Eating and travel are inextricably linked, no matter what your tastes. Here are 10 incredible dishes that make the destination worth it for their distinctive and delicious local flavours alone.

1. Bibimbap, South Korea

This Korean culinary staple of rice with a crusty bottom is served in a hot stone pot layered with veggies, egg and occasionally meat. Top it off with red gochujang (chilli paste) and give it a stir to best savour the layered flavours and textures.

2. Cozido das Furnas, the Azores, Portugal

You’ll find this singular stew only in the Furnas region of São Miguel in the Azores archipelago. It cooks in fumaroles underground for five to seven hours, its vegetables and meat infused with a smoky touch of sulphur from the warm volcanic soil.

Always order the jerk! Photo: Unsplash

3. Jerk, Jamaica

Jamaica’s spicy jerk marinade is doused on meats and fish, then smoked slowly outdoors over a pimento-wood fire. Scotch bonnet chillies bring the heat, and allspice rounds out the piquant flavour – always order the jerk!

Argentina is famous for how it cooks meat. Photo: Unsplash

4. Asado, Argentina

Argentina is known for the quality and preparation of its beef: Salting the meat then slow cooking it on a grill with slanted runners that funnel the fat to the sides, while an adjustable height system directs the perfect amount of heat to the meat.

5. Jollof rice, West Africa

The origins of this vibrant, celebratory dish are the subject of some debate: A “joloff-off”, so to speak, among West African nations. But whether you sample jollof in Nigeria or Senegal, Gambia or Ghana, expect to find similar foundational ingredients: Tomatoes, peppers, onions and herbs.

Pho can be slurped across Vietnam, from roadside stalls to high-end restaurants. Photo: Unsplash

6. Pho, Vietnam

Ubiquitous throughout the country, this comforting noodle soup is inextricably linked with Vietnamese culture. Slurp as much as you can, as often as you can, be it on a street corner in Hanoi or at Michelin-starred Anan Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City.

7.  Biriyani, India

Hyderabad is commonly thought to be the epicentre of biryani, the flavourful rice-based dish one might find at Indian restaurants the world over. However, the variations found in other parts of the country, from the more vegetable-forward Assamese biryanis to Kerala’s prawn, beef and fish varieties, showcase subtler, more complex flavours than their well-known counterparts.

8. Hoppers, Sri Lanka

Made with a fermented batter of rice flour and coconut milk, hoppers – also known as appa or appam – are bowl-shaped pancakes with crispy edges and fluffy middles. Plain hoppers usually come with the chilli-and-salt condiment lunu miris.

Sweet or savoury, momos are a feature of the street food of Nepal. Photo: Pexels.com

9. Momos, Nepal

Wander the streets of capital Kathmandu, or any town in Nepal, and you’ll see these delicious dumplings everywhere; steamed or fried and filled with sweet or savoury ingredients – apples, chocolate,
vegetables, fish, water buffalo.

Australia can lay undisputed claim to the delight that is lamingtons. Photo: Getty

10. Lamingtons, Australia

While Australia and New Zealand like to duke it out over ownership of the pavlova (the meringue and fruit dessert), Australia is indisputably the home of the lamington: A sponge cake coated in chocolate before being rolled in coconut might sound simple, but it’s unbelievably good.

This list is taken from Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2025 ($32.99 RRP). shop.lonelyplanet.com