[category]
[title]
- Time Out’s Best Cities for Food with Intrepid Travel shines a light on the world’s top food destinations, as voted for by locals
- Claiming the top spot is Lima for its world-class dining scene, where exciting new openings, bold uses of native Peruvian ingredients and modern revivals of traditional desserts keep the city’s food culture feeling fresh
- Bangkok ranks second for its dynamic food scene, where a new wave of Thai fine dining, elevated takes on street food and buzzing new dining districts are giving the city’s food culture fresh energy
- Taking third place is Mexico City, where global flavours, inventive Mexican cooking and an obsession with tacos make the city one of the most exciting places to eat right now
Peruvian capital Lima has been named the world’s best city for food in Time Out’s Best Cities for Food 2026.
Recognised for its quality, affordability and diversity, Lima takes the top spot this year thanks to strong local sentiment and expert evaluation. The city boasts an ever-evolving dining scene and vibrant food culture. A deep-rooted culinary heritage sits alongside acclaimed new openings, with tasting menus featuring Amazonian cacao, Andean ingredients and modern interpretations of traditional Peruvian desserts defining Latin America’s fine dining landscape.
Time Out’s Best Cities for Food is a widely recognised ranking that highlights the world’s leading culinary destinations, drawing on the views of more than 24,000 city residents worldwide and insights from a global panel of Time Out experts and editors.
1. Lima, Peru
Hardly a week goes by without a hot-ticket new restaurant setting up shop in Lima, but the Boho district of Barranco has recently seen a particularly high-profile opening. In March, Rodrigo Fernandini, who made a name for himself directing Peruvian fine-dining restaurants in Florida and New York, inaugurated his first flagship local, Fernandini. Its highlight is a degustation menu inspired by the country’s famously diverse culinary landscape, with ingredients including Andean root vegetables, Moriche palm fruit and cacao from the Amazon, alongside echoes of Virgilio Martínez’s acclaimed approach at Central. The small team behind patisserie El Pregón de las Once is also giving long-forgotten Peruvian desserts a new life, with its puff pastry Ranfañote a standout.
Lima’s restaurants consistently rank among the world’s best, with fusion restaurant Maido being the current 2025 title holder. This standing is reflected in strong scores across the board, with locals rating the city’s food scene 80% for quality and 85% for affordability, making it the cheapest on the list for dining out, while it also secured joint-second place among Time Out’s expert panel with a 70% share of the votes.
2. Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok feels especially exciting right now, not only because street food is seeing a revival, but also thanks to a new wave of Thai fine dining redefining how local flavours are expressed. Just last year, Southern Thai restaurant Sorn became the first in Thailand to receive three Michelin stars, while a younger generation of chefs is bringing regional dishes into sharper focus through more contemporary, ingredient-led cooking. Even IBerry Group has moved into savoury territory, with concepts like ThongSmith elevating classic boat noodles into something more polished yet rooted in everyday Bangkok eating. New food areas are booming too, with Song Wat Road emerging as a lively strip of concept-driven restaurants, bars and cafés, where old-school flavours sit alongside design-led new arrivals, while Talat Noi continues to draw crowds to long-running street food staples like Daeng Racha Hoi Tod, where queues form for its crispy oyster omelette.
While 66% of locals say eating out in the Thai capital is affordable, 81% rate Bangkok highly for food quality and diversity. Time Out’s expert panel scored Bangkok 80%, reinforcing its position as one of the world’s leading food destinations.
3. Mexico City, Mexico
From neighbourhood taquerías to ambitious new restaurants, Mexico City’s food culture thrives on constant reinvention, with Condesa, Juárez and San Miguel now pulling in influences from Mediterranean, Asian and French cooking. A new wave of chefs is leading the charge, from Fabiola Ecobosa at Cana and Gia to Ricardo Verdejo at Charco and Michelin-starred Ana Dolores at Esquina Común, all helping shape a more inventive, ingredient-led approach. A day of eating might include pipián croquettes at Café Ocaso, neighbourhood favourites like Lindy’s mussels or Lotti’s Hasselback potatoes, inventive kampachi at Etranger, and late-night cocktails at Pistilo. At the centre of it all is the taco, best experienced at Enrique Olvera’s Pujol with its nixtamalised tortillas and traditional quelites. Strong ratings support the city’s food credentials, with 80% of locals praising restaurant quality and 73% describing eating out as affordable, while it also placed joint-second in Time Out’s expert panel rankings.
4. London, United Kingdom
London is currently at peak chic thanks to a boom in lavish but playful Italian openings. Beyond the usual cacio e pepe, Soho’s raucous Osteria Vibrato is serving exceptionally creamy white risotto, while London Fields’ Auguste does succulent Abruzzian skewers. In Chelsea, Martino’s is all about indulgent comfort, with standout meatballs, and Bethnal Green’s Tiella feels like a hipster trattoria done right, complete with perfect passatelli in brodo and a giant portrait of Cher. Pub pizza has also become a defining trend for 2026, with residencies from Dough Hands, Short Road, Hot Saint and Little Earthquakes turning the capital’s boozers into proper destination dining spots. London’s dining culture is still viewed as one of the best in the world as 96% of Londoners say eating out is ‘good’ or ‘amazing’, though affordability is still an issue, with just 42% saying it’s cheap to dine out. Even so, 60% of locals say upmarket restaurants are where the city’s food scene really shines.
5. Barcelona, Spain
Coastal city Barcelona is experiencing a fascinatingly contradictory food scene: on the one hand, it remains Spain’s capital of avant-garde fine dining, with more Michelin stars than Madrid and a dense concentration of minimalist, high-end Asian restaurants. On the other, chefs are returning to traditional Catalan cooking, reviving slow-cooked sofregits and long-braised stews that rework comforting ‘mom’s recipes’ such as macaroni or capipota, a rich, gelatinous dish made from veal head and trotters. Alongside this, a strong wave of Latin American cuisine is also taking hold, especially in L’Hospitalet, Barcelona’s neighbouring city and part of the wider metropolitan food scene. If you only eat one thing, our local expert recommends heading to La Cova Fumada in Barceloneta , a 1950s fishermen’s tavern and birthplace of the bomba, widely considered the city’s most iconic tapa. Backed by strong local and expert approval, 82% of residents rate the city’s culinary scene highly for quality, while 80% of Time Out’s food panel describe it as an especially exciting place to eat out, helping it knock Madrid out of the ranking this year.
6. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Saigon’s high-end dining scene has stopped “emerging” and has properly arrived. This April, CieL, the fifteen-seat counter where chef Lê Việt Hồng earned a Michelin star within seven months of opening. Days later, Tales by Chapter, Vietnam’s first zero-waste plant-based kitchen, made Condé Nast’s list of the world’s best new restaurants. Even phở has moved into fine dining territory, with Pot Au Phở 2.0 offering a twelve-course tasting menu built around the dish; while on the same streets, a plastic stool still gets you a version for a fraction of the price, ladled from a pot that’s been simmering longer than most Saigonese have been alive. 70% of Time Out’s expert panel voted for Ho Chi Minh City, and three-quarters of locals describe eating out as “good” or “amazing”, while 63% say street food is the city’s standout culinary strength, closely followed by cafés and coffee culture at 61%.
7. Melbourne, Australia
In a city long revered for its restaurant scene, Melbourne has arguably never been more exciting to eat out in, with chefs such as Tom Sarafian, Rosheen Kaul, Gayan Pieris and Zoe Birch expanding diners’ horizons through modern, highly individual takes on Armenian, Egyptian, French, Chinese, Sri Lankan and Australian cuisine. Huge (and justified) queues have formed for world-class burgers at Charrd, cult chicken sangas from Chicky Boi and Japanese-inspired pastries at Bakemono, while a wider shift towards “specific authenticity” has seen restaurants like Marmelo, focused on Portuguese cooking, and Otakoi, Melbourne’s first Ukrainian restaurant, thrive.
Time Out’s local expert recommends the chicken skewer at Zareh as the city’s stand-out dish: grilled, slathered in toum and served over herbs and pickled green chilli, it’s the kind of dish that makes chicken feel entirely new again. 94% of Melburnians say eating out is ‘good’ or ‘amazing’, and with 79% of locals saying cafés and coffee shops are what the city does best, Melbourne can easily claim to be the world’s coffee capital.
8. Beijing, China
Beijing’s dining scene in 2026 has moved decisively al fresco, with diners swapping malls for park-side brunches at places like La Casa Verde inside Nanguan Park or Noddin Coffee in Liuyin Park, where glass walls and greenery set a more relaxed tone for eating out. Immersive dining is also back in focus, with venues such as Oriental Art Palace Beijing turning imperial history into live storytelling experiences, while heritage buildings are being repurposed into creative food hubs like Jollo Cafe & Bar, where Southern Chinese flavours are served in a former French-style art-house setting. As night falls, the city’s cocktail culture comes into its own, with Asia’s 50 Best Bar takeovers appearing at spots including TIAO inside Mandarin Oriental Qianmen. Time Out’s editor in Beijing recommends the Yunnan wild mushroom feast at In & Out near Liangmaqiao – earthy, seasonal, and best followed by a slow riverside walk past Liangmaqiao Embassy Street. Strong value for money is a defining feature, with the dining scene scoring 82% for quality and 83% for affordability, while most locals cite street food as the strongest culinary asset. 60% of Time Out’s food experts rate the capital as an exciting place to eat out.
9. Athens, Greece
Century-old taverns, trendy gastro-tavernas and fine dining restaurants define a Greek capital where chefs are reimagining traditional cuisine in more contemporary forms. Delta Restaurant remains the country’s only two-Michelin-starred restaurant, while buzz continues to build around newer openings such as Kuchisabishii, Thirio and Zigoala. Alongside them, traditional-leaning spots like Giagia Koukou, Manari and Pharaoh sit comfortably alongside modern Mediterranean interpretations at Tudor Hall and Okio, while chefs such as Tasos Mantis at Soil and Petros Dimas at Makris Athens are pushing farm-to-table cooking through increasingly refined techniques. Fine dining has rarely felt more dynamic in the Greek capital. At Ateno, the Greek salad is reworked into a centrepiece, a whole red tomato filled with diced tomato, cucumber and onion, set over feta cream and crumbled rusk, finished with a cucumber broth. Athens performed strongly among Time Out’s expert panel, with 80% voting it an exciting place to eat right now, backed by 78% of locals, while residents say coffee shops and family-run spots are the city’s strongest culinary assets.
10. Lisbon, Portugal
Lisbonites have recently found much joy between two slices of bread, with trendy sandwich spots like Tosta and Bibs sitting at the centre of a growing casual food craze. Fine dining is shifting too, with tasting menus becoming more relaxed and affordable even as Michelin recognition grows, signalling a broader rethink of formality in the city’s top kitchens. The most distinctive trend, however, is the rise of the neo-tasca: authentic, welcoming neighbourhood restaurants with technical precision and creative menus rooted in Portuguese tradition, seen at places like O Velho Eurico, Polémico and Vida de Tasca. If there’s one neo-tasca to try, Gancho by Louise Bourrat stands out, with dishes like cabidela arancini and beef tartare à Brás showing how tradition, technique and creativity can sit comfortably on the same plate. With 86% of locals rating it highly and 63% saying eating out is affordable, Lisbon is widely praised for its food scene, with bakeries and dessert spots highlighted as standout culinary draws.
On the Best Cities for Food list, Grace Beard, Travel Editor at Time Out, says: “Time Out’s annual ranking of the Best Cities for Food with Intrepid Travel is a celebration of culinary culture the world over – and this year’s list demonstrates just how exciting it is to eat out in the city right now. Kitchens from Lima to Lisbon are having a lot of fun with food in 2026, experimenting with unexpected flavour combinations and elevating classic dishes. Locals are looking beyond small plates and sourdough loaves and packing out ‘neo-tavernas’, selling out signature dishes from independent restaurants and lining up for the best pizza slice in town. That’s the best bit about this ranking: there’s something for every palette, from the budget eater to the certified bon vivant.”
This year’s list is supported by global adventure travel company Intrepid Travel. Joanna Reeve, General Manager UK & Ireland at Intrepid Travel, adds: “One of the best ways to understand a place and its heritage is through its food, which is why it’s such a central part of Intrepid trips. These cities offer many amazing food experiences that help us to connect to its people and culture, while also supporting the communities keeping food traditions and recipes alive.”
The full Best Cities for Food list can be found at https://www.timeout.com/uk/travel/worlds-best-cities-for-food-2026
ENDS
For more information or interviews, please contact bestcities@timeout.com
Notes to Editors
Time Out’s annual list of the Best Cities for Food reflects what locals and Time Out experts consider the most vibrant and exciting cities. Travelers should always check their own government’s official travel guidance and follow local rules and restrictions before planning a trip, and follow all local rules and restrictions.
Methodology
To rank Time Out’s Best Cities for Food with Intrepid Travel, Time Out surveyed 24,000 local residents across 150 cities worldwide, alongside input from 100+ Time Out editors and cultural experts.
The final ranking combined 70% local sentiment and 30% expert evaluation, using a weighted scoring model across five pillars:
- Quality of restaurants and eating out
- Affordability of restaurants, coffee shops, pubs and bars
- Quality of food and grocery shopping
- How locals describe their city (e.g. exciting, diverse, welcoming)
- Expert assessment of each city’s food scene in 2026
As part of the research, residents were also asked which parts of their city’s food scene stand out most, from street food and cafés to brunch spots, food markets, late-night eats and independent family-run restaurants.
To ensure global representation, only the highest-scoring city in each country was included in the final ranking.
The full Best Cities for Food list can be found at https://www.timeout.com/uk/travel/worlds-best-cities-for-food-2026
About Time Out Group
Time Out Group is a global brand that inspires and enables people to experience the best of the city. Time Out launched in London in 1968 to help people discover the best of the city - today it is the only global brand dedicated to city life. Expert journalists curate and create content about the best things to Do, See and Eat across over 350 cities in over 50 countries and across a unique multi-platform model spanning both digital and physical channels. Time Out Market is the world's first editorially curated food and cultural market, bringing a city's best chefs, restaurateurs and unique cultural experiences together under one roof. There are currently Markets in 13 cities including Lisbon, New York and Dubai, with several new locations expected to open in 2026 and beyond, in addition to a pipeline of further locations in advanced discussions. Time Out Group PLC, listed on AIM, is headquartered in London (UK).
About Intrepid Travel
Intrepid Travel has been a world leader in responsible travel for more than 35 years. The company’s mission is to create positive change through the joy of travel, which comes to life on more than 900 trips all designed to truly experience local culture. With its own network of country offices in 33 countries, Intrepid has unique local expertise and perspectives. Globally recognised for their commitment to transparency and ethical travel, they became B-Corp certified in 2018, and their not-for-profit, The Intrepid Foundation, has disbursed more than £9.7million to more than 160 partners. In December 2025, Intrepid was named a Which? Recommended Provider for Escorted Tours.
For more information, download the company’s 2024 Integrated Annual Report and follow Intrepid on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok or LinkedIn.