Better public diplomacy needs to be used in order to prevent a wave of legislation proscribing shechita, the kosher slaughtering of animals, Rabbi Goldberg, Deputy Director of the Rabbinical Centre of Europe (RCE), told a committee of the Knesset, Israel's parliament.

Andrea Wenzel takes us to meet an openly gay couple who decided to start an Algerian-American restaurant in Elkader after 9/11. This story charts the restauranteurs' adventures with cultural adaptation, American identity and small town politics.

Alice Waters' celebrated Berkeley restaurant, Chez Panisse, was transported to Beijing last week as part of a four-day U.S.-China Forum on the Arts and Culture. Berkeley and Beijing don't have much in common...But to replicate the Berkeley experience in Beijing? It wasn't just a matter of flying the ingredients from California. Waters' philosophy centers on eating local and buying directly from the farm.

Two years ago, one of the most-cited signs of a Korean food craze in the United States was the success of Kogi BBQ, a restaurant on wheels in Los Angeles that sold Korean-style barbecue in Mexican-style tacos from trucks that sent their location out via Twitter. Now, the Kogi concept has ricocheted to Seoul.

Growing up in a diverse community in California, I enjoyed home-cooked Indian dishes, courtesy of my mother’s friends. I remember learning about India’s history and subsequently falling in love with its diverse culture and folklore, all during dinner. In retrospect, that was gastrodiplomacy at work.

APDS Blogger: Hend Alhinnawi

He Tao ...said they have already started a major campaign to turn the city into a top international gastronomic center. This, he said, accords with the national strategy of using each city's soft power, but, of course, the city got a boost after it received the UNESCO's global gastronomy label.

British Council director Peter Clack who left the country last month for a new posting, talks fondly of local food and the role he played in Malaysia’s quest to be an education hub.