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The show’s premiere season is drawing to a close, but for the country’s food scene, things are just starting to heat up.

Here’s how one of the most prominent chefs on the planet placed Central Europe’s peak flavors on the global map.

Stay where the chocolate is made.

Overview

This formal garden is neatly contained within perfectly kept borders, but the extravagance of mature citrus trees and thick vegetation ensure it’s serenely cool even on the hottest days. To maximize your time here, book a traditional scrub-down in the hotel’s pretty hammam before settling at a table at the famed restaurant here, the Fez Café, for a lazy lunch or dinner—both of which change daily according to the seasons. The Moroccan food is good, but the highlights really lean more to the Mediterranean: maybe a magnificent gazpacho, grilled swordfish steaks with beurre blanc, or a top-grade fillet with mushroom sauce. It’s also one of the few places in the medina where you can treat yourself to a cheeky lunchtime Casablanca beer, a bottle of salmon-pink Moroccan gris (rosé), or a predinner negroni.

It’s all about creative, contemporary tapas and small plates at the small, popular storefront of La Boca. Find a relaxed mix of locals and tourists and watch chef James Campbell Caruso work his magic on the kale salad, gazpacho and the delicious skirt steak with the salted carmel. Happy Hour is a nice, quiet time to sit at the bar for wine and housemade sangria specials and half price tapas.

Tinto serves Basque-inspired small plates that pop with as much color and flavor as the vibrant façade of the Saguaro Hotel in which it resides. Chef Jose Garces of Iron Chef status creates dishes whose ingredients burst with each bite like the cubes of avocado in the gazpacho, smoked bacon bits in the white asparagus and pork belly paired with honey and apples. If choosing between the delectable dishes is difficult, the tasting menu is an economical way to sample a variety of charcuterie, cheese, vegetables, fish, and meat.

From elegant beachfront dining to laid-back lunches and romantic sunset-studded dinners, this is a great St. Barths beach bar and restaurant. Located right on the sand of Shell Beach, Do Brazil features a menu of appetizers, burgers, and entrées. Popular dishes include the tomato gazpacho, mahi-mahi burgers, and seared tuna steak with braised shiitake and miso sauce. With choices like banana panacotta and cheesecake trilogy, dessert might just be the best treat of the day. Not in the mood for food? Do Brazil has a full menu of mimosas, margaritas, pina coladas, and specialty drinks to sip from a palm-shaded lounge chair.

Right now Stone Water Grill is one of Pune’s hottest fine-dining restaurants, though many visitors might find it a bit too international. The menu—while impressive and innovative—is not terribly Indian, including such dishes as gazpacho and duck. The setting, however, is no doubt worth putting on a traveler’s must-see list. Overlooking the Mutha River, booths are laid out between pools of water, and illuminated tables glow in the evenings. The inside decor is equally stylish, with black chandeliers and white sofas. On Sunday nights, the Stone Water Grill is a lounge space, perfect for soaking up the ambiance with a cocktail (no reservation needed). The most unusual might be the Burst 52, a molecular take on the B-52 shot, with orbs of Baileys and Kahlua floating in Cointreau.

For a decade and a half now, Tucsonans have been coming here for fresh-baked bread...and much much more. Get some challah French toast in the morning...or a chicken-green-chile omelette...and no shortage of croissants and scones... Mid-day, if you want one of the best sandwiches around, try the “Everything Reuben,” which won 2nd place in the World Food Championships in Las Vegas last year-- corned beef, vinegar slaw, Swiss cheese and house made Russian dressing on a fresh pretzel roll... Summer brings gazpacho, zesty and cold... ...and every Friday, there’s BABKA! Cinnamon or chocolate--(I pick the chocolate every time)--in a big ‘loaf’ or as a shareable ‘baby babka'--it’s an unexpected big-city-bakery taste here in the Southwest desert. Note the cycling gear on the wall--yes, they sponsor the spandex-clad, those helmeted pelotons who definitely earn their carbs...(Tucson is one of the nation’s biking meccas.) Ahh, “Tucson Born and bread,” read the jerseys and socks... The patio has mountain views and misters to counter the ‘dry heat.’ Years ago, when I first visited Tucson before deciding to move here, this was one of our stops--one of those places that makes you think ‘yeah, I could live here...’

Hotel Californian’s signature restaurant, Blackbird brings fine dining to the Santa Barbara waterfront. Open for dinner only, the Mediterranean-leaning spot serves a mix of classic and contemporary dishes, all with a focus on locally sourced, hyper-seasonal ingredients. Either in the Art Deco dining room or outside on the State Street patio, diners pair specialty cocktails and regional wines with creative plates like gazpacho with soft-shell crab, and scallops with feta gnocchi and six-minute egg. Not to be missed is the “charcuterie” plate, which swaps the usual cured meats and cheeses for smoked seafood and country pâté.

Crupet is a member of the organization Les Plus Beaux Villages de Wallonie (The Most Beautiful Villages in Wallonia). It is a very small village with gorgeous stone houses decorated with many different types of flowers. Most of the houses date from the 17th, 18th and 19th century. The highlights of the village are the Crupet Chateau—a medieval farm-chateau situated below the village center, dating from the 13th century, and the Grotto of St Anthony of Padua. The grotto was designed by the local curate and inaugurated on the 12th July 1903. It features 22 religious-themed statues. Many of them depict scenes from the life of St. Anthony of Padua. The Ardennes region is an undiscovered Belgian treasure. There are many more charming little villages like this one. They look like time did not pass over them. When you enter a bakery people treat you like one of their own. Go and discover this wonderful part of Belgium. For full size photos see www.facebook.com/adisphotopage and www.lifeinasuitcase.com

Félix Meana and Katie Button, veterans of elBulli in Spain, converted Asheville’s former downtown bus depot into a stylish tapas bar. Cúrate means to cure oneself, which diners can do with traditional Spanish dishes such as Catalan sausage bocadillos, codfish salad, and honey-drizzled fried eggplant. This appeared in the July/August 2012 issue. Read Emma John’s feature on the North Carolina bluegrass scene.

See thought-provoking contemporary art, world-class performances, and more at Toronto’s most treasured cultural institutions on this three-day itinerary.

Mona’s flagship restaurant—like the museum itself—is both challenging and surprising. The French-accented fine-dining spot, headed up by chef Philippe Leban, focuses on excellent Tasmanian produce with a twist: Think fun-filled dishes like artichoke gazpacho with mustard ice cream and mustard oil.