Street food - Best Places of Interest

October 30, 2019 Food

Street food in New Zealand

Street Food New Zealand

First of all, NZ has top-quality coffee – wherever you go! Also, NZ cuisine takes the best of Asian and European cuisine and turns it into something unique. Wineries often have a cafe at the cellar door. Check out the menu and you might find something totally unexpected and delicious.

Kaiaua Fish and Chips Takeaways, New Zealand Food — Kaiaua Fish and Chips Takeaways

Now to the classics. The most popular takeaway food is Fish & Chips. Any Kiwi knows NZ Fish & Chips are the best in the world! If you had enough Fish & Chips – is that even possible? – there are sausage rolls, as well as a variety of savoury pies that are available at any cafe, corner store (called dairy), and petrol station. These foods are best enjoyed on a beach, of which NZ has plenty.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing, New Zealand food — Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

If you have a sweet tooth, there is a variety of flat cakes called slices available in any cafe. Carrot cake is another all-time favourite.

For a hearty meal in a pub, ask for the roast of the day. Whatever they made will be good, but lamb shanks are the best!

~Frank Mueller

Honeycomb ice cream with honeycomb toffee and hot toffee sauce.
Ben Sutherland

Hokey pokey ice cream: toffee mixed with vanilla. Awesome. Can be purchased at any local grocery store, best served in a cone.

Paua fritters - New Zealand — Paua fritters – New Zealand

Paua fritters with kumara chips. Paua is a type of shellfish, kumara is a type of potato found only in NZ. Can be purchased at most local fish and chip shops.

Hangi takeaway. Pork, beef, mutton, root potatoes and cabbage are cooked in a traditional Maori earth oven. The flavour is sublime.

~ Ronnie Hughan, AFF Instructor and Tandem Instructor/Examiner at US Parachute Association (1996-present)

Best New Zealand Food

Hangi and boil up! And quite easy to make yourself or with the help of friends and family for the hangi pit or some land so you can make your own hangi pit. Or you can use a steamer. Ground hangi is the best though.

Hangi is meat and vegetables wrapped in tin foil and cooked in a hole in the ground using coal etc. Or you can steam everything I said above. But it doesn’t have the same taste as a ground hangi. But it’s ka-pai in my opinion!

Putting down a hāngi, New Zealand food — Preparation of a modern hāngi for tourists at Mitai, Rotorua
Einalem – https://www.flickr.com/photos/einalem/2123097939/

Boil up is also meat, preferably brisket or pork bones is a fave, and any green vegetable, whether it is watercress, puha, silverbeet, or spinach and you boil it together in the biggest pot you can find. And then you add potatoes. Add some dough bois if you know how to make them.

~ Santana Charmaine lives in New Zealand

The Pavlova. It’s a delicious meringue-based dessert.

There is some controversy around the country of origin – the Australians also lay claim to the Pavlova as their own. However, according to Wikipedia, formal research now confirms the Pavlova as a Kiwi dish.

~ Abu Amin, no handlebars

I’ve just written about this so it’s fresh in my mind and my favourites (after some very serious research) were…

Bluff Oysters – They’re just so good… I prefer them raw with a bit of lemon but they’re not bad battered and fried too
Green-lipped Mussels – I can eat these by the bucketful served. Great with a creamy sauce and lots of garlic
Kumara fries – Kumara (a type of sweet potato) tastes best when served as fries (like most things) with a dollop of aioli on the side.
Kiwi Burger – Beef, onion, cheese, lettuce, tomato, egg and beetroot… The best burger to be found… And I don’t even like beetroot!
Mince and Cheese Pies – Kiwi pies are different from British pies which tend to be served in pans with pastry on the top only. Ours is fully covered (like their pasties but better) and comes in a range of fillings with Mince and Cheese being the best!
Pavlova – Been mentioned a few times already I think with good reason. Light, sweet and beautiful. Made even better with Kiwi, passionfruit, cherry or mandarin toppings.
Roast Lamb – You can buy it in supermarkets around the world but it’s always best at home. Season with salt, garlic, and rosemary and you’re away!
Feijoa – Most people outside New Zealand haven’t even heard of feijoas before but they’re world-famous here and plentiful. Sweet and tangy, they’re quite addictive once you get started on them.
Paua – The steak of the sea and type of abalone – Paua is delicious when cooked as a fritter and enjoyed by the sea!
Whitebait Fritter – Equally good, if not better, are Whitebait Fritters. Kiwi Whitebait is again different to what you get overseas, which are bigger and more like sardines. Ours are the youthful smaller versions with a much more subtle taste of the sea. Yum!

Hungry writing about all this again so going to leave it at that but feel free to read my longer version of this with 9 additional New Zealand food delicacies.

~ Yohei Guy, SEO and Content Manager (2018-present)

So, what is your best New Zealand food?

Eat Like A Local In Vietnam – How And What To Hunt For

Vietnamese Southern Crispy Pancake, street food Vietnam

Vietnam is famous for not only for beautiful sceneries but also delicious street foods.

Each region in this country has its specialities, through the coastal to the mountainous area. However, do you know how to eat street food in Vietnam in a professional way? Keep reading this article to understand how Vietnamese locals enjoy their street foods.

Special Skills To Eat Like A Local

Using Chopsticks And Spoon

Vietnamese people often hold chopsticks on the right hand and spoon on the other to eat, mainly when they eat “Pho” – a famous traditional food of Vietnam. The chopsticks are used to twirl up noodles, while the spoon is used to place the broth. It seems to be difficult the first time; however, you should practice it to enjoy Vietnamese street food correctly.

Eating Right Foods At Right Hour

The Vietnamese often spend one hour in the morning having breakfast, from 07:00 am to 08:00 am, with foods such as bread and “Pho.” Their lunch lasts from 11:30 am to 01:00 pm and the duration from 05:00 pm to 06:30 pm is for dinner. The first advice is that you should have meals at this time. You can eat at a different time, but it is not like a local.

Lunch and dinner are the main meals of Vietnamese people with four vital nutrients, including sugar, protein, fat, and vegetables. A traditional meal in the Vietnamese family is lovely thanks to diversified colours and good decoration. Therefore, if you have a chance to enjoy a traditional family meal in Vietnam, you must be fortunate.

Sitting On Tiny Plastic Chairs

If you have been familiar with eating in luxurious restaurants, sitting on a tiny plastic chair to eat street food will bring you special feelings. You may wonder why you have to stay in this kind of uncomfortable chair. The answer is that it is a part of the street food culture in this small but beautiful country. It will not be street food if you do not choose such a sitting.

Drinking Iced Tea (Trà Đá) Together

In Vietnam, there is a kind of drink for everything that is iced tea or “trà đá.” Never think about drinking beer if you want to be a local eater as Vietnamese people all drink “trà đá.” Moreover, this tea is very safe because it is boiled before being served. If you do not like iced tea, you can order the hot one. It is also worth trying.

Following The Crowd

A significant rule for eating like a local in Vietnam is to follow the crowd. The crowded stores often go with a good reputation; therefore, you will enjoy the best flavour of food here. Moreover, because of the humid climate of Vietnam, food becomes stale very quickly, you may get a stomach-ache after eating in the less-crowded restaurants.

Northern Vietnam

Noodle Soup (Phở)

Among the list of Vietnamese specialities, noodle soup should always be listed as the top one. This dish is made from fresh rice noodle, salty broth, herbs, chicken or beef, and so on. A bowl of cheap but tasty “Phở” nowadays becomes a familiar food for every tourist arriving in the North of Vietnam.

La Vong Grilled Fish Pie (Chả Cá Lã Vọng)

La Vong Grilled Fish pie- Vietnam travel

La Vong grilled fish pie was created at the time of the French. It is the combination of sliced snakehead, turmeric, galangal, pepper, ferment, and fish sauce. This eating will be of the most delicious when it is hot. You can eat La Vong grilled fish pie together with vermicelli, toasted rice pancake, shrimp paste, and fresh chopped small onions. It is said to be one of the most worth-trying dishes in Hanoi – the capital of Vietnam.

Vietnamese Grilled Meat Vermicelli (Bún Chả)

Vietnamese Grilled Meat Vermicelli, street food Vietnam

Bún Chả” can be made from grilled chopped roll meat pie or pieces and vermicelli. This dish uses pig shoulder meat, which is marinated in fish sauce, pepper, salt, sugar, vegetable oil, and chopped dried onions. To make it more sophisticated, some people even wrap meat pies in banana leaves. You can enjoy Vietnamese grilled meat vermicelli with fresh vegetables and herbs. Also, combine with fried spring rolls (which is called Nem in Vietnamese) if you like.

West Lake Crispy Shrimp Cake (Bánh Tôm Hồ Tây)

Shrimp fried pancake of West Lake-Vietnam

Crispy shrimp cake is made from shrimp caught in West Lake and flour. After wrapping shrimp in flour, they start to fry in a hot pan full of cooking oil. It is ready to eat when the cake becomes yellow and soufflé. This cake is served with a sweet and sour dipping sauce made with sliced thin green papaya and carrot. You can eat this cake with vermicelli, but it is best to drink beer while enjoying “Bánh Tôm Hồ Tây.”

Central Vietnam

Hue Beef Noodle (Bún Bò Huế)

Hue beef noodle soup Da Nang - Bún bò Huế Đà Nẵng | by HoianFoodtour Vietnam street food

This is one of the most savoury Vietnamese noodle soup. Hue beef noodle is made from braised beef, vermicelli rice noodles, green vegetables, and herbs. Although it is popular among central Vietnamese province, Hue is the best place for you to enjoy the original taste of this eating.

Quang Noodle (Mì Quảng)

Quang noodle is a speciality from Quang Nam province, Vietnam. Like “Phở” or vermicelli, “Mì Quảng” is also made from rice, but it is a little bit softer than vermicelli. Quang noodle has a yellow colour, which comes from food colouring or annatto oil. Broth to make Quang noodle is also unique with some shrimp, meat, and peanut. Nowadays, you can easily find this eating in every province of Vietnam. So, remember to give it a try when you have a chance to go to Vietnam.

Southern Vietnam

Mixed Rice Paper (Bánh Tráng Trộn)

Mixed rice paper salad, street food Vietnam

Mixed rice paper is a rustic dish of the youth in Ho Chi Minh City. Materials to make mixed rice paper are straightforward, including sour mango fibres, laksa leaves, kumquat juice, dried beef, shrimp salt, and of course, julienned rice paper sheets. All of these ingredients are mixed well together until rice paper becomes soft. “Bánh tráng trộn” is not only delicious but also eye-catching thanks to the red colour created by dried beef and shrimp salt. For every Saigon citizen, mixed rice paper is a street food of the lifetime.

Vietnamese Southern Crispy Pancake (Bánh Xèo Nam Bộ)

Vietnamese southern crispy pancake, which is also called sizzling cake is a traditional dish from the South of Vietnam. Its name “sizzling” or “xèo” starts from the sound created when people make this cake. Through many years of development and cultural transferring, “Bánh xèo” is changed in each area to fit the flavour of local people. For example, “Bánh xèo” in Ho Chi Minh City is crispy and rolled with fresh vegetables and herbs, while the one in Binh Dinh province is quite soft and crispy in the border only. Vietnamese people eat sizzling cake all year round but the most wonderful time to enjoy is autumn and winter when the weather is cold.

Above is some useful advice for you on how to eat street food in Vietnam like a local. Also, there are some suggestions on what you should eat when arriving in this beautiful country. Remember that these foods are nowadays available in big cities of Vietnam, so you can enjoy southern specialities in Hanoi or other northern provinces and vice versa.

Have you ever been to Vietnam? If yes, share with us your experience on what you have done or eaten. If no, hope our article was useful to you. Thanks for reading!

I am Emily Pham. I was born in Vietnam – a country with many unknown beaches, historic sites, and tourist attractions. Understanding that Vietnam nowadays is a famous destination, I establish the blog site vina.com with the purpose of introducing the elegant beauty of Vietnam to friends around the world. If you are planning a trip to Vietnam, our blog will provide you with essential information on where to go and what to do in our country.

What is your favourite street food? Part 17

Danish hot dog | by City Foodsters, Denmark

Continuing my series on What is your favourite street food?

Street food Denmark

It is actually been several decades ago since street food equalled hot dogs here; with the introduction of more exotic cuisine from abroad, the selection has become much more varied. But you´ll still find hot dog stands as the most commonly seen option.

There´s the big Papirøen / Copenhagen Street Food place which has by far the biggest variety in town, worth a visit. Also, check out the more expensive, but really mouth-watering food market Torvehallerne.

There are lots of Kebab and pizza places in town generally, and also other options, some of them as mobile stands – Greek, Korean, Japanese, Hungarian, French crepes etc., to mention a few, I´ve seen recently.

As regards hot dog stands, I think they often tend to move around. But try and see if there´s anyone around Torvehallerne and the Round Tower for example, for some of the less standardized items, that are not just of the “Steff Houlberg” label or the like.

~ Joen.Dk

Duck fat fries

Pulled pork sandwich

Sweet potato fries

Mixed Brazilian barbecue

Tacos

Molten chocolate cake

Dine around Copenhagen, Denmark & get a taste of international and Danish street foods! From Organic Hot Dogs to delicious Creme Brulee Doughnuts, Copenhagen delights you with a variety of International Street Food!

So, what is your favourite Danish food?

November 27, 2018 Food

What is your favourite street food? Part 16

Continuing the series on What is your favourite street food? Part 15

Street food Spain

has a few but, since autumn has just ended, let me tell you about the most typical one:

Roasted chestnuts

Not that much of a mystery. Spanish people love chesnuts and the best way to eat them is by the street and roasted. What’s charming about this is that they’re sold on stands where you can see the castañero roasting them on a metal furnace. It’s been like that since forever and many cities would not be the same without their chestnut stands set right at the start of the fall.

Hasn’t changed that much for the last century

Oh, and fear not if you don’t like chestnuts. These stands usually also sell sweet potatoes and cobs. Roasted too, of course.

Most Spanish food is awesome, but here’s some tips about it if you’re visiting Spain:

Good paellas are very, very hard to find. This is a very complex dish and very slow to produce (it takes around 1 hour and a half to cook).

Spanish Paella — Paella Mixta | A mixed paella with chicken and seafood toppe… | Flickr

Paellas are the NOT fast food and most paellas that are sold to tourists are cheap-ass frozen paellas. Avoid them unless you have a lot of knowledge about local restaurants.

Iberian ham is a delicacy, and I would dare to say that Spanish cold cuts are the best of the world.

Iberian Ham- Spain food — Iberian Ham – Picture of 7 Portes, Barcelona – TripAdvisor

You can’t go wrong with any of these, really. Museo del Jamón has some great ratio of “ham for your buck” thanks to its staggering economy of scale.

Spain has an even bigger variety of cheeses than France.

Manchego Spain cheese — Manchego By Zerohund – de.wikipedia: [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1378114

If you can taste some local cheese, don’t think twice but do it!

Croquetas, Spain food — Croquetas de champiñón | Cocina de Nihacc
Image credit- cocinadenihacc.wordpress.com

Non-frozen croquetas are heaven incarnate.
Most gourmet markets have good food, but very touristic prices (that is, they are overpriced).
Commercial Spanish beer quality range from “meh” (Alhambra) to “crap” (Cruzcampo), but artisanal beers are an entirely different (and better) story.
Spain has some of the best wines in relation of price VS quality, both red and white. Drink them at will!
We know our seafood and fishes. Spain is, after all, the 2nd biggest market for all things sea, right after Japan. Don’t be afraid of the alien-looking sea creatures in our menus
Tapas are a great thing, but their quality and quantity greatly varies from one region to another. For example, Granada has a stronger tapas tradition than Madrid, which in turn has a stronger tapas tradition than Barcelona. In some parts of Spain they are even non-existent (The Basque Country has Pintxos instead of tapas, for example). Also, tapas or not, menus del día are the best way to eat (and the cheapest!)
Spain is a regional differences galore, and thus, its star dishes will greatly vary from one region to another. The more cosmopolitan the place, the better “high end” creative cuisine restaurants. The more rural, the better local produce. But it would really help to know which exact region you will be visiting in order to recommend you its speciality.

Spanish omlette — Tortilla-de-patatas
Spanish omelette Wikipedia

Bonus track: Potato omelette is a salvation table for vegetarians visiting Spain, and a hell of a dish.
Pro tip: Good potato omelettes contain onions, and are creamy on the inside (rather than dry). Accept no substitutes and treacherous claims about potato omelettes without onions, for they are false food prophets.

~ Eduardo Marqués Collado, Lives in Spain

So, what is your favourite streetfood in Spain?