There’s always one -- that one inimitable treat your trip to Europe wouldn’t be complete without sampling. It's the one dish your friends waste no time in asking you about. That isn’t to say it’s easy to choose one food for each country. After all, this is Europe, home to some of the most delicious grub in the world. The cuisines of France and Italy alone could fill volumes. While some were easy -- Scotland has its haggis and Sweden has its meatballs -- others required agonizing choices (perhaps that’s why the Russians love buffets). To make things easier, we had to set some rules:
- No duplicates. For example, the must-try food in Poland could have easily been the pierogi, but since Ukraine already had the varenyky, we decided to leave it at that.
- Easy for the casual traveler to find, at any time of year.
- Distinctive. For example, variations of stewed meat and vegetables are a national dish in many places, but they have to really stand out in order to make the cut.
- Dishes must be available nationwide. Of course, some regional specialties, such as paella and Neapolitan pizza, have evolved to also become internationally iconic.
- The food must be native to that country rather than borrowed from elsewhere. (We love curry, but it’s still a relative newcomer to the British food scene.)
Ultimately, it’s about that single life-changing bite. It might come while you’re standing at a crowded Christmas market with a hot, sweet pastry in hand, or while you’re sitting in a Michelin-starred restaurant, clinking glasses of local wine with new friends. After all, when you travel, food is more than nourishment -- it’s a major key in understanding people and their culture. Below, we rounded up one signature dish you must try in 47 different European countries.
Stroopwafel, Netherlands
Invented in the early 19th century by a frugal baker in the city of Gouda, these sweet “syrup waffles” are more like cookies, as they’re ideal for dunking in a steaming hot beverage. Although a few bakeries are left in Gouda, the stroopwafel is firmly in the mainstream, available in supermarkets all over Holland.
Spaghetti Carbonara, Vatican City
We don’t know whether the pope is a fan of carbonara, an age-old favorite enjoyed by shepherds and coal miners, but since he's the Bishop of Rome, we’d like to guess yes. Romans go hog-wild for strutto, pork lard prepared each winter, as well as the cured and spiced pork jowl known as guanciale. They use it for the most traditional version of this pasta, with egg, pecorino Romano, and black pepper.
Byrek, Albania
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Layers upon layers of light and flaky phyllo dough make these pastries -- popular as börek around the Balkans and elsewhere -- a dream, especially when they’re stuffed with local produce like pumpkin or nettles, salted curd cheese, or ground meat, tomato, and onion ragu.
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