Serving up Europe’s tastiest

Ah, the joys of finding a good restaurant while traveling! With a little bit of luck and some practical techniques I have developed after having more than 2,000 restaurant meals in Europe, you, too, can find fail-safe pleasure in the dining experience.

Where to look The following Web sites might offer guidance in your search for good restaurants: » www.virtualtourist.com » www.igougo.com » www.zagat.com » www.lonelyplanet.com » www.timeout.com » www.budgettravelonline.com » www.gayot.com » www.concierge.com » affordableeurope.blogs.nytimes.com » www.toprestaurants.com

Eating well does not necessarily mean spending a fortune in high-end, fancy restaurants. The proper research and behavior are bound to get you some very good food deals. While my suggestions apply primarily to dinners in Europe, the principles can be employed anywhere.

Keep in mind that you want to be polite but firm in dealing with restaurant personnel. If you show civility, you will be treated with civility. Entering a typical local restaurant in Europe is almost like visiting someone's home; it is often small, run by its owner and supported by a regular clientele who behave in a friendly, gracious manner.

Here are a few basic tips that will be addressed:

» Research before you go, but be careful about sources.

» Expect to pay well for high-quality meals.

» Be observant when approaching a restaurant.

» Don't be afraid to leave after sitting down.

» When ordering, ask about fixed menus and specials.

» To speed your exit, pick up the check while still eating.

Research skeptically

On researching your trip, you might become overwhelmed by hyped-up marketing information picked up from the Internet and travel books. The challenge is to figure out which sources provide suggestions that are honest, accurate, current and appropriate for your taste. Many Internet recommendations are mere product placements, biased by commercial payoffs that look objective but are nothing more than advertisements.

Tips in print can be just as bad, especially recommendations listed in those in the glossy magazines in your hotel rooms or on tourist racks.

Who do you trust? There is a lot of excellent information that can guide you to extremely good choices, better than what you will just find by walking about randomly in search of food.

Two classic restaurant books have proved themselves reliable: Michelin Red Guides, written by highly informed professional restaurant investigators, and Zagat, which provides an enormous amount of information and ratings based on opinions of thousands of ordinary diners. Together, they give a nice balance between expert and popular conclusions.

Other major publishers like Fodors, Frommers, DK Eyewitness and Access offer hundreds of guide books with abundant restaurant listings, often grouped by neighborhood and price range to help focus your search.

Cheap Eats is another series and there are many more.

Restaurant guide books published for residents are often available in local bookstores, and feature extensive listings that are updated annually.

Dozens of dining targets will pop onto your radar, so one strategy for picking winners is to look for consensus, noticing the same restaurant mentioned in several sources. Another tip is choosing a place that has been around for many decades, usually a good sign of quality.

The Web sites listed in the sidebar can help tremendously with information that is usually more up to date than book listings. Zagat.com is so good that you have to pay for it: $4 gets you a one-month subscription that will deliver recent survey results about thousands of restaurants around the world. Virtualtourist.com is perhaps the best of all travel sites for getting unbiased opinions from ordinary people about everything, including restaurants that appeal to backpacker and budget types.

Another useful strategy is to ask people for opinions. What suggestions do your friends have? However, take their opinions with a grain of salt because even if they are trustworthy pals, they might have totally different tastes and budgets from you. Upon arrival, ask your hotel staff for recommendations, and when you are in a store or talking to locals, ask them where they eat.

While this research helps tremendously, you cannot totally rely on it because things change quickly in the volatile world of restaurants. Any information you receive might be obsolete. Look at the results of your inquiries as starting points for the enjoyable task of discovery that lies ahead. It is not wasted time because much of the excitement of travel is the anticipation and research that comes before a trip. Using your wits and senses while traveling is crucial to making the most of your trip. Keep an open mind, as you might find yourself changing plans as you go along.

Upon arrival

Armed with your list of possible restaurants plotted out on a map, the fun begins. First, call for reservations but consider your pre-selected restaurants as mere hypotheses to be tested before you make any commitment, and remain open to all new possibilities. (Note that in America the top restaurants can require reservations months in advance.)

The strategy of approaching and examining a restaurant should be applied to those you have researched as well as places you are just encountering for the first time as you walk along. First, check the menu, which is posted outside European restaurants and otherwise available inside from the host or waiter. Examine the restaurant before you sit down, using all your senses. Politely ask whether you can walk through to have a look, and you will always be obliged. If the place is small enough, you can do a quick assessment from the front door. If there are outdoor tables, you can have a glance without entering.

This basic sniff-test is very effective. If you see other diners enjoying their meals, prepare yourself for a lovely experience. Notice the waiters: Are there enough of them for the room size, and are they are busy?

On the other hand, if nearly everyone is waiting for service, with no food on the tables, turn around and escape what will inevitably be a long wait. Don't be automatically turned off by crowds; most successful places will be packed, with lots of eating and serving going on, while you could find a nearly empty place with slow service and terrible food.

Timing is important

Most European restaurants do not open for dinner before 7 or 8 p.m., so if you are looking early, there will not be many customers for you to observe, making it tougher to evaluate the place.

Eating early has some advantages: You will be able to get into a popular spot that will soon fill up, and you will probably receive attentive service. In fact, if a super-popular place (which usually means cheap and delicious) pops up in your research, you might want to arrive before it opens to ensure yourself a seat.

One reason Europeans eat later is that they are out shopping and strolling, which you might also consider doing. This is prime time for people-watching and enjoying the cool of the evening.

The dining experience

Before you are herded to a table, look around to see if there is a preferred spot where you would like to sit, and request it; or if the table you are offered has a problem, like a large, noisy party nearby, or is next to the toilet, ask for another.

Service in Europe is generally slower than at home because that is the pace diners prefer, a relaxed meal that takes two to three hours. Most Europeans don't eat out as often as Americans, so it is more of a special occasion they don't want to end quickly.

Usually, a table is not turned over to another customer, unlike in America where a table turns two or three times nightly. Unlike many American restaurants that quickly heat up pre-cooked items, food is cooked from scratch in Europe. This slows things down but results are worth the wait.

If the waiter offers to tell you about specials, show him the courtesy to listen -- you might hear something you like, and this is a chance to ask any questions you might have, such as finding out what are the most popular items and the waiter's favorite dishes. The price of specials not listed on the menu can be extra-expensive and is usually not mentioned by the waiter, so be sure to ask the cost.

Don't feel pressured to place a big order. It's OK if you only feel like pasta and salad, unless you are in a very fancy restaurant, in which case you might want to mention before you sit down that you just want a light bite.

One of the best values is the fixed-price menu, often called the "tourist menu," which might sound tacky but offers two or three courses at a reasonable price, with some choices allowed. Generally posted outside to lure you in but not always listed on the menu, you sometimes have to ask to see this special menu.

House wines are generally quite drinkable and the least expensive, but if you prefer a bottle, you are generally safe ordering the second cheapest on the list. If you feel like splurging on the best in Italy, try the Brunello di Montalcino, or in France, a Premier Grand Cru Bordeaux. Ordering several different types by the glass is a nice way to have your own wine tasting. Water is usually not free in most of Europe, where even the locals pay for a bottle. Gas or no gas is the question, so be sure to specify or they will automatically bring you the carbonated variety. It is possible to get free tap water by request -- for example in France, "une carafe d'eau S.V.P."

Having taken all of these steps, luck and chance always play a factor in how good the meal will be, so keep your fingers crossed. Things can vary from night to night in a restaurant, or from one table to another on the same night, depending on what you order and how things are going in the kitchen. It's not that big a deal if things don't work out perfectly, but all your advance work puts you closer to reaching culinary nirvana.

Paying and leaving

When it's time to go, there is nothing more frustrating after a long day of travel than to wait forever to get your check, which can easily take another 20 minutes. As the evening progresses, waiters always get busier and harder to catch. Also, good European waiters are trained to not bother customers unnecessarily, so you need to get their attention, or put your knife and fork on one side of the dish to signal you are finished.

It is easy to avoid the delay: Ask for your check when the last dish is brought to your table. This can be done in a very polite way by saying, "We're not going to order anything else, so would you please bring the check at your convenience?"

The waiter might be surprised because this doesn't happen often, so it might take a few more reminders. If you see him doing other things, get his attention by waving your hand(s) in the air, not by yelling or trying to make subtle eye contact. Remembering to ask early is a skill that takes practice, since you are not used to doing it, and you only have a brief opportunity to get that request in as the waiter quickly delivers your order and disappears.

Arrival of the check is only half the endgame: If you don't want another long wait for him to come back and pick it up, you have to be ready to pay it right away. So ask the waiter to stand there while you look at the total, then hand over the cash or credit card. Don't expect separate checks for a group in most Europe restaurants, so keep tab of your own individual billing when ordering by jotting items down with pen and paper. The tip is included in Europe, except in England, but if you were satisfied, it is customary to leave a little extra, up to 5 percent -- or if the service was inadequate, don't leave anything.

Now you can finish your meal in peace, and when you have consumed your last bite, you can get up and walk out.

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