11 underrated cities where you should go for delicious food

We used to think that the best cuisine is in Paris, Rome, Prague and Tokyo, but there are many other places in the world with decent culinary traditions. Here is a list of 11 such cities and the main restaurants, markets and dishes for which they are worth appreciating.

The city of Oaxaca in southern Mexico deserves a place on every gourmet's wish list for at least one reason: street food. If in Mexico City you can visit great restaurants like Origen and Casa Oaxaca, then Oaxaca is known for its colorful eclectic markets, where absolutely everything is served - from tacos with barbacoa (spicy meat with spices) to tamale tortillas with pork and chicken. In addition, Oaxaca is called the "land of seven sauces": there are many types of this dish based on chili.

Do not lose sight of traditional dishes (especially fried grasshoppers chapulins, but this is for the bravest). It is worth exploring one of the most popular street markets Mercado 20 de Noviembre — there you can try memelas (cornmeal toast), tortillas with tetelas filling, triangular tortillas with black beans and sour cream; tlayuda, large crispy tortillas with toasted beans, local cheese and meat. Well, do not forget about the alcoholic drink mezcal — an important part of the Mexican meal.

Australia is a country of delicious food and wine. And if Sydney is well known in the world for famous restaurants and star chefs, then the eclectic culinary life of Melbourne is greatly underestimated. 

These are wonderful sushi at the Japanese restaurant Minamishima, authentic Spanish tapas at MoVida, Cantonese cuisine at Flower Drum, and Thai snacks at Chin Chin. Delicious dishes made from local products are offered by Cutler & Co and the world-famous Attica. The morning meal in Melbourne is a serious matter, so perhaps the most interesting and photogenic breakfasts in the world are served here. 

Everyone knows about the most popular cities in France in the gastronomic sense — Paris and Bordeaux. However, tourists in vain lose sight of Lyon with its abundance of local ingredients. The city has both excellent restaurants like L'Auberge du Pont de Collonges and La Mère Brazier, as well as family bistros - for example, La Meunière and Daniel & Denise.

In bouchons, that is, inexpensive Lyon restaurants, it is worth trying simple rustic food: skewers with foie gras and pork sausages in cream sauce or stewed chicken with cream, vegetables and truffles, which is served with local red wine, ranging from Beaujolais to the products of the Cote du Rhone appellation. In addition, the city has a huge indoor market of Paul Bocuse (Halles de Lyon-Paul Bocuse) with seafood brunches, cheeses, sausages and sweets.

In 2.5 hours from Tokyo by high-speed train, you can drive to another culinary capital — Osaka. Here you can find anything from terribly extravagant eateries (like Fujiya1935 with three Michelin stars) to affordable dishes. In the Dotonbori area, you need to look for the best street food in the city. 

At the Kuromon Ichiba market, they usually snack on vegetables cooked on skewers with meat (kushikatsu), fried octopus balls in dough (takoyaki) and pancakes with cabbage (okonomiyaki). In addition to street food, Osaka offers the freshest sushi and sashimi, grilled dishes (yakiniku), steakhouses with wagyu beef melting in your mouth and insanely delicious ramen.

Tel Aviv chefs, combining techniques from different regions, create vegetable dishes with lots of spices, as well as fresh bread with creamy sauces. It is better to try pita with hummus in Abu Hasan, and falafel in Falafel Hakosem.

The Carmel market sells aromatic spices, warm bread, local products and halva. At the same time, Tel Aviv is a mecca of upscale restaurants. At Aria, you should try artfully prepared cocktails, fresh ceviche and homemade pasta, and at Mashya, Israeli products are given a Moroccan flair due to cumin, turmeric and ras el hanut.

Every lover of food and travel knows how delicious the food is in Florence, Rome and Naples. But another small town in the Emilia-Romagna—Modena region deserves your attention. This is the birthplace of thick balsamic vinegar, Parmigiano-reggiano cheese and sparkling lambrusco red wine — there is something for everyone in Modena.

Explore the stalls with fresh pasta, cheese and meat at Mercato Albinelli, and if you want to pamper yourself, do not miss the unique lunch at Massimo Bottura's Osteria Francescana (the restaurant has three Michelin stars, and you will recognize it if you watched the Chef's Table program). Of course, there are many affordable ways to eat in Modena — these are the more casual establishments of Massimo Bottura like Franceschetta58, Trattoria Aldina and Ristorante Da Enzo. There you will find dishes classic for the region: papardelle with wild boar stew or fried dumplings.

In the annual list of the 50 best restaurants from San Pellegrino, three places are always occupied by Lima, and chef Virgilio Martinez Veliz is number five. But Lima is not only haute cuisine. There are also eateries with lunches, where the classic cuisine of Peru is combined with Asian. 

Scattered throughout the city are Japanese-Peruvian establishments like La Mar, where ceviche and sushi nigiri are elevated to the rank of art, and Osaka, which serves sashimi with tuna, quail eggs, salmon and foie gras. At Hotel Maury, it is impossible not to try the pisco sour cocktail made of Peruvian brandy, lime juice, syrup and egg white.

This vibrant city in British Columbia features every cuisine you can think of: rustic Italian dishes at Osteria Savio Volpe, clams at Rodney's Oyster House, hand-sculpted dumplings at Bao Bei, Pacific fish sushi at Miku. And the market on the island of Granville is crowded with sellers who offer everything from seafood pies to foi. 

It turns out that Hawaii is not only magnificent sunsets, pristine beaches and primeval mountains, but also excellent food that has absorbed Asian, European and Polynesian features.

Traditional food rules the ball here. Char Hung Sut makes excellent Chinese dim sum and steamed pork buns, and Ahi Assassins serves rice with fresh fish in straw plates. At Gina's B-B-Q, you need to go for Korean chapche noodles and pulkogi. In Honolulu, there is also more refined food: Roy's Hawaii Kai with seafood and Arancino di Mare with pasta that can compete with Roman. 

Madrid and Barcelona have incredible restaurants, but San Sebastian, a resort town in the Basque Country, deserves the culinary crown of Spain. On the one hand, there is the highest concentration of Michelin stars per capita and restaurants Arzak and Mugaritz.

On the other hand, San Sebastian has a great selection of tapas. You can go from one tapas bar to another all day long. Don't miss Bar Zeruko, Gandarias and A Fuego Negro: they offer fried shishito peppers, forest mushrooms with foie gras and anchovies.

Tbilisi is a city where people love to eat, and one of the main local traditions is the Supra feast. Here you should first of all try khachapuri and khinkali

The best restaurants in Tbilisi - Barbarestan and the Kitchen - unexpectedly transform traditional folk recipes. If that's not enough for you, Georgia is considered the birthplace of wine, and now wine bars like Vino Underground have begun to appear in the country.