Don’t trip over meals

Choosing where to eat abroad can be tricky. Don’t ask the concierge. Don’t rely on guidebooks. Here’s how to find the best food on any foreign vacation

- VIR SANGHVI

I have seen so many Indians travelling abroad this season that I reckon we form a huge source of income for restaurant owners all over the world. Unfortunately, like most tourists, we don’t always spend wisely or get value for money.

There are no foolproof rules for how to choose restaurants abroad, and what rules there are tend to change from country to country. But for what it’s worth, these are the rules I follow.

© Try not to eat at your hotel. India is an exception to global trends because hotels have been at the centre of the evolution of cuisine over the last 50 years. (Though that's less true now.) In most of the world, hotels serve mediocre, overpriced food. In the Far East, hotel cuisine is still designed to appeal to Western tastes, so it can be bland and boring.

There are, of course, exceptions to this rule (Dubai, for instance) but even when a hotel restaurant is good, it still costs at least 25% more than an equally good standalone. So, save your money. There are restaurants located in hotels run by chefs from outside. (For instance, Heston Blumenthal runs Dinner at the Mandarin Oriental in London.) These don't count as hotel restaurants in my book.

© Always try to eat the local cuisine. Even if French restaurant in say, Kuala Lumpur, is good, it probably won't be as good as a French restaurant in Paris. Equally, the best Malaysian restaurant in Paris will not be as good as the restaurants in Kuala Lumpur.