DON’T open a food app on your phone. Instead, follow this rule to steer clear of tourist-trap restaurants.
Back in the days of phone books, Yellow Pages’s tagline was, “Let your fingers do the walking.” In this case, let your feet do the work.
Once you walk out of the Louvre or the Colosseum or the Taj Mahal, walk five blocks. Or, if there aren’t blocks to count, about fifteen minutes.
Meals at restaurants close to tourist attractions are usually double the going rate and half as good. Most tourists don’t wander far from the main sites. I’m not sure why; maybe fatigue or, more likely, fear. What if I end up in a terrible place? What if the waiters don’t speak English? So they look for places close to the attraction they just visited, usually no farther than five blocks away.
Walk past this perimeter and you’ll find menus in the local language only, featuring a select few dishes (no many-paged versions in multiple languages) at local prices prepared and served by often friendlier staff.
Twist’s Take: Head away from the crowds first, then open a food app and find someplace new. You’ll have a tastier, more authentic, and more reasonably-priced dining experience.
