# In Defense of Plain Stuff **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 13, 2018, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840 "2018-07-13T14:10:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/21 "2018-07-13T17:02:54Z")
Plain tea, no sweetener or flavor. Whats up with peach or raspberry ice tea. Nope. Black coffee. I like chocolate a lot. I don’t need anything else messing up my chocolate. Hershey bars for me. Yeah, buddy. (No nuts) ---
**Author:** ![Orwell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/dfb087/32.png) [@Orwell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orwell)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/22 "2018-07-13T17:08:15Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Plain tea, no sweetener or flavor. Whats up with peach or raspberry ice tea. Nope. > Black coffee. Yep. Plain tea and black coffee need nothing added. People who add cream and/or sugar (and especially both) to their coffee are ruining it. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/23 "2018-07-13T17:11:50Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > I like pizza with minimal toppings, but the fact that cheese pizza goes first doesn’t necessarily mean that most people prefer plain pizza to one with any toppings at all. No, but it seems like pretty much everyone thinks that a plain cheese is pretty good in its own right. ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/24 "2018-07-13T17:19:27Z")
My 13 year old son explicitly names cheese as a topping when ordering pizza. I can’t say it would ever occur to me to do that ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/25 "2018-07-13T18:53:00Z")
I’m not usually much of a plain person, but I will eat a plain flour tortilla as a snack. I like buttered noodles, maybe with a little parmesean cheese. And I always buy plain bagels. Not because I necessarily like them plain, but because I don’t want them to conflict with whatever I put on them. They’re good with any flavor of cream cheese, as a sandwich, with eggs, whatever. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/26 "2018-07-13T19:02:21Z")
Texas BBQ. Just the salt & pepper rub. No sauce, no other spices. Pizza Margherita. Sauce, cheese, basil. Steak. No sauces, just some salt. Still mooing, too. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/27 "2018-07-13T19:47:59Z")
A long-time friend of mine is, without a doubt, the plainest eater I’ve ever known. I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that the below is the vast majority of her diet: - Hamburgers with absolutely nothing on them (just a patty on a bun) - Steak (again, plain, no sauces or fancy toppings) - Baked chicken breasts - Potatoes (either mashed or baked, with butter, salt, and pepper) - Buttered noodles - Scrambled eggs - Corn (off the cob, with butter and salt) - White bread / white toast She won’t use any condiments or seasonings other than salt, pepper, and butter. She claims that her sense of taste is so acute that she doesn’t _need_ seasonings or sauces in order to enjoy her food. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/28 "2018-07-13T20:06:53Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I’ll order a hamburger in a fast food or other restaurant and be asked what kind of cheese I want on it. That annoys me, as I usually just want a _hamburger_. Had I wanted a _cheeseburger_, I would have ordered one. And a couple of times the cheese comes without me even asking for it. There was an [excellent thread](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=856770) on that very subject about a month ago. It was just the kind of informative, passionate, insightful commentary that makes this place what it is; and had one of the best titles ever. Someone above mentioned baked potatoes with just butter and salt. I’ll take butter and pepper. That’s not exactly plain, but leave the sour cream, etc. for someone else. And I’ll add chili. I do crumble up some saltines and sprinkle them on, but leave the cheese, onions, sour cream (again, what’s with the sour cream) off, please. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/29 "2018-07-13T20:13:16Z")
> [@Serenata67](#): > > I’m not usually much of a plain person, but I will eat a plain flour tortilla as a snack. I like buttered noodles, maybe with a little parmesean cheese. And I always buy plain bagels. Not because I necessarily like them plain, but because I don’t want them to conflict with whatever I put on them. They’re good with any flavor of cream cheese, as a sandwich, with eggs, whatever. Oh yeah, I love flour tortillas, but I’m particularly fond of the ones from Rosa’s, a Mexican fast-food place around here. They call themselves “Rosa’s Cafe and Tortilla Factory”, because they make the tortillas on-site, and they are pillow-soft and delightful. I used to order extras and wrap a bonus tortilla around my chicken fajita burrito (that’s where they just put the chicken on the tortilla, no onions or peppers or anything). One burrito with two tortillas, mm. And then I’d eat one tortilla by itself. That reminds me: as I said before, I like plain tacos, just taco meat in a shell. My family is always stunned, like, “don’t you at least put cheese on it?” Why would I? I like the taste of the taco meat, and with the spice mixture, I can’t taste cheese on it anyway, so putting cheese on just increases the calories for no benefit. So, plain for me, thanks. All my plain brothers and sisters: do mixed vegetables freak you out? Like, I will eat fried rice with both carrots and peas in it, no problem. But carrots and peas as a side dish, cooked together? No no no. Either on its own is fine. ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/30 "2018-07-13T20:25:55Z")
Interesting. I love plain hamburgers but I can’t stand vanilla ice cream or plain donuts. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/31 "2018-07-13T20:31:02Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I’ll order a hamburger in a fast food or other restaurant and be asked what kind of cheese I want on it. That annoys me, as I usually just want a _hamburger_. Had I wanted a _cheeseburger_, I would have ordered one. And a couple of times the cheese comes without me even asking for it. Yeah. I found when I moved to Indiana that at least around here “cheese” is a default inclusion on a “hamburger”. To get one without cheese I have to say “Hamburger, no cheese”. And sometimes I still get cheese. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/32 "2018-07-13T20:44:32Z")
I’m surprised Jane hasn’t posted yet. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/33 "2018-07-13T21:08:06Z")
I like good salads. No dressing. I want to taste the salad! The weird stuff I’ve gotten from waiters over the years is unbelievable. What’s so hard to understand: “Salad with nothing on it.” ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/34 "2018-07-13T21:09:25Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > We order pizzas here at work for people’s birthdays. I once made the observation that few people seem to say “Order plain cheese” when asked what kind to get but a plain cheese pizza is always the first to go. My observations have always been the exact opposite: They order one good pizza because everyone insists they like plain cheese, but nobody touches the cheese untill the good stuff is gone, usually before the one person who asked for supreme has even got up to the table. And there’s no such thing as plain cheese pizza. It’s not pizza until you put at least one topping on it. Calling a round crust with no toppings a “cheese pizza” is like calling an empty pie shell a “crust pie”. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/35 "2018-07-13T21:19:15Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > Out of curiosity what is a “plain” salad? Just lettuce and dressing? As far as I’m concerned, it’s lettuce and whatever vegetables come on it with no dressing. Also, I like plain saltines. Unlike Ned Flanders, I don’t want “Just a little water on the side for dipping.” ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/36 "2018-07-13T21:20:55Z")
I like baked goods, such as cakes and brownies. I like nuts. I don’t like baked goods with nuts in them. Give me ice cream topped with chocolate or caramel, I will guzzle it heartily Give me plain ice cream, I will guzzle it just as heartily. Most restaurants have their own seasonings for their steaks, and that is all that a good steak needs. Steak sauce is for ground beef. I don’t like dry-aged steaks. Give me one straight from the slaughterhouse. Yes, I know it will be tougher. I like it tougher. > [@](#): > > originally by **Paul Williams** > > People used to sneer at the Carpenters for being “too vanilla”. But what an exquisite flavor vanilla can be. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/37 "2018-07-13T21:29:58Z")
I’m a pretty plain eater. Steak plain, vanilla ice cream, etc. Also, I prefer brownies without nuts. And sweet potatoes. And cake. I like nuts, but not in or on things. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/38 "2018-07-13T21:35:16Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I’m surprised Jane hasn’t posted yet. I am no plain Jane. But I am a boring Beck. I like any kind of icecream. But vanilla softserve does something to my soul. Makes me happy. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2018, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/39 "2018-07-13T22:45:30Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > And there’s no such thing as plain cheese pizza. It’s not pizza until you put at least one topping on it. Try telling them that in Naples, home of the [Pizza Margherita](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizza_Margherita). That is, unless you consider basil to be a topping. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840/40 "2018-07-14T00:15:20Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Texas BBQ. Just the salt & pepper rub. No sauce, no other spices. > > Pizza Margherita. Sauce, cheese, basil. > > **Steak. No sauces, just some salt. Still mooing, too.** Just run it through a warm room? 😉 (bolding mine) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-defense-of-plain-stuff/817840.md?page=3)