A large part of travel is experiencing the local cuisine.  When we lived in England, it was easy and inexpensive to get away for a long weekend of food-based travel.  We often took trips to Eastern Europe simply for the food.  If we were in the mood for Goulash, we would fly to Hungary.  For Pizza, Italy and for Pierogies, we were off to Poland.

Below, we have listed some things we have learned and have posted photos of some of our most memorable meals.

Beef Skewer Prague Czech Republic

Avoiding familiar chain restaurants

When we travel, we try to avoid chain restaurants we are familiar with.  Throughout Europe, you may encounter McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut.  We can eat at these places anytime back home (although we tend to avoid them at home as well), so we try to select places that are new and different as we travel.

You will probably run into other chain restaurants that are local to the country or region.  If you start seeing the same sign or logo and notice the same layout and food, it's probably a chain restaurant.  If the restaurant is unfamiliar to you, give it a try as it will be something new and different to experience.  Once you have given it a try, move on to other non-chain locations.  With all this being said, there are always exceptions to this rule as described below.

Jaipur India McDonald's You may not think that eating at a McDonald's would be much of a memorable experience, but after being in India for 4 weeks and eating mostly Indian food which I love, seeing the Golden Arches in Jaipur was a welcome site. I typically do not eat much fast food, but on occasion have a 'Big Mac Attack'. McDonald's restaurants in India do not serve beef, so this turned out to be a unique dining experience.  For the most part, the menu was the same but here I enjoyed a Chicken Tikka Burger and a Veggie Burger, something you would probably not find at your local McDonald's back home.

Where the locals eat and off the beaten path

In tourist areas, you are going to find touristy restaurants, often overpriced.  Most will have excellent food, but we recommend 'also' trying to find places off the beaten path.  There may be restaurants a street over, or a block away that are packed with locals and these are the ones you want to seek out.

The rule of thumb is, if the locals are eating there, it's probably pretty good.

If you run into someone from the area, ask for a recommendation of where to go.

Make your own lunch

Stop in at the local cheese monger to sample and purchase something new that you have never tried before.  Visit the local bakery for some bread, find the local market and purchase some meat, fruit and olives.  Finally, pick up some wine or other drinks then head to the local park to dine.  Make sandwiches or simple enjoy a snack and take a break from your active day of playing tourist.  There is nothing like sitting outside in Paris's Luxembourg Gardens or on the grassy mall beneath the Eiffel Tower watching the people and enjoying the view and the meal you have created.

Try something new and different

Herring by the Tail Amsterdam Netherlands In Amsterdam you will find small food stands serving raw haring served with diced onions and pickle slices.  When ordered, they cut the haring and remove the bones, keeping the tail intact. To eat the haring as locals do, simply hold it by the tail and take a bite.  Delicious!

The unknown meal

Depending on where you are, English or your native language may not be spoken, especially in smaller remote towns.  On a trip through Romania, we stayed in several small towns and there were times when it was quite difficult to communicate.  We got by, had to be creative and it made for a memorable experience.  At popular tourist destinations, many restaurants will have a menu with photos of the food so you can make an educated guess as to what you are ordering.  Look for words that may stand out as something you recognize, giving you a clue as to what you may be ordering.

At Lake Balaton in Hungary, a local restaurant had photos of the meals with Hungarian text.  No one spoke English so all we had to go by were the photos.  I selected something that looked good based on the photo but had no idea what I was ordering at the time.  Keep in mind that this was before the Smartphone era, so I was unable to look up Harcsapaprikas.  I recognized 'paprikas' as 'paprika' which is common to food in Hungary, but that was not much help.  The meal turned out to be fish (I believe Hungarian catfish) with noodles in sauce and it was delicious.

Harcsapaprikas (fish with noodles in paprika sauce) Lake Balaton Hungary

The unexpected meal

You may not always get what you expect when ordering in a differnet country.  On the island of Sardinia Italy, we ordered a ham and seafood pizza and were brought a pizza with a side dish of cooked whole squid.  We love squid, but were expecting it to be sliced on the pizza, not served whole on the side.  We had to cut the squid bite-by-bite and eat it along with the pizza.  It was different, but still delicious.

When in Italy, don't expect pizzas to look the same as our typical American pies.  Ordering a prosciutto (ham) and mushroom pizza will probably not come packed with toppings as you are used to at home.  It may simply be a cheese pizza with a couple of thin pieces of prosciutto laid across the top and mushrooms scattered sparingly about.  This was our first experience when ordering a pizza in Florence Italy.  We noticed that all the pizzas were made that way, just different than what we were used to.

Pizza with Squid

Olbia on the Island of Sardinia Italy

Food to avoid

If you are unsure of something, don't eat it.  The last thing you want to do is get sick on your trip from something you ate.  Most vendors serving food outside of restaurants are safe, but use your best judgment.

Skewered Scorpions Beijing China Skewered scorpions, pigs ears and other...who knows what? We have to admit, were were not adventurous enough to try the scorpions while in Beijing.  Even if we had selected them, we had no idea how to eat them.  For something like this, if we were with a guide or local, we may have given them a try, but on our own, we decided to pass.

Mussels are finger food!

One of our favorite meals are steamed mussels in white wine and garlic. We have had mussels in many locations and used to eat them as typical people do by taking a fork to remove the mussel, then dripping it in the sauce. We had ordered mussels for dinner one evening on a trip to Sardinia Italy. While eating, an Italian man walked over to our table and said, 'Excuse me, but you eat mussels very strangely'. He went on to explain that mussels are 'Finger Food'. He explained how to separate a shell and use one half to scoop the mussel out of their shell. You then fill the shell with the sauce and slurp it into your mouth, similar to eating raw oysters on the half shell. He was right, all the flavor is in the sauce. With each mussel, you should get a full shell of sauce along with it. It's messy, but so much more delicious. You will enjoy the meal so much more with all the flavor of the sauce. So, the next time you order steamed mussels, give it a try.

Steamed Mussels in Brussels Belgium

Beware of food sold by weight

Don't make the mistake of thinking you are getting a great deal on your meal only to receive the bill at 10x the price because you did not notice the fresh catch of the day was being sold by the ounce.  If something seems to good too be true, it probably is.  If you are unsure about something, ask.

Be sure you understand the price of your food before ordering as some items, especially fresh fish in Italy may be sold by the ounce.

Tipping

Be sure to read our page on Tipping when it comes to dining in Europe.

Research the local cuisine

Prior to your travels, do some research on the local food.  You will find that every country or even regions within a country may have different types of food.

• In Germany by the Nuremberg region, you will find small finger sausages served with sauerkraut while other locations in Germany will serve a larger style sausage with bread.  Each region will cook their sausage differently having their own unique texture and flavor.
• Paris is known for their roadside food carts serving several different types of crepes such as banana and Nutella.
• Hungarian food will often be cooked with paprika.  When in Hungary, considering purchasing small containers of both Sweet and Hot paprika to bring home with you.
• Germany is known for their strudel and of course beer and pretzels.
• When in Switzerland, try the cheese fondue served with potatoes and cheese as well as chocolate fondue served with fruit.
• Pizza and pasta cannot be missed in Italy.
• In Italy and Spain, try the Gelato.  Different from ice cream, Gelato is a frozen iced desert served in a cone or cup.
• Try black tea with scones, clotted cream and jam in England and don't forget fish and chips.
• Have goulash with bread dumplings in Eastern European when visiting Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
• Don't forget chocolates in Belgium and Switzerland.

Photograph your meals

Photograph your meals just as you would some new site you are exploring.

Having a photo brings back memories.  A photo will help you recall the meal, the restaurant, your table, the people, the lighting and much more.  You will more than likely see others photographing their meals so don't feel shy or strange about it.  In this digital age, taking a photo costs nothing.  Trust us on this and just do it; you will regret it if you don't.

Years later, seeing a photo will spark memories of the meal, location and experience.  Unfortunately, in our early days of travel, we did not take photos of our meals and restaurants.  On occasion, for some reason, something will remind us of a meal we had where we didn't take a photo.  As we think back, we really wish we had taken a photo.

Sausage, Sauerkraut & Pretzels Nuremberg Germany	Sausage & Bread Mainz Germany	Liebenstein Castel Dinner Rhine Valley Germany
Creamy Garlic Cheese Soup Szombathely Hungary	Deer Goulash with Dumplings Szombathely Hungary	Steak Tartar Paris France
Steak and Kidney Pie Windsor England	Seafood Noodle Bowl Beijing China	Prosciutto with Buffalo Mozzarella Florence Italy
Gyro Plate Santorini Island Greece	Seafood Pizza Murano Island Italy	Meat, Bread, Melon San Gimignano Italy
Scallop Festival Rye England	Prawns Mythos Greek Restaurant Paris France	Doughnuts with Sour Cream & Jam Sibu Romania
Steak & Hunter's Schnitzel Rothenburg Germany	Strudel & Custard Deserts Salzburg Austria	Black Forrest Cake Cappuccino and Hot Chocolate Trieburg Germany
Pork Pastry with Rice and Veggies Lucerne Switzerland	Chocolate Fondue Lucerne Switzerland	Sausage & Potatoes Lucerne Switzerland
Alsace Style Thin Pizza Strasbourg France	Meat Snack Plate Grindelwald Switzerland	Pork Schnitzel, Bratwurst Fries & Apple Strudel Gornergrat above Zermatt Switzerland
Escargot (Snails) Lyon France	Mushroom Pizza with Salad Dijon France	Cullen Skink Anstruther Scotland
Afternoon Tea Edinburgh Switzerland	Tiramisu & Eclair Puffed Pastry La Grappe d'Or Lausanne Switzerland	Breakfast at Le Petit Tertre - Chambres d'hotes Dijon France
Oysters on the Half Shell Paris France	Foie Gras (goose liver pate) Laduree Restaurant Champs Elysees - Paris France	Baked Lasagna & Beef Stuffed Pie York England
Fish & Chips Edinburgh Scotland	Steak & Ale Pie Edinburgh Scotland	Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict Anstruther Scotland