2026 Hall of Fame Nominee: Grace Della from Miami Culinary Tours

Grace Della is the Founder and Manager of Miami Culinary Tours LLC,. Her company was legally established in Florida on February 22, 2010. For over 15 years, she has served as the primary decision-maker and strategic leader, growing the company from a pioneering local startup into an internationally recognized brand that shapes how visitors experience Florida’s culture. Her primary objective is for guests to learn about the culture and history behind the food. 

     Her scope of responsibility includes imparting a shared vision with her operations team and over a dozen expert tour guides, managing a significant annual compensation and marketing budget. Under her leadership, the company has become the first to offer specialized culinary tours in iconic districts like South Beach, Wynwood, Design District and Little Havana, effectively setting the standard for the industry in South Florida.  

      Grace Della’s work is transformative because she pioneered the culinary tourism sector in Miami.  Before Miami Culinary Tours was established in 2010, tourism in neighborhoods like Little Havana and Wynwood was largely unorganized or focused solely on sightseeing. She created a replicable model that merged history, culture, and gastronomy, effectively turning "neighborhood dining" into a structured, world-class tourist attraction.

     Grace Della's development and refinement of the food tour model in Miami has had a significant and lasting positive impact on the economy and residents. Her leadership has directly funneled hundreds of thousands of visitors into local, family-owned businesses that might otherwise be overlooked by mainstream tourism.

     During the 2020 lockdowns, her pivot to digital events and rapid implementation of outdoor dining safety protocols provided a blueprint for other tour operators in Florida, demonstrating leadership that stabilized a sector during a crisis.

     While many professionals provide excellent service, few achieve international industry-defining status.  Under her direction, her tours have been ranked as the #1 experience in Miami and among the top 10 food and culture experiences in the world.

     By highlighting Miami’s culinary scene to a global stage, she has helped Florida compete with historic culinary capitals like New York or Paris, permanently enhancing the state's brand as a diverse, sophisticated destination.

      Grace Della’s influence extends into the community. She acts as a strategic leader for the community, collaborating with local artists and historic preservationists to ensure that tourism growth respects and preserves the local culture. This selfless dedication to the broader ecosystem is the hallmark of a Hall of Fame inductee.

In 2010, Grace Della pioneered Florida’s culinary tourism sector by registering the state’s first official "Food Tour" entity, Miami Culinary Tours. Before her intervention, Miami lacked a structured platform to integrate local history with authentic dining, leaving a significant gap in the state's cultural offerings. By establishing partnerships with legacy venues like El Pub and Old’s Havana, Della ensured that tourism dollars directly supported historic, family-owned micro-businesses, shifting the industry from passive sightseeing to immersive cultural storytelling.

Her leadership has since set a global gold standard, evidenced by over 35,000 5-star reviews and her Little Havana experience being named "Best of the Best" on Tripadvisor for ten consecutive years. This success created a blueprint that transformed Florida’s travel economy; by 2026, the market has expanded from a single entity to over 100 specialized experiences across hubs like Key West, Orlando, and Tampa.

Today, the culinary tourism sector is entering a high-growth phase with a projected CAGR of 20.8%, driven by a traveler shift where 80% of tourists now prioritize food adventures. As Della expands into areas like Coconut Grove and Historic Overtown, her model remains a vital economic engine. She did not merely build a successful company; she created a sustainable destination driver that continues to attract millions of international visitors to Florida’s historic districts.

Grace Della was the originator and primary architect of Florida’s culinary tourism industry. Serving as the chief executive of Miami Culinary Tours, she held total personal accountability for the brand’s strategic direction and quality control. Unlike a late-market entrant, Della assumed the high-risk role of "first mover," navigating a landscape where no regulatory or operational blueprint existed for food-focused walking tours in the state.

     Her leadership extended far beyond her own organization through cross-sector collaboration. By integrating the Art Deco District’s architectural history with Little Havana’s culinary heritage, she forced a partnership between the preservationist community and the hospitality sector. Her direct negotiation with historic micro-businesses—many of which had never participated in organized tourism—established a sustainable revenue-sharing model that remains the industry standard today. This regional influence is evident in the 2026 data, which shows her model replicated across major Florida hubs like Orlando and Tampa.

     Without Della’s involvement, the outcome for Miami’s historic districts would have been materially different. The region’s tourism would likely have remained "passive," centered on beaches and nightlife rather than cultural immersion. Her specific focus on authenticity prevented the "commoditization" of these neighborhoods, ensuring that the 20.8% CAGR seen today is rooted in genuine community storytelling rather than generic excursions.

     Furthermore, the 35,000 5-star reviews and the decade-long "Best of the Best" designation are direct results of her vigilant oversight of the guest experience. Presumably, without her direct leadership, Florida would have missed the "traveler shift" of the 2020s, losing millions in economic revenue to other global culinary capitals that had already professionalized their food tour sectors. Grace Della didn't just participate in the market; she mandated its existence.

Grace Della’s induction into the Florida Tourism Hall of Fame is warranted by her role as the architect of the state’s cultural-culinary nexus. Her work transcends short-term profit, providing lasting benefits by transforming historic neighborhoods into protected cultural corridors. By embedding historic preservation into a commercial business model, she ensured that as Miami grew, its heritage remained an active, revenue-generating participant rather than a forgotten relic.

     Della’s primary innovation was the Integrated Storytelling Model. Before 2010, Florida tourism was largely bifurcated: visitors chose either historical museums or dining. Della fused these, creating a new benchmark where the meal serves as the medium for the history. This shifted industry practices from high-volume, low-engagement bus tours to high-engagement walking tours that prioritize local micro-economies. Her model established the "Gold Standard" for authenticity, forcing a statewide shift toward experiential travel that mirrors the 2026 traveler demand for "food adventures."

     The enduring value of Della’s contribution is evidenced by the scalability and resilience of the food tour sector. Her blueprint—centering on community partnerships with venues like El Pub—created a sustainable economic engine that has outlasted market fluctuations for over 15 years.

     Lasting Benefits: Her work catalyzed a sector now growing at a 20.8% CAGR, proving her vision was a decade ahead of the "immersive travel" trend. The leap from one "Food Tour" entity in 2010 to over 100 in 2026 across Key West, Orlando, and Tampa confirms that she built a destination driver for the entire state.  Della’s legacy is a Florida that is recognized globally not just for its beaches, but for its flavors and stories, creating a permanent shift in how millions experience the Sunshine State.

Beyond her role as a business owner, Grace Della has consistently served as a vital advocate and volunteer leader within the Florida tourism ecosystem. Her contributions demonstrate a commitment to elevating the industry’s professional standards and supporting small businesses during times of crisis.

Mentorship and Industry Speaking (2012–Present)

     As a pioneer of the food tour model, Della has served as a recurring keynote speaker and mentor at industry events like the Food and Travel Expo. By sharing her operational "blueprint" with emerging entrepreneurs across Florida, she catalyzed the growth of culinary tourism beyond Miami, helping to establish the professional standards now used by over 100 tour operators statewide.  

Cultural Preservation Advocacy (2014–Present)

     Della has collaborated extensively with organizations like the Miami Design Preservation League . Her volunteer efforts focus on educating tourists about architectural conservation in the Art Deco District. This partnership ensured that the tourism surge did not erode the historic character of South Beach but instead provided the economic justification for its continued preservation.

Crisis Leadership and Safety Innovation (2020–2021)

     During the COVID-19 pandemic, Della moved beyond her own operations to lead the sector’s recovery efforts. She volunteered her business as the pilot for the SanSee hygiene and safety certification in Florida. By being the first to test and implement these rigorous protocols, she provided a scalable safety framework that other Florida tour operators adopted to regain traveler trust.  

Virtual Cultural Diplomacy (2020–2022):Recognizing the impact of travel restrictions on local artisans      

     Della partnered with global platforms like Airbnb to launch virtual experiences. She mentored local restaurant owners on how to transition to virtual storytelling, ensuring that Florida’s "brand" remained top-of-mind for international travelers even when the borders were closed.  

Impact on the Miami’s Ecosystem

     Della’s contributions have shaped the perception of Florida from a "sun and sand" destination to a world-class cultural hub. Her volunteerism during the pandemic, in particular, acted as a stabilizer for the local hospitality sector, as she used her platform to provide free social media exposure and marketing support for struggling family-owned restaurants. Her leadership reflects a holistic dedication to the economic health and cultural integrity of Florida’s tourism landscape, ensuring its resilience for the next generation of travelers.