Travel and Food

Eating local during travel connects us to cultures of the people and places we are actively experiencing and sharing food is an ice-breaker in certain cultures. Culinary immersion is a part of sustainable travel most people love to experience at home or abroad so what better way than to combine travel and food experiences in a juicy casserole?

I practice sustainable travel as much as I can and this involves the food I eat at destinations as well, so what tips can we implement on eating local during travel?

 

#Travel and Food: Buy Local.

If your accommodation is a private home stay or an Air bnb and you can cook, endeavor to visit the local farmer’s market for fresh fruit and vegetables. Not only will this save you coin as you can meal plan and budget, but you get to see first-hand native produce you’ve definitely never had before. Plus, you can strike up conversation with locals who might just teach you how to cook some native dishes. Win-win for sustainable eating.

 

#Eating Local During Travel: Eat Local.

If you’re lucky to have your host cook for you, grab this offer with two hands and a large outstretched bowl. I am lucky to experience this during my first girls’ trip to Havana where our hostess’s nephews regale us with daily dinners of lobster, arroz con habichuelas, jugo de pina, fresh tomatoes, plantains and so much more.

For those at the back, we eat lobster daily for dinner at $20 for four heads. Cheap! Even lunch on a day trip to Vinales sees us gorging ourselves on fruits, carbs and seafood at a village restaurant for really affordable prices. Tell me, do you eat lobster daily at home? I sure do not.

These foods in Cuba connect four West African girls to their childhood homes as we gorge on yucca – which look and taste like cassava we know – fried plantains, lobster and crab stew. We strike up conversation with locals and they ask us if we know yucca and plantain. Of course, we do, sir, we laugh. We not only have these in America but back home in West Africa. Cue excited questions in rapid Spanish that we can hardly keep up with. See the ice-breaking and connection to culture I talk about? We have a swell time here.

Another time at Playa Del Este in Havana, we’re the cynosure of all eyes on the beach – think four Black girls in bikinis and braids (those pictures will never see social media lol) being carefree – and we see tamales sellers. Now, prior to this day, I’ve never had tamales despite living in NYC, so we decide to get some.

When I see and open the tamales, I have strong deja vu to a native dish, Ekoki, native to my mother’s tribe – Efik – in South-South Nigeria. Tamales is made from identical ingredients like Ekoki: corn and spices with meat or shrimp, wrapped in corn husks or banana leaves. I am spell-bound by another food similarity and connection to culture we encounter.

This is a true culture connection because some Efiks were enslaved and shipped to Cuba and their descendants still practice Efik culture till today, hence the twinning of tamales and ekoki. One day, I will return to Cuba and delve deeper into this connection.

Another local fare I sample is conch fritters on Grand Cayman. Two years ago, I take mum gallivanting on Grand Cayman to celebrate her finishing radiation and her birthday so win-win. We learn that local delicacies are lobster, turtle and conch and I’m already eager to taste turtle even though I am conflicted. Why? I have no such conflicts over shrimp or lobster, I query myself. That is a whole other conversation about eating animals we consider “cute”. Anyhoo, we learn that turtle is not sold in restaurants but available in private homes. Alas, we know no one in Grand Cayman to grill us a turtle flipper so that ends that food adventure.

Still, the Universe is keen that I eat local so when on a secluded beach outside Grand Cayman and I spy conch fritters, I order them immediately. They are not as rubbery as calamari – which I despise and have tried fried, boiled and grilled – and are seasoned and tasty. I like!

Lastly, if in a major city, please avoid the chain restaurants you get at home. Eating local during travel not only introduces you to new cuisine but benefits locals by returning money to the community, many of whom are women and other marginalized groups. I see many Americans abroad flock to McDonald’s and Hard Rock Café and I wonder why when there is a plethora of unique and delicious local food.

 

#Sustainable Travel: Shop Local.

I love walking through local markets abroad and at home in New York City. In Amsterdam, I amble through De Pijp and Dappermarkt local markets for local food and souvenirs. At De Pijp, I put my haggling skills to use for a Turkish shawl and medallion lockets and at Dappermarkt, I pack nuts and Surinamese snacks by the armload.

A little backstory here. On my inaugural trip to Amsterdam last year, I learn of the Dutch and their former colonies, Suriname being one of them, and I have such genuine interest to learn more about Suriname.

So, imagine my joy when I spot a Surinamese stand with food and snacks! I squeal in delight and start packing snacks and pastries till I realize that I have hand luggage only. Dangnabbit! Ah well, I buy cassava chips, rice chips and other desserts to munch on and bring home and I’m still searching for these snacks in NYC.

Experiencing local markets is a two-fer: you engage in sustainable travel by spending within the local community and you can eat local during travel while you engage with the community. Apart from a sustainable contribution via travel and food, local markets are also an affordable location for the budget-conscious travellers amongst us.

 

 

Food halls and smorgasborgs are a great local food resource for budget-conscious travellers and first-time solo travellers anxious about eating alone. Click To Tweet

Food hall and local market hunting during travel is a top three to-do on my itinerary and I try to hit at least two, if I can.

In Copenhagen, I just miss Paper Island before closing but I amble through Torvehallerne, taking in the sights and smells.

 

 

In Brussels, I dine on grilled fish, rice and plantains at a Senegalese restaurant in Matonge, a Congolese neighbourhood within the city and I feel nostalgia for West Africa.

The creation of Matonge goes way back to the 60s after the colonization and dehumanization of the Congolese people in Congo. Over time, other Francophone Africans immigrated and set up businesses within Matonge and it is now a melange of Francophone African nationalities.

 

 

 

 

In Amsterdam, I schlep myself on the tram to Oud-West for their food hall and closer to Dam Square, Magna Plaza has a small food hall above with local shops and stores below. In Haarlem, I stumble upon a farmer’s market with all local food: cheeses, stroopwafels, savoury pies and pastries. I am like a kid in a candy store and I definitely have my field day with local Dutch delicacies and pastries in every Netherlands locale I set foot in.

 

#Travel and Food: Dine Local.

Eating local during travel is not only done at local markets or countryside diners but can be done at local too.

Local restaurants offer the novelty and familiarity of local and ethnic food and drink with the comfort and aesthetic of restaurants that we are familiar with. My sustainable travel eating spots run the gamut from local markets to local restaurants and everything in between.

On my first solo travel to Copenhagen, I subsist on local Thai and Lebanese food because they are much more affordable and come in large quantities than local Danish food. As much as I wish I ate more local Danish food, it was very expensive thus leaving me with Thai and Lebanese food for sustenance.

Regardless of Copenhagen’s eye-watering expense – it is worth the experience – I splurge on smørre­brød, a popular Danish, open-face sandwich piled with toppings. I say splurge because my smørre­brød at Tivoli Gardens is the equivalent of $6; tea is between $5-$6 a cup.

In Amsterdam, expense was more affordable so all I do is dine local. A lovely local restaurant I discover (thank you, Google!) feeds me the most delicious seafood I’ve had in ages and I cannot get enough. This restaurant is literally like a botanical garden as there are plants everywhere keeping in line with the eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyle of the Dutch. I observe locals and learn how serious the Dutch take enjoying life. Interesting.

Furthermore, travel and food comfortably collides with food waste. Yes, you read that right. Dining on food waste. No, not garbage. I can hear your thoughts. There are restaurants that cook meals from unsold ingredients that would ordinarily have been discarded as ugly fruit and food waste.

In Amsterdam and The Hague, In Stock is the restaurant that turns surplus food into delicious and nutritious meals. Don’t be like me and not reserve ahead of time. I assume it is walk-in, alas, because of the limited quantity of surplus ingredients, they have a set number of daily meals.

Lastly, one of the best ways to truly engage in sustainable eating with travel and food is to dine in the homes of locals and there are many opportunities to experience this. There is Travelling Spoon, where you can book a cooking class or home-cooked meal from a local as well as Foodie Trip, where you go on food and drink tours in fascinating cities. This is one activity I am yet to do and it will be on my next travel itinerary.

 

 

#Eating Local During Travel: Drink Local.

Ah hah! I have your attention now, innit? Probably more than food, drink is one thing that really connects people and is an ice-breaker. Imagine walking into a bar and asking for what the local beer or wine is, bartender sizes you up as a foreigner and proceeds to give you small portions of everything to try. By the time you’re done, you’re ready for bed. Lol.

I am not a big drinker, dislike beer, and pretty much stick to what I am comfortable with – Bailey’s and white wine – but I do not oppose sampling the local tipple. Growing up in Nigeria, we have many local drinks but the favourite of foreigners is palm wine, which is a sweet (or sour), fermented drink from the palm tree which fools first-timers into gulping it down. Brussels has fruity beers which I am partial to but sacre bleu to purists. Tant pis.

My gap year in Grenoble had me drinking chartreuse, a natural green liqueur made by monks, and learning the history behind it. I appreciate the history but by God, chartreuse is not for the sweet tooth or faint of heart as the taste will legit make you cringe open-mouthed. It is like drinking toothpaste dissolved in water. That is the connection you can also have with travel and food and the food does not have to be good to invoke a connection with local people. See chartreuse. Still not over it.

Does this mean I should start sampling local tipples whenever I travel? Ok then. You’ve pushed me to it. What better way to engage in sustainable travel than to experience local food, drink, and interaction?

 

That’s all, folks! I hope you are hungry reading this travel and food post and are inspired to engage in sustainable eating and travel where you can.

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