Gordon Ramsay's 3 Favorite Foodie Travel Destinations

With his new London restaurant, Gordon Ramsay High, having earned a shiny new Michelin star in 2026 — his ninth star overall over the course of his prolific culinary career — chef Gordon Ramsay isn't showing any signs of slowing down. But there's more to Ramsay than just immaculate plating and refined tasting menus. For example, the British chef casts a remarkably wide net when it comes to looking for culinary inspiration, and that includes foods that are far beyond his comfort zone. 

Just how far outside of his comfort zone are we talking about? As far as Southeast Asia and Europe, if Ramsay's 2022 interview with Korean food YouTuber Cho Seung-yeon is anything to go by. Asked to name his top foodie destinations, Ramsay expressed his admiration for the food of Laos, citing it as "off the charts." Vietnam came in second on his list, and he rounded out his top three with the Spanish capital, Madrid.

The authenticity, diversity, and innovation of Laotian, Vietnamese, and Madrileño cuisine earned high praise from Ramsay — no small feat considering that he's a chef known for having notoriously high standards. Read on as we dig deeper into Ramsay's mouth-watering food destinations, each one of which is absolutely worth considering when planning your next culinary adventure.

Spending his time away from tourist traps, Chef Ramsay's Laos experience, documented in his food travel show, "Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted, saw him head to the Lao provinces to experience how closely Laotian cuisine is anchored to the earth and water. Being landlocked, the Mekong River serves as a precious source of protein for the region, as do the paddy fields where frogs, snails, and water bugs aren't strangers to the menu.

The chef also traveled deep into the Laotian forests to forage for ingredients, exemplifying the phrase "eating off the land." Far from the comfort of convection ovens and sous vide machines, Ramsay gamely barbecued, Lao style, cooking a banana leaf-wrapped, lemongrass-filled fish over an open fire. After trying his hand at cast net fishing, the chef took a swig of Lao-lao, a local whisky made from fermented rice. Or, at least, he tried to; its 120-proof alcohol content led Ramsay to quip, "Don't drink the moonshine unless it's in a mixed drink."

While not everyone has the time, resources, or energy to retrace Ramsay's intense foodie journey, that's not to say that you can't eat to your heart's content in Laos' more accessible eateries. Laotian roadside stalls serve the best snacks, including the deep-fried rice ball nam khao, whose initial crunch gives way to a tasty sausage, tempura, or chili filling. Laos' national dish, larb — a lime and fish sauce-infused savory ground meat dish — is awaiting nomination for a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage designation, fingers crossed. And you can be reassured that wherever you go in the adventurous, under-the-radar country, some of those tourist dollars will inevitably be spent on khao niao, or sticky rice — a humble dish of overnight-soaked rice grains, steamed and eaten as is, or accompanied by a meat or fish dish.

"Extraordinary melting pot of great food" was how Gordon Ramsay described his take on Vietnamese cuisine to Cho Seung-yeon, a sentiment echoed not just by the late and great chef Anthony Bourdain but also by foodies the world over. It didn't earn a mention in Condé Nast Traveller's 2025 Readers' Choice Awards for best countries for food for nothing. Every crunch and chew is enveloped by regional spices and flavors, making the herby dining experience in northern Vietnam distinguishable from the spicy flavors of the central region and the subtle sweetness of its southern counterpart.

Ramsay's love affair with Vietnamese cuisine began during his 2012 travel series, "Gordon's Great Escape," his first time visiting the Southeast Asian country. The fact that he's still waxing poetic about it more than a decade later says everything about the impression it left on the chef. While there, he sampled bowls of hu tieu (pork noodle soup), prepared his own banh cuon (steamed rice roll) and goi cuon (fresh summer rolls), and unsuccessfully tried to extract a local chef's barbecued duck sauce recipe. Ramsay was thoroughly impressed with Ben Thanh market, which he described to Cho as "the liveliest market I've been to ... many ingredients still had a pulse."

Across Vietnam, nine restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang have been awarded Michelin stars. But Ramsay, no stranger to these accolades, still had his best experiences when he got back to the basics. From street food stalls to rural farmstays serving mouth-watering home cooking, Vietnam teems with authentic culinary moments. In an interview with Condé Nast Traveller, Ramsay lauded the Vietnamese's eating habits as "some of the best in the world," owing to the country's locally grown and sourced food unspoiled by major influences. "Vietnam and Vietnamese cuisine stands alone, and it's fricking iconic," he said.

It's known for its sun-drenched plazas and compact, walkable city center, but what makes Madrid Europe's best-kept secret is its food. "There's so many new things going on in Madrid as well," Gordon Ramsay told Cho Seung-yeon, cementing the Spanish capital as his third food destination pick. With a special nod to Madrid's Michelin-starred restaurants and the cocido madrileño, a hearty chickpea-based stew, Ramsay pinned down the appeal of Madrid's food scene: it's a city where a humble bowl of stew wields just as much star power as an intricately plated high-end tasting menu.

Young content creators Nieves and Paula agree. In an episode of Detour, a series produced by The Times where local creatives unearth their city's hidden gems, their foodie list swung from a pastry shop dating back to 1914 (La Duquesita) to global fusion bites and natural wines at an Argentinian chef-helmed restaurant (Hiro).

Whether you're craving a night out with chocolate-smothered churros, snacking your way along the aisles of the famed Mercado de San Miguel, or tucking into a seven-course meal, Madrid always promises something new — even when it's old.