Why do travellers queue up for viral food?

Experts explain why FOMO, social proof, and performance culture have turned simple snacks into a global must-queue experience.

Thomas A. P. van Leeuwen’s Amsterdam apartment has an amazing view. The Keizersgracht is lined with 17th century canal houses, but the view that Thomas A. P. van Leeuwen sees every day is modern. Every day, tourists queue up on the bridge to take photos of the gabled backdrop and fries for TikTok, Instagram, or EUR5.50.

FabelFriet is where you can get fries in Amsterdam. The brand opened its first shop in the year 2020, and then exploded on TikTok by 2023. Since then, its original location at De Negen Straatjes has been a constant draw. Staff and signs manage the crowds to send chip-seekers along the sidewalk and down the bridge. The queues at the Korean sandwich shop Chun are similar to those found a few metres away. Meanwhile, the pretty packaged cookies of Van Stapele Koekmakerij, another Amsterdam pilgrimage, have also become viral.

Amsterdam is not the only place where people salivate over food. L’Industrie in New York’s West Village draws long queues of up to an hour for a pizza. The London Beigel Bake’s salt beef bagel is a true test of loyalty and patience. I Donut’s in Japan? The New York branch of the craze is generating long lines. Italian All’antico Vinaio’s popularity has been tested in the UK and the US. Customers are lining up to get their freshly baked Schiacciata sandwiches (Tuscan Flatbread).

Travellers around the world are willing to wait up to an hour for trendy versions of everyday staples. Saturday Night Live parodied the phenomenon. Psychologists say these lines don’t actually refer to the food, but rather reveal how social media and status are changing modern travel.

The queue is not just a sign of popularity; it also triggers powerful emotional cues. FOMO is the most common reason people wait to eat food that they have only heard of, according to Rachel S Herz. She’s an adjunct assistant professor at Brown University Alpert Medical School, and author of “Why You Eat What You Eate”. When people queue up for positive experiences, they feel more compelled to get the same thing. This is called FOMO.

Cathrine J. Boyd, professor at Anglia Ruskin University of consumer psychology, describes the mechanism of “social proof of validity. She says that if you see people queuing up repeatedly, it can become normal and even expected. This can change your response. She says, “You’re afraid of missing out a little.”

Nowadays, queues can be encountered by accident very rarely. The majority of people will have seen the food on the internet before they come, and discover it through their personalized feeds rather than in the street. Jansson Boyd says that the pressure to follow others’ lead has increased. It does change us, because we’re very social. We want everyone to see what we do and want to copy what others are doing.

FOMO is not enough to explain why people are now filming themselves while waiting in line or why food has become a background rather than a focal point. The psychology of waiting in line is becoming increasingly tied to something more modern – and visible.

Waiting in line to buy the latest food trend is part of an overall performance, whether we realize it or not. They don’t just eat the food that’s going viral – they also film themselves eating it and then post their videos to show others they are onto something. Viral dishes, such as croffles and cronuts, are shared on TikTok before travellers arrive. Millions watch other people try them out.

Sara Dolnicar explains that social media gives tourists a platform to showcase their vacation. She is a professor of UQ Business School at The University of Queensland. Searching TikTok for #stroopwafel (fries) or #friet brings up thousands of videos of travellers rating viral foods while filming themselves in the queue or outside of the venue.

Barbora Labudova witnesses this daily at FA Stroop Stroopwafels, Amsterdam. Tourists line up to get the crispy biscuits with caramel layered on top and decorated with strawberries or pistachios. She has to ask customers who are filming her every day to stop.