We are all guilty of it. You spend a long day sightseeing in a city and when it’s time for dinner, you head to that plaza near the cathedral where you saw the restaurant filled with people earlier, that had big glasses of wine and a menu with pictures of all the offerings.
The service turns out to be crappy, the waiter all but vanishes when you need something, and the food is … awful. And when the tab comes? It’s super pricey. But you don’t speak the language and your waiter appears to not understand a lot of English (mmm hmmm) so you cough up the money and swear you’ll find a better restaurant tomorrow night.
But how do you find a better restaurant? How can you avoid the tourist traps? And how do you avoid eating like a tourist? What if you have a faux pas, like using your fork in Thailand?
go at least four blocks from any big tourist attraction. The further away you get from the big tourist destination in whatever city you’re in, the more likely you are to stumble upon a more intimate cafe. There may be other tourists in there, but chances are, you’ll find a spot that is more popular with locals than foreigners.
don’t use your guide book, or ask your hotel for recommendations. You could ask for an area of town to head toward… but if you’re at a chain hotel, you’ll probably get sent to a restaurant that either pays the hotel to send guests there, or one that’s over-priced and touristy.
explore! Walk down that side alley. Turn left instead of right. Head away from the water, not toward. In short, go a little off the beaten path and you might surprise yourself. I recommend keeping an eye out for places while you’re walking around in the afternoon. That way, when it gets to be dinner time, you can feel relaxed about heading out the door, not famished when you finally find someplace.
look for a restaurant that does not have a big english menu out front. Or one that has a picture menu with foreign translations under the picture. You are going to get a poor quality meal for more than it should cost. Another good tip: if the menu is long, long long, the chances that the fish or meat was frozen, not fresh, is higher.
don’t go into a restaurant that’s empty at the local dinner time. Local dinner time varies from country to country. In Spain, locals don’t go to dinner until ten pm! In northern Italy, nine pm is acceptable, but in southern Italy, you better wait til ten. In England, between six and eight is local. So how do you know when the locals go to dinner? If you’re in a neighbourhood with a lot of trattorias, and they’re all empty, it’s not dinner time yet. Or they’re terrible. Wait an hour and then check back.
you don’t need to splurge on a big dinner to enjoy the local food. A local grocery store is always full of surprises… and street markets are even better. I love to stop in and pick up a variety of local food… fresh fish, veggies, pastas… if you’re staying someplace that has a kitchen, this is a must-do. Even if you don’t have a kitchen, you can buy ready to eat foods, like bread and cheese. A bottle of wine fills out the meal and you’ve only spent a fraction of what you would at a restaurant.
get out of your comfort zone by trying local foods. You always order the veal parmesan at your local Italian place? Then ask the server what is popular and go for it. We tried tripe in Florence – cow insides – and it was delicious… I don’t think I ever would have ordered it if the server hadn’t said it was the chef’s specialty.
go with the flow. We Americans can have hang ups about personal space, but you might find yourself smushed into a local bar without an inch to move. If no one else seems weird about that, then hold your elbowing and just enjoy the atmosphere (keep an eye on your belongings.) Likewise, if the server doesn’t come back to you and you’re fidgety, calm down… servers are busy people. Take another sip of your wine and enjoy the company you’re with.
pay attention to local customs, like how and when to use chopsticks, why you never stick them in your rice upright, and how to pass a decanter of port. You can do a quick google search to find the most important customs in whichever country you’re visiting.
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