ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the complex gendered and racialized politics of caring work performed by guides on Taste Tours, a food-tourism social enterprise. The tours are organized by The Benevolent Society, Australia's oldest not-for-profit organization and run in southwestern Sydney. They are 'designed to show the very best of southwest Sydney's amazing multicultural food traditions' as a means 'to bridge cultural divides and build community pride, generate income for local businesses, and create training and employment opportunities'. Drawing on critical race theories and feminist research on emotional labour and hostessing in the context of tourism presents an analysis of guides' work. The tours are presented as attempts at countering such 'negative perceptions', thus creating a more 'caring' and 'careful' image of the region and its people through food. Taste Tours has had lots of coverage in national and local newspapers, positioning them within food multiculturalism and social enterprise discourses.
