By Rachel Horwat
To many tourists, a major part of the voyage is eating – trying local produce, tasting different recipes, sipping local wines and beers and generally enjoying the tastier part of tourism.
Eating “local” while travelling can play a major role in supporting sustainable tourism. Eating local retains money in the local economy and can thus contribute to local development. Moreover, it often supports smaller-scale agriculture which is generally less harmful to the environment. Finally, gastronomic tourism can help to develop a destination’s touristic image based on its local food and culture.
Even in a tiny town like Sigri on the island of Lesvos, Greece there are many gastronomic treats to discover. One of the highlights is the local handicrafts and food products sold at the Natural History Museum of the Petrified Forest. Here, you can sample local honeys, olives and olive oils, sea salt, and desserts, as well as soaps and lotions, some of which are crafted by the women’s cooperative.
Another gastronomic experience unique to Sigri is hailing down the local “vegetable and fruit man” or the “fish man,” as they have been named. One cannot miss the loudspeaker announcing his arrival around the town when the day begins. Stop the truck and you can find enough fresh produce to cook up your own meal aided, perhaps, with some recipe tips from the locals.
No voyage would be complete without also eating out at at least one of the five restaurants in Sigri, many of which have fresh local fish dishes daily. Speaking with your waiter or waitress to ask what is available is even better than looking over the menu. Restaurants in Sigri generally cook what is available and can cater to your taste and preference.
A mistake that some tourists coming from Mytiline or other bigger towns might make (as did I) is to buy food before coming to Sigri in the fear that food would be more expensive and/or harder to find. Perhaps a strategy to avoid this would be to start an informative tourist campaign for the small towns on Lesvos that ensure tourists that food is available at competitive prices all over the island.
Another challenge for restaurant owners and businesses is to ensure that local foods are available. After a long day in the sun, I went to a restaurant hoping to sip on a local beer and all that was available was a Heineken (which made me wish I was in Amsterdam!). In other small towns that also face challenges of consistency in delivery and transportation, town-wide supply-chain management can help to ensure availability of local products based on supply and demand.
Eating “local” while travelling can play a major role in supporting sustainable tourism. Eating local retains money in the local economy and can thus contribute to local development. Moreover, it often supports smaller-scale agriculture which is generally less harmful to the environment. Finally, gastronomic tourism can help to develop a destination’s touristic image based on its local food and culture.
Even in a tiny town like Sigri on the island of Lesvos, Greece there are many gastronomic treats to discover. One of the highlights is the local handicrafts and food products sold at the Natural History Museum of the Petrified Forest. Here, you can sample local honeys, olives and olive oils, sea salt, and desserts, as well as soaps and lotions, some of which are crafted by the women’s cooperative.
Another gastronomic experience unique to Sigri is hailing down the local “vegetable and fruit man” or the “fish man,” as they have been named. One cannot miss the loudspeaker announcing his arrival around the town when the day begins. Stop the truck and you can find enough fresh produce to cook up your own meal aided, perhaps, with some recipe tips from the locals.
No voyage would be complete without also eating out at at least one of the five restaurants in Sigri, many of which have fresh local fish dishes daily. Speaking with your waiter or waitress to ask what is available is even better than looking over the menu. Restaurants in Sigri generally cook what is available and can cater to your taste and preference.
A mistake that some tourists coming from Mytiline or other bigger towns might make (as did I) is to buy food before coming to Sigri in the fear that food would be more expensive and/or harder to find. Perhaps a strategy to avoid this would be to start an informative tourist campaign for the small towns on Lesvos that ensure tourists that food is available at competitive prices all over the island.
Another challenge for restaurant owners and businesses is to ensure that local foods are available. After a long day in the sun, I went to a restaurant hoping to sip on a local beer and all that was available was a Heineken (which made me wish I was in Amsterdam!). In other small towns that also face challenges of consistency in delivery and transportation, town-wide supply-chain management can help to ensure availability of local products based on supply and demand.
