Strategize Your Dining Plan
Are the Google results regarding the budget-friendly restaurants near you, confusing? Say goodbye to long routes to satisfy your taste buds, as this guide will help you strategize on how to master “budget eating” while you are on your beautiful vacation. Keep reading to know more about how to save your pocket while you are in an unknown destination, ensuring that you savor new delicacies without going bankrupt. From tips like planning for the future to splitting costs, we will discuss everything.
Plan Ahead: Gather Insights on Affordable Restaurants/Eateries
You might be thinking this is what you are already doing via Google right? Just typing the keywords- budget friendly restaurants near me, and waiting for the search results to feed you like a magician. Isn’t it? Well, sadly, that is not how it works. Google searches are fine when your task is more specific and narrower. Moreover, these keywords will land you nowhere with the first degree of Google search, and you will get confused easily.
The Solution
The easiest and fastest way around is to go to a reliable food website such as the Swiggy website, and converge on a list of restaurants/eateries. The seamless website has easy sorting options based on your budget, cuisine, and location, saving tons of valuable time. Another potential advantage that this website will provide is feedback from consumers who have tried and tasted it before. So, this feedback will help you gain insights into restaurants that are offering standard platters while asking for a minimal pinch of your pocket. Once the list is ready, keep it safe in your diary (if you use any) or in your notes app.
Another strategic move that you can take just before setting off to travel is to consider packing dry snacks or making sandwiches to save most of the expenses on the initial days.
Try Adopting Street Food Culture
Embracing the street food of your destination will not only save you a couple of bucks but will also allow you to try out the local culinary scene. It also gives you knowledge about their food culture, the flavors they use, and the history that they share with food.
Along with it, you get to meet new people and learn about their morale, ethics, and lifestyle. So basically saying – you get to taste a new culture along with new platters from roadside eateries. Double treat, right? So, refrain from going to fancy restaurants where you will get only the known platters at a hefty price. Quick tip- Ask the locals for recommendations on the must-try items of the region you are in.
Try Local Restaurants, if not Street Food
You might be a very health-conscious person or someone who doesn’t trust the street vendors. In that case, you can try out the local restaurants which can give you an enriching experience of the new food culture of your destination along with some delicious bites. To be honest, these restaurants won’t be as cheap as the street food, but they won’t be as demanding as the fancy ones. Subsequently, there are two positive sides to this decision-
Embracing local culture
Just like in the case of street food, you get to taste their local cuisines as well, but rather in a holistic method. In the local restaurants, you get to savor the heritage and traditional platters of the region. Additionally, most waiters there would be willing to help you out with the recipe if you ask them.
Supporting Small Enterprises
By dining at local restaurants within your vacation site, you contribute to the livelihood of local communities and small business owners. So, your decision to savor from a local restaurant is an advantage to your pocket as well as the local economy there.
Additional budget-friendly strategies that you can adopt with the above
Navigate through the menu strategically
Now, there are a few factors at play when you sit at a local restaurant of your destination, planning what to order. First, you need to eliminate the ones which are known to you. Secondly, shortlist the dishes that offer the best value for money, for instance- combo offers or daily specials. Subsequently, you can share a plate with your companions, if it is too much of a quantity. This will save your pocket as well since the bill will be divided among your group.
Explore beyond tourist spots
It’s a no-brainer that the restaurants/eateries near famous tourist spots (for e.g.- near a historical monument) tend to practice inflated prices. To avoid that, explore authentic options beyond those particular spots, which may be a little offbeat. Often, hidden gems are found in less crowded neighborhoods.
Try to take a bite during lunchtime
Timing is a considerable factor for you to get the “happy hours”. Try nudging into your shortlisted local restaurants at lunchtime, when the offers normally prevail. Otherwise, you can also check through platforms like Swiggy Dineout website where the offers of the day might be highlighted.
In some restaurants, you may come across early bird deals with reduced prices of the traditional meals you were waiting to savor. Subsequently, if you are traveling on weekdays, then there are high chance that you will get budget-friendly options.
Cooking your Lunch or Dinner
This strategy is a savior of your pocket if you are traveling for a substantial period of time (for instance- a week or more). Moreover, you get to personalize your menu and make the resulting dish healthier.
Visit the nearby grocery store to stock up on fresh condiments/spices that reflect the local cuisine. Exploring the local markets will also take you on a tantalizing journey through catching aromas and spices. Ensure that the hotel (in which you are staying) should be having a standard kitchen to make your plan successful. So, get one that offers a standard kitchen with gas. If all is sorted out on that front, make your own dish and start exploring your destination, with healthy savories, every now and then.
Conclusion
Now that you have gathered all the possible ways in which you can save your pocket while savoring on nom noms, at a new place, start with your research before it’s too late. The earlier you start with your research, the better understanding you will gather about the place that you will be traveling. Try to extract information from your friends or family who have been there earlier. They might give you some helpful insights as well. Otherwise, you always have Swiggy’s smart website ready to feed you up.
