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almighty USA!! it has the best of everything. I am surprised you didn't say Boston has the best tea culture.
Hard to imagine people can be so downright "patriotic" in stuff like this.
Austin has the best street food, RIGHT. How many streets in Austin are actually walkable?? Have you been to Tokyo? Taipei? Marrakesh? Guess not.
No CHinese would say Shanghai has the best tea. It is probably in Fujian, Zhejiang or Yunan, but again, how many Americans know any Chinese places outside Shanghai/Beijing/Hongkong? If there is anything good, must be among those cities!
London has the best "tea"... ok, what kind of tea, does that include green tea?
Yeah, one German and Belgium city for beer, vs 2 for the US.
What's the best city for wine, I guess Bordeaux, Sacramento and Miami?
So, each distinctive region in the world seems to have it's own tastes and flavors that stand out. However, there are certain foods (and especially drinks) that are just, all over. A number of the ones mentioned, but there also others that seem to some degree to be ubiquitous everywhere. So, given the opportunity to go to one city in the world in order to taste these products, and just sort of an atmosphere that caters to people who like these sort of things, where would you go? Feel free to add others.
For me:
Coffee in US: Seattle World: Trieste Italy or Bogota Colombia
Beer in US: Portland World: Munich Germany
Wine in US: San Francisco World: Florence Italy
Spirits in US: Louisville World: Dublin Ireland
Tea in US: ...Bueller? Victoria BC or Niagara on the Lake in Americas World: London UK or Kyoto Japan
Pizza (Not completely universal, but relatively common in the west): New Haven CT in US, Naples in world (obviously)
Street Food: New Orleans or Philadelphia in US, Mexico City in Americas, Berlin in Europe, Singapore/Hong Kong in Asia
Where/what else? What are your thoughts on these?
I'll take it from my own experiences only and from a world context.
Coffee. Best coffee I've had. Espresso, Florence Italy. Amazing. Best coffee with milk, Vienna and Lyon.
Beer. Best...this one is difficult. In 1987 on my first trip to Europe I tasted amazing beers that just weren't being made back here in Vancouver. That whetted my appetite for better beers. So, best back then was Amsterdam, now so many great beers being made here as well.
Wine. Best wine experience Lyon. A friend who is a local sat me down while we tasted several wines accompanied by the appropriate cheeses. Wow. A cherished memory.
Spirits. I don't drink hard liquor much anymore. No idea.
Tea. I've had horrible tea in the UK, and I've had great tea in France. I've had horrible tea here in Vancouver and I've had incredible tea here in Vancouver. It's more the tea being used, and the maker who is making it, rather than place. IMO
Pizza. I divide this into two categories. North American style, and Neapolitan. North American...much the same..you can get most styles here in Vancouver. Neapolitan...Italy for sure, but there is some pretty authentic ones here now.
Street food. From what friends tell me, places in Asia win. From my own experiences....I'd say Berlin.
Is it really that big a deal if people think places in the US are good? You do realize that probably 90% of forumers here are likely from the US, and thus, are probably going to have more experiences from the US right? Isn't it a bit condescending to suggest that just because the food scene in Austin might not be as dynamic as some European or Southeast Asian cities, that it doesn't have a good one at all? Remember the US is a melting pot. It does have cuisine from all over the world as a reflection of its diversity (more so than a number of countries), and it does it well.
I think in regards to tea, it's about tea culture as much as production. And it's difficult to deny that London has tea culture down.
I think you'll see that poster, as many in this thread have universally cited a number of international places, perhaps naming US places they've experienced and thought were good, along with that. Why do you have such a big problem with that? I get that certain people on here might not know what the best places in the world, or destinations for things like these are, that's why I created the thread. I even educated myself about places in India (Darjeeling) and Jardin (Colombia) that were more of centers for tea/coffee production than the major cities in the country were. But at the same time also (it would stand to reason that a major city in that region/country would have more of a "culture" for that thing that most other places in the world. Respectfully, perhaps instead of insulting and belittling, we could do more e planning and informing and discussing? Just a thought.
It's surprising that no one has mentioned Melbourne for coffee.
Mostly Australians go on about their coffee. On travel forums, besides tipping, it seems their major topic is hoping that where they are going is going to have as good as coffee as Australia. Some come and drink dishwasher cafe coffee and feign horror, to probably prove a point, while ignoring the many brilliant coffee houses that exist even in poor old Vancouver. Some do go to the good places and seem astonished that good coffee can be had elsewhere
One Aussie bragged theirs was the best in the world...ignoring the fact that the coffee cultures around the world ( except Turkish etc ) are European style based for a reason and that perhaps, just perhaps Europe has good coffee as well.
Reminds me of a decorating show, where an American decorator while waking down a San Franciscan street, bragged how San Fran was the Fung Shui capital of the world. The English host, said " Um...wouldn't that be in China? " LOL
I think most people would probably consider their local coffee scene, as good as anywhere else. Same with beer and street food.
Since types of food and drink have spread so much in our modern world (although certainly not everywhere), I think you have a point. But what I think most people are talking about when they talk about destinations, is atmosphere.
Can you get Bavarian beers imported, or taste Bavarian style beers in breweries in the US and other parts of the world? Yes. But, can you go to THE Oktoberfest, and take in the atmosphere of a Bavarian style biergarten in any city in the world? Certainly not.
Likewise goes for the atmosphere of a coffee shop(s) in a Trieste or Jardin, or street food in say Bangkok or Singapore (though admittedly, from what I understand, the selection of Asian style dishes there is truly distinctive, more so even than the most authentic places in an NYC, so perhaps that's a little different, plus, price point.)
I think most people would probably consider their local coffee scene, as good as anywhere else. Same with beer and street food.
I don't. I think our coffee scene is good, and lots to choose from, but nowhere is like sitting in a cafe in the south of France, or reading a newspaper in the back of an old Viennese coffee house with a slice of Sachertorte.
Beer is getting there. Street food is pretty good here, but it's food trucks and not really a street.
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