Eating street vendor food
 

While reading Fodor's "Essential India" tourbook, they recommend trying the various snacks available. This includes hot food and even ice cream in Mumbai. But, we are warned not to drink the water or eat fruits and vegetables.

I'm not about to drink the water or consume ice in my drinks but isn't most of the street food prepared with regular (tap) water?

What am I missing?

Marty

Do not eat from any street vendor! For reasons that should be obvious.

Suggesting you sample snacks is not the same as telling you to eat street food.

My experience is that if you can see the food cooked in front of your eyes, OK to eat. But if the food has been sitting around for a time, like in a steam tray, or has never been cooked, then use caution. I think BillT is a bit off the path on this and would ask him 'exactly what are the obvious reasons'? Regardless of the bacterial load prior to cooking, after cooking the food is essentially sterile. Sure, if then the food is passed by hand to a dirty and diseased vendor then to you, a different story.

In my opinion street food from street vendors in India is a no no.This is asking for serious trouble.Folks who eat it have the stomach for it.So dont even try.The very same 'snack/s' is available in much more hygienic establishments across the country.Could give you tips on places to eat/dine,if you can be specific about what you want to try and in which city.

Seafood in an upscale restaurant,once had me flat on my back.Read the fine print-no guarantee.

OK here are some of the obvious reasons:

1) The food- how long has it been sitting there in the hot sun? No refrigeration present.

2) The utensils being used- how does the vendor keep them clean? No hot water there.

3) How clean are the hands of the vendor? No hot water to wash them, no bathroom either.

4) Insects on the food- not uncommon with outside vendors in the high heat and humidity.

5) While locals may have adjusted to any normal bacteria that may be present your stomach probably can't.

I think that the ONLY time I got really sick in all my years of travel was from eating a " snack food" that came from a food stall that our Indian driver gave me. I know better and should have faked it, but to save face and not embarrass him I took a bite. Let common sense prevail. India has a different level of sanitation than the Western world .

I ate street food in Delhi on a one-day 'food tour'. Everything was delicious, and I did not get sick! And I do not have a very strong stomach :)

I was doing a trip of the Golden Triangle and there was a couple from England with us, they drank 2-3 milk shakes/smoothies each at EVERY MEAL. They were the only ones from a group of 11 to get ill. The girl even had to be hospitalized...

Eat at your own risk and that of your vacation!

Since we have a trip planned to SE Asia and India, and I live in Atlanta - home to the CDC - I have asked friends and neighbors who work for the CDC about street food. All travel extensively around the world. Their facial expressions tell all - an emphatic NO!!!!!!!!

When I go to India I make sure i try the street food, we all had street food in India, my kids and the other half as well. A few tips my friends in India gave me came in handy and we never got sick.

Eat at stalls where there is a high turn over and it is very busy, make sure the food is cooked in front of you and hot, do not drink water from the street stalls, and definitely no ice in your drinks. In Mumbai which is the Mecca for street food we had everything , including pani puri, and none of us got sick.

The best thing is that the street food is awesome and we were feeding the family for less than $2 eating street food, it was awesome and one of the great experiences of India.

We even tried all the fresh juices, like sugarcane juice etc, but we made sure we told them not to put ice in the drinks. I was lucky my friends in India showed us the ropes and it made our experience even more awesome.

1. Make sure you eat at stalls that have a high turnover.
2. Make sure the food is piping hot.
3. Do not drink water from the streets etc.
4. Make sure there is no ice in your drinks.
5. Always buy your bottled water in restaurants and check to see if the seal has not been broken.

These simple precautions will make your try even better. By the way most houses in India have a water filter so we had no issues drinking water at friends houses.

Why would you eat street food and risk getting sick? It could not be that delicious. Some experiences we just have to pass on.

Like I said we never got sick, you just need to be cautious and use the grey matter, in Mumbai we trusted our friends who are locals and they gave us some very good tips.

The chef in our hotel near Udaipur (Devi Garh) prepared street food for us. If something looked interesting, we took a photo and he recreated it. A win win.

Agree completely with BillT and for the reasons he gave.
I've been to India 7 times, had bouts of "Delhi belly" several times, had food poisoning and even typhoid so let me tell you forget the street food.