Today’s post comes from my friend, Julia, who happens to be a food editor for Paula Deen Magazine. I figure, if we’re going to talk food, why not go to someone who eats her work and then writes about it every day! Here’s Julia…
I love good food, and there’s nothing I love more than finding a great local spot to chow down. I’m a full supporter of eating local (meaning not a chain restaurant), both in my hometown and others. It supports local businesses, local farmers, local producers, and in turn, helps to support the economy of the town.
I travel quite a bit and always make it a point to eat at local restaurants in my destination. Once I have my trip scheduled, the first thing I always do is plan out the restaurants I’m going to eat at. I look at local and regional magazines and newspapers for the area, check out Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Urbanspoon, ask friends for recommendations, and sometimes will even just Google “best restaurants in ____.” Normally, one of these options yields a great list of places to check out.
It makes me sad when I see people go on vacation to great food cities and eat at major chain restaurants. I once saw a Facebook friend “check in” to a chain Italian restaurant in Times Square on a trip to New York City, and all I could think was that some of the best Italian food in the United States is just a short subway ride away in Little Italy. I know chains are convenient and you always know what you’re going to get with them, but I’m here to tell you why I think it’s so important to eat local on your vacations.
Get a taste of culture
Probably the best aspect of eating local is the taste of the culture it gives you. Each state/region/country has its own food specialties it is known for. You wouldn’t go up north to get barbecue, down south for clam chowder, or the Midwest for Caribbean cuisine, so why eat at a chain restaurant that serves all of that, no matter the region?
Traveling is all about experiencing new cultures, and the best way to do that is through food. If you visit Miami, you can get a taste of Cuban culture through their many Cuban restaurants and sandwich shops. If you go down South, you’ll find fried chicken and collards the way Southern grandmothers have been making them for years. If you go to Italy, you’ll learn how regions influence the pasta dishes in each place.
Learning through food is the best way to really understand a culture. Everyone comes together over food, but what that food is, how it’s served, and where it comes from is unique to each region. It can be hard for younger children to understand the idea of culture, but by visiting local restaurants, culture is already built in.
Eat better
As I’ve already stated, eating local is the best taste of a place’s culture. And who better to cook the regional specialties for you than the locals? I can almost always guarantee you that you will be eating better food at the local restaurants. If a place is known for a regional specialty, you can bet the local restaurants will be doing it well since they’re in the heart of the region and have probably been cooking it for years. In the South, you know you’ll find the best barbecue at a tiny shack that’s slow-smoking a limited amount of meat out back versus a restaurant that’s pumping out barbecue sandwiches a mile a minute.
But most importantly, local restaurants turn to local farmers, producers, and suppliers for their food. The produce and meats are fresher because they’re not being mass shipped to restaurants and traveling hundreds of miles to get to the restaurant. Local restaurants are using food available in the region. It’s fresh, it’s not frozen, and it’s not loaded with preservatives to withstand a long journey. For example, in Maine, you know the lobster on your plate is fresh because you can see the catch being brought in daily. I’m not ordering Maine lobster from a place 10 states away or ordering saltwater seafood from a place in the Midwest.
Support the destination
Eating local also helps to support the town or city you’re visiting. Supporting local businesses supports the local families who run them, who then put that money back into the economy of the town. And when a local restaurant does well, so do its local farmers and suppliers. Now that’s the kind of restaurant chain that I like!
To find local restaurants in the area you’re visiting, do some preliminary research but also ask around when you get there. The local people will be able to tell you the best spots, and if you find a great local restaurant, ask the people behind the counter for other recommendations. Local businesses love supporting other local businesses and will always point you in the right direction.
We always try to eat at local places when we travel. It makes the trip and experience more unique that way.
When our kids hit age 12-ish, we moved to eating local. Made a huge impact on our travels! And now, we recreate recipes from wherever we go and enjoy dinner at home a lot more too!
I completely agree about trying local independent restaurants when traveling. That’s how you get the best flavor and feel of the location!
Did the food of a place ever make you love it more?
We are guilty of eating at a chain when we travel. We do it because we are familiar with the food. My husband travels quite a but and he has found a few hole in the wall places to try.
We eat at chains when traveling because that familiarity makes ordering quick and the food is consistent. We get back on the road quicker. (And there aren’t all that many local restaurants at highway exits).
If you want to venture out, lunchtime is great for that. Kids will always find burgers and familiar foods on menus, but mom and dad can get creative!
What a timeless important article. We are heading out in a few days. One of our favorite restaurants when we go on vacation is a local pizza joint. It’s got such great food! Can’t wait to get back there.
Where are you going? I have a favorite pizza place in three different cities! 🙂
I’ve been hearing about eating with the locals. I think that is a great opportunity to sample the local dishes, home-cooked and you don’t normally find in restaurants.
Do you mean dining at people’s homes? There is a whole website out there dedicated to that. I can’t remember its name, but what a fabulous idea.
We’ve met people through travel that ended up becoming lifelong friends. Visiting them means I get to try home cooked local food now!
I try to eat local when I travel. It gives us a taste of the culture and the vibe
I’m so glad people have caught on to this! Do you have a favorite culinary region or destination?
i always try and eat local when on vacation! I love eating at restaurants I can’t eat in my own town! Being a foodie I love trying local cuisine and checking out local chefs as well!
CourtneyLynne,
If you ever get to Niagara Falls, USA, the culinary institute has a great restaurant — one of my favorites. The chef students are supervised in the kitchen and create some amazing dishes. I’m sure a lot of culinary schools offer something similar, but SAVOR is my favorite! You might just find the next “big chef” before they’re famous!
my husband is so good about this. He loves to eat local even at home.
That’s how we are —- even our pizza is from a local place!
I totally agree. I used to always eat at the chain stores until my brother visited me and wanted to try the tastes of the city and took me to some locally owned restaurants and wow the food was delicious. Now I check out new places to eat whenever I travel somewhere new.
YAY!!!! You have a wise brother. 🙂
I agree with this, Me and my wife always love to eat in our local restaurant because we trust the chief and the management.
Do you have a favorite local restaurant or chef?
totally agree… great article and thanks for sharing
Thanks, Rocky! Glad to hear the #EatLocal movement is catching on with people.
We love eating local whenever we’re in a new area. We always look at a travel app for the best local eats, and then end up loving it and wanting to go back as soon as we can!
What’s your favorite travel app for eating local? I like Open Table and yelp!