On 2017-09-12 12:46 PM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Monday, September 11, 2017 at 7:23:04 PM UTC-4, cshenk wrote:
>> Dave Smith wrote in rec.food.cooking:

>> Yes, I think it a given many of us tend to overeat at a buffet.
>
> It's about variety. If we're presented with only one or two
> foods, it's easy to stop. The palate becomes "tired". However,
> with a buffet, it's continually presented with fresh stimulation,

It is a legitimate form of presenting/serving food. When dealing with a
number of people with diverse tastes you offer them a wide variety of
food and people help themselves to the things they like are want to try.
Unfortunately, the tend to attract people who view the array as a trough
and a chance to eat as much as they can.

It is also a way to serve pot luck. You put it out and people help
themselves. There are people who like to attend potluck meals and go out
of their way to make something special, something that people will rave
about. Then there are those who make the absolute minimal contribution
and then make complete pigs of themselves on the food that others provided.

>
> I have the same trouble at a local Ethiopian restaurant. They
> serve perhaps half a dozen different dishes on a platter
> covered with injera. I eat to the point of discomfort because
> there are so many different tastes.


We used to go to an Ethiopian restaurant in Montreal when my son was
living there. We generally left the ordering up to him because he was
more familiar with the food and the serving sizes. Maybe I don't eat out
often enough to follow the trends. Chinese food was common around here
for years and the dishes have always been intended to be shared. People
were given plates and the dishes were served in platters or serving
bowls. I later discovered Thai food and it always used to follow that
same style of serving. There have been a couple new Thai restaurants
that have opened up that serve the dishes as entrees and everyone orders
their own. Only the rice is served as a communal dish.