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Food-Tripping USA: The 10 Best American Food Adventures

By Cindy Hatcher
Updated: June 09, 2014
Presenting 10 delicious excursions and experiences across this great, hungry, food-mad land—from an Appalachian dairy drive to a mosey down a dusty Texas whiskey trail.
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Delicious Destinations

Photo: Randy Mayor
If you love experiencing the cuisine of different cultures and exploring food scenes while traveling, you are in luck. Here, we explore 10 states' hidden gems—from a cowboy-hat-wearing whiskey distiller to a late-night Chinatown that bleeds neon, Sriracha, and overproof rum.
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Central California Farm Stays

Photo: Courtesy of Lucan and Lewellan Vineyards
The Santa Margarita Hills lured gold miners. Today, it's wine and cheese lovers. Take a food adventure and explore Central California and the Santa Ynez Valley.

Read more: Central California Farm Stays

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Taste the Lone Star State's Whiskey Scene

Photo: Matt Rainwaters
Texas' microdistillers are mounting a seriously tasty challenge to Kentucky's whiskey supremacy, with visionaries from the Hill Country to north Texas producing extra-ordinary spirits that pair wonderfully with the local beef-centric cuisine.

Read more: Taste the Texas Whiskey Scene

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Crabbing in the Pacific Northwest

Photo: Leela Cyd
If you love the idea of catching seafood but go green about the gills thinking of the open ocean, try Dungeness crabbing. You can do it without leaving dry land in the salty fishing town of Garibaldi on Oregon's Tillamook Bay.

Read more: Crabbing in Oregon

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Traverse City, Michigan, Steps Up to the Plate

Photo: Kevin Miyazaki/Redux
This up-and-coming foodie destination is speckled with celebrities, artisan foods shops, and fun festivals.

Read more: Traverse City, Michigan's Buzzing Food Scene

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Eat a Path 'Round Brooklyn's Artisanal Shops

Photo: Jacob Pritchard
The borough that Manhattanites once loved to ignore is now America's HQ for lovingly crafted foods—a vast larder of more treats than you could taste in a lifetime of food blogging. No food lover should miss spending a day checking out some of Brooklyn's best artisan shops.

Read more: Brooklyn's Artisanal Food Shops

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Appalachian Dairy Drive

Photo: Peter Frank Edwards/Redux
The gorgeous greenery that is the backdrop to any southern Appalachian road trip is equally appreciated by the region's cows and goats, whose sweet milk is the foundation for superb butters, milks, and cheeses that are establishing the region as a leading dairy producer.

Read more: Appalachian Dairy Drive

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Philly's Chinatown After Dark

Photo: Jason Varney
Chinatown is the devil on the shoulder of Philadelphia's Center City. It's the place you go to stay out late and sing too loud. It's compact and crowded, and smells of a million things. To spend time there is to find a strange second heart of the city—an organ that kicks into life after dark.

Read more: Philly's Chinatown After Dark

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Milwaukee's Real Suds Scene

Photo: Kevin Miyazaki
Milwaukee's beer culture is legendary: It once had more than 80 breweries and was the largest beer-producing town in the world. Today, the city has a thriving microbrewery scene, and the best way to celebrate it is by boat.

Read more: Milwaukee's Beer Scene

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An Authentic Florida Seafood Experience

Photo: Cedric Angeles
An asphalt road winding through a land of serene verdancy abruptly ends at a cluster of live oaks thick with Spanish moss. A low-slung eatery appears as the only sign that you've arrived in the wee fishing village of Spring Creek in Florida's Wakulla County.

Read more:  Authentic Florida Seafood  

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A Suburban Chicago Farm

Photo: Eric Gannett
Chicago residents can skip the hustle and bustle, and meander out to La Pryor Farms for a simpler way of life.

Read more: A Suburban Chicago Farm

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