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The island is unlike anyplace else in the Caribbean. You can feel it in the air—and taste it in its rum.

On an impromptu trip to Tokyo, without a single reservation in hand, food writer Helen Rosner explores the Japanese art of standing in line.

When you pull into the Pacific coast town of Tofino, you leave behind the Canada you thought you knew.

You needn’t look far to find the sources of Kerala’s cuisine, only as far as those green fields and forests and the proximity of the ocean. Restaurant and teahouse tables are laden with fresh fish and vegetables, local teas, and rice grown nearby. To your health!

Farmgate Café is a lively spot upstairs at the buzzing English Market, Ireland’s oldest food market, in Cork City Centre, with balcony seating that has great views of the bustling crowds and vendors below. Try some traditional Irish favorites, such as seafood chowder, rock oysters, lamb stew, or a version of bangers and mash—pork sausages with mashed potato, lentils, and bacon. Make sure to try a local black pudding–like delicacy called drisheen, and save room for the delicious cakes.

A labor of love from local brother-and-sister owners Joe and Catherine Bartolomei, this six-acre, farmhouse-style resort in Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley underwent an $8 million renovation in 2015, adding nine light-filled rooms with four-poster beds and fireplaces. The Spa at Farmhouse, modeled after a vintage stable, has double-height ceilings and pine doors for each of its four treatment rooms. The thoughtful details will win you over: a glass of wine at check-in, an attentive staff at the Michelin-starred restaurant, and fresh-baked cookies at turndown.

Cape Town’s Table Mountain National Park, which hugs the perimeter of the city, is so popular that the line for the cable car to the top can be longer than a queue for a Disneyland ride. But why stand in line when you can put your feet to use? There are several routes that lead to the top of the 3,562-foot, flat-topped mountain, including the two-mile Platteklip Gorge trail. Yes, it’s steep, but startling views of the city and the Atlantic await. Trek, get hungry, then picnic on local provisions—crackers, Dutch-style Gouda, and biltong, the thick-sliced South African jerky—before riding the cable car back down.

Foodies, rejoice. Torvehallerne is a one-stop shop for several meals, snacks, and gourmet groceries or gastronomical gifts. It’s an airy, light-filled building with all kinds of purveyors, from fantastic coffee shops, chefs cooking fresh pasta and serving it hot to you at the counter, a farmers market outside, a tapas bar, you name it. If you’ve ever been to Florence, think of Mercato Centrale, but in a nicer setting and housing more variety. Ride your bike there to grab a bite or to spend the day enjoying its bounty.

Toro Toro by Chef Richard Sandoval is a new 300-seat restaurant and bar that combines culinary flavors of Asia and Latin America. During a recent trip, we sat down in the main dining room to sample the award winning arepas corn cakes, small plates and handcarved steak entrees. The Toro Toro brand originated in Dubai where Sandoval has showcased his homemade empanadas to tens of thousands of diners. The bar is lined with toffee-colored banquettes and stone bull statues. Be sure to try the “Machu Picchu” cocktail consisting of pisco, St-Germain and fresh jalapenos. For groups, create a multi-venue event for 300 pax with the Olay breakfast restaurant next door. Table 40 is the private dining room located inside InterContinental Miami’s contemporary kitchen. Available for group events and intimate dinner parties, Table 40 seats 14 for a luxurious dining experience featuring cuisine by InterContinental Miami’s corporate chef, Alex Feher. “We try to enrich one’s experience at the InterContinental,” says Kovensky. “Whether it’s the level of service, the artistic presentations or the F&B.”

Located in the heart of Bridgehampton, Topping Rose House occupies a grand old Greek Revival mansion, built back in 1842 for a local judge. The luxurious property features 22 guestrooms, including a number of cottages, with elegant décor like four-poster beds and glass doors that open onto verdant grounds. Also on site is a Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant, complete with a seasonal menu that incorporates ingredients from the property’s one-acre farm. Unusual for a small Hamptons hotel, Topping Rose offers a wide selection of amenities, including a lovely outdoor pool, a fitness center, yoga classes, and a spa with a range of massage and beauty treatments.

Oftentimes the trick with food trucks is finding them. There are a number of them in Boulder, and they can often be found at the Rayback Collective food-truck park. But if there’s a standout among them, it’s Farm and Smoke, owned and operated by brothers Matt and Alex Wallace —and it’s worth seeking out. While their menu is known to change from time to time, the constant is the mouthwatering smoked meats in dishes like the Smokehouse Slider and smoked chicken wings. And to balance out all the meat options, they also provide delicious salads and a mean jalapeño mac-and-cheese.

Just about every aspect of the farm experience comes to life at Long Meadow Ranch’s public-facing facility in St. Helena. The relaxed destination includes an outdoor café, a restaurant named Farmstead, and a general store with wine- and olive oil–tasting bars—as well as an open-air pavilion that is perfect for events. Start mornings at the café, where you can enjoy a cup of Stumptown coffee and freshly baked goods at picnic tables in the shade of a giant blue spruce. Later in the day, hit Farmstead for a lunch of salads made with vegetables grown on-site or for a rack of the restaurant’s signature Heritage St. Louis ribs. (Pro tip: The “brick chicken,” or chicken cooked beneath a brick, can’t be beat.) If you’re visiting in the early afternoon, go to the general store to sample flights of Long Meadow Ranch wines or olive oils or to stock up on such artisan provisions as locally made cheese and salumi. Executive Chef Stephen Barber also hosts regular lunches and dinners at a chef’s table inside the property’s historic Logan Ives House. These meals can include a walk through the culinary garden, followed by a multi-course meal paired with Long Meadow Ranch wines.

Though toma means “take it” in Spanish, this intimate cafe offers far more than takeaway service. Toma’s staff are able to interact with customers while showing off their impressive coffee knowledge (as well as English language prowess). Homemade pastries, cookies, and cakes are available, with some gluten-free options. The current consensus around town is that Toma Café has the best staff, bean sourcing, and know-how on pulling a proper shot. Best coffee in a city of coffee drinkers is a mighty statement, but I’ll stand behind it.

Designed by Oscar de la Renta, who was also a guiding force in the original vision for Puntacana Resort, Tortuga Bay Hotel has 13 freestanding villas comprising 30 suites, each with Frette linens, a kitchenette, and a balcony or terrace with views of the Caribbean or La Cana Golf Club. Hotel guests landing at Punta Cana International receive fast-track passage through customs, pickup by a private driver, personal concierge check-in, and keys to a golf cart for getting to the resort’s Oscar de la Renta Tennis Club, two golf courses, and Six Senses Spa.

In 2023, the lineup of epic outdoor culinary gatherings includes striking locations across North America, Europe, and South Africa.