FOUNDER · LICENSED NYC SIGHTSEEING GUIDE

Dante Mercadante

Chief Eating Officer at Nice Guy Tours

Dante has been a licensed New York City sightseeing guide since 2012. In the fall of 2014 he founded Nice Guy Tours to prove that New Yorkers really are nice, and that the best way to meet the city is one bite at a time. A Yonkers native with a background in stand-up comedy and acting, he has led thousands of guests through the Village, the Lower East Side, Astoria and beyond.

“You will leave full, learn something, and have fun.”

DANTE'S THREE GUARANTEES

2012

Licensed NYC guide

2014

Founded Nice Guy Tours

150+

NYC pizza shops tasted

3

Game shows as a contestant

MEET THE NICE GUY

The guy behind the tours

Dante became a guide by chance and stayed for the joy of sharing great food with people from around the globe. He folded what he learned on stage into a sightseeing license, and in 2014 Nice Guy Tours was born: a company built to celebrate the city, its people, its culture and its food.

“Prior to having this job, when people would say ‘I really love my job’, I didn’t believe them or think it was possible. Now, I look forward to work every day.”

His favorite route is the Greenwich Village tour, winding through the West Village with stops for the food and the stories behind it. Off the clock you will find him with his kids, or cheering on the Yankees, Knicks and Bills.

“There are no strangers here; only friends you haven’t met yet.”

Fun facts about Dante

AS FEATURED IN

CNBC

Tasting Table

lohud

TravelAge West

Travel Off Path

Channel 13

FROM THE BLOG

Articles by Dante

11 Aug 2026

Grove Court in Greenwich Village: The Hidden Mews Behind an Iron Gate

6 Aug 2026

The First Romanian American Synagogue: A Vanished Landmark of Lower East Side Jewish Life

29 Jul 2026

Williamsburg Bridge History: How an East River Crossing Reshaped the Lower East Side

23 Jul 2026

The Best Boutique Shops in NYC’s Lower East Side

19 Jul 2026

Seward Park High School Complex: The Lower East Side’s Immigrant Education Landmark

Fountain in Father Demo Square with the bell tower of Our Lady of Pompeii Church behind it, Greenwich Village

14 Jul 2026

Father Demo Square: The Quiet Plaza at the Heart of Italian Greenwich Village

10 Jul 2026

Minetta Lane in The West Village, NYC

Seward Park Branch of the New York Public Library seen across Seward Park on the Lower East Side

2 Jul 2026

Seward Park: A Window Into Lower East Side Immigrant History

Red neon Minetta Tavern sign on MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village

17 Jun 2026

Minetta Tavern: The Greenwich Village Bar Where Literary History Happened

12 Jun 2026

Cornelia Street: Greenwich Village’s Most Famous Block

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