Our BEST Meals in Asia

Traveling allows you to experience new cultures, meet interesting people, and see history firsthand, but one of the main reasons we love to travel is to eat! After backpacking through Asia for 8-weeks, we compiled a list of the best food in Asia. This post highlight meals from Japan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Thailand. 

Japan

During our 8-week trip, we spent two-weeks traveling through Japan and traveled to several regions trying amazing dishes across Japan. We have the most food recommendations from Japan, which boasts some of the best food in Asia We share seven of our favorites dishes below:

Ichiban Ramen

Where else can you order your dinner from a vending machine and eat it by yourself in a cubby? This setting really does help you “focus on the flavor”.

Sushi Breakfast at the Tsukiji Market

After waking up at 4am to visit the world famous Tsukiji Market, we treated ourselves to our most expensive breakfast: $67 for life changing sushi = no regrets! Note: The Tsukiji Market has changed locations, but trying fresh sushi should still be on your Japan eating bucket list! 

Conveyor Belt Sushi

Order your sushi (and beer) on a touchscreen and everything is delivered to you via conveyor belt, no need to speak to a single person. Truly an introverts dream come true!

Okinomyiaki

If you find yourself in Hiroshima, you must visit Okonomi-mura and try at least one of the 25 Okinomyiaki restaurants that make up this four story building. You will feel as if you have entered Okinomyiaki heaven!

Mochi Balls in Nara

Mochi balls are rice paste stuffed with red bean filling and they are outstanding! Be sure to catch the mochi artists in action as they work hard to pound the rice paste and make this sweet treat! During our one day in Nara, we got lucky and snapped of photo of Chris with one of the mochi creators in the background! Check out our Nara post to see the epic video of how mochi balls are made. 

Hida Beef Bun

When visiting Takayama you need to try Hida beef at least once, we recommend trying it in a delicious Hida beef bun. Out of all the steamed buns Japan has to offer, the Hida beef buns reign supreme.

Pizza Man Steam Buns

Travel Tip: When you have a craving for western food in Asia, grab yourself a Pizza Man from a Lawson or 7-11 and you will be in pizza heaven! This was our favorite snack in Japan and we ate an embarrassingly high number of these cheesy dough balls. The Pizza Man is a quick way to warm up after a busy day of exploring.

Hong Kong

We had one long layover in Hong Kong and took the city by storm as we explored everything it had to offer in two-days.

Dim Sum

A visit to Hong Kong requires at least one meal at Tim Ho Wan. Tim Ho Wan, the cheapest Michelin-starred dim sum restaurant is actually located in the central Hong Kong station. We stopped here twice on our way to and from the airport, we highly recommend the baked BBQ beef buns! 

Vietnam

During two-weeks of playing motorbike frogger in central and northern Vietnam, we were able to try many dishes of Vietnamese cuisine. We reflect on our three favorite meals below:

Banh Mi

Throw almost anything on a baguette and I’ll eat it! The Banh Mi from Banh Mi Queen in Hoi An was fresh, quick, cheap, and tasty. I am not 100% sure what was actually on the sandwich, but that didn’t keep me from going back for seconds!

Banh Khoai

Some of our best eating was in Hue in central Vietnam, but if I had to pick a favorite dish it would be Banh Khoai. It can be easily described as a Vietnam crepe filled with pork, shrimp, scallions, and beansprouts. It is eaten with a side of greens and a fermented soybean sauce. It is greasy and spicy, but then again aren’t all the best meals greasy and spicy? If you’re coming off a hangover, a Banh Khoai should be in your near future.

Bun Cha

We may have been influenced by former President Barack Obama after we watched his meeting with Anthony Bourdain on No Reservations. On the show they ate Bun Cha together and after our meal, we can see why. Bun Cha is served with several different plates typically including a plate of rice noodles, a bowl of pork in a sweet/sour sauce, and a basket of fresh greens. To eat it, you take some noodles and greens and place in the meat/sauce bowl. My meal, pictured above, was vegetarian (hence the lack of meat), but it did come with some awesome spring rolls on the side!

Thailand

Our Asia travel also included two-weeks in Thailand where we traveled from the North in Chiang Mai to the islands of Phuket and Krabi, and finally ending our travel in Bangkok. We ate a lot of food in Asia and Thailand’s dishes were some of our favorites, even if we did have our first food poisoning experience in Thailand.

Khao Soy

Khao Soy is easily my favorite dish from Thailand! It’s a popular dish from Northern Thailand and simply described it’s spicy, crunchy and cheap! The spice level can at times be intense, particularly if the weather is sweltering. My advice is always order medium spice, regardless if you think you can handle it.

Pad Thai

We ate Pad Thai all over Thailand and it is one of the meals that we are most excited about cooking at home. During our visit to Chiang Mai, we learned how to make our own Pad Thai during a cooking class. 

Western Food

After six weeks in Asia and food poisoning in Thailand, we became slightly less adventurous with our food selection. We tried a few restaurants specializing in Western food and some of it was just delicious. Below are two spots from Myanmar and Thailand that we would recommend if you have a craving for a burger or sandwich. 

HTI Restaurant – Bagan, Myanmar

Sometimes you are in Asia and you have a craving for a veggie burger. Thankfully, we found HTI Restaurant and were not disappointed. A great location to hang out and meet other travelers. This is also the hangout spot for the Hot Air Balloon pilots in Bagan, but we weren’t able to talk ourselves into a free balloon ride – be sure to book in advance if a sunrise balloon ride is on your bucket list!

Efe Mediterranean – Phi Phi, Thailand

Falafel and french fries in paradise! Pricey (although everything is pricey in Phi Phi Island), yet amazing Mediterranean food in the middle of a beautiful island. Chris had lamb wrap with fries that did not disappoint.

That’s a wrap on our best meals in Asia…We will be sure to keep you updated if any of our ‘recreations’ of our favorite meals turn out edible! Meanwhile, check out our other food content from around the world!