It is no secret that when traveling to new places we are encountering new culinary delights. As part of the journey figuring out a new country we feel it is out duty to try their local cuisine. Now, not ever dish that dances across our taste buds is fantastic, but the ones that were make it all worth while. Here are some of the best local dishes we have tasted to date. 

1. Traditional Maldivian Lunch

While in the Maldives our guest house prepares a group lunch for all of the guests to share together. Our traditional Maldivian lunch consisted of rice, fried leaves of a local plant, tuna, onion, lime juice. You mash it all together with your fingers and eat by hand. It was packed full of flavor! 

2. Conveyor Belt Sushi in Japan

What do you get when you mix Sushi options with a twist of fun? Conveyor belt sushi! In 2013 we made out first trip to Japan and fell in love with all of the fresh sushi and sashimi restaurants, so much so, we knew we had to come back. While the best sashimi of our lives was not at a conveyor belt sushi place, some of the most fun was. So, of course, when we were back in Japan, we made it a point to grab a beer and feast on an array of sushi delights. 

3. Sri Lankan Curry Plate

Sri Lanka is an island nation off the coast of India and is full culture and spice. Almost every direction you look you will see the staple dish,  a curry plate. Pictured is one of our favorite plates we had from a hold in the wall mom and pop shop. It’s fried chicken, green bean curry, lentil curry, spicy gravy, rice, and vegetable filled pastries. Our taste buds were in heaven. Time to go explore the ancient city of Polonnaruwa.  

4. Fondue in Switzerland

Fondue is an essential meal to have when you are in the land of Gruyère cheese. Fribourger Fondue Stübli was a fantastic family run restaurant in Zürich, Switzerland. We dipped thick sliced of bread and potatoes in this Gruyère cheese blend fondue and it was amazing.

5. Pierogies in Poland

When we stepped off the bus in Krakow, Poland, the number one food that came to our mind was Pierogies! A pierogi is a semicircular dumpling filled with different sweet and savory goodies often found in many Eastern European countries. We decided to try a myriad of different types to make sure we got the proper understanding of the dish. 

6. Pad Thai 

Who knew Pad Thai could be so dynamic. We asked the owner of our hostel in Bangkok where do get the best Pad Thai and before we finished the question he gave us directions to a street vendor where is shore the best Pad Thai was in all of Thailand. He was not joking! Pad Thai is made with stir fried rice noodles mixed with egg, firm tofu, fish sauce, dried shrimp, shallots, garlic, red chili peppers, tamarind pulp, palm sugar, roasted peanuts, bean sprouts, and served with lime wedges. We also then topped it with chives and raw banana flower. Our taste buds were in heaven. Click here for more legit Thai street foods.

7. Eggplant Curry in the Maldives 

This was by far our #1 favorite meal since leaving on this journey! Delicious curries are a big part of the middle east and Asia but what makes the Maldivian curry a step above the rest is the fish curry powder only found in the Maldives. Our guest houses’ wife made her special recipe which uses the fish curry powder with eggplant in place of fish. The combination was unlike anything we have ever tasted and we would go back to the Maldives, not only for the beaches, but for this eggplant curry. 

8. South Korean Gangjeong Fired Chicken

Being from the Southern United States, we know fried chicken. Because of this, we were very excited to come to South Korea, another place in the world that knows fried chicken. Many times throughout South Korea we had Gangjeong, the perfect mix of sweet and spicy. This chicken is coated in potato starch and double fried to golden perfection. After which, the chicken is tossed in a sweet and spicy glaze and topped with sesame. The blend of the crispiness, sweet notes, and spicy zing is why this was one of our favorite meals.  

9. Hiroshima’s Okonomiyaki in Japan

Okonomiyaki is found all over Japan and each region put’s their own twist on it. Most notable styles are the Hirosima style with layers and yakisoba noodles and the Osaka style where everything is mixed together with the batter.  While traveling through Japan, we found that Hirosima’s version was, hands down, the winner! Okonomiyaki is the Japanese savory pancake and it is mouth watering. The Hiroshima style we had was layers of batter, yakisoba noddles, seafood (shrimp, scallop, and octopus), a mountain of cabbage, fried egg, okonomiyaki sauce and topped with shallots. You then eat it with a special spatula called hera. 

10. Meat and Potato Meal in the Czech Republic

We do not know exactly what we ate in Prague at this traditional food spot, but we do know it had our taste buds singing and stomach full! We know the potatoes were full of butter and garlic while the meats were salted and fried. Who could say know to comfort food like this? Not us, we dug right in and after we were done we were ready to explore Prague at night!

With months left on this journey we are so excited to taste our way through the world one bite at a time. Up next, we are looking forward to banh mi’s in Vietnam! 

We are two en route for more delicious meals from around the globe.