1. Gyros (Greece)
When it comes to Greek street food, spanakopita is to the gyro as an anthill is to Mount Olympus. It seems that you can't turn your head without seeing and smelling a spiced spit of meat all ready to be carved up, cradled in a spongy pita with a handful of fries (yes, you read that correctly -- fries as a sandwich garnish) and doused with tzatziki.

2. Arancini (Italy)
The same conspiratorial skills Sicilians honed with the mafia must have been applied to arancini, innocent-looking deep-fried rice balls shaped like large eggs. But bite into their crispy exterior and you will discover a whole dangerous underworld of rich ragout and melting mozzarella.

3. Frites (Belgium)
When abroad, the truly enlightened traveller knows it's his or her duty to sample regional fare. That's why it suddenly seems completely reasonable to purchase an oversized cone of piping-hot fries smothered in a blanket of mayonnaise (sometimes spiked with curry, ketchup or extra hot spice) and refer to it as "lunch." Even poutine has, ahem, trace amounts of protein.

4. Fast-food vending machines (Netherlands)
And you thought McDonald's was quick with its burger chutes. Those brilliant folks who brought you the windmill have one-upped the golden arches with fast-food vending machines, where you can pop a euro or two into a slot and grab yourself a chicken burger, hamburger or croquettes.

5. Baguette/cheese (France)
Many a cliche has taken advantage of the baguette-and-beret, but the elegant breadstick is indeed all over the streets of Paris, seen at any given time under about 25 per cent of the population's arms. Pair a fresh loaf with some camembert or brie (cheese sections take up about half of the grocery store) and bon appetit!

6. Tapas (Spain)
Ranging from unintelligible former life forms (tripe) to calamari rings and potato salad, tapas are small, often ice-cold rations of appetizers found just about anywhere in Spain. Don't be surprised if you feel as though you're looking into your fridge at last week's leftovers.

7. Waffles (Belgium)
The cross-hatched breakfast cakes have broken free of their syrup dependence in Belgium, where they are eaten plain and hot off the presses in the street.

8. Pizza Margherita (Italy)
Fajita chicken, pineapple and pesto shrimp? Mamma mia! That's not a pizza. The Italians prove that simple somehow tastes better when they make it with fresh tomato sauce, a couple of basil leaves and delicate mozzarella.

9. Sausages (Germany)
Hope for the best as you prepare for the wurst at Germany's abundant stand-up food stalls, where you can sink your carnivorous fangs into dozens of varieties of the world's original mystery meat, including bratwurst (spiced sausage), weisswurst (veal sausage) and blutwurst (blood sausage).

10. Langos (Hungary)
Extreme makeovers usually involve REMOVING fat, but not in the case of bland flour-and-water dough. Drop a lump into a boiling vat of fat, and you have the langos' beauty secret. This Beaver Tail relative consists of deep-fried bread topped with cheese, garlic or, the national staple, sour cream.