It would take a lifetime to visit every hunger-sating place on earth. Paris will always call for its pastries and classic dishes, as will Bangkok for its exciting street fare and perfect balance of salty, sweet and sour. But every year, certain destinations seem to up the ante on sheer deliciousness, delivering more variety, greater originality and can’t-miss-it plates that have us booking tickets the-heck-out-of-here. As we start thinking about where to go in 2019, we’re led by our stomachs and our never-ending hunger as we present the most delicious destinations in the world right now.

With its wide glittering river, cobbled streets, palaces, churches, and tile-covered buildings in pink, mint and indigo, Lisbon has always been a pleasing place to visit. A plate of fresh, grilled sardines eaten in the sun outside a tasca (bar) is a rite of passage for travellers, but 2019 will see the epicurean offerings positively lure, turning Lisbon into one of the top food destinations in Europe. Take a tram ride to Belem and bakery Pastéis de Belém for the perfect example of the country’s custard tarts (pastel de nata), discover the food of the city’s celebrity chef, José Avillez, at one of six restaurants, particularly the seafood at Páteo at Bairro Do Avillez. The most important thing to eat in Lisbon, though, is bacalhau, that salted, dried codfish that is as much a staple now as it was during the 14th century when it fuelled the nation’s sailors. Now, it’s offered in more interesting and delicious ways than ever.

Ever since Qantas resumed flying its Airbus A380s from Sydney and Melbourne to Singapore and on to London, Changi Airport has been in dire need of a lounge upgrade, currently beleaguered with overcrowding. Late 2019 will bring a new first-class lounge and increased capacity in its business lounge. With travel to the island nation more appealing, 2019 is the year to experience more of Singapore than its tricked-up entry and exit point. A half-kilometre one-way street in Chinatown, Amoy Street, is a great starting point for any culinary pilgrimage to the city. More than a few Australians have set up shop, with smart, lively offerings including Cheek by Jowl, a cosy dining room with an open kitchen run by Rishi Naleendra, an alumnus of Sydney’s Tetsuya’s and Yellow. A popular corner coffee shop called Ocean Curry Fish Head does top home-style Chinese fare, but the star is a fish head curry made from turmeric-spiked broth. The bar Employees Only plays ’80s rock anthems and serves modern American steakhouse classics. All this on only one street, while the rest of the city delivers the same gastronomic thrills right now.

Heal-all hot baths, world-class skiing, ancient temples, quaint seaside villages and sprawling cities; it’s no wonder Japan is the most searched destination on delicious.com.au. The nation’s capital is sprawling, crowded and confusing, known as much for its top-notch cheap ramen as its world’s-best cosmopolitan cuisine. Start the day very early at the city’s Tsukiji fish market and join the queues for sushi; next, eat ramen at Kaia or Ippoh in Ginza; and after 5pm and before the sun rises, head to Ebisu Yokocho, a lively alley packed with izakayas and eateries that are cheap without compromising on quality. The restaurants in Tokyo are well documented and plentiful, the only problem is choosing among all 160,000 of them.

Tokyo deserves much glory, but not all of it. Kyoto, a city home to 2000 temples and shrines, an excellent food market and geishas shuffling around ancient streets, is becoming a go-to destination for food lovers. Few places this size pack as much of a punch, culinary speaking, as Kyoto. It has Michelin-starred restaurants and izakayas, cocktail bars and Melbourne-worthy coffee shops. Nishiki Market is known as Kyoto’s kitchen, and the refined kaiseki cuisine is not to be missed.

Tourism in Egypt hit an all-time high in 2010, at 14.7 million visitors. But after political unrest, public protests, and the bombing and resulting crash of a Russian plane, tourist numbers fell strongly and have only recently recovered slightly. There’s a large security presence now, and 2017 saw 8.3 million visitors. 2019 is the year to beat all the other visitors before they remember why they must go. Five-star hotels are still offering discount rates, and many took the dip in guests as an opportunity to renovate. Yes, there are pyramids, and the remnants of an ancient and mysterious empire; and with an estimated population in Greater Cairo of around 23 million, this is the largest city in Africa. But there is also an exciting food scene. One must is a visit to the spice markets for a culinary taste of Egypt’s history, including stuffed pigeon, a recipe from ancient times. In the back streets of Egypt, people don’t feed pigeons, pigeons feed people.

The tourist capital of Morocco is Instagram fodder with its storytellers and street dentists, monkey handlers and snake handlers, henna tattooists and dancers. It lures first-world patrons with its gritty markets and back alleys, its luxury hotels and its Yves Saint Laurent garden and museum. Order kebabs on the street in the shade; sticks of beef kofta and liver, turkey and fat, cooked over charcoal, and tear off pieces of flatbread to eat them with. The North African people’s reputation for hospitality precedes them, and if you can find a table at a local’s house, the trip will all the better for it. The city is more tourist savvy than ever, and it’s not difficult to find excellent guides and expert tips on navigating the food, the shopping and the best shots for Instagram.

For a Spanish-style fiesta, head to Andalusia, where a maze-like city offers cobbled streets, moody bars and white gazpacho. In summer in Seville, the thick garlic and almond soup is ubiquitous, though each restaurant adds its own spin. Walk through the old Jewish quarter to Seville’s 15th-century gothic cathedral, then plunge into the laneways and see where they take you. A photogenic city filled with orange trees and peppery cocktails that beckon to be drunk in the sun, Seville is classic and modern, no longer the folksy old-fashioned sister of Barcelona. Hotels are undergoing updates and overhauls, and even taberna El Rinconcillo, after nearly 350 years in existence, has a cool freshness about it.

Noma chef René Redzepi and accompanying entourage have long packed up and left Mexico after a seven-week pop up in the Yucatán. The world’s top restaurant’s 2017 stint may be the most exhaustively documented pop-up restaurant in history. Instagram has more than 6500 images tagged #nomamexico, and journalists and foodies were delighted to troop into the jungle for what was labelled “the meal of the decade” by commentators, and Redzepi himself. But it’s far from over in Tulum. The once-sleepy town on Mexico’s Caribbean coast has become a kind of spiritual oasis for a fashionable crowd, whose cash and expectations have made this worst-kept secret a food destination, even without Noma. Binge on green juices and sea-water-poached fish, excellent pasta and beach views at Posada Margherita, a hut by the ocean. La Popular and Macondo, both set within Nomade Hotel, offer a fish-market-inspired menu as well as holistic food intended to heal the heart and nurture the soul. Hartwood demands a wait for a table, but it’s arguably the best eating in town. The menu features local seafood and produce, all cooking is done on open fire, and solar panels power everything. The restaurant breaks down waste with a zero-carbon footprint. Sometimes you need to go off the beaten track to find the most innovative thinking around the future of food.

Anthony Bourdain once said his favourite restaurant in Los Angeles was the fast-food chain In-N-Out Burger, but it was not meant as a slight on the sprawling city. The place continues to raise the bar on nourishing, delicious food, leading the way, along with a handful of other destinations, with an ethos of seasonal eating and embracing wild ideas. This has seen the city climb its way onto many discerning eaters’ dining destination lists. Even some of New York’s star chefs are opening in LA – we’re talking David Chang, Christina Tosi and Daniel Humm. The Exchange is a must-hit spot with its silky hummus, Israeli dishes and warm decor, while the lively and cool Cassia does Vietnamese fare with cocktails to match. And, of course, In-N-Out is a worthy destination in its own right.

This once-overlooked Italian region is becoming the new Amalfi Coast thanks to its farm-to-table ethos, its distinctively unfussy and rustic charm, and possibly its olive-oil-drizzled burrata. Head to Alberobello for the mozzarella and burrata, and the Itria Bontà farm, where they make it from scratch and serve it in their homestead. Masseria Brancati in Ostuni is a B&B with an adjoining olive oil farm with the oldest trees in Puglia. Taste and then pick up a bottle of the oil on site. There’s Lecce for its Renaissance architecture and Matera for its cave dwellings and ancient centre, Monopoli for the aqua-lue water of the Adriatic Sea; it’s no wonder Puglia is on everyone’s hit list right now. To explore more delicious destinations see the all-new delicious.com.au/travel.

A gathering of cultures at the mouth of the Mississippi river, New Orleans is true melting pot, especially when it comes to its cuisine. Its most famous dishes are the likes of gumbo, jambalaya (somewhat like a paella, which mingles rice, stock, seasonings, vegetables, and meat) and étouffée (a thick stew where crawfish is the main attraction.

The Philippines has long been considered the next best tropical destination, following Thailand and Bali. But it’s not just unspoilt beaches here, but tasty Filipino food, which primarily revolves around seafood. Must-try dishes include adobo (the nation’s unofficial national dish). The meal varies, typically referring to the method of stewing a protein (largely pork or chicken) in a simple sauce of coconut or cane vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and bay leaf.

Mendoza is famed for its wine; in fact its well-known for being Malbec country. But luckily for visitors, a good drop isn’t just the focus for the Argentinian city, but so too is fare. The majority of vineyards here serve multi-course culinary affairs to indulge in why you taste your way through the region’s best vino, alongside views of the Andes of course. Most recommended? Bodega Ruca Malen, Andeluna Cellars, and Frances Mallman 1884.

Home to seafood king Rick Stein and his eatery The Seafood Restaurant, Cornwall is well regarded for its access to some of England’s best fruits of the sea. But the rugged county on the Southern Tip is also the picturesque place where the Cornish Pasty arose; a savoury pastry famed for its crimped edge and hearty filling.