ADVERTISEMENTIt’s common to choose a destination based on its cuisine and plan a trip around food. Italy’s pizza is as famous as its ancient monuments; Japan’s sushi is as tempting as its temples.
But TikTok is now inspiring travellers to take a trip with the sole aim of tasting or buying a viral food item, which is only produced in one particular place.
Going to a supermarket or a grocery store is now also a common holiday activity, with travellers sharing their experiences and local finds on social media.
From a chocolate bar to butter, here are the viral foods people are travelling thousands of kilometres to try.
TikTokkers travel around the world to try viral chocolate bar
This summer, a chocolate bar produced by one shop in Dubai became the most sought-after food item on TikTok.
Food influencer Maria Vehera posted a video of herself trying the sweet treat in her car and it garnered millions of views in weeks.
The chocolate bar is produced by an independent chocolatier based in the UAE city.
It has a soft filling of pistachio, tahini paste and Knafeh - a popular Middle Eastern dessert made from shredded filo pastry - coated in Swiss milk chocolate.
Bars reportedly cost 68.25 UAD - around €17.
Pickle buns draw visitors to New York City
Americans have been travelling hundreds of kilometres to eat a pickle sandwich from a New York deli.
The viral bun from Seven Brothers is made up of two cored out gherkins acting as the ‘bread’ with fillings like cured meats and cheeses.
“We’ve met people from Upstate New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts,” an employee at Seven Brothers told news site Nextstar.
The deli reportedly sells over 200 of the briny sandwiches a day now.
UK baked potatoes tempt traveller from Australia
In the UK, two brothers who opened a jacket potato van have seen their product go viral on TikTok.
Based in Preston, the Spud Brothers now have snaking queues for their hot potatoes with toppings like baked beans, chilli con carne and garlic butter.
ADVERTISEMENTRecently, a woman travelled from Australia to try the viral food - a journey of around 23 hours.
Artisanal butter becomes viral souvenir from Paris
High quality, artisanal butter is also filling TikTok feeds. One particular brand, Le Beurre Bordier, is being hailed as the best butter in the world.
While it can be found in some specialist shops in countries around the world, food influencers are travelling to Paris to pick up the product.
The butter is churned by hand in a wooden cylinder and flavoured with ingredients like seaweed and pepper.
ADVERTISEMENTFocaccia sandwich is travellers’ favourite in Florence
The popularity of one focaccia sandwich in Florence predates TikTok, but its fame has skyrocketed thanks to the video sharing site.
All’Antico Vinaio has lines down the street for its well-stuffed panini, apparently selling as many as 10,000 in a weekend according to one influencer.
Fillings include truffle salami, pistachio cream, stracciatella cheese and fig jam.
The shop has now become a chain with outlets in other Italian cities as well as in New York, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.
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