Street food or grab to go food sold on the street is suddenly cool. Food tourists are not just cheerleading visits to Michelin rated restaurants but are finding a gastronomical prize in the offerings of street hawkers and food trucks.

Who would have thought?

Food tourism or the act of travelling for a taste of a place to get a sense of the place  experienced a boost of interest at the turn of century and is featuring more  prominently in the marketing of destination management companies and travel agencies throughout the Caribbean.  The result is  that the humble street hawker selling local and or home made candies or treats; the rum shop selling local beer  as well as the food truck peddling ready to go cutters are drawing a new international clientele.

Consuming street food which is invariably local food is incredible at telegraphing a lot about a people’s culture.  Are they largely carnivores or piscivores or herbivores; do they prefer food speed preparation over flavour/taste and  do they value communal eating are but a few of the insights offered by another’s people local food.

Food tours and  curated food events help the visitor to garner more insights by giving desired backstory to why these foods are popular. The earnest foodie will go further and learn how to cook local street food to replicate the dish back home.

Local street food both because of its accessibility as a  vehicle for learning more about a country and its people and its promise of culinary titillation will always be the first choice of the food loving traveller.