The Best Netflix Series for Travel Fans
by Meredith Carey, Assistant Digital Editor, Condé Nast Traveler US
originally published by CNTRAVELER US
Updated regularly, here's a list of some of the most wanderlust-inspiring TV series (fictional and not) that involve travel by land, air, and sea (and lots and lots of eating) - all available right now on Netflix for your streaming pleasure.
Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat
Chef and food writer Samin Nosrat’s four-part series focuses on the four ingredients she thinks makes food delicious. In Italy she explores fat, in Japan she finds salt, in Mexico it’s acid and in the USA there’s heat. Her smile and spontaneous dancing are irresistible viewing, not to mention the sizzling close-ups of her adventurous, elemental cooking.
Chef’s Table Pastry
This is a four-episode-only spin-off from the Emmy award-winning Chef’s Table. Kicking off with Christina Tosi and her New York Milk Bar empire we're already hooked. Also on the menu: Jordi Roca, Will Goldfarb and Corrado Assenza. Mesmerising and delicious – don't think about watching without sweet snacks to hand.
SENSE8
Despite Sense8's too-soon cancellation (fans will get a final two-hour finale at some point in 2018), the Netflix original still inspires wanderlust, spanning 15 cities and 13 countries. The show, filmed in South Korea, Mexico, Iceland, India, and more, follows the lives of eight characters plunged into each other’s lives (and minds) while they are collectively hunted by a destructive villain.
Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories
Set in a tiny Tokyo diner that's only open from midnight to 7 am, the fictional show follows the Midnight Diner's owner and clientele as they share their trials and joys, all while eating whatever the owner, called Master, dishes up. In the diner, pork miso soup is the go-to, but Master will cook visitors anything they order, as long as he's got the goods to make it. Episodes are a little more than 20 minutes long, so it's the most binge able of the bunch. Watch with subtitles and don't - seriously, don't - watch while hungry.
Travels with My Father
Follow stand-up comedian Jack Whitehall and his father, Michael, in this six-episode Netflix original across Southeast Asia. The series tracks the duo as they finish the gap year Jack never got to complete, just a few years late (eight, to be exact).
Stephen Fry in America
In this six-part mini-series, Stephen Fry drives around all 50 US states in a London cab. Football games at the University of Alabama and lobster fishing in Maine are on the menu. Expect a lot of laughs and a surprise appearance from Morgan Freeman.
Chef’s Table
If you've ever raised an eyebrow at food as art, set aside some time to watch this Netflix original docu-series. Each 50-minute episode profiles one of the world’s most extraordinary chefs (such as Peruvian Virgilio Martínez, pictured, the owner of Lima's Central restaurant, and Swede Magnus Nilsson) as they create impossibly complicated dishes.
Images:
Netflix