Introduction
Finding good food is one of the best parts of traveling. But with so many options, it can be a real challenge to find the best place to eat whatever you’re craving. And if you’re visiting a city for only a few days, with limited time and research resources at your disposal? Finding great food becomes an even bigger problem. Luckily for us travelers, there are lots of cool ways to find good food in cities, even if you don’t have much time or know much about where we’re going!
Forget Yelp.
Yelp is not always reliable, and it’s easy to see why. It’s biased, it’s not always up to date and the algorithm can be gamed by businesses who want to boost their ratings. That said: if you use Yelp wisely, it can help you find some great food in any city–or at least steer you away from the bad stuff.
Ask locals.
When you’re looking for food, ask the locals. If you have friends or family in the area, ask them what their favorite places are. Even if they’ve never been there before, they may know of a place that’s good enough to make them consider moving there! You can also ask hotel staff–they may not be able to tell you exactly where it is or how much it costs, but they will know where some good spots are located nearby and how much time those places take to get too.
If all else fails and none of your friends or family members live near by (or if none of them want anything remotely related to chicken wings), then turn towards other sources like: front desk people at hotels; tourist information centers; taxi drivers (if available).
Do your research.
As a general rule, the more research you do before visiting a new city, the better off you will be. This applies not only to finding food but also to picking hotels and other tourist activities as well as figuring out transportation options.
Here are some good places to start:
- Ask friends who have visited the city and ask them what they ate while they were there. You might be surprised by how much they remember!
- Look at online reviews of restaurants and find ones with good ratings from people who live in or have visited that place before. If there aren’t any reviews yet for your destination (or if all of them are terrible), look up guides instead–they’ll give more info on specific types of cuisine in each area plus tips on where best places nearby go eat out at so check those out too!
Be flexible.
You should be flexible when it comes to food. Try new things, even if they sound strange or gross. Don’t be afraid to eat alone in a restaurant if there aren’t any other people around (you never know who might be watching). Ask locals what their favorite spots are and don’t be afraid to try something different!
Where’s the best place to get coffee?
If you’re looking for the best coffee in town, ask a local. They may not know what “best” means or even be able to tell you where their favorite spot is–but they will know their neighborhood and the people who live there.
If that’s not an option, use Google Maps. It has tons of useful info on its map view, including reviews of restaurants and bars from locals and tourists alike. You can also use Yelp or TripAdvisor (or both) to find out which places have been reviewed positively by people who’ve visited them before.
Plan ahead.
Planning ahead is the best way to ensure that you find good food. If you’re traveling to a new city, plan your trip around the food that interests you most. If there’s one dish or restaurant in particular that has caught your eye, make sure to book reservations as soon as possible.
If you’re unsure of where to start looking for restaurants, head over to local blogs and forums where people often post about their experiences at various eateries around town. You can also ask locals what they recommend or look for restaurants with a good reputation by asking around–the staff at hotels are often happy to share their favorite places!
There are lots of cool ways to find good food in cities, even if you don’t have a lot of time or know much about the area!
You can ask locals
Ask your friends and family who live in the city you are visiting, or even people on social media if there’s a group or forum for that city. This is an easy way to find out where the good places are! If you don’t have anyone to ask, try looking on Yelp or Google Maps for recommendations. You can also search for “Best Restaurants” on TripAdvisor to see what other travelers think are worth trying out while visiting your destination.
- Check out our list of best food spots in NYC here!
Conclusion
If you’re looking for something new and exciting in a city, food is a great place to start. There are so many different kinds of restaurants, from fine dining to fast food, that there’s bound to be something that catches your eye. And if not? Ask locals where they like eating! They’ll probably have some great tips on where else you could go or what kind of cuisine might be popular right now–and even if they don’t know anything about this particular place themselves (since everybody has their own preferences), they may still be able to point out an interesting tidbit or two about its surroundings (like how close it is from other places). In short: always ask around when traveling
