Working through the Ultimate Eat List
- Lucy and the lens
- Oct 6, 2019
- 9 min read
I received Lonely Planet's Ultimate Eat List for Christmas - a book that lists the top 500 foodie experiences from around the world. I've added a few to my bucket list as a result, but I thought it would also be fun to see how many I've already checked off! So here we go...
Number 3: Sushi in Tokyo. And not just any sushi - conveyor belt sushi!
Number 9: Pizza in Italy. We found a local pizzeria near our AirBnB in Rome, and visited it far too many times!
Number 12: Pastel de Nata in Lisbon. I've tried them from Pasteis de Belem as well as countless other pastelarias!
Number 14: French cheese tasting in Paris. Thanks to the Paris Food Passport, we got to visit several cheese makers who offered us tastings and interesting information about what we were trying!
Number 15: Jerk chicken in Jamaica. Possibly not the most authentic of experiences, but our hotel in Montego Bay organised a big BBQ down on the beach, where we sat eating jerk chicken, rice and plantain while the sun set.
Number 16: Lamb tagine in Marrakech. We were so lucky to see the whole process of lamb tagine being made, thanks to Marrakech Food Tours. We saw the underground ovens were the lamb is cooked, and even got to try lamb's head. We got a different lamb tagine experience the next night, at boutique Riad Kniza's tasting menu dinner.
Number 17: Mussels in Belgium. We (well, Patrick) tried mussels on our first trip to Bruges. Even he was defeated by the mountain of shellfish placed in front of him.
Number 18: Souvlaki in Greece. Not quite in Athens, as it suggests in the book, but in Rhodes we found a family-run restaurant in a random village and were treated to a Greek feast like no other.
Number 22: Churros in Spain. Again, not Madrid as the book suggests, but the churros we had in Seville were the best I've ever tasted! We tried them at Bar el Comercio.
Number 24: Gelato in Italy. We stopped in to Gelateria Bloom in Modena on a surprisingly warm November day, and ate the best gelato of our lives.
Number 25: Steak tartare at a Parisian bistro. We visited Chez Michel bistro, and tried the most traditional of French dishes - tartare, terrine, escargot, Paris-brest... We usually choose modern restaurants when we visit Paris, but there's something lovely about a traditional French bistro!
Number 34: Bolognese in Bologna. We had a nightmare of a time trying to drive into Bologna (the parking situation was a disaster!) and by the time we actually made it to the historic centre, we only had time for a plate full of delicious pasta before we had to leave again!
Number 45: Beignets in New Orleans. We tried famous Cafe du Monde's offerings, but the winners for me were the praline-filled ones we found at the French market.
Number 47: Irish stew and Guinness in Dublin. It was a rainy trip to Dublin, so we found a cosy pub to settle down in and ordered both an Irish stew and a Guinness within about an hour of arriving!
Number 48: kaiseki in Kyoto. Kaiseki, also known as beautifully-presented, seasonal, many-coursed meals, is extremely expensive in Japan, so we went for this budget (but still absolutely beautiful AND delicious!) version instead.
Number 59: A Sunday roast at a British pub. Well, obviously. Our favourite Sunday ritual when living in London was walking the 50 metres to our local pub for a roast.
Number 62: Tapas in Seville. Visiting Seville for the second time, it was all about the tapas this time around! I travelled alone so feeling too awkward to visit tapas bars on my own, I stuck to food markets instead. My favourite tapas items are, without question, tortilla and croquetas!
Number 72: Thai green curry in Bangkok. I actually did a cooking class in Bangkok that included making green curry alongside other things. It turned out quite nicely!
Number 81: Belgian waffles. Not in Liege, as the book suggests, but certainly in Ghent and Bruges.
Number 85: apple pie in the USA. We did grab a whole apple pie while in Arizona, but from a supermarket rather than an orchard!
Number 89: Po' boys in the Deep South. While driving the Natchez Trace Parkway, we stopped in at a little town with a restaurant famous for its po' boys. It was undignified and messy, but completely delicious!
Number 92: Salmorejo soup in Cordoba. I tried not one but seven flavours of this thick and creamy traditional soup during my solo trip to Cordoba!
Number 97: Clafoutis (cherry flan) in France. We tried a fancy one at Michelin-starred Louiseau des Ducs in Dijon.
Number 100: Cream tea in England, with scones, jam and clotted cream. How could I not??
Number 102: Sacher torte in Austria. We didn't eat this at the original Sacher branch in Vienna, but at its restaurant in Salzburg instead. So rich and chocolatey!
Number 105: Macarons in Paris. This is a no-brainer.
Number 112: Bratwurst in Germany. We live in Germany. It's hard to avoid them.
Number 115: Gluhwein and stollen at a German Christmas market. We live in Germany and Christmas is what we live for.
Number 116: Spaghetti carbonara in Rome. Patrick is always on a quest for the best carbonara (he makes a mean one so he's pretty picky). The one he had in Rome was actually one of the worst - but we had good ones elsewhere in Italy!
Number 125: Mango sticky rice in Bangkok. This was another dish I made during my Thai cooking class in Bangkok. Sticky rice is the best!
Number 130: Langos in Budapest. I love langos - it's deep-fried: who wouldn't? - and we devoured several in our 2 days in Budapest!
Number 136: Ramen in Tokyo. And at the famous Inchiran Ramen where you buy your food at a machine and eat in your own private booth for one!
Number 139: Southern fried chicken in Nashville. We queued up for 40 minutes at breakfast time to try the fried chicken and biscuits at Biscuit Love. They did not disappoint. They did keep us full for the rest of the day.
Number 154: Pierogies in Poland. I love pierogies: cheese-stuffed, meat-stuffed, sweet berry-stuffed. We're trying to make a return trip just for more pierogies.
Number 162: Haggis in Scotland. Not on Burn's Night as the book suggests, but we certainly searched out the best haggis in Edinburgh!
Number 165: Fish amok in Cambodia. I loved the food in Cambodia - we ate exclusively at street markets on the cheap.
Number 167: Currywurst in Berlin. You're never more than a couple of streets from a currywurst kiosk where we live, or so it seems! I love them.
Number 171: Aperitivo time in Italy. This was a recent discovery - "you're giving us free food if we buy a drink??" - and we ran with it!
Number 175: Tandoori chicken in Delhi. Everything we ate in India was wonderful, to be honest.
Number 186: Pork pies in Melton Mowbray, UK. I had a horrible job in Melton Mowbray for a year, and I hate pork pies. The jelly is an acquired taste!
Number 192: Jamon iberico. Not in Madrid as the book suggests, but in Malaga and Seville. You can buy it in paper cones for on-the-go nibbling!
Number 201: Galettes in France. We tried galettes for the first time in Dijon last year, with melted local cheese, ham and a fried egg on top. It won't be the last time!
Number 206:Cannoli in Italy. The perfect cannoli isn't too sickly-sweet, and we found the perfect one on our trip to Italy two years ago.
Number 211: maple syrup in Quebec. Married to a Canadian - need I say more?
Number 218: clam chowder in the USA. Tasted on a food tour in San Francisco!
Number 219: Full English breakfast. Yes please.
Number 227: Katsudon in Tokyo. Tonkatsu (fried panko pork cutlet) was one of my favourite dishes while in Japan!
Number 229: London's Maltby St Market. I can't remember specifically what I ate here, but I was there!
Number 232: airline food worldwide. Not exactly the first class experience described in the book, but an experience nonetheless!
Number 247: Pastilla in Marrakech. Not from a market stall as the book suggests, but at Riad Kniza. The combination of savoury meat filling and icing sugar and cinnamon on the top of the puff pastry sounds strange, but it works!
Number 269: Wiener schnitzel in Austria. Not in Vienna as the book suggests, but on the top of a mountain in the Austrian Alps!
Number 270: Tempura in Japan. I'm not a fan of prawn tempura but the veggie tempura we had in Japan was so crispy!
Number 277: Chai tea in India. I miss this a lot!
Number 281: Takoyaki in Tokyo. These are doughy, fried balls stuffed with diced octopus, and I was obsessed with them!
Number 295: Bento boxes in Japan. The perfect meal for people who don't like mashing all their food together, we enjoyed a bento box on the shinkansen train from Hiroshima to Tokyo.
Number 296: Eat at an American diner. I love the mini jukeboxes that sit on each table! We experienced some great diners on Route 66, including Delgadillo's famous Snow Cap Diner and Mr D's Diner.
Number 298: onigiri in Japan. Our breakfast food of choice, these triangles of packed rice have a meat, fish or veggie filling in the middle.
Number 300: Hot dogs in Iceland. The gas station hotdog is famous in Iceland - the most affordable way to eat out, and somehow just more delicious than your typical hotdog, too!
Number 301: Wagashi in Kyoto. Wagashi are Japan's beautifully refined selection of sweets usually made from natural ingredients such as bean paste and rice.
Number 308: a Mission stye burrito in San Francisco's Mission District. The first stop on our food tour, this was probably the best burrito I've ever tasted!
Number 312: Nanaimo bars in Canada. We can even make them, now, too!
Number 319: Tiramisu in Italy. We bought a few from Pompi during our time there: so smooth and creamy!
Number 326: Yakitori in Tokyo. Down Memory Lane in Shinjuku, we sat in a little izakaya and tried skewer after skewer of barbecued chicken, pork and vegetables.
Number 331: A francesinha in Porto. I tried this mega-sandwich in Porto a few years ago and wasn't a huge fan, but after trying one in Sintra last summer, I'm sold!
Number 332: Pretzels in Munich. Not at Oktoberfest, but certainly at famous beer hall Hofbrauhaus.
Number 349: Quiche Lorraine in France. Not in Paris as the book suggests, but in a converted church in an adorable Burgundy village.
Number 355: Egg hoppers in Sri Lanka. I'm so sad that the only time we tried egg hoppers in Sri Lanka was after the biggest breakfast of our lives - we were too full to really enjoy them!
Number 358: gulab jamun in India. I lived for these syrupy balls of goodness when I was there!
Number 383: balti in Birmingham. Growing up in the Midlands meant growing up eating curry on the regular!
Number 389: Saltwater taffy in the USA. We found a Vegas buffet that was given away all-you-can-eat taffy....let's just say our pockets were bulging more when we left than when we arrived!
Number 391: Poutine in Montreal. I married a Canadian so I could eat more poutine. No, really.
Number 392: Okonomiyaki in Japan. This was like an omelette on steroids, stuffed with pork, seafood, cheese, and even noodles!
Number 395: a bullet train bento box. I'm sure bento boxes popped up somewhere else n this list too, but they're so good why not mention them twice??
Number 419: kobe beef in Kobe. We made it very close to Kobe - to Osaka, close enough to the famous city to offer up kobe beef during our BBQ experience!
Number 421: Pizza in New York City. We kept going back to the same pizza place during our stay in the city!
Number 423 - schweinehaxe in Germany. Haxe is a pork knuckle. I tried it once; I'll never try it again.
Number 441: Pad Thai in Thailand. My favourite Thai dish! I also made this in my cooking class, by the way.
Number 447: fried tarantula in Cambodia. One bite and I was finished. Never again.
Number 449: Mince pies in the UK. The thing I miss most about Christmas in England.
Number 452: mochi in Japan. This rice-based, squishy treat usually stuffed with red bean paste was a staple during our trip!
Number 462: Cous cous in Marrakech. During our food tour, we visited 'Mama Souk', a lady who makes the lightest cous cous for all the vendors in the souk.
Number 471: steak and kidney pie in London. Although I prefer more steak, less kidney!
Number 479: banoffee pie in England. Its banana, it's toffee, it's a completely legitimate British pudding.
Number 493: Apple strudel in Austria. The best we had was in the town of Gosau - the filling and the pastry were perfection.
Experiences tried, but not on location:
Number 8: bibimbap in Seoul. We tried one at a Korean BBQ inspired restaurant in Kyoto, Japan.
Number 10: Dim sum in Hong Kong. The closest we've got to the real thing is Chinatown in London.
Number 11: Peruvian ceviche. We had this at Michelin-starred Peruvian restaurant, Lima...in London
Number 31: Scottish fish and chips. But we have tried English fish and chips and Welsh fish and chips. Naturally.
Number 40: BBQ pork in Seoul. Our favourite Korean BBQ in Germany offers this, but I'd love to try it in Seoul itself!
Number 43: baozi in Shanghai. Chinatown in London was the closest alternative!
Number 46: Dosa in India. We tried it at Michelin-starred Gymkhana, in London.
Number 52: The famous maple-bacon doughnut at Voodoo Doughnut, Portland. We actually heard from many people that Voodoo is overrated and we should try Blue Star Donuts instead, so we did! We ate them while watching the sun set over the city.
Number 53: pupusa in El Salvador. During a food tour of San Francisco's Mission District, we visited a traditional Salvadorean restaurant for some delicious pupusas!
Number 95: Halloumi meze in Beirut. We tried this in Egypt instead.
Number 106: Swiss fondue. It wasn't fondue season when we visited Switzerland, but there's a weirdly popular fondue scene in Amsterdam, so we tried it there instead! We also like making our own!
Number 132: Scotch eggs at Fortnum and Mason. I've grown up on supermarket scotch eggs, but never gone that fancy!
Number 141: Raclette in Switzerland. We tried it at Cologne's Christmas market instead.
Number 157: Turkish delight in Turkey. I got some as a gift direct from Turkey, but haven't been there myself!
Number 184: Grasshoppers in Mexico. We tried it at Ella Canta in London.
Number 203: Bubble tea in Taipei. This was really popular in London while we lived there!
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