# WTF is up with Iceberg Lettuce **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 21, 2009, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785 "2009-07-21T21:38:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/41 "2009-07-22T01:51:46Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > I’ve been known to eat an entire head of iceberg at night for a snack when I want something crunch with virtually zero calories. Not bad with some low-cal salad dressing or spritz; mustard, even! I’ll do the same with cabbage, mushrooms or a cuke. Why eat if you want zero calories? What’s the point? ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/42 "2009-07-22T02:27:38Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Why eat if you want zero calories? What’s the point? Calories are not the same as the physical presence of food in your stomach. A piece of cake has as many calories as a bowl of fruit, but the fruit will keep you from going hungry longer. Plus some people have an urge to eat beyond hunger, like if they’re stressed or something. Eating something low calorie prevents those snacks from making you fat. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/43 "2009-07-22T02:37:24Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > A piece of cake has as many calories as a bowl of fruit, but the fruit will keep you from going hungry longer. Huh. It has always seemed opposite to me. It’s always been one of the many things that aggravate me about fruit (grr, fruit)–no matter how much you eat, you’re still hungry. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/44 "2009-07-22T02:37:37Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I’d rather have a cite for this part: > > What kind of culinary wasteland is Ottawa, that people talk about how great _Taco fucking Bell_ tastes? Who are these people, and what sort of horrible crap have they been ingesting that they’d consider a dog food taco to be “addictive and delicious?” I’ve had the misfortune of spending several days in Ottawa on a couple of trips. I have yet to have a good meal. I have had memorable meals, but no good meals yet. Taco Bell may be a good default when in Ottawa. If anyone knows a good place to eat in downtown Ottawa, please chime in. ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/45 "2009-07-22T02:40:29Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Why eat if you want zero calories? What’s the point? You’ve never had to diet, have you? I never WANT zero calories, but I WILL snack on something; better a head of lettuce than a bag of chips! ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/46 "2009-07-22T02:42:03Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > You’ve never had to diet, have you? I never WANT zero calories, but I WILL snack on something; better a head of lettuce than a bag of chips! I do but I just eat less and avoid synthetic sweeteners. For me hunger is usually a craving for nourishment, not just to have my stomach filled. I’d still be hungry with a full stomach if I ate iceberg lettuce. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/47 "2009-07-22T02:51:32Z")
I love Ahora on Dalhousie Street in the Market. Last weekend I have a delicious swordfish steak at the Fish Market. Just about anything at The Works is tasty, tasty, tasty. The steaks at Prime 360 are worth every penny. I’m not a huge fan of Italian, but I’ve heard great things about Vittoria Trattoria. Zak’s has the best milkshakes and chicken wraps around. For Ethiopian try Blue Nile, but bring enough people to share. My Russian professor adores New Dubrovnik for Russian and Eastern European food. Sala Thai or the Green Papaya for Thai food. So, you know, a culinary wasteland. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/48 "2009-07-22T02:54:58Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > If anyone knows a good place to eat in downtown Ottawa, … There’s your problem. The best restaurants I found were away from downtown, mostly to the west along Richmond or Carling. There was an Italian place towards the west end (on the south side) of Sparks Street Mall that I can’t recall the name of that was pretty good. I’d suggest 1) avoid any restaurant on the ground floor of a hotel, and, 2) get in your rental car and get away from downtown. ---
**Author:** ![Pyper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Pyper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pyper)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/49 "2009-07-22T03:14:17Z")
My favorite for salads is Romaine, but Iceberg is essential for Mexican food. You just can’t shred Romaine properly. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/50 "2009-07-22T03:27:20Z")
I hate romaine. Hate, hate, hate it. It tastes NASTY. My husband dreads it when I order a salad in most places, because I’ll order the dressing on the side, an extra plate, and then I’ll spend quite a few minutes picking out the romaine and anything else that I don’t care for. It’s no good ordering a salad without the romaine, they have a huge bin of salad greens in the kitchen and they grab a handful and put it in the salad bowl. I’ll eat (and enjoy) the baby spinach, the shredded cabbage (especially red cabbage) and most of the other stuff. But I hate romaine. I thought that I hated spinach, too. Turns out that I love raw baby spinach, which my mother never served. My husband is a big fan of that nasty canned spinach, and is under the impression that if Popeye endorsed it, it must be good for you. I don’t like turnip greens or chard, either. All of those foods are too bitter for me. Now, I do like some bitterness in some foods. I love dark chocolate, the darker the better. I like coffee and beer, too. But I don’t like the bitter taste that some greens have. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/51 "2009-07-22T03:41:16Z")
Iceberg lettuce is delicious. It’s crisp, it’s juicy. And just a little sweet. What’s not to like? Unless you get a yucky supermarket-bought wilted week-old one, of course, but in that case your problem is _not_ the iceberg. Now the REAL question is - what’s up with nasty bitter fashionable Rocket? Or even worse - _salad greens_. Blech. Cross between shredded paper and grass. I’m not a goat - I’ll pass thanks. (coming next: - my impassioned defence of tasty squishy supermarket sliced white bread! Yum!) ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/52 "2009-07-22T04:43:34Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > I do but I just eat less and avoid synthetic sweeteners. For me hunger is usually a craving for nourishment, not just to have my stomach filled. I’d still be hungry with a full stomach if I ate iceberg lettuce. That’s great, but I don’t have the self-control to just eat less. My main goal is the satisfaction of something crunchy and a full stomach…the iceberg lettuce fits the bill, as does light microwave popcorn. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/53 "2009-07-22T04:53:11Z")
Pulled from the SNL commercial thread: [Lettuce](http://www.hulu.com/watch/1422/saturday-night-live-snl-digital-short-lettuce). ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/54 "2009-07-22T05:17:56Z")
> [@Pyper](#): > > My favorite for salads is Romaine, but Iceberg is essential for Mexican food. You just can’t shred Romaine properly. Heh, most of the good Mexican places around here use Romaine. Romaine is easy to shred if your knife is sharp enough. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/55 "2009-07-22T05:19:01Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > That’s great, but I don’t have the self-control to just eat less. My main goal is the satisfaction of something crunchy and a full stomach…the iceberg lettuce fits the bill, as does light microwave popcorn. Well as I said what leads to overeating for me is a lack of nutrition. I eat and eat and eat and then am unsatisfied. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/56 "2009-07-22T08:38:54Z")
It’s a habit - people whose parents made them iceberg salads just assume it’s the way salads are made. It’s also inoffensive, many picky eaters don’t like the taste of greener leafy vegetables. It might also be cheaper. ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/57 "2009-07-22T09:56:24Z")
Iceberg lettuce is the only choice for Chinese chicken salad. It’s also the lettuce of choice for BLTs. Although these days, I’m leaning in the direction of Japanese cucumbers for sandwiches. ---
**Author:** ![SmashTheState](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@SmashTheState](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmashTheState)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/58 "2009-07-22T12:01:57Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > If anyone knows a good place to eat in downtown Ottawa, please chime in. In Chinatown, on Somerset east around Booth, there is a small restaurant with a white front sandwiched between two other stores. It’s very narrow, and as near as I can tell it has no name. The only people who eat there are Asians. When you walk in the door, all conversation will stop and everyone will stare at you with inscrutible, impassive eyes. There is no English on the menus so you’ll probably end up ordering randomly. But the food is awesome, and all traditional Chinese fare. Braised duck uteruses on a bed of rice, pork offal soup, and fried cow intestine are all to be had if you’re adventurous, and the prices are extremely reasonable. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/59 "2009-07-22T12:58:59Z")
How do you know you’re eating duck uterus if there’s no English on the menu? ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2009, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785/60 "2009-07-22T13:09:18Z")
I’ll eat just about any type of salad. But enough with the stems and twigs, OK? Actually I prefer my salads to be mostly Iceberg. It’s by far IMHO, the very best tasting lettuce. And of course it’s got to be iceberg for sandwiches and burgers. Nothing else is crispy enough. And even my Wife, a bit of a lettuce snob, agrees that it’s a must for Mexican food. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-is-up-with-iceberg-lettuce/503785.md?page=4)