I believe this is my first post on Local Guides Connect! Hey there!
The reason I’m posting this blog post is to remind myself, but also others of the importance of reviews for people with dietary restrictions. This is why:
My partner is vegan, and in our hometown almost no-one knows what being “vegan” is. So when you ask for a vegan meal, you’ll still get served cheese or popcorn with molten butter. Wherever we go, we always check google reviews and/or other apps to see if there are restaurants that cater to vegan people as well. Writing my own reviews after visiting such places makes it easier to re-visit them, but also for newcomers to see if it’s safe for them to eat there.
Recently, I’ve started following the FODMAP diet by recommendation of my dietician. It’s really uncommon here in the Netherlands and I usually have to explain it at every lunchroom and restaurant. Most menu’s don’t show fodmap friendly meals, most of them don’t even serve gluten-free bread. Calling beforehand usually helps, and waiters/waitresses really taking their time to help you and to hear you out are the best people. Still, finding reviews on google or any other site promoting FODMAP friendly restaurants is very rare. I want to change that. There are a lot of people in my direct environment that suffer from IBS, and if my reviews help them find a restaurant they can eat at, it would be so much easier for them to go out instead of having to cook for yourself all the time (don’t get me wrong, I love cooking, but missing out on dinner with friends because of your diet sucks!).
So, while I do not have a lot of reviews catering to vegan and FODMAP friendly restaurants, I am making it my mission to find as much restaurants as I can to review in the places I’m visiting!