The specifics of foreign meals can be troubling for a small, unadapted child. If you want to avoid any unnecessary nuisances that can ruin your whole trip, it's in your best interest to follow these tips.
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Avoid Street Food
Trying out local food is a huge part of truly experiencing and learning about the country that you're visiting, especially if its cuisine is noticeably different.
Street food vendors are everywhere, and you might be tempted to buy something at the first stand that you encounter. However, this has the potential to be quite dangerous, even more so if you have a small child that you plan to feed with it.
Potential risks
According to the CDC, food poisoning occurs to 30-70 percent of travelers depending on the location. Diarrhoea, vomiting, and other symptoms can leave you exhausted, but the problem should resolve itself in a couple of days.
However, children's bodies are much smaller and the inability to keep food and liquids down could result in them having to receive an IV. This means that you'll have to bring your child to the hospital while dealing with your own malaise.
Street food is risky and there are much better options, which is why you should avoid it.
Visit the Local Markets
Even though this approach requires a bit of added effort, it's reassuring since you'll know exactly what you're eating. Most of the supermarkets in larger cities have what's called 'pre-assembled meals', while some also have a built-in small kitchen that cooks food and sells it in determined serving sizes.
This means that you can buy it, reheat it if it's cold, and eat it immediately. Keep in mind that you might have to go on a bit of an expedition until you find a market that offers this service.
The Downside
The main disadvantage of this approach is that your choice is going to be fairly limited. Unlike street food vendors and restaurants that offer a huge variety of different meals, markets stick to fairly simple items. If you like cooking, you can also try experimenting with some fresh groceries.
Still, both pre-made meals and cooking remain safe options for you and your child.
Go To a Restaurant
Nothing can replace a nice dinner at a reputable, classy restaurant. Nowadays, almost every large joint has a kid's menu so that both you and your child can enjoy a nice, warm meal. While it's probably not something that you'll do every day due to the added expense, it's nice to experience the atmosphere at least once during your visit.
Choosing the Right Restaurant
If you're looking to find a nice establishment with a comfortable layout, EatApp is the best restaurant software out there. Besides providing countless info about what a certain place is offering along with its images, EatApp also allows its users to make online reservations.
You can also run searches by cuisine type, price range, location, as well as table availability. If you don't like crowded places, you can make sure to avoid them by checking how many reservations were already made. All things considered, EatApp is one of the most feature-packed restaurant reservation systems available.
Order Food At the Hotel
Whether or not this option will be available to you depends on the type of arrangement that you've booked for your visit. An all-inclusive vacation plan includes all of the expenses related to the overall accommodation, sports, recreational activities (i.e., spas, gyms), drinks, and most importantly - food.
Most of the all-inclusive resorts come with bars or restaurants that work 24/7 so that you can get whatever you like regardless of the time. This option requires the least amount of effort, but it does imply that you've booked this type of holiday.
What To Look Out For
However, while ordering, make sure that the particular meal is included in the arrangement. Some hotels have exclusive items that they charge an additional fee for (such as lobster or ribeye), which is why it's important to double-check it with the restaurant staff.
Although it's a great, effortless option, you need to be ready to open your wallet for this type of trip.
Find Hotels With Kitchens
If you're a fan of meal prep (or you simply like knowing what's in your meals), manual cooking is the way to go. You're probably wondering where you can find a place to actually do all the chopping, cooking, and cleaning.
The simplest answer would be in a special type of hotel that provides an open kitchen. This means that customers can, for a certain fee, use their kitchen appliances in order to create their own food. However, these types of hotels are quite rare.
A Better Alternative
To bypass this issue, it's best to find rooms with kitchenettes in them.
Simply put, a kitchenette is a small cooking area that contains only the necessities - a refrigerator, microwave, sink, and some other appliances if there's enough room for them. While it can be a bit cramped compared to a regular kitchen, it's the best available solution during your vacation.
Order Food Online
If you'd rather stay inside and have the food delivered to you, that's also an option with dozens of different apps offering you just that.
First, you need to find out which food delivery app is popular in the country that you're visiting. You can discover this by either Googling it or asking a local to help you. Then, find a restaurant near you that's partnered with that particular company and get what you like.
If you're having trouble with this approach, try to locate a restaurant that processes orders directly from its website.
Potential Expenses
Keep in mind that the further you are from your chosen restaurant, the larger the fees will be. If there aren't any, you're probably better off with some of the other alternatives.
Try Out Local Delicacies
If you only stick to burgers, pizzas, chips, and other types of fast food, you're missing out on local dishes that are unique to that particular country. The thought of eating something unknown can seem a bit scary, but it's worth trying it out and learning more about the ingredients and the overall culture/cuisine.
If it's a seaside country, seafood delicacies are something that you can probably find at every large restaurant or market. In case you want to find out additional information about a dish, you can always ask the local cooks - they'll be more than happy to teach you a thing or two about their customs.
It is also better to eat meals from products that produce locally, because they are always fresh, which is the best option for your child.
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