In 2011, I wrote my first long post about food, entitled Ode to Spices. I wrote about how a diagnosis of celiac disease led to a rediscovery of flavours and the exciting yet obvious understanding that spices could keep food interesting, despite my gluten-avoiding limitations.

Soon after, readers began to ask a question I would hear again and again: can you to feed us? I began having reader meetups in cities around the world, and as a group we would talk about why food matters and the ways that meals can teach us about the places we visit.

Fast forward to late 2012, and The Food Traveler’s Handbook hit the shelves. As I noted in the introduction to that book, it was primarily pushed forward by my own supportive community. That same community — the many of you who have written excitedly asking to be fed — is what led me to start small-group food walks the name Jodi Eats.

I launched these food walks in Saigon in late 2013, and hosted well over a hundred Legal Nomads readers during my time in Saigon. It was a blast. I love meeting readers, and what better way to do so than while stuffing our faces with the meals that make Vietnam so special.

Part Reader Meetup, Part Food Crawl

Many of you have asked if I will be doing food walks in Oaxaca, Mexico as well. Frankly, so many of you have asked that I decided to do them again. We’ll substitute tacos for banh cuon, and pozole for pho.

As with Saigon, these are not food tours. There are way better options for you if you’re looking for the most thorough way to discover a place’s food. Instead, these are multi-hour wanders where I can meet my awesome readers, and show you the places I love to eat and the vendors who make my time in Oaxaca special.

And for those with celiac disease like me, I will feed you safe, gluten-free foods

Several mole sauces are off-limits for celiacs. For those with the same restrictions as me — namely that they need to avoid gluten — I will happily ensure that the food walk is safe for you.

What Others Have Said about Jodi Eats Food Walks

 Max, Web developer and creator of stuff.

Jodi not only showed me foods I would have never discovered alone, but explained where they came from and how they have evolved over time. Highly recommended to learn about a new place through its food.

Alex, Managing Director for Asia, Xero Group

Jodi has an unrivalled knack for connecting with local cultures and understanding them through their food. With Jodi as your guide you will see, taste and experience things that you would otherwise miss.

 Elisa, Founder of Craft your Content 

After walking with Jodi in Ho Chi Minh City she has become my go-to authority for all thing delicious as I travel. Whether in Siem Reap or Europe or Montreal, I always trust her for tips on the places I must try and learn from on the road.

Interested in a Oaxaca Food Walk?

I am still finalising my dates for Oaxaca, but plan to offer these walks starting in November.

• If you are interested and know your dates, please fill out a form here.

• If you are interested but don’t know your dates, just send me an email via the contact form on this site.

Cost will be approximately what it was in Saigon, 65-70$ per food walk depending on itinerary, with a multi-hour wander that includes a market component, delicious street food, and some of Oaxaca’s famous chocolate and coffee for good measure. As with Saigon, I’ll be talking about the ways that these foods became staples in Oaxaca and Mexico, and the manner that they fanned out to the world as a whole.

I hope to share a meal (or 5!) with you soon!

-Jodi