemade daily at Scuola Vecchia

Pizza Margherita baked in a certified Pizza oven. Pizza is made with red tomatoes, white mozzarella and green basil which all represent the colors of the Italian Flag.  

Neapolitan cuisine developed in ancient Naples, Italy during the Greco-Roman period.  The food in Naples has been influenced by the Campania region of Italy.  Pizza is one of the most famous Neapolitan cuisines.   Real Neapolitan Pizzas have to be cooked in a certified wood-fired oven that is made in Naples, Italy.

The official pizza certification was introduced around 2009 by the European Union upon request from the Country of Italy and EU granted Traditional Specialty Guaranteed to protect the traditional Neapolitan pizza especially the Pizza Margherita.

The Pizza Marghertia is named for Italian Queen Margherita of Savoy in honor of her visit to Naples, Italy in 1889. The colors of the pizza represent the Italian Flag.

The next tour stop was to the Urban Garden in Downtown Boynton Beach, FL

Dill in the Urban Garden in Downtown Boynton Beach, FL. Dill is a perennial herb that is native to Mediterranean countries and southeastern Europe but is now cultivated in other parts of  Europe, India and North America.

Basil in the Urban Garden in Downtown Boynton Beach, Florida. Basil originated in India more than 5,000 years ago but is prominently used in Italian cuisine.

Cooking demonstration at the farm-to-table restaurant Secret Garden Cafe in Downton Boynton Beach, FL.

Chef Phillip does demonstration of creating a Dill sauce at the Secret Garden Cafe. The Dill was from the Urban Garden in Downtown Boynton Beach, FL

Dill sauce demonstration at the Secret Garden Cafe

Dill sauce demo at Secret Garden Cafe in Downtown Boynton Beach, FL

Cooking tool used for the Dill sauce demo at the Secret Garden Cafe, a farm-to-table restaurant located in Downtown Boytnon Beach, FL

Smoothies served at the Secret Garden Cafe for the guests from the Taste History Culinary Tour.

Zucchini Casserole served at the Secret Garden Cafe.  Zucchini is similar to a Squash. Everything is made from scratch at the Secret Garden and many of the fruits and vegetables used are from the Urban Garden in Downtown Boynton Beach, FL.

Orzo pasta was served with the Salmon at the Secret Garden Cafe for the Taste History Culinary Tour

Peach Cobbler at the Secret Garden Cafe

The final visit for this private food excursion was to Palermo's Bakery located in Boynton Beach, FL

Bah Bah Rum aka Rum Bah Bah aka Rum baba aka BaBa au Rhum cakes at Palermo's Bakery in Boynton Beach, FL.  The cake's name mean's "grandmother".  This original cake style was cooked in Poland and in various Polish communities throughout the world.  The more modern Bah Bah Rum was invented in Paris, France about 1835 because of Polish influence. Later, Bah Bah Rum was introduced in Naples, Italy and became intertwined with Neaopolitan cuisine.  Around 1899, this rum cake began appearing in American restaurants.

Bah Bah Rum cakes sampled on the Taste History Culinary Tour at Palermo's Bakery in Boytnon Beach, FL

Pastry Chef statue at Palermo's Bakery in Boynton Beach, FL

Taste History traveled through historic districts and also visited Linda Bean's Perfect Maine  located in historic Downtown Delray Beach, FL.  Lobster Bisque was sampled at Linda Bean's.

The purpose of the Taste History Culinary Tour is to provide a culturally enriching experience that infuses the local lifestyle history of early settlers, farming facts, tours of neighborhoods, as well as art and educational information about historic architecture that includes visits to restaurants in historic districts and/or buildings for food tastings. The culinary tastings includes specifics about food history, food culture and foodways.

The Taste History Culinary Tours of Historic Delray Beach & Boynton Beach are conducted by the Museum of Lifestyle & Fashion History (MLFH) which is a non-profit organization. These food tours are 4-hours and are a combination of bus riding and 4 to 6 blocks of walking tour with visits to at least two restaurants for cuisine tastings.  Tours are held year-round on the 3rd and 4th Saturdays of each month plus private groups tours area offered. For dates, ticket price information and reservations, visit TasteHistoryCulinaryTours.org or call 561-243-2662.  Taste History Culinary Tours is sponsored by Macy's.  Additional support from the Patricia Ann Ravo Fund and Boris & Edith Rueger Fund.
Effective February 1, 2015, $45 per person is the new rate for the general public tours traveling to Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Lake Worth and Lantana.  The new rate for the West Palm Beach tour is $50 per person.  Tours if free for children under age 18 (children must be accompanied by a paid adult family member).  Due to the increase in fees that are charged to our organization for the tour bus rental and insurance; an increase in our tour fees is necessary. Pre-paid reservations that have been made prior to that date will not be affected. The Taste History Culinary Tours program is operated by a non-profit 501c3 organization. 

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December 17, 2011 Taste History Tour visits Sicilian Bakery in Boynton Beach, Florida

During the Christmas 2011 Holiday season, the Sicilian bakery Palermo's was introduced as one of the newest food partners for the Taste History Culinary Tour of Historic Delray Beach & Boynton Beach, FL.  The December 17, 2011 food tour was sold-out and included tourists from Holland.

Santa Claus greeted guests on the Taste History Culinary Tour of Historic Delray Beach & Boynton Beach, FL

From 1876 to to 1970 more than 5 million Italians emigrated to America.  Many of these Italians were from Sicily and Campania, Italy. Sicily is one of the largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea and is known for its distinct cuisine.  As Italians emigrated to America their recipes came right along with them. And, upon their arrival to America, new Italian-American cuisines also evolved.

Ho Ho Ho at Palermo's Bakery in Boynton Beach, Florida

Tiramisu was among the array of desserts tasted for the culinary visit.   Tiramisu is an Italian dessert that mean's "pick-me up."  The origin of Tiramisu is uncertain but it may have been created in the 1970s in Treviso, Italy.

Pastries at Palermo's Bakery in Boynton Beach, FL

Anna Orlando, owner of Palermo's Bakery.  Anna's family, the Palermos, have been in the bakery business for more than 100 years starting in Sicily, Italy.  Palermo's has the distinction of using a Brooklyn-style Oven which is a brick oven from Brooklyn, New York.

The location of Palermo's Bakery used to be a dairy farm in Boynton Beach, FL.

Other eateries visited for the December 17th culinary tour were GOL! The Taste of Brazil in Downtown Delray Beach, FL and Hurricane Alley in Downtown Boynton Beach, FL. The tour also made a stop at the historic  1904 St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Delray Beach, Florida.  Rev. Kathleen Gannon described to the guests the process of making the communion bread.  Interestingly, St. Paul's hosted USO dances in their Parish Hall during WWII as there was a military base close by in Boca Raton, FL.  The walking portion of the tour made its way to the historic 1926 Colony Hotel in Downtown Delray Beach, FL.

Christmas Tree 2011 in the Lobby of the historic Colony Hotel in Downtown Delray Beach, FL

The purpose of the Taste History Culinary Tour is to provide a culturally enriching experience that infuses the local lifestyle history of early settlers, farming facts, tours of neighborhoods, as well as art and educational information about historic architecture that includes visits to restaurants in historic districts and/or buildings for food tastings. The culinary tastings includes specifics about food history, food culture and foodways.

The Taste History Culinary Tours of Historic Delray Beach & Boynton Beach are conducted by the Museum of Lifestyle & Fashion History (MLFH) which is a non-profit organization. These food tours are 4-hours and are a combination of bus riding and walking tour with visits to at least two restaurants for cuisine tastings.  Tours are held year-round on the 3rd and 4th Saturday of each month plus private groups tours area offered. For dates, ticket price information and reservations, visit TasteHistoryCulinaryTours.org or call 561-243-2662.  Taste History Culinary Tours is sponsored by Macy's.  Additional support from the Patricia Ann Ravo Fund and Boris & Edith Rueger Fund.


Effective April 1, 2013, $40 per person is the new rate for the general public tours. Due to the increase in fees that are charged to our organization for the tour bus rental and insurance; an increase in our tour fees is necessary. Pre-paid reservations that have been made prior to that date will not be effected. The Taste History Culinary Tours program is operated by a non-profit 501c3 organization and run by non-paid volunteers.  

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