Picture this: You’re walking through the streets of a foreign city, so hungry you’re practically chewing your companion’s arm off. You want a great recommendation for the best local food in the area, but you don’t know anyone and TripAdvisor just won’t cut it this time. Where do you turn?
TasteAtlas, a Croatian company striving to provide a key to unlock the best local food all around the world, might just be the answer. It’s a website acting as a kind of food aggregator/cultural studies project, bringing together critic reviews, authentic recipes and write ups about popular ingredients or dishes in areas around the world.
Users can search for a particular food item, or explore what’s available in the city they’re in. If you’re in New Delhi, you can read about pakora before stopping at fast food restaurant Khandani Pakodewala to order a plate.
Wondering what’s good in Ukraine? Navigate to the country on the TasteAtlas map, and you’ll be directed to a page all about varenyky, a kind of Ukrainian dumpling filled with a variety of vegetables, meat, cheese, sauerkraut, mushrooms and even fruit.
Along with pointing you in the direction of the best snacks a city has to offer, the site uncovers lesser known ingredients and foodstuffs that we perhaps may never come across.
TasteAtlas is home to almost 10,000 articles on dishes, drinks and ingredients, and almost 9,000 restaurant recommendations. They’re all written by a 30-strong team of foodies and industry experts who are acutely in tune with the needs of hungry travellers and inquisitive locals alike.
Along with pointing you in the direction of the best snacks a city has to offer, the site uncovers lesser known ingredients and foodstuffs that we perhaps may never come across. Take chechil for example – a low-fat cheese made from cow’s milk pulled into thin strings, originating from Armenia, or zupa pomidorowra, a Polish tomato soup starter.
As TasteAtlas founder Matija Babic explains, the site sits in a unique space within the review aggregator landscape. "TasteAtlas doesn't try to compete with sites like TripAdvisor and Google Maps,” he told Mashable. “And we're not competing with Michelin guides. The latter focus on haute cuisine, while the former recommend whatever's popular with tourists."
Lamingtons, pie floater, damper and dim sim are up there with Australia’s most popular meals; pikelets, fairy bread, Vegemite toast and Sweet Envy’s Boston Bun all feature, too.
The web app is a work in progress, and new entries are added every day. Some countries, like Italy, are covered extensively; others like parts of Africa, South America and Australia are still light on info.
Lamingtons, Pie Floater, Damper and Dim Sim are up there with Australia’s most popular meals; pikelets, fairy bread, Vegemite toast and Sweet Envy’s Boston Bun all feature, too.
"TasteAtlas can never be a finished project," Babić says in an interview with Mashable. "We add new dishes every day, and we're planning to expand to cover gastro festivals as well as food markets in the future."
Good news if you consider yourself a budding food ethnographer – TasteAtlas are always looking for new contributors. Send an email to contact@tasteatlas.com for the lowdown.
