Some people visit a foreign country to enjoy the sightseeing and to take in the local culture and history. Then there are those who take the time out to enjoy the country’s cuisine. Somehow, foreign cuisine just seems more delicious and exciting than the food we eat at home and restaurant trends across the world are a good indicator of this.

While many of us know about frogs’ legs from France and eisbein from Germany, there are many delicious delicacies around the globe we simply don’t know about. To find out more about which dishes are popular and why, we embarked on a global culinary trek to look at the restaurant trends of different countries.

  • Peru
    Widely recognised as one of the top five culinary destinations, the food in Peru is influenced by Spanish, African, French, Asian and Italian cuisine.
    What to eat: The national dish, ceviche, can be found in almost every restaurant in Peru. It consists of fresh and zesty raw fish/seafood served with boiled sweet potatoes or corn.
  • Vietnam
    Vietnam has a broad culinary history, a diverse culture and unique climate conditions in each region. As a result, there are an assorted array of dishes that vary between the northern, central and southern regions of the country. Despite these differences, restaurant trends feature bright, fresh and healthy dishes with lemongrass, ginger and the country’s signature Vietnamese red chilli as fundamental ingredients.
    What to eat: Com Tam is a dish that mixes honey-glazed pork with fish sauce and white pepper, served on rice. Alternatively, there’s Pho, a broth made from beef brisket, noodles, herbs and chillies.
  • Belgium
    While Belgium is known for its waffles, fries, chocolate and beer, it offers more than that. Belgian cuisine has many different European influences, but seems to have retained only the best.
    What to eat: Known as moules-frites, this dish is made of North Sea mussels (which are generally bigger and fleshier than the normal ones) cooked in a white wine, classic vegetable or beer broth and served with crispy fries. Once the mussels are done, the remaining sauce acts as a delicious dip.
  • China
    It is understandable that the cuisine varies from region to region in this sprawling country. Different culinary influences include hot spice, wild food from the mountains, sweet and savoury flavours and great-tasting seafood.
    What to eat: Xiaolongbao is the name for soup dumplings which are described as China’s most memorable fare. Originally from Shanghai, they are filled with a meat and soup broth, which is steamed in a bamboo basket.
  • Mexico
    Mexico is one of the most popular travel destinations with its diverse landscape of golden beaches, mountains, deserts and jungles. But it is also known for its spicy food, which is a fusion of indigenous Mesoamerican cooking with the flavours of Spain.
    What to eat:     A popular restaurant trend in this exciting country is to use mole sauce over chicken or enchiladas. Despite its ambiguous name, this thick, rich, chocolate-tinged sauce, which contains up to 100 ingredients, is one of the most complex and flavourful sauces in the world.

Foodies who enjoy exploring the culinary offerings of different countries should visit their local restaurants and ask for the most popular dishes. But the best place to start is often the internet since many restaurants now offer digital menus and more convenient tech elements.