Me: “Is anyone hungry?”
Entire Car: “YEP!”
Me: “Where do you want to go?”
Entire Car: “Doesn’t matter”, “I dunno”, “whatever”
Me: “Any ideas? – Anything you don’t want?”…
Entire Car: “Nope”, “I dunno”
Does this sound familiar, or is it just my peeps? If I were a betting man, I’d say that this happens to all of us and quite often. So how can you keep yourselves from eating at the same 4 restaurants over and over again? Here are a few tips that I’ve used to help out:
- TripAdvisor: technology goes with us everywhere, so why not put it to good use…by way of our stomachs? I’ve recently found TripAdvisor to be an awesome source to find cool new places. Either go directly to the site and click the “restaurant” tab at the top or do a google search for trip advisor top 10 restaurants for the city you are in. It will break it down based on food type, price, etc. So if you are in the mood for “cheap Italian” you can find one that fits the bill, and then get a map with directions taking you right to it.
- Zomato: another piece of technology in the form of a handy little app. I travel at times for work, and I’ve used the app to find cool local spots where ever I happen to be. Like TripAdvisor, the app will show you average food prices, along with great pics, menu (in most cases), reviews, and it will also segment places that offer delivery – in case you just don’t want to leave the couch.
- Foodie Friends: With the advent of this blog I have tons of people suggesting cool spots to hit up. However, even before that, I had been able to hook up with a few trusted food sleuths that would share some of their recent finds. This has helped me find some of the coolest places you could image, such as secret bars with no signs and hidden entrances, and restaurants that you would never have thought to enter into just looking from the outside (i.e. my favorite Mexican spot). Get out there and network!
- Date Night: Don’t get me wrong I love my kids to pieces, but when it comes time to experiment with new food spots it can be a disaster. For instance, my youngest will not put anything near his mouth hole that does not look familiar to him, and he absolutely hates even the sound of the word vegetable. So my suggestion is to make date night what it’s intended to be anyway – a fun, adventurous, get away from the house. Mix it up – then smear peanut butter all over your faces and lick it off…..okay that may have gone too far.
There are ton’s of resources out there to help mix things up. I’m even thinking of adding a dedicated page here on the site so that readers can post their own suggestions. My point though is simple, don’t get caught up in going to the same old spots because it’s convenient. You will never find your new favorite if you don’t step out there a little bit. And all I ask is that when you do find a new fav – share it with me! Enjoy