Terry Crews is an actor, host, sports enthusiast, and lover of learning about new cultures and cuisines. His long and illustrious career has given him the opportunity to see the world and experience the wonders of travel. Now, he’s revealing some of his favorite destinations, best travel tips, and the one dish he would fly across the ocean for.
Terry Crews is a household name. From his iconic roles acting in White Chicks, Everybody Hates Chris, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, to hosting popular TV shows America’s Got Talent and new program 100 Cooks, his talent speaks for itself and allows him to appear in a multitude of entertaining settings.
His career also has allowed him to travel all over the world. So far this summer he was at the Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks, a World Cup match in New Jersey, and topped it all off with a family vacation to Universal Orlando Resort’s Epic Universe. Recently, he spoke to Travel + Leisure about his love of travel, and fittingly enough he was just getting off a plane from trips to Monaco, London, and Brazil.
Crews specifically emphasized his love of Brazil: “it’s just beautiful, and the culture is wonderful. I go to Brazil a lot, and I just feel like I’m home,” he said.
The 57-year-old actor explained that one of the other reasons he loves the South American country so much is its cuisine. The pão de queijo bread especially is one of his favorites because “it’s gluten-free, and it’s so good, but they’re also about their protein. They also have the freshest and best fruits you’ve never seen. You just feel healthier when you’re there.”
“Brazil’s style of cooking is so good, and they do a lot of fusion and it’s just so amazing. Each meal was a little different, Brazil really bringing their thing to it.”
Crews’ love for cooking and the connection between food and culture is one of the reasons he was so excited to host the Food Network’s latest competition show 100 Cooks, which is currently airing.
“Chefs and food has become this amazing thing that really has reached super-stardom. I Love Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Watching Guy Fieri bite into a sandwich is the most amazing thing. I’m also a big fan of Chef’s Table, all the different versions. It’s so incredible to watch food and how it’s getting made. The Nobu film was incredible, too. Chefs are now celebrities, and the way they do their thing has taken over.”
100 Cooks is a seven-week series that features 100 of the top home cooks in America until they get down to one winner. He explained how while hosting the show, he finds himself constantly amazed by the diversity of competitors in terms of their regular jobs. There’s lawyers, doctors, former athletes, students, grandparents, and even CIA agents.
“I love being involved with this because I’m a home cook myself,” he said, explaining how he’s always loved watching the Food network, and he was at a place in his career where he wanted to bring his love of food to TV when the network happened to present him with the hosting opportunity.
“I actually wrote down my goals, ‘How can I do something involving food and create food content?’ and all of a sudden, Food Network calls me with the most brilliant concept. They’re like, ‘This is the biggest concept we’ve ever had,’ and I said, ‘Then you need the biggest host, and that’s me.’”
Funny enough, Crews explained that by being such a multi-hyphenate, he doesn’t actually have a lot of time to cook himself, however, when he does find himself in the kitchen, he’s often making desserts.
He told T+L that his specialty is pound cake. When he was on David Chang’s show Dinner Time Live, he convinced the Momofuku founder to let him make the dessert with some cherry compote.
“He loved it – and I was so happy. One thing that makes my heart happy is when you have one of those cake bins sitting on the counter, and it has cake with a couple of slices out. It just makes the kitchen feel complete.”
When speaking about one of his favorite meals of all time, he cites a small place in Tokyo, Japan.
“People think it would be for sushi, but I love the bakeries of Tokyo. In the basement of a Tokyo mall, I had a kouign-amann that changed my life – I’ve never had anything that good anywhere else.”
When speaking of the kouign-amann, he credits the unique flavors to the combining of Japanese and French styles. “French cooking is so elevated, and they take it to a whole other level in Japan. I would fly to Tokyo, I would go down there, so I can get that kouign-amann one more time!”
Beyond just trying new foods and experiencing new cultures, another reason Crews will hop on a plane without hesitation is to attend sporting events. “Everyone is now traveling to the US for the World Cup, so you feel that vibe happening. But I have really been immersing myself in the world of Formula 1.”
Crews recently attended the Monaco Grand Prix, and previously has gone to races in Budapest, Abu Dhabi, Barcelona, and Australia.
“Each Formula 1 race invokes the personality of the city, so the food, style, and everything changes. I had Vegemite in Australia – which was delicious, by the way – and then you go to Budapest and have shakshuka,” he reflected.
“In Spain, they were slicing Iberico ham for us, and in Miami, there was a Latin American vibe, and I had a Cuban sandwich! The Formula 1 Paddock is all about the food, and you get these deluxe meals. You only get wings at the Super Bowl!”
Between the recent Olympics, Super Bowl, Knicks championship run, World Cup, and more, Crews said that he loves how he’s seeing a rise in sports tourism, specifically for Americans who are branching out to experience new cultures and ways of life internationally.
“It’s given Americans more of a curiosity, you get the sport that’s familiar, but the culture makes it all different. It opens up tourism, which is healthy – we need to get around the world!”
In the future, Crews is hoping to travel to Fiji and Thailand, and he left readers with some of his best traveling tips when it comes to getting over jet lag.
“Water, water, water! You have to hydrate. The other trick is fasting. When you eat on a plane, there’s so much going on as your body is changing. There’s radiation, you’re bloating, and you’re feeling ugh. Now your body has to work double. So a lot of times on long flights, I like to fast.”
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
