10 Best Places for Outrageous Food on a Stick

I’m not sure why, but putting a piece of food on a stick always puts a smile on travelers’ faces. Maybe it’s because we associate skewered snacks with childhood pleasures like lollipops and popsicles; maybe it’s because sticks make for easy cleanup when we’re on the go.

Either way, certain destinations are held in high esteem for their unforgettable (for better or for worse) meals on sticks. Here are 10 picked especially for brave travelers—stick it to your friends when you complete one of these challenges.

Beijing

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Beijing’s Wangfujing Night Market is the world’s premier purveyor of creepy-crawlies on sticks, including the scorpions and sea horses seen here. Luckily, the market also sells sweets on sticks; chase these insects with some skewered, sugared berries.

Singapore

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In the designated hawker centers of Singapore, the stick food is fast and fried. Who knew eating french fries with no hands was so easy?

Tokyo

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Bringing new meaning to the term “fish sticks,” Japan thrills sushi-loving visitors with fish kebabs.

Shanghai

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Shanghai’s Bund elevates street food with offerings like these bundles of squid on sticks.

Minnesota State Fair

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Famous for dishes on sticks that include spaghetti and meatball dinners, macaroni and cheese, and pickles, the Minnesota State Fair has food so fine it even inspired a video.

Los Angeles

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LA’s bacon-wrapped hot-dog craze calls for double sticks for double meats.

Istanbul

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The original home of the kebab, Turkey still serves up delicious (if somewhat outrageous-looking) dishes on sticks, like these fried clams.

Iowa State Fair

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The pineapple on a stick (fried in funnel cake batter) advertised is tame compared to many of the 50+ other items on sticks in the Iowa State Fair’s repertoire. Hot bologna on a stick? Really?

Oklahoma State Fair

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Oklahoma one-ups Iowa, and the french fries of Singapore, with its gravity-defying mashed potatoes on a stick.

Utah State Fair

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At Utah’s state fair, you can wash down (sort of) your pork chop on a stick with fried Coke.

Thumbnail photo courtesy of IgoUgo member EsslingerBrian