Outrageous Restaurant Portions ...WhoWhereWhy?

[CharlieD]

I wonder how high that lasagna really is? You can't tell by the picture.
I love big portions and yes, Americans do eat a lot more than the rest of the world, thank G-d there is plenty to eat, thank G-g there is plenty to serve, thank G-d I am for noe not complaining. And in all honesty do not know why anybody would. I suppose you've never been hungry before, and I meant it in the big picture, not because you forgot your lunch at home, but because there was nothing in the store to buy, empty shelves, no food. Rationing cards, I bet nobody who has gone thru that would ever complain about having too much food.

 

[Kayelle]

I've been watching this thread with interest, and noticed several people commented about feeding the truly hungry.
I hope you'll allow me to share a very vivid memory.

My husband and I have had the good fortune to visit many countries since we met, just three years ago. Long story there. Last year we were in the beautiful city of Buenos Aries, Venezuela. After being served a luscious, but much too large dinner, we left the over priced fancy restaurant, on our walk back to our over priced fancy hotel with our leftovers all bagged up for our in room refrigerator. Thrifty, I am.
Anyway, on our sidewalk walk of the widest street in the world, we stopped at an outdoor cafe' for a last glass of wine, and set our leftover bag on the table. It was very late (they eat late there) and the skies opened up with a downpour of rain. The thunder and lightening was the topper of a lovely evening, snug as we were under the cafe' awning, actually it was very romantic.
Like I said, it was late, and the trash was piled on the corner in front of us for pickup in the morning. A young woman with a basket, and her five kids in tow appeared out of the darkness. She sat the kids down on the curb (in the rain), and she began going through the trash. She never approached us, and seemed to avoid eye contact. Every one of you would have done the same thing, with those "leftovers"!! Her smile of gratitude over her shoulder, as she and her kids left into "the night" again! I can hardly describe the impact that woman and kids made on my life. It was a life changing experience.
Now, we spend much of our time (when we are home), feeding the hungry.
Sorry to "ramble".

 

[babetoo]

wonderful story, kayelle. then there is the able bodied man i know that refuses to work. he gets just for himself, 200 dollars in food stamps. think what a mom and kids could do with that.

 

[Kayelle]

I agree Babe, in this county there is a safety net for hunger. In other parts of the world there is none. My only point was personal, and how it changed my life.
I'll never forget them.

 

[mollyanne]

...a very touching story, kayelle. Bless their hearts. It's a powerful reminder and reality check in such a brief encounter as that. And you did a nice thing
...and, CharlieD, I was wondering the same thing about how high that Lasagna must be. There's bound to be a wise-guy who asks the waiter for a discount because he only got 99 layers...i mean really, do the cooks count the layers to make sure they've got 100? The article said the layers are paper thin.

 

[CharlieD]

They look paper thin, the whole thing doesn't look that high.

 

[justplainbill]

Charlie, your comment about our horn of plenty seems to have gone in one ear and out the other with many in this forum.

 

[buckytom]

jpb, are you able to read minds? that's so cool. hey, can you think for me too?

your response would have been more effective if you'd reiterated what charlie said in some way, rather than summarily judging everyone.

your post was well received here, charlie.


i have been reading this thread with interest as well. i happen to love big portions as i get several meals out of them. it makes going out to eat or getting takeout more economically feasible in an ongoing basis.

the arguement about downsizing portions doesn't seem that it will ever work for more than just gluttonous reasons.

i was wondering what would happen if restaurants started offering different sized portions at different price ranges, much like fast food places do. would people really go out to a proper sit-down restaurant and order the small veal scallopini, and be satisfied with a lesser portion at a reduced price? i'm sure some would, but would tips then be smaller? tipping is supposed to be about service, not necessarily the cost of the meal.

inevitably, regular customers would expect a little more at those lower prices, such as is the nature of a service business, and then we're back to square one.

 

[GB]

Actually Bucky, they have started to do that by me. Restaurants are now offering a dinner item and a lunch item. They are identical aside from size and price and each can be ordered at any time, not just at the time their name implies.

 

[justplainbill]

You see anyone here, Bucky, agreeing with Charlie's comment that abundance is a blessing and not a curse?

 

[GB]

You see anyone here, Bucky, agreeing with Charlie's comment that abundance is a blessing and not a curse?

Just because it has not been verbalized does not mean people do not agree.

 

[CharlieD]

Charlie, your comment about our horn of plenty seems to have gone in one ear and out the other with many in this forum.

Thank G-d, people simply do not imagine, they cannot, what it means to be hungry, to Not have, not some individual family that is living on the street, the whole nation is Not having. I remember when I first came to this country, to MN. There was this grocery store here, pretty lousy I should say. Bad neighborhood, store wasn't clean. Had everything you need, well maybe not a prime cut meats like prime rib, or something like that. People would ask me about Soviet Union, about food shortages. I would tell them what was going on, and the only compressing they could come up with was this store. They would say: oh so it is like shopping in Jerry’s (I do not remember actual name of the place). And I would say, yes it would be if you would walk into Jerry’s and the shelves would be empty. They would look at me in disbelieve, and I would see that they simply do not get it. People in America do not realize what empty shelves look like. Thank G-d even during depression; the shelves were really not that empty.
Thank G-d for America, that's all I can say.

 

[Andy M.]

...i was wondering what would happen if restaurants started offering different sized portions at different price ranges, much like fast food places do. would people really go out to a proper sit-down restaurant and order the small veal scallopini, and be satisfied with a lesser portion at a reduced price?...

I know I would appreciate smaller portions at lower prices.

When I go out for dinner, I have to decide how much I can eat and choose which courses I have to skip.

I always want to try all the great things on a menu. I just can't. I want an appetizer. I love soup. Cesar salad? Potato or rice with the entree? Most important - did I save room for dessert?

With portions what they are, I am forced to limit the variety I can experience. I do not take doggie bags home. I can't see spending restaurant prices for leftovers.

As a result, we don't go out to eat as often and when we do it's usually for lunch.

 

[buckytom]

jpb, i'm sorry everyone's not chatting up to what you expect. think, man, before making statements that don't seem to get your point across, but rather just insult people. unless you don't really mean what you say, and are just getting your jollies in raising hackles. you make valid points clumsily, imo.

gb, i've seen some places here that do that too, but it's not common. certainly not towards higher end joints.

i guess diners almost always have something like that, and i thought that another way it's being done is the "lite" menu in a lot of chain restaurants. also, the early bird thing.


andy, i like the way you describe your thought process. although, as i'd mentioned, it makes it more feasible for me to work an hour o.t. and pay restaurant prices only if i can get an extra meal out of it. i'd certainly rather have more time to cook, but it doesn't always work out that way in the rat race, as i'm sure you know.

i'd be just as happy to be able to buy 1 meal at 1 meal's price, but restaurants aren't in the business of just getting by. more food = higher prices = higher tips = more profit if you run your business well.

on the whole (preparation h feels good a joke for all of the fogeys) the attitude seems to more, more, more. straight out of oliver twist.

besides feeding the hungry, the real issue here is global sustainability of food stores. but that's gettin' political.

 

[Foodfiend]

I'm with Breeze on this one, huge is great as long as the food is prepared well. I don't have too hard of a time pushing myself away from the table. I love taking leftovers home for lunch the next day, or even deconstructing the leftovers and making something different from them.

Same here, I love taking leftovers home and having it the next day or so. It reminds me of the great time I had at the restaurant. And for those of you who don't like all the big entrees, some restaurants are now offering smaller portions of their menu items such as Carrabba's, and since Outback is a sister company to them, I wouldn't be surprised if they aren't doing the same.

I also love going to Cheesecake Factory, I love their Shepherd's Pie. I'll eat about a third of it and take the rest home with me to have for dinner on a different night.

Of course though, with the economy being the way it is, I don't get out much anymore to my favorites, so when I go it's a treat.

 

[nikki]

I wonder how high that lasagna really is? You can't tell by the picture.
I love big portions and yes, Americans do eat a lot more than the rest of the world, thank G-d there is plenty to eat, thank G-g there is plenty to serve, thank G-d I am for noe not complaining. And in all honesty do not know why anybody would. I suppose you've never been hungry before, and I meant it in the big picture, not because you forgot your lunch at home, but because there was nothing in the store to buy, empty shelves, no food. Rationing cards, I bet nobody who has gone thru that would ever complain about having too much food.

This actually reminds me, one time I was eating out downtown a few years back, I had been served a really large meal... Instead of taking my leftovers home with me, I gave it to a woman who was on the streets and looked like she could really use some food...

Anyways, with what I was originally going to comment on this:

I grew up in a VERY poor house, my mum was single, and living on disability. We had very limited funds to buy food, or anything else for that matter. I ate small meals, but unhealthy meals. Whatever we could get, such as pasta and the such, was a staple in our cupboards.

The point of this little story, is not to say "oh I was poor too, so yes I HAVE gone through that" (don't assume things about people)...

Rather my point is that YES, I've been there, but that doesn't mean that now I will allow myself to ingest every last crumb from an over-sized meal just because I can afford it. The wealth of people wasn't quite the point of this thread, I'm guessing, but it was about the sizes of the meals served when you go out to eat.

Just because you have the means NOW to afford these oversized meals, doesn't mean that that size of a meal is appropriate, ya know? Money, wealth, ability to afford things... That's not so much the issue...
Having been poor in the past is no excuse to over indulge in the present.

Plus, the restaurants can't be making much profit when they're serving up meals that are huge...

For me, it's also the whole "quality vs quantity" issue when I'm going out. If I want 2 lbs of pasta, I'll just buy a bag of pasta for $1.99 at the grocery store, and some tomato sauce for $2, and cook it up at home. If I'm going OUT to eat, I want something of high quality, not necessarily massive heaping servings of food.

Damn, now I'm hungry... And for the record, I am all for left-overs of oversized meals! It's great to not have to worry about making lunch the next day...

 

[nikki]

I've been watching this thread with interest, and noticed several people commented about feeding the truly hungry.
I hope you'll allow me to share a very vivid memory.

Your story is absolutely beautiful... <3

 

[Kayelle]

Nikki.

Correction, I don't know what I was thinking....we were in Buenos Aries Argentina...
We never went to Venezuela. Could not edit the original post.

 

[mollyanne]

It's ok kayelle...the location doesn't matter...it can happen anywhere at anytime. Even well-to-do families in well-to-do countries can suddenly find themselves homeless.

I agree with CharlieD...abundance is a blessing if you know the right thing to do with it and have the right attitude about it. It can be a curse only if you don't. Sounds like Charlie appreciates it and respects it drawn upon past experience that perhaps jpb has never experienced.

It makes sense, what Andy said, about not wanting to pay restaurant prices for leftovers. But, on the other hand, it made sense, what foodfiend said, that having leftovers the next day reminds her of what a great time she had at the restaurant and when you don't get out very often then it's nice to savor what you enjoyed.

 

[CharlieD]

Perhaps jbp, made his statment simply because he did not see any responces to what I said before, so he rushed in with his post, perhas we rush into judging him. Just like, maybe he was in too much of a hurry, so are we, too in the hurry. I say give the guy a break, I know he meant well.