14 top food cities around the world

Some people visit Paris to see the Mona Lisa and to enjoy the 360-degree views from the Eiffel Tower. Foodies fly across the ocean to wait in line for a fresh, buttery croissant at a boulangerie. For many travelers, the highlight of a trip might be discovering a hidden trattoria where an Italian nonna handmakes ravioli or indulging in a 12-course tasting menu at an award-winning restaurant.

While destinations like New Orleans or Hong Kong may already be on your culinary bucket list, lesser-known spots, such as Asheville, North Carolina; Bologna, and Macau, are worthy of tacking on a few extra days—and calories—for a delicious detour.

Here’s a list of some popular food cities and their underrated counterparts. Come hungry, pack loose clothing, and bon appétit!

Around 120 miles south lies San Diego, Los Angeles’ laid-back equivalent with a flair for fun. In the past decade, hot spots like glamping-themed One Door North, the flower-filled Pink Rose Café, and Barbie Dream House-esque Morning Glory, with their highly Instagrammable decor and food, have put this coastal city on the culinary map, especially among the younger crowd.

Beer enthusiasts often hang out at North Park’s 30th Street, dubbed by locals as the city’s best street for craft beer. And the East Village and Gaslamp Quarter boast creative cocktail scenes in tucked-away speakeasies and kitschy tiki bars.

Crave a good ambience and comfort food? Head to Little Italy for house-made Italian food enjoyed on a quaint patio, or hit the Barrio Logan neighborhood to tear into fresh, handmade tortillas and dip them into tongue-tingling salsa.

In the Blue Ridge Mountains, Asheville, North Carolina, is an up-and-coming foodie destination with a focus on Southern comfort food and farm-to-table cuisine. Here, you’ll find tasty fried green tomato sandwiches, hefty buttermilk biscuits, juicy chicken and waffles, and tangy, saucy North Carolina–style barbecue. The charming downtown is lined with boutiques, taprooms, wine bars, and eclectic restaurants.

Sample Asheville’s diverse culinary offerings at S&W Market, a 1920s cafeteria designed by noted American architect Douglas Ellington. Inside the 2-story art deco building, indulge in a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich at Buxton Chicken Palace or a grass-fed beef hot dog with beef cheek chili and house-made coleslaw at Farm Dogs. Then, cap your visit with inventive ice cream flavors like lavender-vanilla or sweet beet from The Hop Ice Cream.

Bologna, capital of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy, is considered the country’s food capital. It is affectionately known as La Grassa—the fat one. Food guides joke that famous Fountain of Neptune in Piazza del Nettuno, which features chubby cherubs and curvy Nereids (sea nymphs), reflect the city’s love for food, especially local specialties like prosciutto, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and stuffed pastas like tortellini.

At Bologna’s historic center, Quadrilatero is Italy’s oldest market. It’s packed with butcher shops, delis, fruit and vegetable stands, and fishmongers, as well as wine bars, bakeries, and boutiques.

Also known as La Dotta (the learned), Bologna is home to the oldest university in Western world: the University of Bologna, founded in 1088. That means you’ll find affordable eats without breaking the budget.

Known to foodies as France’s gastronomic capital, Lyon is more laid-back than Paris. But its residents take food very seriously. Legendary French chef Paul Bocuse hailed from Lyon. He's credited as a founding father of nouvelle cuisine, the modern, lighter approach to French cooking.

In Lyon, charcuterie is an artform, and chefs create some of the best saucisson (thick, cured sausage), pâté, and terrines in the world.

All over Lyon, you’ll notice small, family-run eateries known as bouchons. These special, certified restaurants serve traditional Lyonnaise specialties such as coq au vin (chicken braised in red wine), pink-hued praline tart, and salade Lyonnaise with crispy pork belly, fresh croutons, and a poached egg.

In the heart of Basque Country in northern Spain, San Sebastián is a food-obsessed town with dozens of gastronomic societies, several Michelin-starred restaurants, and culinary schools where you can learn the secrets of Basque and Spanish cuisine. From haute cuisine to affordable eats, there’s something for everyone.

San Sebastian is a town of fishermen. Fresh seafood from the Bay of Biscay is transformed into bacalao al pil pil (dried, salted cod served fried with garlic, olive oil, and chile); paella dotted with shrimp, mussels, and clams; and massive grilled scarlet prawns.

In San Sebastian, tapas are known as pintxos. As in Barcelona, the best way to savor them is to hop from bar to bar, tasting the most popular bites and downing glasses of cider, txakoli (a dry white semi-sparkling wine), or sparkling cava.

Located on the northern shore of Japan’s Kyushu island, Fukuoka is a 2½-hour bullet train ride from Osaka. This harbor city is known for tranquil beaches, ancient temples, a 17th-century castle, and religious landmarks like the 134-foot-long reclining Buddha of Nanzoin Temple and the 35-foot-tall wooden Great Buddha of Fukuoka.

Within walking distance to these historic attractions are trendy shopping districts, breweries, and lively street food stalls known as yatai. They sell an array of food, including ramen, yakitori (grilled chicken), mentaiko (cod roe), and oden (a simmered dish with daikon, tofu, and fish cake).

Fukuoka is the birthplace of tonkotsu ramen, and here you’ll find the chewy noodles and creamy pork bone broth topped with green onions, wood ear mushrooms, melt-in-your-mouth char siu, and eggs.

Traverse 34 miles across the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, the world’s longest sea-crossing bridge and tunnel, and you’ll arrive at Macau, also known as Las Vegas of the East.

A former Portuguese colony, this historic city is a popular gambling destination. The Cotai Strip has 14 casinos, including the Venetian Macao, the Parisian Macao, and the Londoner Macao. But you don’t have to roll the dice when it comes to its cuisine, an amalgamation of Chinese and Portuguese influences.

Everywhere you turn in Macau, you’ll see lines of people patiently waiting for sweet-savory Portuguese egg tarts, steaming pork buns, or spicy beef offals in curry sauce.

Within a stone’s throw from the Ruins of St. Paul’s, part of the Historic Centre of Macao—which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy—you’ll find street vendors competing for customers by offering free samples of barbecue pork jerky.

Rachel Ng is an award-winning food and travel writer based in Volcano, Hawai'i. She recently contributed to the book, Great Outdoors U.S.A.: 1,000 Adventures Across All 50 States by National Geographic, which will be released in August 2023.