Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
everything when it's served this way.

Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
testy.)

Dora





--


limey at toad dot net

"limey" > wrote in message
...


<Snip>


> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
sound
> testy.)
>
> Dora

Ever hear the expression "my eyes were bigger than my stomach"? Why do you
suppose that happens?

The fact of the matter is we "eat" with ALL 5 senses, smell (chocolate chip
cookies baking), hearing (bacon sizzling), touch (tearing a piece of a
baguette), sight (a beautiful 7 layer cake or a glazed strawberry tart) and
of course taste.

I think the "stacked" dish was an endeavor to create an artful presentation.

The problem is as always, Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

limey wrote:

> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> testy.)
>
> Dora
>


I think this piled higher and deeper has been going on for several
years. Somewhere I read that some places were flattening out their
presentations, but haven't the foggiest notion of where I read/heard that.

One way of looking at it, ph&d allows the place to buy smaller
(cheaper?) plates.


jim

On Wed, 14 Apr 2004, limey wrote:

>
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> testy.)

You have company. I like good food. Tasting good is the most important
thing. If it looks good it tends to add to the experience. This does not
mean stacking the food so it is 1 foot high.

For me, a stack of coins looks like less than the coins all spread out on
a table. Maybe I like my food not stack up because spread out it looks
like more to me.

I also find my steak slides all over the place as I try to cut it because
it is piled on top of the mash potatoes. I have to disassemble everything
or eating it becomes difficult.

In the end, if the food is good I'll put up with them stacking it up.

--
Send e-mail to: darrell at cs dot toronto dot edu
Don't send e-mail to

In article >, limey > wrote:
>
>
>
>Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
>layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
>potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
>with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
>I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
>everything when it's served this way.
>
>Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
>testy.)

No, I agree with your sentiments. I am one for artful presentation of
food, but stacking things is a cheap, lazy way out of it. Some of these
chefs that are really into stacking should have a look at Japanese food
presentation.

~Deepak


--
Deepak Saxena - dsaxena at plexity dot net - http://www.plexity.net/

To all foreign readers of this message. I am sorry my president is a complete
idiot. I did not vote for him.

limey wrote:
>
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,

What is wahoo. I know it is what I say when some sticky problem at work
gets solved and the treck to the goal is again underway.
blacksalt

"limey" > wrote in message
...
>
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
sound
> testy.)
>
> Dora


Nah, you're not alone. I, and others I know, hate vertical food.

Hal Laurent
Baltimore

limey wrote:
>
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> testy.)

No, Dora, I don't like my food looking all fussy like that. Not to
say I want it to look as if it was shot onto the plate with a
sling shot at ten paces, but really. Quit rubbing your hands all
over my food.

I also pretty much prefer my food not sitting in a puddle of sauce.
I like the option of eating it with or without the sauce. Luckily
for me I manage to avoid the type of restaurant where the chefs
confuse cooking with architecture.

nancy

"Nancy Young" > wrote in message
...
> limey wrote:
> >
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,
topped
> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel
sauce.
> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
disassemble
> > everything when it's served this way.
> >
> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
sound
> > testy.)
>
> No, Dora, I don't like my food looking all fussy like that. Not to
> say I want it to look as if it was shot onto the plate with a
> sling shot at ten paces, but really. Quit rubbing your hands all
> over my food.
>
> I also pretty much prefer my food not sitting in a puddle of sauce.
> I like the option of eating it with or without the sauce. Luckily
> for me I manage to avoid the type of restaurant where the chefs
> confuse cooking with architecture.
>
> nancy

My sentiments exactly. A friend of mine would use his favorite expression:
"artsy-fartsy".

Dora

Im Glad you have the money & time to go & eat in restaurants-

"limey" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Nancy Young" > wrote in message
> ...
> > limey wrote:
> > >
> > > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,
> topped
> > > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel
> sauce.
> > > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
> disassemble
> > > everything when it's served this way.
> > >
> > > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
> sound
> > > testy.)
> >
> > No, Dora, I don't like my food looking all fussy like that. Not to
> > say I want it to look as if it was shot onto the plate with a
> > sling shot at ten paces, but really. Quit rubbing your hands all
> > over my food.
> >
> > I also pretty much prefer my food not sitting in a puddle of sauce.
> > I like the option of eating it with or without the sauce. Luckily
> > for me I manage to avoid the type of restaurant where the chefs
> > confuse cooking with architecture.
> >
> > nancy
>
> My sentiments exactly. A friend of mine would use his favorite
expression:
> "artsy-fartsy".
>
> Dora
>
>

Glenys Shaw wrote:
>
> Im Glad you have the money & time to go & eat in restaurants-

A lot of people have the money and time to eat out. Often they eat
out because they *don't* have the time to cook at home. Regardless,
I don't apologize for eating out.

nancy

limey wrote:

> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> testy.)

I'm with you. While there are some things that can be arranged vertically in a
pleasing manner, I think that some chefs have got carried away with the
piling. I like some separation between my foods. I want to taste some meat
(or fish or poultry) some vegetables and potatoes, rice or other starch.I want
to sense the different flavours and textures and alternate between them on my
terms. I am not much interested in having everything piled on top of each other
so that it is almost impossible not to have a bit of everything altogether.

kalanamak wrote:
>
> limey wrote:
> >
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,
>
> What is wahoo. I know it is what I say when some sticky problem at work
> gets solved and the treck to the goal is again underway.
> blacksalt

I'm pretty sure it's some kind of fish.

nancy

Steve Wertz wrote:
> On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 18:39:40 GMT, "Dimitri"
> > wrote:
>
>> The fact of the matter is we "eat" with ALL 5 senses, smell (chocolate chip
>> cookies baking), hearing (bacon sizzling), touch (tearing a piece of a
>> baguette), sight (a beautiful 7 layer cake or a glazed strawberry tart) and
>> of course taste.
>
> The heft of a 1.5lb small-end ribeye steak hitting a hot grill,
> sizzling and smoking covers 4 of the 5 senses.
>
> -sw

The fifth comes soon after.

BOB

kalanamak wrote:
> limey wrote:
>>
>> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
>> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
>> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,
>
> What is wahoo. I know it is what I say when some sticky problem at work
> gets solved and the treck to the goal is again underway.
> blacksalt

A fish.
http://www.landbigfish.com/fish/fish.cfm?ID=121

and in this case, a Google search wouldn't have been much good if you didn't
know what you were looking for '-)

BOB

On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 14:26:20 -0400, "limey" >
arranged random neurons, so they looked like this:

>
>Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
>layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
>potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
>with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
>I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
>everything when it's served this way.
>
>Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
>testy.)

I may be in the minority, but I find the mile high presentation
appetite-inhibiting. I am a fairly abstemious eater (can't eat a lot
at one sitting, as some RFCers who have shared a meal with me can
attest) and find a slab of meat, for instance, piled on a glob of
garlic mashed potatoes, which has atop the meat some greenery of some
sort (or other veggie) just puts me off my food. The DH and I
regularly split entrees because of the huge size of the portions, but
a meal served as above I find distasteful (pun intended).

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA

"If the soup had been as hot as the claret, if the claret
had been as old as the bird, and if the bird's breasts had
been as full as the waitress', it would have been a very
good dinner." Anonymous.

To reply, remove replace "shcox" with "cox"

"Steve Wertz" > wrote in message
...
> On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 18:39:40 GMT, "Dimitri"
> > wrote:
>
> >The fact of the matter is we "eat" with ALL 5 senses, smell (chocolate
chip
> >cookies baking), hearing (bacon sizzling), touch (tearing a piece of a
> >baguette), sight (a beautiful 7 layer cake or a glazed strawberry tart)
and
> >of course taste.
>
> The heft of a 1.5lb small-end ribeye steak hitting a hot grill,
> sizzling and smoking covers 4 of the 5 senses.
>
Add a cold beer and a joint and the world turn where you are.

On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 21:11:10 -0400, " BOB"
> wrote:

> Steve Wertz wrote:

> > The heft of a 1.5lb small-end ribeye steak hitting a hot grill,
> > sizzling and smoking covers 4 of the 5 senses.
> >
> > -sw
>
> The fifth comes soon after.
>
or somewhat before.


Practice safe eating - always use condiments

On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 20:22:38 -0400, Dave Smith
> wrote:

> limey wrote:
>
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> > everything when it's served this way.
> >
> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> > testy.)
>
> I'm with you. While there are some things that can be arranged vertically in a
> pleasing manner, I think that some chefs have got carried away with the
> piling. I like some separation between my foods. I want to taste some meat
> (or fish or poultry) some vegetables and potatoes, rice or other starch.I want
> to sense the different flavours and textures and alternate between them on my
> terms. I am not much interested in having everything piled on top of each other
> so that it is almost impossible not to have a bit of everything altogether.

Digging into a 4 story piece of food isn't high on my "to
do" list. Fortunately, most archetechually constructed
foods I've come across have been conservative in nature.

<s>


Practice safe eating - always use condiments

In article >,
Nancy Young > wrote:

> Glenys Shaw wrote:
> >
> > Im Glad you have the money & time to go & eat in restaurants-
>
> A lot of people have the money and time to eat out. Often they eat
> out because they *don't* have the time to cook at home. Regardless,
> I don't apologize for eating out.
>
> nancy

Neither do I. ;-)
This person needs to get a job so he can afford to eat out once in
awhile I guess.......

Rack of Lamb. Outback chain restaraunt. OH my gods!!!
But we've been there already. <G>

And they don't stack the food!
I would NEVER put up with that! I'd send it back and make them re-serve
it to me. :-P

K.

--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...

>,,<Cat's Haven Hobby Farm>,,<Katraatcenturyteldotnet>,,<

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...user id=katra

In article >,
JimLane > wrote:

> limey wrote:
>
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> > everything when it's served this way.
> >
> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> > testy.)>
>
> I think this piled higher and deeper has been going on for several
> years. Somewhere I read that some places were flattening out their
> presentations, but haven't the foggiest notion of where I read/heard that.
>
> One way of looking at it, ph&d allows the place to buy smaller
> (cheaper?) plates.

Good! I'm just as sick of the trend of putting small pieces of food in
the middle of a plate the size of an aircraft carrier as I am of
food-stacking.

Miche

--
If you want to end war and stuff you got to sing loud.
-- Arlo Guthrie, "Alice's Restaurant"

"limey" > wrote in message
...
>
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
sound
> testy.)
>
> Dora
>
>

What is it with these restaurants? Do they think all we want to eat is
pizza or something arranged like that?

I can appreciate creativity, and I'm sure your entree looked ornate arranged
that way, but for eating purposes I like things spread out a bit. Just my
dos pesos; I'm going back to the lab for a few days, so if you have any
questions, don't call me.

Jack Plate

Katra > wrote in message >...
> In article >,
> Nancy Young > wrote:
>
> > Glenys Shaw wrote:
> > >
> > > Im Glad you have the money & time to go & eat in restaurants-
> >
> > A lot of people have the money and time to eat out. Often they eat
> > out because they *don't* have the time to cook at home. Regardless,
> > I don't apologize for eating out.
> >
> > nancy
>
> Neither do I. ;-)
> This person needs to get a job so he can afford to eat out once in
> awhile I guess.......
>
> Rack of Lamb. Outback chain restaraunt. OH my gods!!!
> But we've been there already. <G>
>
> And they don't stack the food!
> I would NEVER put up with that! I'd send it back and make them re-serve
> it to me. :-P
>
> K.

My favorite Outback entree: Outback Rack with Cabernet sauce!

Heidi

Nancy Young > wrote in message >...
> limey wrote:
> >
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> > everything when it's served this way.
> >
> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> > testy.)
>
> No, Dora, I don't like my food looking all fussy like that. Not to
> say I want it to look as if it was shot onto the plate with a
> sling shot at ten paces, but really. Quit rubbing your hands all
> over my food.
>
> I also pretty much prefer my food not sitting in a puddle of sauce.
> I like the option of eating it with or without the sauce. Luckily
> for me I manage to avoid the type of restaurant where the chefs
> confuse cooking with architecture.
>

Have a bit of fun order your meal ranch-style instead of multi-story!
:-)

I've gotten meals prepared this way at more upscale chain restaurants
(John Harvard's Brew Pub comes to mind). I don't know how anyone eats
these without disassembling them first! I mean wouldn't you kind of
squish the mashed potatoes out from under the meat (fish, etc.) when
cutting into it?

My DH, who half jokingly refers to himself as the "uncultured
barbarian", really doesn't like this method of presenting the food.
(He dislikes the lemon in water trend, too.)

Heidi

Hal Laurent wrote:
>
> "limey" > wrote in message
> ...
> >
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
> disassemble
> > everything when it's served this way.
> >
> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
> sound
> > testy.)
> >
> > Dora
>
> Nah, you're not alone. I, and others I know, hate vertical food.

Me, too, but not so much merely because it's stacked,
but more because those artsy fartsy presentations usually
cost a lot more. It may look interesting but I don't
want to pay for interesting. I'd rather pay a more
reasonable price for regular food that is more traditionally
arranged on the plate.

Kate
--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?

Nancy Young wrote:
>
> limey wrote:
> >
> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> > everything when it's served this way.
> >
> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> > testy.)
>
> No, Dora, I don't like my food looking all fussy like that. Not to
> say I want it to look as if it was shot onto the plate with a
> sling shot at ten paces, but really. Quit rubbing your hands all
> over my food.
>
> I also pretty much prefer my food not sitting in a puddle of sauce.
> I like the option of eating it with or without the sauce. Luckily
> for me I manage to avoid the type of restaurant where the chefs
> confuse cooking with architecture.

My whole thing with the puddle of sauce is that it's *under*
the food. I want my sauce on top of the food so when I take
a bite there's sauce on it. When the sauce is laid down first
you have to do a lot of work to get any of the sauce on a bite
of food. That's another reason I hate artsy fartsy food
arrangements. I guess it would be okay if they made an a-f
arrangement and then served extra sauce on the side so you
could pour some on top of the food once you had finished
with admiring the chefs artistic talents. But the other thing
is you pay more for the a-f stuff and I can do without all
that. I just want my food to taste good and be properly
prepared.

Kate

--
Kate Connally
“If I were as old as I feel, I’d be dead already.”
Goldfish: “The wholesome snack that smiles back,
Until you bite their heads off.”
What if the hokey pokey really *is* what it's all about?

>Kate Connally wrote:
>
>>Hal Laurent wrote:
>> "limey" wrote:
>> >
>> > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
>> > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
>> > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,
>topped
>> > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel
>sauce.
>> > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
>> disassemble
>> > everything when it's served this way.
>> >
>> > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
>> sound
>> > testy.)
>> >
>> > Dora
>>
>> Nah, you're not alone. I, and others I know, hate vertical food.
>
>Me, too, but not so much merely because it's stacked,
>but more because those artsy fartsy presentations usually
>cost a lot more. It may look interesting but
>
>I don't want to pay for interesting.
>
>I'd rather pay a more reasonable price
>
>for regular food that is more traditionally
>
>arranged on the plate.

If presentation is not important to you perhaps you're choosing the wrong kinds
of restaurants... you're obviously a blue plate special greasy spoon kinda
diner... not to be disparaging but often food served at the local diner is of
far better quality than at the fancy schmancy joints, just that the mom n' pop
operations are low overhead and far less pretentious, they even have normal
lighting so you can actually see what you're eating.


---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
Sheldon
````````````
"Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."

>Kate C. says:
>
>But the other thing
>is you pay more for the a-f stuff and I can do without all
>that. I just want my food to taste good and be properly
>prepared.

I was right, you need to stay out of those snobbish freedom restaurants, you
are indeed a greasy spoon patron.


---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
Sheldon
````````````
"Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."

Mr. Wizard wrote:

>> The heft of a 1.5lb small-end ribeye steak hitting a hot
>> grill, sizzling and smoking covers 4 of the 5 senses.

> Add a cold beer and a joint and the world turn where you
> are.

Where do I subscribe?

Vilco

limey wrote:
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving
> food in piled-on layers? My dinner the other night
> arrived with a serving of mashed potatoes, topped with a
> sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped with
> "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of
> tomato-fennel sauce. I love to eat out but am I
> unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read
> this - boy, I sound testy.)

You have company, at least in italy.
The pile-up tend started some 20 years ago,
but now it's spreading everywhere since 3-4
years. Initially it was a show of talent,
where good chefs did put two or three totally
distinct parts one on top of the other to
show how they could manage the differences
in a balance, to render the eater able to
taste the three well divided tastes or to
try mixing, by inserting the spoon vertically
and enjoying the three tastes melting into
one new taste. Then it has been adopted by
many places where the ability to perfectly
diversify the tastes were insufficient, and
it resulted (and results nowadays) in many
horrible things.
Then it has arrived also the question of
temperatu three parts with three strictly
distinct parts, each at a different temperature.
This can be done only in places where the staff
in service is working tightly linked to the
kitchen, and requires a good organization, but
it seems to be the "non plus ultra" of the
trend.
I'm non pro nor con, but many people here
are, and you're not alone, Limey

Vilco

"Kate Connally" wrote in message
>
> My whole thing with the puddle of sauce is that it's *under*
> the food. I want my sauce on top of the food so when I take
> a bite there's sauce on it. When the sauce is laid down first
> you have to do a lot of work to get any of the sauce on a bite
> of food. That's another reason I hate artsy fartsy food
> arrangements. I guess it would be okay if they made an a-f
> arrangement and then served extra sauce on the side so you
> could pour some on top of the food once you had finished
> with admiring the chefs artistic talents. But the other thing
> is you pay more for the a-f stuff and I can do without all
> that. I just want my food to taste good and be properly
> prepared.
>
> Kate

Yes, yes, and yes! What suprised me that it was at local seafood
restaurant we go to quite often during the week and enjoy because it's
fairly casual, if that's the way people want to be. I suspect they've hired
a new chef. :-( That wahoo could have used the sauce on top of it, that's
for sure.

Dora

>"limey" writes:
>
>"Kate Connally" wrote in message
>>
>> My whole thing with the puddle of sauce is that it's *under*
>> the food. I want my sauce on top of the food so when I take
>> a bite there's sauce on it. When the sauce is laid down first
>> you have to do a lot of work to get any of the sauce on a bite
>> of food. That's another reason I hate artsy fartsy food
>> arrangements. I guess it would be okay if they made an a-f
>> arrangement and then served extra sauce on the side so you
>> could pour some on top of the food once you had finished
>> with admiring the chefs artistic talents. But the other thing
>> is you pay more for the a-f stuff and I can do without all
>> that. I just want my food to taste good and be properly
>> prepared.
>
>Yes, yes, and yes! What suprised me that it was at local seafood
>restaurant we go to quite often during the week and enjoy because it's
>fairly casual, if that's the way people want to be. I suspect they've hired
>a new chef. :-( That wahoo could have used the sauce on top of it, that's
>for sure.

Encyclopædia Britannica

wahoo

(Acanthocybium solanderi), swift-moving, powerful, predacious food and game
fish of the family Scombridae (order Perciformes) found worldwide, especially
in the tropics. The wahoo is a slim, streamlined fish with sharp-toothed,
beaklike jaws and a tapered body ending in a slender tail base and a
crescent-shaped tail. Gray-blue above and paler below, it is marked with a
series of vertical bars and, like the related tunas, has a row of small finlets
behind the dorsal and anal fins. At its largest, the wahoo attains a length of
1.8 m (6 feet) and weight of 55 kg (120 pounds) or more.

Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service.
http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?eu=77852
[Accessed April 15, 2004].


---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
Sheldon
````````````
"Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."

Miche wrote:

> In article >,
> JimLane > wrote:
>
> > limey wrote:
> >
> > > Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> > > layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> > > potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> > > with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> > > I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly disassemble
> > > everything when it's served this way.
> > >
> > > Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I sound
> > > testy.)>
> >
> > I think this piled higher and deeper has been going on for several
> > years. Somewhere I read that some places were flattening out their
> > presentations, but haven't the foggiest notion of where I read/heard that.
> >
> > One way of looking at it, ph&d allows the place to buy smaller
> > (cheaper?) plates.
>
> Good! I'm just as sick of the trend of putting small pieces of food in
> the middle of a plate the size of an aircraft carrier as I am of
> food-stacking.
>
> Miche
>
> --
> If you want to end war and stuff you got to sing loud.
> -- Arlo Guthrie, "Alice's Restaurant"

I always want to giggle insanely when I see some of that artfully piled up food. I
guess my peasant roots are showing. Nice presentation, yes, but frillied to death?
Edrena

Jack Schidt® wrote:

> "limey" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
>>layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
>>potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
>>with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
>>I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
>
> disassemble
>
>>everything when it's served this way.
>>
>>Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
>
> sound
>
>>testy.)
>>
>>Dora
>>
>>
>
>
> What is it with these restaurants? Do they think all we want to eat is
> pizza or something arranged like that?
>
> I can appreciate creativity, and I'm sure your entree looked ornate arranged
> that way, but for eating purposes I like things spread out a bit. Just my
> dos pesos; I'm going back to the lab for a few days, so if you have any
> questions, don't call me.
>
> Jack Plate
>
>

Your rant reminds me of the dining habits of Europeans. A subject that
the SBF and I get into fairly regularly. A perfect meal is a prepared,
served in various bowls and platters. And served in a wonderous way.
Then, lo and behold, she, and countless Europeans like her, pile up bits
and pieces of each item on to one forkfull. Why bother for different
flavors. But, since it is called matrimony, and not homicide, I let it
go.
--
Alan

"If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and
avoid the people, you might better stay home."
--James Michener

"limey" > wrote in message
...
>
> Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo, topped
> with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel sauce.
> I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
disassemble
> everything when it's served this way.
>
> Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
sound
> testy.)
>
> Dora
>

LOL! I got such a kick out of this post. It's good to know I'm not the only
one who tears apart these "masterpieces". I like to eat my food and taste my
food. Separately. I know some people think it's picky, some think it's
pompous, and some think it's obsessive-compulsive. I just prefer things to
be separate, in most cases. Particularly fish. Vegetables too...especially
corn! My husband and my daughter have this habit of mixing corn in with
their food...pork chops & rice, mashed potatoes with gravy, etc. Yuck.

kimberly

"alzelt" > wrote in message
...
>
>
> Jack Schidt® wrote:
>
> > "limey" > wrote in message
> > ...
> >
> >>Why do I dislike the latest restaurant fad of serving food in piled-on
> >>layers? My dinner the other night arrived with a serving of mashed
> >>potatoes, topped with a sizeable portion (1/2 inch thick) of wahoo,
topped
> >>with "crispy frizzled onions", sitting in a puddle of tomato-fennel
sauce.
> >>I love to eat out but am I unreasonable about this? I promptly
> >
> > disassemble
> >
> >>everything when it's served this way.
> >>
> >>Am I too picky? Or do I have company? (I just re-read this - boy, I
> >
> > sound
> >
> >>testy.)
> >>
> >>Dora
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
> > What is it with these restaurants? Do they think all we want to eat is
> > pizza or something arranged like that?
> >
> > I can appreciate creativity, and I'm sure your entree looked ornate
arranged
> > that way, but for eating purposes I like things spread out a bit. Just
my
> > dos pesos; I'm going back to the lab for a few days, so if you have any
> > questions, don't call me.
> >
> > Jack Plate
> >
> >
>
> Your rant reminds me of the dining habits of Europeans. A subject that
> the SBF and I get into fairly regularly. A perfect meal is a prepared,
> served in various bowls and platters. And served in a wonderous way.
> Then, lo and behold, she, and countless Europeans like her, pile up bits
> and pieces of each item on to one forkfull. Why bother for different
> flavors. But, since it is called matrimony, and not homicide, I let it
> go.
> --
> Alan
>
> "If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and
> avoid the people, you might better stay home."
> --James Michener
>


hahahaha, matrimony is just slow homicide!

Jack Cremato

On Fri, 16 Apr 2004 22:18:01 GMT, "Jack Schidt®"
> wrote:

> > Your rant reminds me of the dining habits of Europeans. A subject that
> > the SBF and I get into fairly regularly. A perfect meal is a prepared,
> > served in various bowls and platters. And served in a wonderous way.
> > Then, lo and behold, she, and countless Europeans like her, pile up bits
> > and pieces of each item on to one forkfull. Why bother for different
> > flavors. But, since it is called matrimony, and not homicide, I let it
> > go.
> > --
> > Alan
>
> hahahaha, matrimony is just slow homicide!
>

Nah. Alan simply hasn't escaped his childhood foibles.

No matter how many plates/bowls it's served in, no matter
how separately the food is eaten... it all ends up in the
same place.

Put that in yer pipe and smoke it!


Practice safe eating - always use condiments

sf wrote:

> No matter how many plates/bowls it's served in, no matter
> how separately the food is eaten... it all ends up in the
> same place.
>
> Put that in yer pipe and smoke it!

By that reasoning, just put soup, mashed potatoes, pot roast, salad,
bread and butter, ice cream with hot fudge all into one bowl. Mix.
Eat.

No thanks.

nancy

"Nancy Young" wrote:
> sf wrote:
>
> > No matter how many plates/bowls it's served in, no matter
> > how separately the food is eaten... it all ends up in the
> > same place.
> >
> > Put that in yer pipe and smoke it!
>
> By that reasoning, just put soup, mashed potatoes, pot roast, salad,
> bread and butter, ice cream with hot fudge all into one bowl. Mix.
> Eat.

I must add that observing my British friends during meals used to drive me
nuts. Though it astounds me that they are able to pile so much on a fork and
maneuver it up and into their mouths without losing a crumb, watching them
spend five or so minutes at a time painstakingly sculpting the load made me
want to scream "JUST EAT IT ALREADY! SHEEEESH!"

<Plus the fork was in the wrong hand AND upside down... Mom used to yell at
us if we did that!>

Pennyaline wrote:
>
> "Nancy Young" wrote:
> > sf wrote:
> >
> > > No matter how many plates/bowls it's served in, no matter
> > > how separately the food is eaten... it all ends up in the
> > > same place.
> > >
> > > Put that in yer pipe and smoke it!
> >
> > By that reasoning, just put soup, mashed potatoes, pot roast, salad,
> > bread and butter, ice cream with hot fudge all into one bowl. Mix.
> > Eat.

Fact of the matter is, I like to taste the individual foods at the
time when I eat them. It all winds up in the same place, but no, I
don't want my chocolate cake and my salad at the same time. Call
me a nut.

> I must add that observing my British friends during meals used to drive me
> nuts. Though it astounds me that they are able to pile so much on a fork and
> maneuver it up and into their mouths without losing a crumb, watching them
> spend five or so minutes at a time painstakingly sculpting the load made me
> want to scream "JUST EAT IT ALREADY! SHEEEESH!"

My father yelled at his father once at our house for teaching us bad
manners for telling us to scrape peas onto our knife or something.
Not saying my dad was polite, definitely tension there. But my
grandfather was from Scotland and I still think ... you scrape your
peas and mashed potatoes onto your fork with your knife? All with
the wrong hands?

Don't anyone get all excited, I really don't care about the whole
peas/fork thing. We do look strange to one another.

<Plus the fork was in the wrong hand AND upside down... Mom used to
yell at
> us if we did that!>

It looks that you cannot wait to get to the food fast enough with the
fork and knife all at the attack.

(laughing) nancy