Where eating is the point of visiting
10 of the World's Best Food Cities
Markets, Michelin stars, hawker stalls, neighbourhood trattorias — these are the cities where 'where should we eat?' is the entire itinerary.
Travel-magazine 'best food city' lists rearrange themselves every year, but a small core keeps reappearing — places where the everyday eating culture is as remarkable as the fine dining.
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam · pop. 14,002,598
Saigon's pho, banh mi and morning markets keep it on every serious 'world's best food cities' shortlist.
Osaka, Japan · pop. 2,691,185
Osakans call their city 'the nation's kitchen' — okonomiyaki, takoyaki and kushikatsu were largely invented here.
Hong Kong, China · pop. 7,534,200
Hong Kong combines dim sum, roast goose and one of the world's densest concentrations of Michelin stars per square mile.
Maharashtra, India · pop. 12,442,373
Mumbai's vada pav, Bohra biryani, Parsi cafés and seaside chaat make it the most varied food city in South Asia.
Tuscany, Italy · pop. 382,808
Florence is the gateway to Tuscan eating — bistecca, ribollita, schiacciata, and some of Italy's best produce markets.
Catalonia, Spain · pop. 1,713,247
Barcelona's mix of avant-garde Catalan kitchens, neighbourhood tapas and the Boqueria market is hard to match.
Mexico City, Mexico · pop. 9,209,944
From tacos al pastor to Pujol, Mexico City is the most dynamic food scene in the Americas right now.
Bangkok, Thailand · pop. 5,527,948
Bangkok's street food has its own Michelin guide, and the city's hawker stalls regularly out-cook fancy hotel kitchens.
Île-de-France, France · pop. 2,133,111
Paris codified what 'restaurant' means — its bistros, brasseries and bakeries still define European dining.
Tokyo, Japan · pop. 13,613,660
Tokyo has more Michelin stars than any other city on Earth, and arguably the deepest mid-range restaurant scene anywhere.
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For entertainment only. Rankings on this page are editorial picks compiled from public sources for fun and discovery — they aren't a scientific measurement. Population figures and place details come from open data; see the linked place pages for sources.