Before You Order, Ask Your Server About This For The Best Meal

You find a cool restaurant with a delicious aroma wafting out every time they open the door. You sit down, mouth watering, tummy rumbling, excited to try the best this place has to offer. You look at the menu, and suddenly: panic! Choice paralysis hits, and you end up ordering chicken tenders for the thousandth time. If this modern tragedy is a scene you'd like to avoid, or if you want to guarantee you're getting the best out of your meal, then simply ask your server this key question: "What's the house speciality?"

One of the most common mistakes when ordering at a restaurant is missing out on what the establishment is best known for, which is not only likely to be the tastiest treat on the menu, it'll also probably be something made fresh and promptly by chefs who know what they're doing. It can be embarrassing to order the cheeseburger at the fancy Argentine steakhouse or the fish sticks at the high-end crab restaurant. Knowing what a particular restaurant does best makes sure you're getting the true experience, from the casual soul food joint on the corner to the Michelin-starred gourmet bistro in Paris.

Menu anxiety can strike at any time, but the stakes are particularly high at fancy restaurants, with higher prices and a higher chance that dishes might be an unknown quantity; it's certainly easier to goof up an order at the fancy spots. That's why this trick to ask the waiter what the restaurant is good at was a favorite of legendary food writer Anthony Bourdain. If it worked for Tony, it'll work for you.

Others have reported on the trick's usefulness as well. One Reddit user simply states: "If the name of a restaurant is in a dish, I'm probably going to order it." Another user reinforces it, saying the chef is most likely to have fresh ingredients for their most popular meal. Asking the waiter for the house speciality is particularly effective abroad, where chefs are often delighted to discuss the best dishes from their cuisine and culture. Stick to this golden rule, and you'll never end up with the weird soup no one ever orders again.