A group of hungry college students crowded around the newest food stall in an upscale market here: the American Hotdog Factory. Its sign proudly announced, "real American hotdogs for the first time in India."

Unlike most diplomats who are usually seen in three-piece suits and leather shoes, Wu Sung-lian is helping to further Taiwan's diplomacy with a spatula in hand and a white chef's hat on his head.

Outspoken vegetarian Paul McCartney is urging India to declare a national Vegetarian Day to celebrate meat-free living and compassion toward animals

A Taiwanese marathon runner who came second in the Antarctic Ultra Marathon said late Sunday that he helped promote his country by serving hot instant noodles to other runners in the sub- zero weather.

Food has been a trending topic in travel circles for some time now. But though a good meal can tell a traveler much about the local culture, it's not often that food is thought of as a force for political change at home.

One of the more delicious forms of public diplomacy has recently emerged in the global consciousness: gastrodiplomacy. Public diplomacy is a field predicated on the communication of culture and values to foreign publics whereas gastrodiplomacy, most plainly put, is the act of winning hearts and minds through mouths and stomachs.

There is an old American public diplomacy maxim that states: “To know us is to love us.” But in Taiwan, gastrodiplomacy—the promotion of Taiwan abroad through its cuisine—has served up a mouthwatering variation on this theme: “To taste us is to love us.”

Cooking classes are increasingly popular among travelers to Morocco, offering a chance to work with local cooks on delicacies from one of the world's great cuisines, creating delicately spiced tajines, hearty couscous or perfumed date and honey pastries.