Luxembourg

The national plate lands heavy and happy: Judd mat Gaardebounen, smoked pork collar simmered soft and served with broad beans in a creamy sauce and boiled potatoes. It's farmhouse food from a country that was rural long before it was rich — pork in every form, potatoes fried and grated and mashed, a cooked cheese called Kachkeis spread warm on bread.

But this is a crossroads, so the Germanic base gets French refinement and a good deal of Belgian and Italian influence too. Bistros in the Grund and Clausen quarters plate hearty local dishes below the old fortress cliffs, while the Moselle valley pours crisp Rieslings and crémant from villages like Remich. Come autumn, market stalls sizzle Gromperekichelcher potato fritters and quetsch plums go into open tarts. Small country, generous table.