There are a number of things of inferior quality that I prefer simply because they’re what I grew up liking.
Take for example, vegetables. I know quite well that fresh steamed vegetables are superior to canned or frozen vegetables, and so every week, I buy a variety of fresh vegetables at the grocery store.
…and 9 times out of 10, they end up rotted in my fridge.
Why? Because I grew up on *canned *vegetables. I like those bastard plants nice and soft and salted and easily prepared by spilling an opened can into a microwave-safe bowl and pushing the “1 minute cook” button.
It’s a win/win situation. When people ask, “do you eat fresh vegetables?”, I say, *“heck, I buy fresh vegetables all the time!” * It’s none of their damned business that it’s the canned vegetables that I actually eat. I feed the fresh vegetables to our guinea pig, Snickers, and the kids.
So, fess up. What cheap, tawdry things do you prefer over premium items, simply because they are what you grew up liking? Canned fruit? Frozen vegetables? Wanton women? What?
Chocolate. I probably eat more chocolate than you (and all your friends). But when I do a huge favor for someone and they get me a gift it’s always some expensive fancy pants chocolate like Godiva or some other brand I don’t care for.
Honestly, milk chocolate Hershey bars, that’s all I need. Don’t lecture me on how they taste like vomit to you, they don’t taste like that to me. Hershey bars, Hershey’s syrup, Thin Mints, M&Ms (M&Ms and Thin Mints at the same time), Chocolate Ice Cream, Chocolate Fudge Pop Tarts.
It’s all good by me.
And I know I’m not the only person with this problem. I’ve had other friends that love chocolate and people say ‘oh, you like chocolate here’s some super dark amazing chocolate’. I don’t care for dark chocolate, I love chocolate, but it’s ‘the more the better’ not ‘the darker the better’.
Like you, I’m sure it’s because I grew up on it.
TL;DR, cheap chocolate. Lindt and down.
I always used to be a mac & cheese snob, only able to eat Kraft from the box (play along - in this scenario, boxed Kraft is the superior item). Then at some point I could only afford the generic kind, and I couldn’t add milk and only had 2T of butter instead of 4T. Now I only eat generic with 2T of butter and water, not milk.
It’s funny ZipperJJ, I was going to mention Mac & Cheese in my OP. I do prefer cheap Stouffers-type M&C to all those pretentious, hoity-toity, wild-assed cheese type M&Cs currently flooding the market.
…but, Kraft boxed Mac and Cheese??? Man, you hit M/C Skid Row with that one. I wouldn’t feed that to the flea on the dog of my worst enemy!
Billfish678, RC cola is still out there. I like it too. It’s the only non Coca-Cola Classic cola I like.
Anyway, I have never met a regular yellow mustard that I didn’t like, except for Heinz which only showed up in restaurants until recently. My favorite is Plochmann’s, but I’m quite happy with any brand but Heinz, and it’s tolerable. I was never particular about ketchups either, but others from my area might remember Brook’s Tangy Catsup. It was the best!
I have found that many store brand peanut butters are peanuttier and less sweet than Jif or Peter Pan. I particularly like Save-A-Lot’s version.
I have never been disappointed by any store brand of Ramen noodles. My favorite one ever is Winn-Dixie’s Hot and Spicy flavor. Can’t eat them any more- low sodium diet.
I have long been a connoisseur of cheap off-brand sodas. My flavors are cream soda, strawberry, root beer, lemon-lime, and ginger ale. Some are better than others, but I have never had a really bad one of those flavors.
Maybe some of these things really aren’t of inferior quality, just of a lower price.
I like cheap, thin, threadbare washcloths. Easier to clean my ears with them, and they’re just the right abrasiveness. I keep stacks of the nice fluffy ones in the linen closet for guests, and hide away the “good” ones in my bathroom.
CVS store-brand toilet paper. Cheaper than Scott, thin, 1-ply stuff. Totally prefer it. The “premium” brands pill and leave bits behind, especially when my lady-bits are having their monthly purge. The 12-pack is often on sale for close to $6. I’ve tried Walgreens and Target and grocery store stuff, still go back to the CVS brand.
A great question! I buy relatively expensive coffee beans from Peets for my pour-over coffee. However, I buy the cheapest brown cone filters I can find (Winco), because I cannot tell the difference between them and the brand names (other than cost).
I have a 25+ year old mountain bike that I converted into a great touring bike. It fits me well and is the right frame material. I could easily get a newer touring bike with all the latest features (and lighter), but I love the idea of keeping that old thing going and working so well, and taking it on so many great adventures.
