Agreed. But I am maintaining that a lot of people are being a bit self-indulgent about the whole thing and don’t even try to overcome these problems (if in fact the problems are real).
I’m not a foodie. I live on Vegemite sandwiches, bangers and mash, and beer. But by the same token, I don’t remember ever having gagged on a foodstuff. I’ve not liked some of them, sure. But that’s not the same thing.
And before the usual “you’re situation doesn’t translate to the whole population” crowd pipes up, I’ll say once again that I don’t deny people can have extreme reactions to food. I just think that a lot of it is in their mind. Not all, but a lot.
Comparing eating a food you might not like to being locked in a room full of fresh, steaming excrement is drawing a rather long bow.
So what if it is in their minds? The point is, they don’t like something, have an adverse reaction to it, so they-gasp!-don’t eat it. It doesn’t matter if it’s psychological, it still exists and that’s enough.
I’m inclined to believe that if you took more of those long, hard looks at yourself that you favor so much, you wouldn’t be saying this sort of thing. The more I learn about myself, the more I’m willing to tolerate the eccentricities of other people and not dismiss their quirks as something that’s just “in their mind.”
I wanted to throw out a tip for people who avoid certain foods for whatever reason. I’ve found that it helps a lot if you mention what you do eat instead of just what you don’t. This comes across as less whiny to others and makes it easier to decide what to order or where to eat.
I’m a “half-vegetarian” (no red meat) and, as I may have mentioned in this thread , I hate shrimp. If I tell people I don’t eat red meat, this isn’t always understood. Saying that I do eat poultry and seafood is better, although I run the risk of being given shrimp. This is especially true in Japan. What works better still is mentioning how much I love chicken.
This is a bit of an exaggeration. I mean, I like chicken and I do love many chicken dishes, but chicken qua chicken doesn’t thrill me. I’m certainly not crazy for it the way I am for chocolate. But “Lamia who loves chicken” is easier for others to deal with than “Lamia who won’t eat beef…or pork…or shrimp.” It’s just a matter of phrasing things the right way.
By “real” sushi do you mean the raw fish kind? I’d never had sashimi or sushi containing raw fish until I moved to Japan, but it turns out I like it much better than most cooked fish. I’m too cheap to get the fancy stuff so I don’t have much experience with that, but I always recommend tekka maki (that’s a sushi roll made with raw tuna, rice, and seaweed) as a good starter for people who’ve never had raw fish before. It’s tasty but not too weird or exotic.
Interestingly, sushi doesn’t have the same “fishy” taste that many people dislike in other seafood. Someone who really hates fish might not like sushi either, but those who just find fish unpleasant sometimes discover that they like it raw. Really! I was skeptical about this myself before I tried my first piece of sashimi, but I think it’s much tastier and less “fishy” than cooked fish.
*Is that wasabi peanuts or wasabi peas? I’ve had the latter, but never seen the former.
No. If there is a psychological state which is impeding the way that person can operate socially, then that person should attempt to remedy that. People with fear of heights, fear of open spaces etc try to fix it if it becomes too much of a nuisance in their day-to-day life. Since food is such a basic and common thing, it seems crazy that you’d just accept the status quo on this.
Conversely, if it is only once in a blue moon that you are out with friends and presented with a foodstuff you don’t like, putting up with it isn’t such a big deal. For the next few hundred dinners you’ll no doubt be eating stuff you like.
Somehow, being discerning in what I eat has not had the slightest impact in my social life. Because, for the most part, the people I want to spend time with aren’t raging assholes.
I’m not sure what I’ll do if I’m ever in a situation where I have to share a meal with you, though. Guess I’ll just have to cross that bridge when I come to it.
Even though it wasn’t directed at me, I appreciate the apology, Dio.
I guess after this thread and years of thinking otherwise, I am a picky eater, not a Picky Eater.
Now, IF the conversation is about food likes and dislikes–then I’ll chime in with my preferences. But otherwise, I keep mum. It’s too idiosyncratic–there is no right and wrong.
I don’t like the sanctimonous crap re: it’s the Western world and if you were starving in Somolia, you’d lose those aversions pretty quick. Who knows what we would do is such a situation? I hesitate to hazard a guess. But the scenario is fairly unlikely, so the argument is specious.
Maybe some do need to get over themselves and try onions or whatever–but I doubt that they will after the haranguing done in this thread. Nothing like a good attack to put people on the defensive and really help things along.
I stand by my position that some foodies need to get over themselves too. It’s a piece of chicken, folks. It’s a bit of cake.
I am talking a your “Picky Eaters”. I already said that almost everyone has foods that they don’t like. There is nothing abnormal about that.
I grew up in Louisiana. It probably has the most indigenous exotic foods of any state. I grew up eating them all from rattlesnake to alligator. My wife is one of the foremost gourmet food experts in the country and regularly appears in Gourmet magazine and others. Our refrigerator is stuffed with some of the most exotic cheeses and other gourmet foods in existence.
That said, I don’t care what anyone else does as long as they don’t interfere with what others are looking forward too. I will absolutley not put up with someone making biased negative comments about food or a restaraunt in a social setting in order to gain attention to themselves.
I have had to abruptly cut off contact from two people because of this issue. One was a friend in college that suddenly converted to vegetariansim except she didn’t like vegetables and made a scene in two restaraunts when they couldn’t whip up a tasty dish out of nothing but air apparently.
The second was my trash sister-in-law this past December. Me and my wife’s family went out to a 4 star Boston restaurant for my mother-in-law’s birthday. My sister-in-law made a big stink about there being nothing on the menu for her and her 12 year old son to eat. She finally settled on pizza. When it came out, she discovered that it was nothing like they make at the pizza place around the corner from her house. After a big stink, she sent it back and couldn’t come up with anything else so she got two orders of plain noodles with butter on them. The rest of the family decided that she is welcome at anything other than a restaraunt event from now on and her father told her exactly why.
I think that PIcky Eaters just have a basic fear of the unfamiliar like everyone does to some degree. The difference is that they feel no need to push past and get stagnated in their own little babied, pussyfied, self-absorbed little world. There is nothing admirable about that and certainly nothing to coddle or tip-toe around. I don’t worry about being mean to or offending the Picky Eaters because they invariably have coorelating personality traits that are the antithesis of anyone that I would ever want to be around.
Nothing in any way shape or form resembling ideal.
How about this one?
Kaspar: How would you like some brocolli?
Guest: No, thank you.
Kaspar: OK. I’m an adult, and thus other people having a preference different than mine is no threat to me.
Of course, this is the ideal situation.
Kaspar, while deciding on the menu actually knows - or finds out - his guests preferences, and builds the menu on that.
Even if Kaspar doesn’t, or can’t, find out all the guests’ preferences, it’s HIS OWN DAMN PROBLEM if he gets upset by them.
It’s not just this thread, and it’s not “threatening”. I’m actually sorry I mentioned it. I’m not arrogant enough to think my presence or otherwise matters a jot to anybody else here - and nor should it. If I go, it’ll be a decision for me alone. There won’t be a big, dramatic meltdown, don’t worry.
I’m not getting into the picky eater argument, cuz it’s mostly pointless. You eat what you eat and who is anyone to tell you differently. But I gotta say that anyone who puts tomato sauce in baked beans should be strung up by their thumbs.
See, that’s not what I see in this thread. I see many foodies who are saying that it doesn’t matter what you like or don’t like, as long as you don’t make a big production number about the restaurants you can’t go to, the food you won’t eat, and how the food of everyone sitting around you is sooooo disgusting. Then I see some foodies who are being a little oversensitive or, alternately, being massive pricks about it all.
I’m with Left Hand of Dorkness. I think a good 70-80% of the people in this thread are actually in total agreement about what’s polite and what isn’t. But somehow we’re shouting at each other anyway, and to me it makes no fucking sense.
Dunno. The most popular brand of pre-prepared baked beans in tomato sauce in Australia is Heinz, which was a US brand last I checked. whether they only market it here or not is something of which I am unsure. Nevertheless, I agree it tastes like crap, and I usually get the baked beans in HAM sauce, which is fucken luverly.
I would say, Shagnasty --that more sanctimonous, righteous crap I have yet to hear here.
No worries on the dining experience, luv–I wouldn’t want to break bread with you! What an attitude! Yeah, those guests were rude–ok, made your point.
But the rest of it–your wife could have her own food show and I still wouldn’t bow to your “greater wisdom”.
Exotic cheeses? Say, I am impressed! Wow–can’t hold a candle to you .
O Great One–please take a minute and teach me and the others here how to be a good host and guest. Seeing as how your wife is in a magazine and all–you must be up on proper dining etiquette.
Yeah–that’ll do for starters…
PS: I think you are a major food snob and give gourmets a really bad name. You are the worst of foodies–priding yourself on what exactly? Your discerning palate? Your exiquisite and delicate appetite? Your mypic focus on the tenderness of prepared foods?
, I hate shrimp. If I tell people I don’t eat red meat, this isn’t always understood. Saying that I do eat poultry and seafood is better, although I run the risk of being given shrimp. This is especially true in Japan. What works better still is mentioning how much I love chicken.
