Why are certain culinary delicacies so often associated with specific places? That, I can tell you in one word. Tradition! (You know the song).

Because the truth is that travel and food are inseparably intertwined. What we consume on our journeys is often a shortcut to discovering more about the culture and history of the destinations we visit.

So with four countries ahead on a 14-day Jewels of Europe river cruise itinerary, aboard the ship Scenic Crystal, I set myself the calorific challenge of identifying and sampling some of those traditional dishes and drink in our ports of call. And with a stop somewhere different almost every day, not to mention special excursions included in the itinerary to places with their own rich foodie traditions, I very nearly bit off more than I could chew.

Hungarian Cabbage Soup in Budapest

As we cruised past the iconic Hungarian Parliament and under the Chain Bridge, spanning the Danube, we were introduced to traditional Hungarian Cabbage Soup. This is the mother of classical Hungarian soups.

Apparently, the secret is to avoid meat, as the moment this is added it ceases to be a soup. A comforting dish, it’s therefore composed entirely of fresh vegetables, with the Hungarian magic ingredient, sweet paprika — added wherever possible in Hungary, I found.

Coffee and cake in Vienna

A gentle overnight cruise along the Danube in the comfort of our five-star balcony suite brought us past Bratislava to the elegant city of Vienna and its coffee house culture.

With a history as rich as the coffee and cakes they serve, coffee houses in Vienna date back to the late 17th century. Then a novelty, today there are dozens with grand décor, chandeliers and uniformed waiters serving small glasses of water with the coffee.

Perhaps the most famous is the Café Sacher at the Hotel Sacher, where they serve Sachertorte, a rich chocolate cake with a hint of apricot — although the Demel Bakery contests the title of serving the original recipe. Try both.

With a delicious cup of Wiener Melange, Café Sacher’s special coffee, the torte was even better than I had hoped. The recipes is, alas, a trademarked secret; I did ask but my request was declined with a polite Austrian smile.

Apple Strudel in Salzburg

Where better to try a crisp apple strudel than Salzburg — the city of the Sound of Music (and Mozart). High in the mountains, where Julie Andrews sang the famous title song from the movie, our excursion saw us treated to a private Sound of Music concert with dinner — finishing with one of her favourite things, a generous portion of strudel.

Perhaps Salzburg can’t confidently claim to have invented this dish, but in that setting, with the music playing, it had never tasted so good.

Apricots from Durnstein

Between the town of Melk, with its spectacular Benedictine Abbey, and the tiny village of Durnstein, is the Wachau Valley. Several varieties of special apricots are grown here, with a whole mini industry and tradition of apricot dishes arising around them.

Here we sampled Marillen apricot schnapps, although there are more apricot treats and delicacies than you can imagine — a result of lots of fruit plus long winters to experiment. The main curiosities to try are roasted apricot kernels covered in chocolate, although don’t miss the small chocolate balls containing apricots as well.

Beer in Bamberg

When the water isn’t safe to drink, what do you do? If you’re in Germany in the 16th century, you start a long tradition of brewing beer instead. Which today, means a whole array of regional beers has developed over the centuries.

One of the most unusual has to be smoked beer from Bamburg. What does it taste like? Well our guide told us it’s like kissing an ashtray. Personally, I wasn’t convinced it tasted that good!

Gingerbread in Nuremberg

Invented by medieval monks in Franconia in Germany, specialist gingerbread bakers were recorded from as early as 1395 in Nuremberg — the city is now one of the world’s largest exporters.

For those taking the challenge seriously, our cruise had a special trip to learn how to make traditional gingerbread. Otherwise, there are plenty of opportunities to taste it as you explore.

Asbach Coffee in Rudesheim

This town on the bank of the Rhine is known worldwide for its Asbach brandy — the main ingredient of its equally tempting Rudesheim Coffee.

A waiter serves the specially shaped white and maroon mug with no handles, containing three sugar cubes onto which is poured a double shot of Asbach brandy. The alcohol is then lit to make it hot and caramelise the sugar, before strong coffee is added and the whole drink topped off with vanilla sweetened cream and chocolate shavings. There’s also an option to have a cold version with ice-cream added to the mix.

Dutch fries in Amsterdam

After 12 days of cruising from Hungary through Austria and Germany, we arrived into Amsterdam and a tricky choice to choose one iconic traditional food to try.

Herring, stroopwafels or poffertjes have to be on the shortlist but it was vlaamse frites or patat which both the locals and tourists were queueing to buy. Because these are not just any old chips.

These special Dutch fries are thick cut, and traditionally served in a paper cone with a huge choice of tasty toppings including a dollop of peanut satay sauce, mayo and onions, or a patat speciaal with a mix of curry ketchup, mayonnaise and onions.

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