We’re foodies! If you’ve followed Mark and Chuck’s Adventures for more than a couple of posts, you know how much we love food! We try to experience as much local food as possible wherever we travel.
Foodies Will Travel For Food
In the last couple of years, we’ve done excellent street food tours in Delhi, Xi’an, Shanghai, Key West, and Amsterdam.
We’ve eaten some unique street foods like an unidentified noodle soup, with what we think were fish balls, along the streets in Bangkok. We simply followed the Tuk-tuk drivers to where they ate lunch.
In Kenya, we tried ostrich, crocodile, and ox balls at Carnivore in Nairobi before heading out onto the Savannah for a week at several safari camps.
We’ve also eaten scorpions and grasshoppers in China.
So, it might surprise you to know that years ago, we crossed over into Tijuana on one of our first trips together and were so scared of local food we ate at Burger King! We believed the hype, didn’t know any better, and were afraid to try something new.
So, trust us, there’s always room for growth!
You Might Be Surprised To Know
I {Mark} am a born and bred foodie! Basically, I eat anything you put in front of me.
I’ve always been into food. As far back as 7th grade, my parents had to petition the school district for me to take HomeEc because I was determined to be a chef.
I have a background in Commercial Baking and Food and Beverage. I’m a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and worked as a chef for most of my adult life.
On the other hand, Chuck was a pretty fussy eater when we met 18 years ago – BUT he has gotten incredibly adventurous over the years. While he still has his limitations, he continually surprises me. And, while he has no formal training, he’s a fantastic home cook!
Just the other night, he made from scratch Chicken Mole that was amazing!
The Risk of Foodies OVERSHARING
Before we started our travel and food blog, we posted all of our dining experiences on Trip Advisor. More recently, we shifted over to sharing Yelp reviews.
As we started the blog, we decided only to share dining experiences that applied to travels. Sharing food tours, eating in local street markets and restaurants that were part of our trips. We just figured that people might not really be interested in our day to day local dining out.
With that being said, without being able to travel, we are experiencing a lot more restaurant takeout and outdoor dining from local Tampa Bay area restaurants. We will share some of those experiences here when we feel they are something people traveling to the region should check out.
Things like Mazzaro’s Italian Market or the 3 Best Burgers in Saint Petersburg are absolutely more our style.
There’s Change Coming
Right now, with the world on lockdown, like everyone else, we’re cooking at home. We binge watch travel and food shows and HOURS of YouTube.
Our cooking tends to reflect our travels. And now, the places we hope to be able to travel again soon.
Don’t be surprised if our blog posts start including a little bit of our travel cooking adventures.
Stay tuned!
I had been wondering about why people travel for food. But since 2 years ago, I started to do just that. I discovered how much better food tastes at their places of origin.
Oh, there’s way more than that. We learn no much about a country’s culture by eating at off the beaten path places with locals. We’ve eaten in people’s homes, secret gardens behind storefronts, and places like Thailand where we followed the tuk-tuk drivers.
That’s amazing that you converted Chuck from a picky eater to an adventurous one. I definitely lean more towards the “eat anything crowd” and it’s very hard for me to relate to / travel with picky eaters. My best friend is a very picky eater and we spent 3 weeks in Japan, and he refused to try sushi. It’s wonderful that you both embrace the chance to try different foods around the world!
I think Chuck converted himself, slowly, but he’s done well. We have a few friends who are picky eaters and tend to be more cautious about where we eat with them.
Wow! You guys are adventurous and obvious foodies! I don’t know if I would be brave enough to eat street food in Delhi. Actually, I know I would not be! I’m glad you guys have strong stomachs.
LOL. We were very cautious too, we specifically booked with Delhi Food Walks because of the recommendation of nearly every YouTuber and blogger we follow. We did the tour in Delhi on our first day, but they offer tours in other Indian cities as well.
Sounds like you have been to some
Amazing places following the food. I have to ask which countries are your favourite for cuisine?
Thanks so much… the favorite countries question is hard to answer. In general, we love authentic off the beaten path foods with locals, in small mom and pop places. Thai food ranks pretty high, some of the local Kenyan foods were delicious-however eating in the middle of the savannah might have had something to do with that too.
I would really love to go back to Delhi for Walking food tour! – total drool worthy! Making me want to go back to India!
Our trip to India was a bit bittersweet. We were there in March of this year and things were ‘different.’ We did our Delhi Food Walk the first day and it really helped us understand so much about the foods and flavors and acclimate for the rest of our trip. WE really wish we had booked them for a second city we were visiting as well.
Such a great story, amazing adventures! I love street food. I love eating and trying local flavors. Even if they are a bit exotic, like fried cockroaches or crickets in Thailand and Cambodia. I ate grasshoppers in Thailand. I also love street food in Delhi, even if my stomach hurts a bit from spicy flavors. But getting to know the world and culture through flavors is a great experience.
It’s one of our favorite parts of travel. We really connect with locals. We have also found that cooking some authentic foods before we travel helps us adjust to the spice levels and interesting flavors.
I love trying new foods both at home and when I travel! Much like you two, I’ve been trying a lot of new local restaurants and enjoying unique cuisine right at home. I’ve learned a lot of my city over the past 8 months.
We’ve learned so much about local culture experiencing the off the beaten path places, where the locals eat.
Loved this post. I also like trying different foods on trips and get excited for the food when on vacation. I don’t know about scorpion and grasshopper though. Lol.
LOL, there were crunchy like a chip and only tasted like the flavor of the seasoning they sprinkled on – however, the grasshopper wings got stuck in your teeth. hahahha
It’s so funny – and inspiring – how people travel for different reasons. Although I love to eat – and to cook – I never travel for food. Also, I’m not chasing eateries. If I stumble over a good place, great, if not, too bad, the next exhibition is waiting for me, anyway 😀 What I always try to do is eating as traditional and local as possible – even if it’s not great but just quirky 😀
Glad it was inspiring! We RARELY chase a specific eatery. After following tons of blogs and Vlogs we look for iconic regional foods and an occasional ‘can miss’ restaurant. We just find that eating off the beaten path, where locals eat, tells us so much about the local culture.