6 Tips for Dinner Abroad

As soon as you step into a restaurant, it can be a world unto itself, full of customs and conventions that almost seem like you're embarking on an obstacle-filled journey. In an Italian restaurant, customers and employees are quiet and insincere; in another, they are talkative and outgoing. At a sushi restaurant near me, barely a word was said; At the sushi place across the street, the restaurant owner was making jokes and putting plastic sushi on children's plates. (Guess which one even has good food.) When you encounter this kind of disparity along the way, it can feel like you're trapped in a funhouse of cultural confusion and misleading mirrors, depending on how easily you find your way.

Here are my tactics for a tour through the ins and outs of local restaurant customs.

1. Put the things around you in the back of your mind

At some restaurants, figuring out where to go and what to do when ordering can be the hardest part. If you need a professional, let's take a look at America's famous restaurant chains where you won't even bother with language and cultural issues.

At Subway, stand in line, then tell the staff what kind of bread, meat, and cheese you want; tell another staff member what extra ingredients you want; Then tell the other person the type of drink you want. They'll probably send you to a counter at the front of the line and hand you your fries. Then return to pay before finally eating your meal. There are only three or four restaurants where you can get your sandwich like this!

However, at Wawa, although it has a simple layout similar to Subway, you never really have to talk to anyone. Place your order on the touchable screen, and the order number with which you will pay will appear on the receipt. Then return to the sandwich counter with the payment slip and wait for your number to be called and your sandwich to be placed on the counter.

So we have two very different and very complex ordering systems, and these are high volume restaurant chains where you think it's easy to get a sandwich. This will be confusing enough if you speak the language. If you are from a foreign country and your English is a bit lacking, imagine trying to find your way through this process.

So when you find yourself stuck in your path, whether it's a restaurant with branches or a sit-down restaurant, my advice is to stop by the entrance of the restaurant and take a good look at how things are going. See if other customers are waiting to get a table, sit down, and move toward the counter. If you slow down your actions even just a little bit, you'll be less likely to have a nightmare dinner.

2. Get by without an English menu

If you speak the foreign language with almost no fluency, you will have problems with the menu. While I can get by comfortably with one foreign language and speak at least a smattering of another, I still get sidetracked when I'm attacked by unfamiliar nouns and adverbs. For example, "baked", "grilled" and "fried". Do you know the difference in their meanings in a foreign language you know best? You may know the word "corn" in a foreign language, but do you know the word "asparagus"? Did you know that the names of countless fish species vary depending on the region? And this doesn't just apply to the type of fish.

In Eating Abroad: The Cultural Resonance of Food, I repeatedly heard the story of ordering "a plate of something in its own sauce"; The risk of ordering something you don't really want is a considerable and ubiquitous one, especially when traveling behind a tourist caravan.

In such cases, a language guide can help; Even the Internet is better. If you have a smartphone, you can use one of many phone translation sites and apps, including Google's easy-to-use Translate service.

My advice: simply ask. I've learned that most restaurants, even if it's just a pizza, have a "specials" section and they're happy to tell you so. They want you to have a good meal, so they won't steer you astray. "Which one is best?" or “What would you recommend?” Browse through your language guide to ask questions. There's no guarantee they'll be serving up a world-famous plate of food there, but overall mine were pretty delicious and definitely something I remember.

3. Get by without a menu

Of course, it's rare for a restaurant to have no menu at all, but it can happen. For example, in Euskara, the daily menu written on the blackboard with colored chalks curses the distance. In such cases, you are truly at the mercy of the restaurant owners; Hopefully they want you to have a good meal, and perhaps you should give in and let the waiter bring things you can make. Simply taking a chance might be the best thing about your trip after all.

4. Name the Food You Know

When in doubt, you may want to stick to your familiar cooking waters. If you don't know the name of every fish in French, you may want to narrow down your options and stick with something you know, learn the translation for sole and say it.

5. Use Simple Language

When you're confused by local menus and languages, the locals trying to help you will likely feel the same. Put them and yourself at ease by using simple and clear language. For example, I took a surf trip in Central America with a guy who spoke some Spanish but always insisted on saying "food" instead of the menu, so "Ed, what did you have for dinner yesterday?" he asked. Meanwhile, the waiter was scratching his head, wondering why this man wanted to eat or whether he also wanted to eat from the menu. Keep it simple and you'll have a better chance of being understood.

6. Relax

In major popular tourist destinations, restaurant staff are more accustomed to encountering out-of-towners than the general public. They understand almost immediately that you are not from there. I grew up near Atlantic City, New Jersey, and even as a child I could tell tourists and strangers apart without them saying a word. We don't spend a lot of time or energy worrying about it; This is a perfectly normal thing.

Relax thoroughly. You are not the first person to make a mistake in the restaurant and mess up the pronunciation of every entry, and you will not be the last. Of course, you'll encounter impatient or just sullen restaurant staff, which means it's no different from home. Let it guide you and try to enjoy it; There is always an exit at the end, even if it is a plane ride.

Are you surprised by how much and when there are tips in foreign restaurants?