When you think about it, food is truly a delicious history lesson. Regional cuisines tell stories about the land, the culture, the immigrant experience and the hustle of entrepreneurs who turned family recipes into local legends. One of the best ways to get to know a place is by tasting its signature dishes or trying the spirits it’s known for—but where do you start?
That’s where food and drink trails come in.
They guide you on a choose-your-own-culinary-adventure through a region’s most iconic bites and sips, celebrating what a place is famous for along with all the creative riffs and influences that shaped it.
From gumbo, crawfish and po’boys in Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou Food Trail to briny fresh oysters in North Carolina and a margarita trail brimming with history in Santa Fe, here are some of the best food and beverage trails in the United States, catered for culinary enthusiasts.
The Oyster Trail in North Carolina
North Carolina is so proud of its oysters, the state spotlights them on the North Carolina Oyster Trail that connects purveyors with restaurants and raw bars, and beckons oyster lovers to stop, slurp and stay a while. The oyster trail includes seafood markets, restaurants as well as visits to shellfish farms.
Oysters are a reflection of place, says chef, author and PBS personality Vivian Howard, of Theodosia at The Sanderling Resort in the Outer Banks.
“The diversity of our coast shows up in the shell—from our brackish rivers to our salty sounds,” she says. “Some oysters are sweet and creamy; others have a bright brine and pronounced minerality. No two farms taste the same, and that’s the beauty of North Carolina oysters.”
For Theodosia, which serves locally sourced dishes inspired by Eastern North Carolina, Howard says she enjoys working with women oyster growers across the Outer Banks, including Katherine McGlade, owner of Slash Creek Oysters on Hatteras Island, and Jen Dixon of Little Star, who grows oysters in Spencer Bay near Swan Quarter.
Guests at The Sanderling have plenty of opportunities to get a taste of North Carolina’s oyster bounty.
Sherman Harris, executive chef at The Sanderling Resort, says his favorite way to prepare oysters is by letting the oyster shine, serving them raw on the half shell with a simple mignontette —vinegar, shallot and cracked black pepper.
“I also enjoy them chargrilled with garlic butter and lemon, or lightly baked with minimal ingredients to enhance, not mask, the natural flavor,” Harris says.
The Margarita Trail in Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe doesn’t claim to have invented the margarita. It leaves that barroom brawl to cities like El Paso, Los Angeles, Dallas and several contenders throughout Mexico.
What this city will claim, confidently, is something just as important: Santa Fe was the first place in the world to import tequila from Mexico. Today, bartenders honor that legacy with the Santa Fe Margarita Trail, a curated collection of 55 bars and restaurants celebrating the city’s long love affair with the agave spirit.
Follow the salt rim—well, technically the map you can find here—through The City Different and you’ll find margaritas that showcase everything from green chiles to prickly pear syrup. Purists, don’t worry: Classic margaritas are well represented, too.
The story of tequila itself is a journey. When Spanish conquistadors arrived on the Gulf of Mexico, they brought with them stills to distill brandy, explains Al Lucero, author of The Great Margarita Book. The native people served them pulque, a fermented agave drink that, by most accounts, wasn’t especially pleasant. So, the Spanish ran the fermented agave through their stills—twice—creating tequila and laying the foundation for modern tequila production.
When Spanish settlers moved north to Santa Fe in the 1600s, they brought their “Mexican brandy” (AKA tequila) with them.
That influence is still felt today. Margaritas in Santa Fe are as much a staple as red and green chile—or Christmas-style, if you prefer both.
At the Agave Lounge inside Eldorado Hotel & Spa, you can order the Eldorado Oro, a top-shelf margarita finished with a Cointreau-salt rim. Over at the Living Room at the Inn and Spa at Loretto, you’ll find creative spins like a strawberry-jalapeño margarita alongside more traditional pours.
And at Secreto Lounge in Hotel St. Francis, the Smoked Sage Margarita is mixed in shakers that have been held over torched, garden-grown white sage, giving the cocktail an aromatic smokiness.
“The sage smoke fills the room with every order, transporting our guests deeper into our magical, classic Santa Fe saloon,” says corporate mixologist Lucas Swallows.
The Cajun Bayou Food Trail in Lafourche Parish
In Lafourche Parish, just about everything begins with the bayou. Bayou Lafourche winds 106 miles from the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, running straight through the heart of Cajun Country. Locals don’t use street names much around here—directions are simply “up the bayou” or “down the bayou.” The water is the compass, shaping everything from daily life to what ends up on the plate.
Most people here make their living from the bayou in one way or another—shrimping, net-making, cooking, conservation, or guiding visitors through the swamps on airboat and pontoon tours, where you’ll spot herons, cypress trees, and yes, the famous alligators that rule these waters.
That deep connection to land and sea comes through on the Cajun Bayou Food Trail, which celebrates the ingredients and cooking traditions passed down through generations. Gumbo, jambalaya, po’ boys, and seafood, which is often caught just hours before it’s served, star on the menus of 18 restaurants. So, after spending time at either Hotel Monteleone, The Eliza Jane or The Royal Sonesta New Orleans in New Orleans, head about 45 minutes outside the city to Lafourche Parish to try blue crab beignets at Grady V’s or po’ boys at Harry’s. The trail also highlights festivals worth planning a trip around, including the Louisiana Gumbo Festival in October and a “mud bug” crawfish boil in May.
While it’s named for “the fork” in French because the bayou begins at a fork in the Mississippi River, Lafourche might as well be named for its food. So, grab a fork (and a spoon) and dig in.
Kentucky’s Bourbon Trail
Perhaps one of the most famous trails in the country, the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, got its start in 1999, when the Kentucky Distillers’ Association created it after years of informal tours. The trail lets bourbon lovers go behind the scenes of the state's famous distilleries, giving them a glimpse of grain to glass.
But bourbon’s story in Kentucky goes all the way back to the late 1700s when European settlers brought distilling traditions to the area, where fertile soil and an abundance of corn gave rise to a new style of whiskey.
As waterways opened trade routes along the Mississippi River, Kentucky bourbon traveled far beyond its birthplace, gaining popularity across the growing nation.
To protect and promote the industry, distillers formed the Kentucky Distillers’ Association in 1880, helping guide bourbon through Prohibition, modernization, and global expansion. In 1964, Congress declared bourbon “America’s Native Spirit,” cementing its unique place in U.S. history.
“I believe bourbon is best experienced the way Kentucky intended—slowly, thoughtfully, and with a little sense of discovery,” says Erica Bailey, the granddaughter of a bootlegger and the resident Executive Bourbon Steward at Omni Louisville Hotel.
At the hotel, that might mean a private tasting from the Omni Louisville’s unmatched barrel collection, a guided flight paired with dinner, or stumbling into a hidden moment—like the tucked-away, seasonal Suite Easy inside Room 922 or the year-round hush of Pin + Proof, a speakeasy with bowling lanes.
“I have a deep sense of pride in our bourbon offerings,” Bailey says. “And in the great year where we get to celebrate 250 years of American heritage, I get particularly excited for the opportunity to introduce the complexities of ‘America's Spirit’ to guests.”