Safely Eating Street Food Around the World

Nov 9, 2025
4 min read

My first adventures in eating street food outside the United States took place when I was in college traveling in Greece. I was a pretty green traveler and happily ate souvlaki, salads and yogurt from street vendors on a student’s budget without incident. Naiveté and luck kept me safe.

The only time I saw the inside of a doctor’s office was when my friend badly chipped her capped tooth, and after the treatment she got, I’m not convinced the man was even a real doc.

Can you believe there was a translated phrase in our guide book: “my artificial tooth needs replacing”? I can still hear the THWACK of the rubber band he used to get the cemented tooth off her gums! As you can imagine, it was not a pleasant experience, but I digress….

Editors Note: This post was originally published in September 2016 and has been completely updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Table of Contents

What is Street Food?

Arabic street food Ka’ak with egg and za’atar.

According to Wikipedia:

Street food refers to food or drinks sold by a hawker or vendor on a street or at other public places, such as markets, fairs, and parks. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption.

Research from the Food and Agriculture Organization indicates world wide over 2.5 billion people eat street food on a daily basis. Food vendors saw the intervention of government rules and regulations as early as the 14th century. While safely eating street food has become a global concern for public health, some studies indicate that the incidence of contamination is actually quite low, with a rate on a par with restaurants.

Certainly here in the United States we hear about cases in the restaurant scene far more often than from a street food vendor. The difficulty in tracking cases and reporting systems could be offering a skewed picture for what is actually taking place, and that’s why knowledge and safety are so important for the individual traveler.

Learn From Experience

Fast forward a few years and I found myself traveling regularly to the Philippines for the manufacturing business I co-owned. Strict instructions to boil it, peel it or forget it were part of my travel plans. Usually my time was short, my days were focused on my bottom line, and I couldn’t afford to get sick. I packed a lot of food, and my partner and I were incredibly cautious about what we ate. Food poisoning and getting sick were to be avoided at all costs.

That wariness didn’t stop a cockroach the size of a small child from appearing in the salad of a diner sitting next to me. Honestly, my caution didn’t stop me from getting sick on just about every trip I took. The change in water-even when you are drinking bottled, combined with all the other changes you are experiencing in time and food does a number on your system.

Everyone has their own set of rules, but mine are constantly being challenged. Don’t ever eat in an airport became my mantra after seeing a fellow traveler get deathly ill (hospitalized ill) eating a samosa in the Jaipur, India airport. The following year I nonchalantly gave my daughter money to get a smoothie in Mexico’s Leon airport. HELLO – ice, fruit, crazy-what was I thinking? She was fine.

Would you think that packaged food was safer than anything open in the marketplace? I certainly did, until I found myself in the very warehouse packaging said crackers in Myanmar. Mice and a variety of flying insects were rampant.

Time To Enjoy Food Travel

There came a point in my travels when I started to feel like I was really missing out on the cultural experience. Each trip gave me a bit more confidence to venture out of my eating comfort zone. I’ve stopped packing all but a few energy bars or snacks, and now take prophylactic measures before leaving. This includes a daily probiotic.

The first sign of a problem brings out the Imodium. Although its probably not the best for my gut, it works for me on the road. Delicious street food experiences have now become synonymous with my cultural exchange. Whether taking a food tour in Naples or sipping chai from a stall in Mumbai, authentic local flavors are an integral part of my travel itinerary.

Tourist enjoying offal at a street food stall in Catania, Italy. STREATY food tour.

My Best Street Food Eating Tips

Take a Food Tour. I try and visit a market and take a food tour in every destination I visit. It’s a great opportunity to see what the locals eat and get recommendations from someone who lives in the area. I love connecting with the culinary heartbeat of a new place in this way and more often then not have a tour arranged before arrival.
Eat when the locals eat. Volume will be higher if more people are eating the food. Ingredients will sit out for a shorter period of time.
Look for long lines. Just like the above advice, higher volume indicates quick turnover.
Eat where the locals eat. Ask for suggestions. Most residents are honored to give you their opinion.
If you’re just starting to step out of your comfort zone, take a cooking class. You’ll no doubt learn a lot about the local cuisine.

Potato chip food vendor in Madrid, Spain.

Fresh cooked foods that are served hot are a good bet. What is in season and grown in the area?
Don’t eat the skin of fruits, peel it or forget it.
Be careful of ice and fresh fruit drinks. While i’ll indulge in ice from a hotel or restaurant where I know the water is filtered, elsewhere, I’m not so brave.
Take advantage of a window into the kitchen. You can see where the dishes are washed-another consideration with the water.
Bring antibacterial food safe wipes for utensils before eating.
Sauces sitting in the sun for long periods of time-bu