Finding amazing restaurants is one of me and my fiancé's many talents and I wanted to share with you the three most important things to consider when deciding where to eat while travelling SouthEast Asia.
Google Maps can't always be trusted, the amount of times we were offered free food or drinks in turn for a 5 star rating was a little bit concerning. But, because we rely so heavily on reviews and ratings we knew we had to find different ways to pick amazing restaurants. Additionally, some places tourist trap you into paying more for less authentic food.
Next time you're travelling consider these three tips:
Tip #1: If it’s full of locals, it's a keeper. This means their prices are accurate for the area you’re travelling and if the locals love it, it’s going to taste good.
Tip #2: Take Google reviews with a grain of salt, many places offer free drinks or food for 5 stars so it’s not always accurately reviewed.
Tip #3: Markets are your best friend, this is your chance to explore local dishes for the price that the locals buy at.
See some of our favourite restaurants linked below that passed our tourist trap test!
995 Roasted Duck in Koh Tao, Thailand: Koh Tao was full of overpriced western & Thai food but this place was cheap, full of locals and it was a bonus they had amazing google reviews.
Tuyết Bún Chả 34, Hanoi, Vietnam: This was one of my favourite restaurants, still good reviews on google maps but SO many locals, we ate on plastic chairs on the sidewalk and the food was $1.5 maximum.
Tsukiji Fish Market, Tokyo, Japan: Japan can be expensive for food but this was one of the many amazing markets we went to get fresh delicious seafood for the same price the locals buy it for!
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