As a restaurant critic and food writer, it is my job to eat and drink, and I have the Google Maps lists to prove it. For each of the 100-odd cities I’ve visited, I have a pin marking my favorite bakery, cheese shop, noodle place, cocktail bar and, of course, late-night gyros, fish n’ chips and street vendors hawking scallion pancakes.
While I receive a fair share of expert tips from friends, my secret to finding great places to eat is to turn off my phone, go rogue and observe men and women who wear suits to work. For the past 20 years, I’ve had great success following the crowd — more specifically, the business lunch crowd., I went to the financial district so I could meander away from the tourist-ridden areas of MyeongDong and Gangum, where retail giants and commercial chains rule the streets.
In Stockholm, the same experience of following men and women in suits has led me to some great discoveries at night, too. In the evening, city workers in Sweden’s capital stream out of offices and straight onto the subway, but if you are lucky, many will venture out to their favorite watering hole for after-work drinks.
You have to remember that lunch hours are short and sweet in cities like Seoul, Tokyo and Zurich; where the work culture is rigid and grueling, many do opt for cheap and cheerful eateries over high-quality eats. If you enjoy traveling without a guide and still take pleasure in discovering impromptu delights, you won’t be disappointed at whatever you find. Isn’t discovery what travel is all about?, including setting flight price alerts and subscribing to deal newsletters. If you’re set on an expensive getaway, here’s a