Do you want to experience authentic food when travelling? These five travel food tips can help you to eat like a native and avoid tourist traps. Here’s how to get it right, from street food to language hacks.
Travel isn’t just about taking pictures of sunsets and visiting monuments. Food is a great way to learn about the culture of a place. It’s fascinating to taste a dish which has been part of the community for many generations. You might miss out on the true experience if you only eat at hotel buffets and “Instagrammable cafes”. What people eat on a daily basis can reveal a lot about a location. Here are five easy tips that will help you to eat like the locals on your next vacation.
5 Tips to Eat Like a Local When Travelling:
1. Do Your Research
Spend some time researching the local food scene before you go anywhere. Look for the traditional foods that are popular in the area and take note of the names of the restaurants that locals recommend, not only tourists. You can find out about lesser-known restaurants by watching YouTube travel videos or looking at Instagram location tags. Reddit and local Facebook groups are great places to find first-hand accounts of underrated food spots. You’ll thank yourself for keeping a list.
2. Take to the Streets
The best street food is served in carts and on the pavement. Street food has flavours that range from Gangtok’s steamed pani puri to Indore’s spicy momos. Street vendors tend to stick to the traditional ingredients and cooking methods. While restaurants that cater to tourists will often change their menus, street vendors are more likely to use local ingredients. If a street food stall is busy, the food is expected to be fresh, quick, and popular among locals.
3. You can also ask people who live there
Locals can be your best resource for food information. Don’t be afraid to start a conversation with the receptionist at your hotel, the shopkeeper in your locality, your taxi driver or your host. They are the ones who know the best places to eat. They will often direct you to food stalls or small eateries that aren’t even listed on Google Maps. Locals around the world are willing to share their favourite spots, just like someone from Delhi may send you to an area that is favourite for chhole-bhature.
4. Follow the Crowds
When a restaurant is packed for lunch or dinner, this usually means that the food there is fresh and well-respected by locals. Don’t choose restaurants based on their location or decor. Instead, look for the places where people are. It’s possible to queue up for a modestly-looking restaurant, but it may serve some of the best local food. Highway dhabas and early morning breakfast joints are famous for this reason. High turnover usually means better quality and hygiene.
5. Learn a Few Local Food Words
It can be very helpful to learn a few food terms in the local language. You can avoid confusion by using words like “vegetarian” and “spicy” or the names of classic dishes. Knowing the difference between appam and idiyappam in South India makes it easier to get what you want. If you know in Italy that “al forno” means baked in the oven, you’re already a step closer to making the perfect lasagna. Small vocabulary can open up a world of food.
What you eat is just as important as where you travel. Eating local food does not mean you have to give up comfort. It means that your taste buds and perspective will be expanded. Skip the generic global chains and try what the locals eat. Not only will you get more food, but also a richer travel experience.
Leave a Reply