Eating out doesn't have to break the bank or your diet!  And if Eating out is with friends and loved ones, it can actually improve your mood, your motivation and your wellbeing - everything you'll need if you're going to stick to those New year's resolutions!!!

So, if like me, you love going out with family and friends to new restaurants, why not take a look at what our region has to offer?  

I often fall into the trap of trying out the same styles of cuisine even though the restaurants may differ. Inspired by this thought, we have decided to take a look at some of the less obvious world cuisines available. We've also ensured that all of our recomended restaurants provide healthy options - so there's no reason to feel guilty about the calories ! 

Additionally, if our recommended restaurants offer promotions we've included these details too - to ease the burden on the purse-strings! 

So next, time you fancy going out for a meal, why not go for Lebanese instead of Greek or Argentinean instead of Italian! Take a look below for local ideas!

 

Argentinean

Beef is the national dish of Argentina. Many dishes contain meat, but prepared in different ways. A favourite main course is parrillada, a mixed grill of steak and other cuts of beef. Grilled steak is called churrasco, a beef roast cooked over an open fire is called asado, and beef that is dipped in eggs, crumbs, and then fried is called milanesa. Carbonada is a stew that contains meat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and chunks of corn on the cob.

Many Argentines are descendents of the Italian immigrants who came to Argentina in the late 1800s, and so Italian dishes are found throughout the country. Some favourite Italian dishes include pizza, all kinds of pastas (such as spaghetti and ravioli), and ñoquis, (gnocchi—potato dumplings) served with meat and tomato sauce.

Argentines eat more fruit than almost any other group of people in the world. Some favourite fruits include peaches, apricots, plums, pears, cherries, grapes and tuna - the fruit of a prickly pear cactus.

Empanadas, little pies usually stuffed with beef, vegetables, and cheese, are a favourite dish. These are eaten by hand and they are often enjoyed as a snack. Chimichurri, a dipping sauce, is usually served with empanadas.

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Czech

Czech cuisine is based on meats and starches. This is because Czech winters are long and cold, which does not allow for a variety of fresh vegetables. In fact, if salads are available, they typically are limited to two vegetables, such as tomato and cucumber. Houby (mushrooms) are the exception, which flourish in local forests and are popular in soups, such as houbova polevka myslivecka (Hunter's mushroom soup).

Czechs eat a wide variety of meats, from pork, beef, ryba (fish), and chicken, to duck, hare and venison. The meats are commonly served with knedlíky (dumplings), brambory (potatoes), or rýe (rice), and are covered in a thick sauce commonly made with wine. Sometimes fruit (such as cherries or berries of some sort), mushrooms, or onions are added for more flavour. Other common flavourings in Czech dishes are caraway seeds, bacon, and salt. 

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Indonesian

The combination of geographic and cultural diversity in Indonesia has resulted in one of the most unique cuisines in the world. Although meals are generally simple, the plentiful use of various roots, spices, grasses, and leaves adds zest to most dishes. The common use of the chili pepper may mislead some to believe that all Indonesian dishes are spicy and hot. On the contrary, the most widely used spices are coriander, cumin and ginger, all relatively mild spices. In addition, most Indonesian food is prepared with contrasting flavours, such as a spicy sweet or hot sauce served over a bed of plain white rice, a popular meal throughout the country.

Rice is Indonesia's most important staple food. It normally accompanies every meal and is often the main ingredient for desserts and beverages. The two most common types are nasi putih (long-grain white rice) and nasi ketan (glutinous rice), a rice that is most often used to make cakes, snacks, and other sweet treats.

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Lebanese

The Lebanese diet focuses on herbs, spices, and fresh ingredients. Mint, parsley, oregano, garlic, allspice, nutmeg, and cinnamon are the most common seasonings. Bread, a staple food in Lebanon, is served with almost every meal, most often as a flat bread, or pitta.

Fruit, vegetables, rice, and bread out-weigh the amount of meat eaten in the average Lebanese meal. However, the most commonly eaten meats, poultry and lamb, make up some of the country's most popular dishes. The national dish, kibbeh, consists of a ground lamb and cracked wheat paste, similar to paté.

Mezze, a variety of flavourful hot and cold dishes, is another important part of the Lebanese diet. As many as forty small dishes are presented at once as either appetisers or as a meal itself. Hummus (chickpea, sesame seed, and garlic paste), rice and meat wrapped in grape leaves, mashed beans, hot and cold salads, grilled seafood and meats and pickled vegetables are most popular. Lebanese meals are rarely served in courses, but presented all at once. Tabbouleh (a salad made with cracked wheat) and mujaddara (a lentil and rice dish) are also widely consumed.

Lebanon's variety of fresh fruits makes them popular after-dinner desserts. Melon, apples, oranges, tangerines, persimmons, grapes, and figs are great treats. Baklava, a sweet, flaky pastry, is usually associated with Greek cuisine. However, the Lebanese have embraced the dessert and normally prepare it with pistachio nuts, drizzled with rose-water syrup (the Greeks use walnuts and honey). Ahweh (strong, thick Arabic-style coffee) and the country's national drink, arak (a colourless alcoholic beverage made with anise), are most commonly served with dessert.

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Moroccan

Native products that are especially important in Moroccan cooking are lemons, olives, figs, dates, and almonds. The country is rich in fish and seafood, so meals are usually built around fish, seafood, lamb and poultry.

Flat, round Moroccan bread is eaten at every meal. The Moroccan national dish is the tajine, a lamb or poultry stew. Other common ingredients include almonds, hard-boiled eggs, prunes, lemons, tomatoes, and other vegetables. The tajine, like other Moroccan dishes, is known for its distinctive flavouring, which comes from spices including saffron, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger, and ground red pepper. The tajine's name is taken from the distinctive earthenware dish with a cone-shaped top in which it is cooked and served. Another Moroccan dietary staple is couscous, made from fine grains of a wheat product called semolina. It is served many different ways, with vegetables, meat, or seafood.

Sweets play a very important role in the Moroccan diet. Homemade sweet desserts are made from almonds, honey, and other ingredients. Mint tea is served with every meal in Morocco. It is sweetened while it is still in the pot.

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Polish

The cereal grains wheat, rye, buckwheat, and barley form the dietary staple of Poland.They find their way into dark bread, noodles and dumplings. Boiled potatoes are the most commonly eaten side dish with meat, poultry, or fish. Cucumbers, seasoned with dill, are the raw ingredients of dill pickles, for which the Poles are known throughout the world.

Meat is an important part of the Polish diet. Pork is the most popular meat, and the most commonly eaten meat dish is a fried, breaded pork cutlet served with thick sauce. Beef, ham, and sausage are also eaten regularly. The meat stew bigos, is often called the national dish of Poland. Other famous Polish dishes are golabki (cabbage leaves stuffed with ground meat and rice) and golonka (fresh ham served with horse-radish). Smoked and pickled fish, especially herring is also hugely popular.

Most Polish meals start with one of Poland's many soups. These range from clear broth to thick soup so hearty it could be a meal in itself. The best known is the beetroot soup borscht.

Popular beverages include coffee, tea, milk, buttermilk, and fruit syrup and water. However, vodka distilled from rye is the national drink.

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South African

Seafood, a staple food in South African diets, is plentiful along the country's Atlantic and Indian Ocean coastlines. Hake, rock lobster, mussels, octopus, and cod are also popular seafood selections.

Dishes of British origin are seasoned and flavourful in South Africa. Spices were added to popular meals, such as the meat pie. The Boer (Dutch) Chicken Pie is a crusted chicken pie with plenty of seasonings, topped with eggs and ham. Bobotie, a beef or lamb hotpot, contains raisins, apples, almonds, and curry powder, a savory seasoning.

Sausages (made of beef or pork) and sosaties, seasoned lamb on a skewer, are commonly eaten at a barbecue, or braai, served with sauce and biscuits. South Africans make sosaties in different ways, with a variety of seasonings to make the meal more flavourful. Other meat favourites are ostrich and chicken. Frikkadels ("little hamburgers" usually seasoned with nutmeg) are sometimes served wrapped in cabbage leaves. Bredies, meat and vegetable stews of all kinds are usually named for the primary vegetable ingredient (such as carrot bredie or tomato bredie). 

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Turkish

Contrary to common belief, Turkish cuisine is generally not spicy. Seasonings and sauces, although frequently used, are simple and light and do not overpower the food's natural taste. The most popular seasonings include dill, mint, parsley, cinnamon, garlic, cumin, and sumac (lemon-flavored red berries of the sumac tree). Yoghurt is often used to complement both meat and vegetables dishes.

Rice, wheat and vegetables are the foundation for Turkish cuisine. Dolma, rice- and meat-stuffed vegetables, is frequently prepared throughout the country, most often with peppers, grape leaves, or tomatoes. The aubergine is the country's most beloved vegetable, with courgette a popular second and then beans, artichokes, cabbage, particularly when prepared in olive oil. Pilav (pilaf), Turkish rice, is a common filling for dolma , as well as a common side dish. Various grains are used to make pide (flat bread), simit (sesame rings), and börek, a flaky, layered pastry filled with meat or cheese that is often eaten for breakfast.

Lamb is the main ingredient to the country's most popular national dish, kebap (skewered grilled meat). The kebap resembles the familiar shish-kebab (onions, tomatoes, and peppers threaded on a skewer between pieces of meat and grilled). Patties of seasoned minced lamb called köfte are also popular. Poultry and seafood are also extensively eaten.

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