10 Best Mediterranean Islands for Foodies | The Mediterranean Traveller

The Mediterranean is a wonderland for food and wine lovers. The food here is known for being delicious as well as healthy. The abundance of sunshine produces some of the tastiest vegetables on the planet (especially tomatoes). Every region has its own varieties of wine – and usually cheese too. Many areas have a long-standing agricultural tradition with foods and dishes that have been handed down from generation to generation.

So where should you head first, if you’re a foodie looking for a Mediterranean island vacation?

Mallorca

There is plenty to keep the gourmet occupied on the Balearic island of Mallorca, which has a balance of fantastic rural fare and creative modern delights.

In capital city Palma you’ll find a well-established fine dining scene, a midweek tapas trail, microbreweries, food trucks, food markets, cafes and delis. Don’t miss the San Juan food market in a converted abattoir, or picking up a pastry forn at one of the city’s many bakeries.

Head outside the city for vineyard tours, bodega-hopping, seaside seafood, almond blossom, salt pans, and mountain foraging.

Sicily

Ah Sicily! The largest island in the Mediterranean – and certainly one of the best for food and wine. Sicily has a hot and dry climate as well as cultural influences from all around the Mediterranean. Sicily is known for its extremely tasty fruit and vegetables. The fresh seasonal produce here is top notch, and you’ll enjoy shopping for it at the thrilling food markets in Palermo and Catania. Be sure to get there early for the best stuff.

Many dishes have a distinctive sweet and sour flavour, known as agrodolce and often involving capers and raisins.

There’s also a riot of sweets and desserts on Sicily, including the best gelato you will ever taste. The citrus fruits and nuts are second to none. And the island produces plenty of quaffable wine to wash down its excellent seafood.

Lesvos

The Greek island of Lesvos might not be the first that springs to mind when you think of gourmet delights – mainly because the news tends to focus on other aspects of the island – but its well-known amongst Greek for the standard of its fare as well as its rich cultural heritage. It’s the spiritual home of ouzo – and with it, mezedes (delicious small plates of food served with the ouzo, similar to tapas).

Nothing goes better with ouzo than sardines, and on Lesvos you will find the best sardines in the Mediterranean. Global fish stocks may be in decline but you wouldn’t know it in the Gulf of Kalloni where there’s an abundance of sardine (thanks to the notable absence of industrial fishing).

Prices on Lesvos tend to be lower than in the more popular destinations so you can eat out more often, hurrah!

Sifnos

One Greek island which is rapidly gaining a reputation for its gastronomy is the small Cycladic island of Sifnos. This island was home to the most famous chef of 20th-century Greece, Nikolaos Tselementes, who practically the modern taverna menu. But perhaps more importantly, Sifnos was home to the best clay which made the best pots for cooking the best stews and bakes. Pottery from Sifnos was exported all around the country and beyond.

The slow-cooked dishes that you’ll try here are sweeter and tastier than you can imagine. The traditional dish associated with Sifnos is chickpea stew (pictured above), and you won’t find a better moussaka anywhere else. Today Sifnos is also home to a high standard of restaurant including some delicious upscale fish restaurants.

Korcula

Most visitors to Croatia head to the popular island of Hvar, but foodies in the know head instead to Korčula. This spindly and densely forested island is a short ferry ride from Dubrovnik and so a popular day trip destination, but it’s really worth staying longer – especially if you like wine. It’s home to delicious varietals that you won’t easily find elsewhere, such as the intriguing steely white grk which only produces female flowers.

Korčula Town makes a pleasant base – it has a small fortified old town on a peninsula surrounded by the sea, where you can drink wine in tower-top bars. There are many tour agencies who will rent you a bike for exploring the vineyards or take you around on a tasting tour. And an easy journey across the water is the Pelješac Peninsula on the mainland, which has an equally good reputation for food and wine – including oysters.

Corsica

The beautiful French island of Corsica is still a bit under the radar, which means plenty of exciting foodie discoveries. Corsica is a very mountainous island, so as well as the delicious (though expensive) seafood you will also find plenty of dishes from the interior featuring earthy and woody ingredients such as chestnuts, wild boar, and ewe’s cheese, as well as flavourings from the fragrant maquis herbs that cover the hillsides.

This being France, the charcuterie, cheese, and wine is on-point. The island hosts a wine festival in July.

Sardinia

Another large island with longstanding food traditions is Sardinia, which sits south of Corsica and north of Sicily. It’s less mountainous than Corsica, and home to a lot of sheep. Pecorino Sardo is the star local cheese.

On Sardinia, head inland for the best places to eat as rural traditions have been well-preserved in the island’s many small villages. Local dishes can be sampled at the island’s many agriturismos which serve epic feasts often including the famous dish porceddu (roast suckling pig). On Sardinia you’ll find a twist on Italian classics: think mint, pork, lamb, tomato, sausage, herbs, bread, and saffron. It’s simultaneously light and hearty. For seafood restaurants., stick to Alghero.

Crete

Of all the islands in Greece, Crete is known for having a high standard of food. Like Sicily, it’s one of the southernmost islands in the Mediterranean and therefore has a hot dry climate which turbocharges the intensity of its produce. It’s big and mountainous with large fertile plains. Crete is a popular tourist destination so you can easily find foodie experiences like wine-tasting, food tours and produce visits, as well as plenty of excellent restaurants.

Santorini

Whilst Crete and Lesvos are notable for their rustic appeal, you can find the opposite at leading luxury destination Santorini. This Greek island is home to some of the best destination hotels in Europe so it’s unsurprising that the high-end restaurant options here are fantastic.

But it’s not all fine dining. Santorini has a unique volcanic ecosystem which results in remarkable produce. The tiniest sweetest tomatoes and aubergines, capers, and the best fava beans in the country. And then there’s the wine. Santorini’s assyrtiko is the most well-known Greek wine outside Greece – and for good reason. There are plenty of vineyards you can visit, and some come with the bonus of excellent sunset views.

Read more:

A Foodie’s Guide to Santorini

A Foodie’s Guide to Athens

Best Greek Islands for Foodies

A Foodie’s Guide to Rome

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