My sister described this situation. She and her husband stopped in at a moderately upscale sit down restaurant (botanical garden cafe). They ordered and as they were waiting for their food, the couple at the next table said they were leaving. They had 1/2 of a pizza which they said they had not touched, and asked if my sister and BIL wanted it.
So, do you accept it? Are there any limits on what sorts of food you would or would not accept, or other relevant factors?
(Sis and BIL accepted it and said it was delicious! I probably would accept it as well, but I think pizza may be about the only food I would accept, since it comes cut by restaurant staff, is usually served with a serving utensil, and usually sits somewhat removed from the diners on its own tray, rather than on their plates.)
Assuming that the risk of transmissible diseases by saliva is low, or 2) I knew for sure that they had never touched the food except with hands, yes, I’d accept it.
In fact, this was even somewhat common in China in the 1990s, for diners to finish off the food of previous or other diners. Although that was considerably disease-riskier.
Posing the question another way, if you were on the staff at said restaurant, and were presented with this offer, would you accept it? I am sure restaurant staff are quite accustomed to seeing barely touched food left behind. My guess is they would not take it. And that is my answer, too.
Yes, we were at a brewpub and a couple ladies had come in for the birthday, for drinks and an appetiser, and one of them mentioned my pizza looked so good(apparently the appetizer wasnt hat filling) - so I gave her a slice.
That has nothing whatsoever to do with the thread here.
Been there, done that, but I’m a guy. I’ve had a situation where someone orders a pint of beer, takes a sip, and wants no more. I’ll happily finish it.
While the risk of deliberate mischief from the people at the next table is not zero, it’s pretty damn close. Although I have a dim view of humanity generally, I don’t assume random diners are out to poison me with their leftovers.
ETA: I would probably decline, however. The chances of them ordering my preferred toppings is pretty slight.
Just in case it informs anyone’s opinions (and I was hesitant to post too many details in the OP) THIS is the restaurant..
Just a tad removed from skeeves in panel vans offering candy. And - while I wish to avoid overgeneralizing - not the sorta place I expect poisoners and date rapists to frequent. But I could imagine accepting untouched za at a less fancy neighborhood joint.
As I understood it, the za wasn’t huge such that the 1/2 za was pretty much just an appetizer. Of course, they had just finished a bike ride…
In my youth, I was dish dog (the dishwasher) at a fine dining restaurant.
While I can’t remember the specifics of who got the chocolate mousse, and why they didn’t eat it, an untouched glass of mousse would frequently make its way to me.
Two fingers, a deft scooping motion, and a digital mousse-cicle – several times most evenings.
