15 Secret Dishes You Shouldnt Leave Europe Without Trying

You’ll kick yourself if you go home without trying any of these. Think beyond steak frites, gelato and roast dinners with our delicious picks.

Welsh rarebit, Wales

Melted cheese, beer and seasoning melted together, poured onto toast and grilled.

Toast is covered with the cheese mixture and it’s then grilled

Pot-au-feu, France

Caracoles, Spain

Snails boiled in a spicy, aromatic broth, eaten straight from the shells with toothpicks. Often served as tapas.

Stonska torta, Croatia

Buttery pie filled with pasta, flavoured with cinnamon, almonds and lemon, and covered with pastry.

A pasta pie might seen odd, but it’s delicious

Poffertjes, the Netherlands

Tiny yeasted buckwheat pancakes served in a pile with powdered sugar and sweet toppings.

These pancakes are served with powdered sugar

Lángos, Hungary

Deep fried flatbread topped with sour cream and grated cheese.

This deep fried bread is served with sour cream and cheese

Spätzle, Germany

Soft egg noodles made by pressing pasta dough through a wide-spaced sieve straight into boiling water. Served with dishes that have sauce or gravy, such as stroganoff.

Spätzle is a soft pasta dough pushed through a wide sieve

Porchetta, Italy

Rolled pork stuffed with fennel, rosemary and garlic and roasted until crispy, served in chewy white rolls.

Spanakopita, Greece

A pie made with filo pastry, stuffed with spinach, boiled egg, feta and onions.

Salmiak, Sweden

Liquorice flavoured with ammonium chloride, which makes it very salty.

Scotch egg, UK

A soft-boiled egg encased in seasoned sausage meat, which is then covered in breadcrumbs and deep fried.

Piernik, Poland

Gingerbread cake made with spices and honey.

Champ, Ireland

Mashed potatoes with chopped spring onions and cheese.

Cheesy mash with scallions is an Irish speciality

Pide, Istanbul

Boat-shaped baked flatbread topped with various fillings, commonly cheese and an egg.

Still hungry? Check out our map showing the most popular foods in Europe, regional dishes from France you should try and ten foods you have to eat when you’re in the UK.

landscape with balloons floating in the air

KEEN TO EXPLORE THE WORLD?

Connect with like-minded people on our premium trips curated by local insiders and with care for the world

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.