For us, one of the main reasons to travel is to try new, interesting foods. Our goal is to try all the popular foods in every city we visit, and have been surprised just how much foods can vary between towns that are only a 3-4 hr drive from each other.
Doing this well requires doing some research on what’s out there, and what its called. We start by doing some background reading and YouTube viewing. Antony Bourdain shows (Parts Unknown and No Reservations) and “Migrationology” (videos and articles) are good sources. For Japan, “Trails to Tsukiji” is super interesting. But just searching for “street food CityName” in YouTube and Google often brings up some useful/interesting videos or articles. Use the YouTube download option to watch these videos on the bus to your next destination.
Its easy to get overwhelmed with the number of options for foods you’ve never even heard of. We recommend making a list of the things you particularly want to try, and checking them off as you go.
Next we try to find a street food / market tour. Many towns have street food tours these days, and some include a market tour, which is even better.
Some of our favorite tours so far were:
- Hanoi: Booked a great food tour through our guest house
- Chiang Mai: http://www.chiangmaistreetfoodtours.com/services (morning tour)
- Hue: https://ilovehuetour.com/hue-tours/hue-city-tour-and-local-food/. Highly recommended!
The website https://www.backstreetacademy.com/ is also a good source for food tours.
Some sample useful food pages include:
- http://www.foodrepublic.com/2014/04/02/10-iconic-dishes-to-hunt-for-in-hue-vietnam/
- http://www.gomelaka.my/top-food-in-melaka/
Many ask: “Isn’t it risky eating street food. Won’t I get sick?” In 4 months of traveling, we’ve only got mild cases of food poisoning twice each. I don’t think its all that much more risky than eating in restaurants. If you are worried, avoid raw vegetables/herbs and shellfish. And what’s life without a bit of risk!
