During a recent birthday lunch we discussed travel and destinations and what is worth to see, where to eat or/and can be the necessary food time a culinary experience, and and. Of course it can ! Then I decided out of what I’ve read in the past and combined with my own experiences to put together some destinations, most travelers love because of unusual and exceptional range of gourmet offers which can range from exceptional street food to star restaurants where connoisseurs can treat their palates.

This chart speaks for itself. I read it is from 2016, means still prevailing information.

Result is the following list of 15 city’s where I think one can find all one would expect. A loose order from 15 (as good as others, but…) to 1 (which I think is the best). Most pics are from my travels, some are of the internet, because in my time we used to make slides !!

Ranking city’s in my opinion.

15th place Florence.

The numerous regions of Italy are known for their different interpretations of tasty cuisine. In Florence, especially the Centro Storico district is recommended by travelers for their good food.

  Schiacciata, an airy bread with olive oil and salt.

  Pappardelle with cinghiale is pasta with wild boar sauce. Especially recommended in Florence. An Italian treat and palate joy.

  Culinary adventurers should definitely taste Lampredotto It is cow’s stomach and sounds much more bad then it tastes.

14th place Valencia.

Warm, sunny climate and beautiful beaches and stubborn buildings characterize the image of the Spanish city of Valencia. Travelers are particularly drawn to the Ciutat Vella district.

       You can either sip a sangria in one of the many bars along the promenade or enjoy the local tapas in an inviting restaurant like La Vietnamita.

  This is a must in Valencia, the local version of Paella. I love it, because it is very saucy, not as dry as most other Paellas. Eaten in Casa de Tapas.

13th Place Porto.

The coastal city of Porto in Portugal is known for its medieval district of Ribeira (extremely colorful suburb) and the historic merchants houses and cafes.

  Especially the area Boavista is recommended by tourists for the good food. Cabrito asado, means roasted kid.

  Sardinhas, bacalhau, tripas and francesinhas – Francesinhas is a Porto sandwich. Can be awful, or yummy, be careful !!  But this is great, Marmelada with cheese – Marmelada is the wonderful quince paste the Spanish call membrillo. This combo may be a starter or a nibble.

  Porto is also known for the production of port wine. The Douro wine region is located in the east of the city.

12th place Hamburg.

The German city of Hamburg developed to a culinary highlight. Try to experience the culinary variety of Hamburg’s lace cooks, enjoy superb and creative cuisine at the trendsetters, the stylish traditionalists and the best examples international cuisine.

   The Speicherstadt, Hamburg Germany is the largest warehouse district in the world where the buildings stand on timber-pile foundations, oak logs, in this particular case. It is located in the port of Hamburg—within the HafenCity quarter—and was built from 1883 to 1927.

  The newest Hamburg landmark. This new Opera House, the „Elbphilharmonie“, build in the „Speicherstadt“ on top of old warehouses is a must to visit. It is very hard to get tickets, but the 360 degree outlook terrace is free of charge. An amazing view over the whole city.

The district was built as a free zone to transfer goods without paying customs. As of 2009, both the district and the surrounding area are under redevelopment. One already can see the new Hamburg „Philharmonie“ in the background of the pic above (Hamburgs new landmark). The whole warehouse district, as the first site in Hamburg, was awarded the status of UNESCO World Heritage Site.

You will see, Hamburg’s gastronomy has an incredible lot to offer.

             A must to try Labskaus. Labskaus is a culinary specialty from Northern Germany and in particular from the cities of Bremen, Hamburg, and Luebeck. The main ingredients are salted meat or corned beef, potatoes, and onion. Some recipes put beetroot, pickled gherkin, or even herring into it, while others have these ingredients as side orders as you see above. But it always comes with a fried egg.

          As already mentioned  Hamburgs international cuisine is fantastic. Above excamples from the Atlantik Hotel Alster. Left: Tender, sweet scallops – paired with a tomato-rich garbanzo stew. Right: Hamburgs version of a beef tartar to mix by the guest him- or herself.

One of the best restaurant addresses is Thomas Imbusch’s new restaurant, its called 100/200, pronounced „One Hundred, Two Hundred“.

  Modern concept, the whole restaurant has a view into the kitchen with this exceptional Molteni stove.

A French Molteni stove, the Rolls-Royce among the stoves, forms the center of the restaurant. It cooks on the stove (at one hundred degrees) and bakes it (at two hundred degrees), hence the name that is meant to reflect what Imbusch is about: The essence of good cooking, craft, hospitality and enjoyment.

11th Place Singapore.

Travelers will find ancient temples, rain-forests and white sandy beaches. But also culinary, the country has much to offer, especially in the Orchard area vacationers will come on their expense. About 30 years ago Singapur and Bangkok were to me the No.1 culinary destination. Still within the first 5, but I also included in this rating other travelers opinion.

  The international variety in Singapore is just incredible.

The excellent restaurants are made up of a mix of different culinary trends. The Indonesian food culture has been influenced by dishes from China, India and Malaysia and makes even the most demanding fans happy.

     Two of my favorites in Singapore, left the chilli crab and right chicken and lamb satay’s with ketupat coco rice baked in banana leaf baskets.

Singapore, „Hawker Center“, means well-organized, obsessively clean, ‘stand in line, get your food, proceed to a table and eat’ food stalls. Which is a good thing, because you know you won’t get any stomach bugs with your Hainanese Chicken Rice, the national dish of Singapore, best eaten piping hot from a Hawker stall. There are several all over the city.

  Don’t leave Singapore without sampling Kaya Toast, a toasted sandwich slathered with a type of jam called Kaya.  This popular dish is to die for. Singapore toast, filled with coconut jam dipped in to a combo of soft egg and dark soy.   OMG !!!   It’s sweet, salty and right up my alley, best description – it is „umami“. My most favorite breakfast in Singapore.

10th place Kuala Lumpur.

Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia has so much to offer: a modern skyline, glass skyscrapers, white sandy beaches and dense rain-forests. The best food is available in the Mid Valley. This city is the culinary heaven for ultra modern fans.

  A high rise dining room on the 23rd floor of Troika Sky Dining. Cantaloupe may not be a rooftop restaurant but it sure comes close, with slanting, floor-to-ceiling angled glass windows. A must-visit destination for the setting alone, the view of the looming spires of the Petronas Twin Towers and the rest of the city, is best appreciated at night, and must be among the most imposing in KL. The food is just as impressive, offering a concise, haute menu with French, Italian, Greek and Spanish flavours evident in its dishes.

   Hundreds and hundreds of different dishes are to choose from. Up left typical banana leaf rice, up right char siew, down left ikan bakar, down right best wings I ever had somewhere. Even if you’re not a huge fan of grilled fish, the ikan bakar at Kedai Kak Jat exists to change your mind about it. Maybe it’s the freshness of the fish, the spicy marinade or the precision with which they’re grilled to create a charred, crispy exterior while the flesh remains moist and flaky; whatever it is, this is the ikan bakar worthy of going the extra mile for (in this case, going up Bukit Petaling at lunch time).

The colorful streets full of food stalls are overloaded with a mix of Malaysian, Chinese, Indian and European cuisine. Everything is modern, from traditional to traditional.

9th place Las Vegas.

The city of Las Vegas in the US has much more to offer in addition to colorful clubs and 24-hour casinos. Numerous restaurants on the boulevard have very different culinary directions. From trendy bars on rooftop terraces to elegant venues and cheap dinners, there’s really everything.

  The Steak House at Circus Circus has been voted best of Las Vegas for over 30 years. Two T-bone steaks, for the two of us, grilled to perfection.

The mouth-watering cuisine and impeccable service make this the best kept dining secret in Vegas! Those who know fine dining know The Steak House. This award-winning restaurant features mesquite-grilled steaks, prime rib, lobster and crab legs in a traditional steakhouse setting. My other favorite places were Andiamo Italian Steakhouse and Joe’s seafood at Caesars Palace.

   We always wanted to experience Stone Crab at Joe’s, but in Miami we couldn’t get a reservation, in Vegas finally we got lucky.   Joe’s features an extensive selection of seafood, flown in fresh daily, to complement the world’s finest Florida Stone Crab claws. Trust me, this is an amazing experience. As always, click on pics to supersize for a better view!

Fresh stone crabs are found in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. They are hand harvested, one claw at a time, and thrown back to the sea where the harvested limbs regrow. Joe Weiss, and his wife Jennie, discovered this unknown delicacy in the early 1920s, and soon after, began serving them at their restaurant in Miami Beach.

  And this is just amazing, the sweet treat of Joe’s lemon pie. One of the best we ever had in the world. And we had a few, ha !

A meal inside Joël Robuchon’s jewel-hued rooms is a once-in-a-lifetime event, so opt for the full experience. The 16-course parade of transcendent French cuisine takes more than three hours, makes ample use of caviar, black truffles and foie gras and won’t leave you contemplating a slice of pizza on the way home.  Joel’s is a 3star Michelin restaurant and the most  decadent on the Las Vegas Strip.

        The Robuchon dining room, left and Robuchon’s lounge, where one can forget time with a cognac of $300,– .

It is part of the famous Mansion hotel-within-a-hotel in the MGM Grand. You have to be invited to stay there, and rooms start at $5,000 a night. You aren’t even allowed to visit the hotel – it is within a secret courtyard hidden in the MGM Grand.

  This was much more my style. A fantastic „Tunesian Lamb“ at the „DB Brasserie“ within the Venetian where we had a fantastic 3night package .

It goes that Robuchon is America’s second-most expensive eatery after New York’s Masa. The 16-course degustation menu to $425 per person.  That brings the REAL COST of dining at Robuchon (including 8.1% tax and 20% tip) to $544 for one, or $1,088 for two. Wine pairings are available at $295, $595 and $995 per person. Not for the small budget.

                    Since I am a history lover (as you can see throughout my posts) I take the chance to give you my best „Must See“ tip for Las Vegas. Take a stroll through the Neon Boneyard and you’ll stumble upon the most unique signage ever – vintage Vegas at its best. Some of these signs are as tall as a house! The boneyard has 150-plus restored signs  and many more.

Las Vegas is of course not on the cheap side, even a usual burger or a pizza has a price. But if you look for a destination where one finds „the whole world“ on one spot, then visit this city. I can’t even imagine what one won’t find in Las Vegas. But there is more to come, the gambling city is only place 7 on my favorite list.  Stay tuned to part 2 – next week.