Food is always a big part of travel for me. As a vegetarian there are some places where my selections can be pretty limited, in Spain I dined out almost every night on Ensalada Normal and bread - but in most cities I can find amazing creations.

And I always fall in love with the local grocery stores and markets whether it is incredible European cheeses or amazing vegetarian selections in England.

Posted By Katy on November 13, 2007, 4:22 PM

Food is often a central theme to our travel plans, and a good restaurant can provide you:

1. Cultural experiences,

2. Opportunities to meet locals or fellow travellers and share travel tips,

3. Entertainment (professional acts or just the locals at play), and

4. Naturally, great food.

We seek out great restaurants everywhere, and I'll post a list of our Top Five Dining Experiences latter this week.

Posted By Steve Madsen on November 14, 2007, 2:57 AM

Hello!
Yes food plays a very important part in our travels. One of the joys of going to Japan was staying at the ryokans(Japanese style Inns) and having the wonderful experience of enjoying the authentic Japanese meals that accompany your stay. Many of them are very expensive, but we if you pick and choose you can stay at pretty reasonably priced ones. I would highly recommend the one we stayed at in Takayama as well as the one in Shirakawago. However one of our favorite food experiences just happened recently when we attended a cooking class in the Central Market in Budapest. What a blast! We learned how to cook Goulash as well as a dessert crepe. We got to eat our creations when finished and we also received a diploma. To top it off, since we were there off season(first week of November), my wife and I were the only people in the class. From now on we will check out cooking classes wherever we travel.

Posted By Chris Ledger on November 15, 2007, 5:03 PM

I love to eat! And so does my husband. We've both been fortunate to travel around and been fearless enough to eat the local fare. He's Brazilian and on one of his earlier trips to the U.S., he ate a fantastic jambalaya from a restaurant in New Orleans. It cost him 40 bucks but almost 10 years later, he still raves about it.
As for me, I remember traveling to the countryside in Dominican Republic when I was about ten and eating fresh, soft and gooey "dulce de coco" right off a huge bronze pan. It was cooked over a fire of coals and caramelized to perfection with grated coconuts coming from the trees right outside.

Posted By Cindy on November 15, 2007, 8:39 PM

Recently I was in Cyprus. The family I was staying with was determined to feed me every possible traditional Cypriot food known to man. As kind of a joke I decided to photograph everything I ate. Seriously though, these are some of my favorite images from my trip and make me recall stories of conversations that took place during various meals. There's an entire flickr set linked from my blog entry (with stories): http://pretavoyager.blogspot.com/2007/10/everything-i-ate-cyprus.html

Anne

Posted By Prêt à Voyager on November 16, 2007, 12:02 PM

We LIVE to eat...our recent trip to Paris was spent eating (and comparing) french macaroons in every bakery mentioned in Paris Sweets...In Corfu we spent our day off a cruise ship searching for Fig Pies....in South Africa we searched for the best Dutch butter cookies...It makes the trip purposeful and you have a reward at the end of the trek. ANd yes, we do generally gain 5 pounds a week when we travel!!!

Posted By clair beckmann on November 22, 2007, 10:40 AM

DO NOT MISS PARMA, ITALY!!!!!! It is where prosciutto de parma and parmigiano reggiano comes from. At the restaurant called La Greppia do not miss the truffles during autumn or the green tomato tart for dessert. ( Parma also has a very famous pink marble belltower and a wonderful art museum)

Also, when traveling in Japan, do not hesitate to go to an Italian restaurant -- you will be pleasantly surprised --- especially with the fish and risotto dishes.

Posted By jee on November 24, 2007, 9:13 AM

To me, the best food makes for the best vacations. When planning any trip, I review the famous, the unique and best known for local fare. In Hawaii, give me loco moco for breakfast and luau pork every day or the mahi mahi tacos or burritos sold from the lunch wagons by the beaches. Florida it's the gulf shrimp. Mexico, anything as long as it's served with fresh corn tortillas. Then there's anything made with green chilies in New Mexico from breakfast burritos to posole. Every region has something unique, whether its cheeses, desserts or wines, gives reason to explore its culinary secrets. My husband rarely remembers details of a specific trip, yet I rattle off the restaurants and what was the best things we had to eat and he always wonders why......

Posted By Donna O on November 25, 2007, 12:08 AM

Food is the goal. Even in Vegas, the center of our plans is not gambling, not shows, but restaurants that the locals like. With a nephew there, it is easier, but we have a fairly comprehensive list of favorites: 2 Mexican, pan-Asian, dim sum, American with huge portions and cupcakes! And then there are ones that also provide entertainment - the fountains, drag shows, mystery theatre, etc.
AND we are traveling to NYC next month for a foodie day, sigh - what a luxury!

Posted By Becky on November 26, 2007, 12:01 PM

For me, it's not always the restaurants, but county or state fairs, church suppers, and cooking local produce that makes the trip memorable. I always pack a Nesco for that reason, even though it's a major pain to do dishes after using it. Restaurants have their place, but too many chains dot the landscape for my liking.

Posted By James Michalek on December 5, 2007, 7:58 PM