Eating Local Food in Port

[Blue Darter]

If you're not enjoying the local cuisine, you're not taking full advantage of your vacation.

 

Agree 100%. There's really no point traveling if you don't experience the culture/cuisine. Rick Steves said it best in his book Europe Through the Back Door...when traveling you need to try to live like a local.

[rummenroman]

We've eaten on many of the Caribbean islands. Get sick once. Overdid the tequila! :D

 

After several cruises, and many of meals provided by local hole in the wall type places I can say tequila will get me every time.

 

I don't aspire to live in a plastic bubble. For me refusing to eat at the local places out of an irrational fear of catching a bug 1 out of a bajillion times is just the same as living in a plastic bubble.

[mjeff87]

DW and I strive to find the "hole in the wall" type places. They tend to not be so crowded, and present a perfect opportunity to converse with the locals as well as enjoy some wonderful food. I'm a semi-retired professional chef, and there's not much I won't try for the sake of experience (I do have my limits though :)) One of the best things we ever tasted was in Curacao, at the floating market.....we noticed everyone was walking around eating some kind of strange little fruit. Everyone. We wandered over to the farmer's market section and found a vendor selling them, and bought a small basket of them. We devoured them in no time flat. Hard to describe, but they were a smallish-oval, thin skinned fruit with a huge stone (pit) inside. Closest I could find to naming them is a "Governor's Cherry", but I don't think that's what they really were.

Jeff

[akcruz]

I am very much in the experience the local cuisine while you are there camp. We too try to find where the locals go, within reason, and try at least one local dish. You do need to be careful and watch what you are eating, but in all the years I have been cruising and vacationing by land have not gotten sick due to the food (as others have said, the tequila is another thing :cool:).

 

There is so much culture out there to experience and it usually is not at a huge price. Cruising has changed so much since our first where you used the ship as a moving hotel that took you to new places to explore. With the ships becoming the destination people forget that there is another world out there. Personally if I wanted to see what I do every day I would save a lot of money and stay closer to home. But that's just me.

 

Of course, I am the one that was an exchange student in high school and lived in South America. Maybe that is what gave me that desire to see how the rest of the world lives and experience it for myself.

[mspink98]

I eat at roadside stands/holes in the wall as much as possible! I look for the crowded places, since the reputation will get around amongst locals. I'm more susceptible to a water parasite than a local probably is, but bad food is bad food. The taco stand with a line stretching around the corner is almost guaranteed to be delicious and as safe as possible. We do a lot of land travel too, and don't do all inclusives, so if we didn't eat local food we'd starve. :p

 

I don't eat uncooked fruits or veggies, and I don't drink anything that doesn't come from my own bottle or can (no ice, which sometimes makes me almost salivate looking at aguas frescas in Mexico), and I definitely keep my eyes out for highly questionable food safety practices (did that guy just use the same knife on raw chicken as he did on my coconut?), but I enjoy the local cuisine as much as possible.

 

I have gotten sick on vacation once, and it was because I didn't trust my instinct that the milk I was having with cereal in a hotel room tasted off. Other than that, with probably over a year out of my 30-something years spent eating on the cheap in foreign countries, nothing.

Edited April 4, 2014 by mspink98

[Stateroom_Sailor]

In Cozumel I'm the gringo eating the tacos out of the back of the blue pickup truck down the street from the port. It's the first place I go and have never had a problem. Love emmmm

 

You're braver than us. We ate at the kosher Israeli place above Diamonds International.

 

We also ate an authentic restaurant in Puerto Rico, and in Jamaica during our 7 hour excursion. I had the best chicken ever by a street vender on the French side of St. Maarten. Generally though, I would rather stick to the ship where food is free. I got salmonella from Applebees last year, no thank you!

Edited April 4, 2014 by Stateroom_Sailor

[cruisegirl1]

So, if you flew to the vacation spot rather than cruise to there (say Cozumel), would you eat the food there or bring your own food for the week? How is that different from eating at any port where you are there for the day rather than the week? We’ve eaten in many Caribbean and European ports. I am not talking about the food places at the cruise ship designed port areas, but actually in the cities. Many Caribbean beach day all inclusives also include a meal. I can’t imagine being in Italy and not eating the local food. We’ve had an opportunity to explore exotic cuisine in places like Hong Kong and Japan. If one does not eat local cuisine on a land vacation, how would you eat? (Well I guess you could go to McD’s for the entire week, but be warned that there are changes to the product we are used to in the US. )

 

I found it humorous that many of the food illness examples mentioned on this thread were from land-based restaurants/resorts or from the ship.

 

As noted, one does need to be careful with water/ice and I often have room temperature bottled beverages. Just a side note, there are plenty of really dirty and unsafe places right here in these great United States.

 

Enjoy and be sure to pack meds just in case.

 

m

[George C]

here is one of the most unusal places to eat no electric, no bathrooms , food was great, also about a mile from land, Pelican bar

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g147313-d1027432-Reviews-Floyd_s_Pelican_Bar-Negril_Westmoreland_Parish_Jamaica.html

[Caribbeansunrise]

We always try different restaurants/bars while in port, for us, that is part of seeing & experiencing new places. 30+ cruises and the only time I have ever gotten sick was with what I believe was salmonella from eating mayo on the cruise ship (Celebrity).

 

Sherri:)

 

Ditto! Well maybe not part about the mayo on Celebrity!

[traveling1969]

We almost always have lunch off the ship on port days (also an occasional breakfast). We've never gotten sick or had any adverse effects. Probably due to our "robust" upbringing.

 

I would also add that many if not most of our treasured memories were a direct result of our decision to immerse ourselves in the local scene and dine with the natives. Just curious though; do you ever go on any land vacations and if so, where do you eat?

 

Our advice to those who wish to avoid any unpleasant experiences in foreign countries: Stay home!

[nascarcruiser]

In Cozumel I'm the gringo eating the tacos out of the back of the blue pickup truck down the street from the port. It's the first place I go and have never had a problem. Love emmmm

 

LOL That's us too. A few blocks off the square there is a place you can eat in one of the locals backyard. She cooks the food in her kitchen and serves it to you. We also have a local Italian restaurant we love in Cozumel.

[ashley@cruisecritic]

I have seen a lot of posts about this. Am I the only one who doesn't eat at hole in the wall 'ethnic' or 'authentic' places? I eat on the ship. Is the local cuisine worth the potential food poisoning and diarrhea??? I do not think it is safe!

 

I think it depends on your comfort level. I try to eat at least one "authentic" (and by "authentic," I mean "hole in the wall") meal in each port I visit, and I've never had a problem. However, I'm definitely more cautious in ports where you're told not to drink the water or order drinks with ice. (They usually put that sort of thing in the daily schedule and make announcements about it.) If you're on a ship-sponsored excursion that includes local food, it's most likely safe. After all, the cruise line's reputation is on the line if you get sick from food you eat on a tour they sold you. :)

[Deeliteful]

I can't imagine going on holiday and NOT trying the local food. To me that's what a holiday is all about, trying new things and experiences.

Only ever been sick from food once - Paris! A dodgy Croque Monsieur. Had to fly home that day too :-(

[framboesa]

Eating genuine culinary from different countries is another way to meet a new port...Being sick because of it can happen even at home; I do some research and always like to try local food because it's the only place where is really ..."local" :D I cant see why a pizza in one italian port is more dangerous than the pizza made aboard the ship...Or maybe I'm too adventurous!

[Stephluva2711]

I have seen a lot of posts about this. Am I the only one who doesn't eat at hole in the wall 'ethnic' or 'authentic' places? I eat on the ship. Is the local cuisine worth the potential food poisoning and diarrhea??? I do not think it is safe!

 

Wow.. you don't sound stereo typical at all...

[Stephluva2711]

We eat at port many times, you need to have a little adventure and try new things.

Who wants to sit around and eat chicken fingers, fries, burgers all the time?

 

Most Local cuisine is great but not the American tourist traps(Senor, Margville, Carlos, ect).

Like someone else said, most Caribbean places have some sort of standards.

We have never gotten sick.....

 

 

Exactly! No one is saying that you have to go to some 'hole in the wall' like OP so named it. However you can get sick anywhere. Seems like OP is implying because it's the 'islands' they gotta serve questionable food. Cruises have outbreaks in food poisoning all the time.

[mspink98]

I do have to say that if I were just going to go to Carlos and Charlies/Margaritaville/wherever else, I'd just go back to the ship. No sense in paying for generic American food when I can get it for free onboard. We will probably one day cruise with my in-laws, and the worldwide Margaritaville tour will be on the agenda for sure. :rolleyes: I'll just have a big breakfast those mornings before we head ashore.

[Caribbeansunrise]

LOL That's us too. A few blocks off the square there is a place you can eat in one of the locals backyard. She cooks the food in her kitchen and serves it to you. We also have a local Italian restaurant we love in Cozumel.

 

We go to Pepi's in Cozumel - Good seafood. What is the Italian restaurant there?

[OCruisers]

Everyone eats local food on Land Vacations. Can't imagine why people would not on Port Stops. :confused:

LuLu

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[ryano]

Cruises have outbreaks in food poisoning all the time.

 

I hear a bunch about Noro outbreaks but absolutely nothing about food poisoning on cruises. :confused: Have I missed something?

[bighairtexan]

Noro is considered under that broad umbrella of "food poisoning" as it can be passed on through contaminated food or water as well as from person to person OR person to door knob to person. In fact it's the most common cause of "food poisoning."

[minnie00]

We have eaten in Cozumel many times but at a nice restaurant, in St Thomas, and St Marteen, Grand Cayman....I think thats it...never had an issue.

we don't eat street vendors tho

[deltahog]

Everyone eats local food on Land Vacations. Can't imagine why people would not on Port Stops. :confused:

LuLu

~~~

 

I always try to eat something local (this is part of the experience and flavor! - literally), but I can think of 2 legitimate reasons why some would not.

 

1) Already paid for food on the ship and free trumps pay when "local dining" is just not something you get excited about.

 

2) Many port stops are time-crunched and there may not be enough time to find a local place you are interested in and trust. As opposed to a "land vacation", where you are there for a few days and have time to get familiar.

[Gonzo70]

It is sad that some people deprive themselves of the wonderful privilege of trying local cuisine while traveling due to irrational fears/misinformation/lack of knowledge. For me enjoying local cuisine is the aspect of travel that excites me the most. I am actually doing a land based trip to Mexico later this year that is strictly geared around trying various foods (from fine dining to street food). Mexico has a wonderful food culture and two of their restaurants (Pujol and Biko) are widely regarded as being among the world's best restaurants.

 

One of my favorite ever excursions during a Caribbean cruise was a local food tour with a private excursion called Cozumel Chef (http://www.cozumelchef.com/). The chef took our small group to a variety of different local establishments off the beaten path (i.e. away from the touristy areas) and everything was phenomenal. We got to enjoy fresh fish just plucked from the ocean hours earlier, ceviche, street food, homemade soups, pastries and more. Such a fun day and so much delicious food (and interesting knowledge learned during the tour about Mexican cuisine and local culture). I cannot recommend this excursion highly enough.

 

While it is prudent to avoid tap water and ice in some countries (as well as raw fruit/vegetables washed with tap water), dining at local restaurants (provided you use common sense) is no more risky than dining on the cruise ship (and likely less risky than the cruise ship buffet which is a festering ground for germs).

 

Do a little research on Trip Advisor or Chowhound and partake is some local delicacies next time you travel; it is addicting and may just become a highlight of your vacation.

[wvufan]

I love to eat at hole in the wall places in the US too ;) Give me a BBQ shack over a big restaurant any day,

 

One of the appeals of travel is to try new and different food. I'm not going to follow Andrew Zimmerman around, but I like his spirit. The only real precaution I usually take is to only drink bottled drinks.

 

One of my favorite local foods is in Puerto Rico. I immediately head for the distinctive carts that sell helado de coco (coconut ice cream). We also like the snow cones (piraguas) and have never gotten sick eating local stuff.

 

Skyking, I'll be looking for that blue pick up.

 

Happy Sails to You

 

OOOEEE :D:D Bob and Phyl