Cape Town named one of Time Out's 20 best cities for food

10 Views

Cape Town a culinary capital

Foodies will be flocking to Cape Town, now that Time Out has ranked the Mother City as one of the world’s 20 best cities for food in 2025.

According to Time Out, thousands of people around the world were surveyed about the food in their city, with these locals being asked to rate their city’s food scene across 18 different criteria, including quality, affordability and attributes from ‘family-friendly’ to ‘experimental’.

Each city was then ranked according to quality and affordability ratings, alongside a score from a panel of Time Out food experts, which included editors and food critics.

Cape Town came in at number four on the list, with the ‘almighty Gatsby’ being named as the dish you should eat if you only eat one thing in the city.

“Thanks to its cultural diversity, Cape Town’s food scene is as varied as they come – there really is something to cater to all tastes (and budgets) in the Mother City. With influences from Asia, Europe and across Africa, our city is known for packing a punch when it comes to flavour. There’s nowhere that better illustrates this than Time Out Market Cape Town, where all the tastes of the city are brought together under one roof. Bree Street, or ‘Gourmet Boulevard’, is the city’s dining thoroughfare, with Boma and Iron Steak firm favourites. And you can’t visit Cape Town without tucking into some seafood – the city might even rival London with its bountiful fish and chips offering.” Time Out wrote.

Cape Town was also recently named Time Out’s World’s Best City for 2025.

The 20 best cities

Time Out named New Orleans the number one best city for food, with Bangkok, Thailand in second place and Medellín, Colombia in third. Here are the 20 best cities for food in 2025:

Rank	City
1	New Orleans, US
2	Bangkok, Thailand
3	Medellín, Colombia
4	Cape Town, South Africa
5	Madrid, Spain
6	Mexico City, Mexico
7	Lagos, Nigeria
8	Shanghai, China
9	Paris, France
10	Jakarta, Indonesia
11	Marrakech, Morocco
12	Lima, Peru
13	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
14	Mumbai, India
15	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
16	Cairo, Egypt
17	Porto, Portugal
18	Montreal, Canada
19	Naples, Italy
20	San José, Costa Rica