When we developed our first six food tours, we stuck with neighborhoods familiar to us. As we went along, we became painfully aware that we were missing out, only connecting Six Taste tourists to the East side of Los Angeles. We knew the Westside could present guests with a variety of cuisines and lead our tours through many iconic Los Angeles destinations. As such, our decision to venture over to the Westside is long overdue, but we are very excited to announce the coming of our Santa Monica tour, set to launch in mid-April.

As a Los Angeles based attraction, it would be remiss of us not to include a food tour featuring one of the city’s famous beaches. The Santa Monica Food Tour will include several stops in the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market, tastings at diverse eateries provided by local restaurants, and a stroll along the beaches of Santa Monica.

We hope that this will be the first of many Six Taste tours to the Westside. With such vibrant communities like Little Saigon, Little India, and more, the Westside provides a fascinating opportunity to continue to share Los Angeles’ diverse communities with fellow Angelenos and tourists.

Tell us your name, hometown and the tour we can find you on.

My name is Betsy Matz, from Washington, DC and I lead the Little Tokyo Gastronomy Food Tours.

Of the five tastes, sweet, sour, salty, savory and bitter, which one are you?

I am definitely a sweet taste lover, but can’t resist a sweet/salty combination! At the movies I pour M&Ms into my popcorn to get that sweet and salty mix.

I’ll have to try that! Any other guilty pleasures or sweet creations you have up your sleeve?

Sweets are my weakness and I must admit- when I bake cookies, the dough rarely makes it to the oven. I also love to lick the beaters when making cakes or brownies-something definitely left over from my childhood.

You’re on death row and it’s time to have your last meal, what do you ask for?

That’s so hard! Luckily I have thought about this question before (not because I expect to be on Death Row, just because I LOVE FOOD)! Here it is….fried chicken, spicy collard greens, truffled mac-n-cheese, fresh cole slaw and a chocolate/strawberry milkshake. If Six Taste creates a “Soul Food” tour I would be chomping at the bit to guide it!!!

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve eaten?

My family has a tradition of doing fondue every Christmas Eve. Since my Dad is a hunter, we have had some strange meats for our fondue feast. Every year we at least have moose and venison, but the last couple of years my Dad bar-b-qued a goat to go with the meal. He doesn’t hunt goat, though, he orders it on the internet!

That sounds pretty interesting, so what DON’T you eat?

I don’t dig pate because of the treatment of the animals involved, but based solely on taste I would have to say I would NEVER eat the old southern breakfast favorite “brains and eggs” ever, ever, ever again.

What restaurant do you “dig” here in LA?

Right now I love Bottega Louie in Downtown. Great for brunch, drinks or dinner. It has an amazing open kitchen where you can see the “magic happening” and beautiful ambience. Also they have a great take-away counter so its an awesome lunch spot also.

Where can we find you if you aren’t chowing down on Bottega Louie or working as a tour guide?

During the week I teach drawing, painting and sculpture at a local college and several private schools. I also paint murals-indoors and outdoors-and serve on the board of several Los Angeles Arts Non-Profits.

What do you like most about being a tour guide?

I love taking groups to Little Tokyo because I have seen the neighborhood change so much over the past 10 years. Some people are scared to come to Downtown LA and they are so pleasantly surprised when they come on the tour and see how safe and beautiful most of Downtown really is. It’s especially satisfying when we have Angelenos on the tour, they are re-discovering their own city!

From March 15th to March 22nd, 20% of all full ticket price purchases will go towards the World Food Programme, the world’s largest humanitarian agency. Our goal is to raise $5,000, and with your help we’ll get there.

Simply go to our website, www.SixTaste.com, select a tour you’d like to book, and 20% will go to the ‘Friends of WFP’, a U.S. non-profit, non-partisan organization that focuses on building support for the WFP.

As we head into seven and a half months in existence as an organization, over 100 tours performed, and almost 1000 guests who have participated in a tour, we realize how far we have gone, and how fortunate we are to have the support of so many people in Los Angeles and around the world.

However, with all our successes, the recent disaster in Haiti brought light to the plight that occurs every day in countries around the world. Every six seconds a child dies from hunger and hunger-related causes. This startling statistic made me take a hard look at the service we provide. We are well aware that the service we offer is providing food as a form of entertainment, yet all around the world there are millions struggling to find enough food to get through the day.

That’s why we’ve decided to start a campaign to raise $5,000 for the World Food Programme, the world’s largest humanitarian agency in the world. We will be placing our donation through the “Friends of the World Food Program” organization, a U.S.-based, non-profit, nonpartisan organization focusing on building support in the US for the United Nations World Food Program.

From March 15^th-March 22^nd, 20% of all full ticket price purchases will go towards fighting world hunger. You can book a tour for any upcoming weekend, and as long as the purchase is made between March 15 and March 22, a portion of your ticket will be donated. We encourage all our past guests, prospective guests, or general food aficionados to take a moment to consider purchasing a ticket for a Food Tour, and contributing towards our $5,000 goal. Check back on our website, twitter, or facebook, for updates on our campaign.

So, what are you waiting for? Take a Food Tour: Fight Hunger.

Give us the run down: your name, hometown and what tour you lead.

My name is Brian Takahashi and I’m from Harbor City, CA. I lead the Little Tokyo Tour, 6 months and going strong!

Of the five tastes, which one are you?

I like the mix of all.  Yeah, I’m a greedy one, but you need all of the tastes to make it good!! I am partial to super spicy, I am a fire eater.

What is the best thing about being a Tour Guide?

It’s the people, the great people, that come on our tours that makes it all worth while.  I really do get to take out a group of friends around the town every weekend.  How cool is that?  The great company is what makes me glad to come back tour after tour and it’s also a great way to meet the opposite sex (or so I’ve heard).

What do you do when you’re not working as a guide?

On the weekdays I work for Easter Seals, a non-profit organization that helps disabled adults. I’m also an actor. I like to learn new skills and keep active so I am teaching myself Locking (80’s dance with lots of wrist twirls), Kempo, and when I have time, I do Parkour or freerun (french extreme sport).

Sounds like you’re busy 24/7! When you find time to eat, where do you enjoy going?

I like a place in Torrance called Mankey’s. It’s good, cheap Japanese-American home style food, but I also love BBQ. One of my favorite places is called Joey’s BBQ. It’s a good place to go if you need a BBQ fix.   Did I mention it’s owned by Luke Walton from the LA Lakers?

So is it safe to say that BBQ is your guilty pleasure?

No—Joe Joe cookies from Trader Joe’s is my guilty pleasure. I swear those things have cocaine, or something other than sugar in them. After one, you are hooked. What?….Cocaine is natural!

If you say so! Are they really that good? Would that be your last meal if you were on Death Row?

If I could request a last meal, I’d probably request the potlucks at my family get-togethers. That would take like 3 days to eat everything. By that time I’ll find a way to get out.

Clever. Next Subject! What’s the weirdest thing you’ve eaten?

Blow fish testicles, and no I’m not joking…

What an excellent way to end the interview.

In addition, Brian has been in the acting business for 9 years and has been in such films as Crank, Letters from Iwo Yima and Wild Cherry.  Brian graduated with a BA in theatre arts @ Cal State Long Beach.  Brian is part of Cold Tofu Comedy improv group for 9 years which has shows every third Sat of the month.

Let’s start with the basics. What’s your name, where are you from, and what tour do you lead?

My name is Nicole Woo and I’m originally from Hong Kong. I lead the San Gabriel Valley: New Chinatown Tours.

Hi, Nicole. So, what do you do when you’re not a Six Taste tour guide?

I’m a product developer at a shoe company and I’m also a blogger. I like to go out and experience new things.

Any particular restaurant you favor when going out?

I enjoy eating at a variety of restaurants, I think Alcove Cafe & Bakery in Los Feliz is cute and has delicious food! It’s a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon (when it’s not too crowded). Definitely have to pay homage to my hometown, Hong Kong Cafe! They offer authentic Hong Kong cafe style food like its name suggests and for a low price too! Another one of my favorite cafes is China Bistro!

What about outside LA? Would you ever take an epic journey to get the food you love?

I would drive hours to get the cake from Extraordinary Desserts in San Diego!

On that note, I suspect I know the answer already, but if you could be one of the five flavor profiles, sweet, sour, bitter, salty, or umami, which would you be and why?

Sweet! I’m definitely friendly and sweet to all my friends! plus I love ice cream! Along with various desserts!

Any guilty pleasures?

Hmm, I can’t say I feel that guilty, but I’d say cup cakes or bread pudding!

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve eaten?

Coming from Hong Kong, I’ve probably eaten a lot of weird things to most people, but they’re pretty normal to me. Liver of all sorts of animals, like toads, are just some of the normal food we get. But I’ve also had pig’s blood, duck tongue, and snake soup.

Why do you like being a Six Taste tour guide?

I get to eat some of my favorite foods as my job! Not only that, I think it’s a great way to enlighten others about Chinese cuisine, which is vast and diverse. I take great pride in my cuisine so I’m glad others who are not familiar with it get to experience it, not just the typical items on the menu but what I would order myself! It’s also a great way to meet people while I’m at it.

Tim Ferriss, author of the 4-hour week and leading the lifestyle design movement, is a pretty awesome guy. Alex and I both love...