# Slightly unusual eating habits you (or someone you know) has **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 17, 2026, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370 "2026-08-17T01:07:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![themapleleaf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/themapleleaf/32/14349_2.png) [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/61 "2026-08-17T19:58:17Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > My boyfriend considers salad a dessert. He eats it last. The other day, my friend and I were in a restaurant that does great rumpsteak, and it comes with a side of salad. He ate the salad last in order to clean the palate. Apparently, serving salad after the heavy course is a custom in Italy. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/62 "2026-08-17T20:40:05Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > My boyfriend considers salad a dessert. He eats it last. Thoroughly common in Chinese meals. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/63 "2026-08-17T20:42:37Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Thoroughly common in Chinese meals. He is very German (well, second generation German-American). ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/64 "2026-08-17T20:45:27Z")
I used to not like my foods to touch. I do save my favorite for last, though by then Im kindof full. ---
**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:** [August 17, 2026, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/65 "2026-08-17T20:49:39Z")
Similar to the broken and unbroken potato chip sorting that was mentioned in the OP, I will usually pick through a can of cocktail peanuts removing all the split peanuts first and save all the unsplit peanuts for last. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/66 "2026-08-17T20:49:52Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > But i really don’t like hot food or has to sit until it is no more than warm before I’m comfortable eating it. That is unusual, but i think my mouth must just be more sensitive to heat than some people’s, in an objective way. I’ve gotten blisters from eating hot food that take a day to heal, and that are rather unpleasant. I’m the exact same way. I could never imagine returning a plate of food for “being cold” at a restaurant unless it was refrigerator temperature. A room temperature meal? No problem. Yes, even a steak, soup, etc. Accordingly, at home I can eat a meal that’s been sitting on the counter for a few hours without heating it in the microwave. I might still heat it up a bit just because, but it’s absolutely not essential. When I was a teen, I routinely ate room-temperature meals when I came home late in the evening from work or some other activity. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/67 "2026-08-17T20:54:22Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I eat most stuff, but it better be the “right” color! The idea of food coloring disgusts me. Food is not blue. Not even blueberries, because although that’s their natural color, I don’t like them enough to overcome the ick factor. A little of this, too … though the rainbow cake would be OK. Most revolting, however, were the blue, green, and purple Heinz ketchups sold circa 1999-2000. Hurl! I once had a nasty fake mint chutney in an Indian restaurant. Mint chutney is supposed to be a pleasant desaturated “food” green color (like the skin of dill pickles). The stuff I was served that day was vivid Kelly Green. Plargh! See also Chicago hot dog relish – sorry Windy City. Can’t y’all just use regular ol’ dill relish? ---
**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:** [August 17, 2026, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/68 "2026-08-17T20:56:07Z")
Also treated salad as the last course at dinner as a kid - not literally dessert, just the last regular course. I too grew up in a German-American household. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/69 "2026-08-17T20:57:18Z")
Good to know! I’m pretty sure he always says “this is the way Grandma did it” so I figured it was heritage. Do you also consider pickles a dessert? He saves those for last too (spears or wholes). ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/70 "2026-08-17T21:00:19Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > > [@ZipperJJ](#): > > > > My boyfriend considers salad a dessert. He eats it last. > > Thoroughly common in Chinese meals. It is? My step mother was from Hong Kong. We ate Chinese food about 5 or 6 nights a week growing up. I never ate salad (or any raw vegetables) with Chinese food. Lots of veggies, to be sure: Bok Choy was a staple. But it was always cooked. And never a salad. (For dessert, at restaurants, it was usually sliced oranges. At home, my dad would eat ice cream) ---
**Author:** ![f.coli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eada6e/32.png) [@f.coli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/f.coli)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/71 "2026-08-17T21:01:31Z")
The people who separate every item on their plate reminds me of an incident in one of the many Star Trek books. Spock mentioned to a newcomer that one of the crew was noted for doing that, and the newcomer shouted, “He’s a Romulan spy!” Apparently, the Romulans, who look identical to Vulcans, always eat their food that way. ---
**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:** [August 17, 2026, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/72 "2026-08-17T21:04:07Z")
Pickles would be eaten last. Again, not literally considered “dessert” it was just the last thing served. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/73 "2026-08-17T21:04:16Z")
Maybe only in my Chinese family! ---
**Author:** ![f.coli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eada6e/32.png) [@f.coli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/f.coli)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/74 "2026-08-17T21:06:15Z")
What that minister said makes me wonder if there is some harmful effect to eating one thing at a time. It doesn’t seem likely, since food stays in the stomach for a long time, and should have plenty of time to mix together while getting an acid bath. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/75 "2026-08-17T21:07:35Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > “You should eat a little bit of everything instead of one thing at a time” Clearly a disciple of Albert from _Bread and Jam for Frances_. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/76 "2026-08-17T21:10:23Z")
I know two unrelated people that don’t eat the “handles” on french fries. They don’t eat the part that they held. I have a friend who has never seen his brother-in-law eat. If they go out to a restaurant, he gets his meal to-go when he orders. I have another friend that strongly prefers forks with three tines. He’ll use others, but we’ll joke about it. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/77 "2026-08-17T21:15:49Z")
I suspect it’s a ‘your family thing’ and not a Chinese thing. We never had salad with a Chinese meal, and since mom was born in China, we had Chinese food a lot. Only we never called it Chinese food. We just called it ‘dinner’. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/78 "2026-08-17T21:17:27Z")
Possibly. My mother in law and several other people we know serve cucumbers and tomatoes as a palette cleanser. Is this not something you’ve experienced? ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/79 "2026-08-17T21:28:07Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Is this not something you’ve experienced? It is not, unless it was part of a more typical American meal, in which case they was served with on a plate with the main and starch. If we got anything at the end of a Chinese meal, it was sliced oranges. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2026, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370/80 "2026-08-17T21:41:48Z")
> [@Locrian](#): > > For those of you that like to eat foods separately, do you like sandwiches with lots of toppings? Like, I love a south Jersey or Philly style hoagie-- ham, salami, lettuce tomato, onion, mayo, mustard, hot peppers, etc. > > Do sandwiches like this turn you off? Also, would you have a thanksgiving style hoagie? That’s turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce on a roll. WAY better than the plated kind for me! 🙂 I don’t eat my foods separately, but that kind of sandwich turns me off. I don’t eat “Thanksgiving hoagies”, either, and prefer to eat the leftovers on a plate. I’ll put gravy on stuffing and cranberry sauce on turkey, but i don’t want gravy on cranberry sauce. > [@bordelond](#): > > Accordingly, at home I can eat a meal that’s been sitting on the counter for a few hours without heating it in the microwave. I might still heat it up a bit just because, but it’s absolutely not essential. When I was a teen, I routinely ate room-temperature meals when I came home late in the evening from work or some other activity. I prefer my leftover meat cold, to avoid that “reheated” flavor or can develop. I do usually heat soups and stews, but they don’t need to be piping hot, just thoroughly warm. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/slightly-unusual-eating-habits-you-or-someone-you-know-has/1032370.md?page=5)