I hate them! How do you avoid eating at restaurants?

[ronb]

I strongly dislike restaurants. The food is engineered to taste good, not be healthy at 99% of restaurants. I'm an extremely healthy eater so this irks me. For some reason, the tables are always filthy and sometimes even the chairs. Like the waiter just wiped the crumbs onto the chairs. I'm never overly impressed with the service either. It's like, "You want me to give 15% over the price of the meal because you said hi and brought me my simple order?"

The way to avoid all these problems is to eat a high-end restaurants. But then cost is a bigger consideration. I can't help but think, "I could have made this soup at home for 30 cents."

The problem is so many people I know adore eating out. It makes it almost unavoidable.

How do you escape from going to restaurants? I'm even sick of doing it on first dates. I suppose part of the problem is I live in a fairly small town in the Midwest. People here are the healthiest or as clean as I am...

[disneysteve]

If you are frequenting restaurants where the tables are filthy, I'd suggest finding better places to eat. I can't say I've ever encountered that except maybe at a fast food place.

I'm with you on the health issue, though I'd say the single biggest problem in restaurants is the insane portion sizes. One entree can easily feed 3 people at most places, and that doesn't include the appetizer, sides, and dessert. That's easy to deal with though. Just don't eat it all. And only order a main course, or just order an appetizer or salad as your meal.

As for first dates, if you are a very health conscious clean freak who hates restaurants, it really makes no sense to take a date out to eat. It would really be deceptive to make your date think that's stuff you enjoy when you're just getting to know her. Make the first date something that you do enjoy that represents who you are. Maybe that's a movie or bowling or mini golf or dancing or whatever, but pretending to like stuff you really hate isn't a great way to start a new relationship.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I agree don't do it if you don't like it. And are you mostly going to ethnic restaurants that's why it's dirty? And usually chains. But I'm surprised nicer restaurants are that dirty. How about telling us name and level of restaurants?

I vote still don't bother going. Do something else for dates. Make a picnic. Go to the zoo and pack a lunch. Walk a park. Do something that is you.

My DH and I love kayaking. That is NOT a cheap first date but it represents us.

[disneysteve]

And are you mostly going to ethnic restaurants that's why it's dirty?

Why would you think that? What does being an ethnic restaurant have to do with being dirty?

[97guns]

i dont like to eat at chain restaurants where they bring in their foods from companies like sysco and US foods, all processed garbage. if and when i do eat out its usually asian or mexican food from mom and pop type restaurants

[disneysteve]

i dont like to eat at chain restaurants where they bring in their foods from companies like sysco and US foods, all processed garbage. if and when i do eat out its usually asian or mexican food from mom and pop type restaurants

I agree we hate chain restaurants like Olive Garden, Chili's, Applebee's, Friday's, and similar places. Their food is lousy. When we go out to eat, we try to stick to private family-owned or chef-owned places. That is often an ethnic restaurant - Italian, Mexican, Chinese, etc.

[ronb]

I agree don't do it if you don't like it. And are you mostly going to ethnic restaurants that's why it's dirty? And usually chains. But I'm surprised nicer restaurants are that dirty. How about telling us name and level of restaurants?

I vote still don't bother going. Do something else for dates. Make a picnic. Go to the zoo and pack a lunch. Walk a park. Do something that is you.

My DH and I love kayaking. That is NOT a cheap first date but it represents us.

Usually the restaurants I'm encouraged to go to are on par with Applebee's. Applebee's, Perkins, buffet's are especially nasty. MSG FTL.

[disneysteve]

Usually the restaurants I'm encouraged to go to are on par with Applebee's.

Well there's your problem. If you go to crappy restaurants you're going to have crappy meals.

The next time your friends want to eat out, you pick the place. Go to a real restaurant where there is a real chef in the kitchen actually cooking food from scratch onsite, not nuking frozen stuff or just dropping frozen stuff in a deep fryer.

Dining out can be a wonderful experience. You just need to go to the right places.

[FLA]

Why would you think that? What does being an ethnic restaurant have to do with being dirty?

I was just about to say this. Most of our good ethnic places are mom and pops' and clean as a whistle.

It may not be healthy, but after cooking (not my forte or favorite chore) for kids for 18 yrs, I'm usually happy to eat out, I'll eat anywhere, strangers can bring me, as long as no one whines, "chicken again? I HATE chicken. Sweet potatoes? I HATE sweet potatoes!" barely eats and my head is about to explode as this is the exact meal much loved last week.

we have quite a few vegetarian restaurants cropping up, maybe you'll get more. And I agree on the first date thing

[WEL]

The two types of restaurants I'll visit willingly:

Hole in the wall, honest cooking. Cheap, made from scratch.

High-end dining. Ambiance, an experience you'll remember

Everything else... McDonald's, Applebee's, a lazy mom/pop restaurant where they just nuke sodexo food... I'll pass.

[FLA]

Except Golden Corral. This used to be my dad's fav place, my mom would not go so he would call me, offering to take the 3 of us to "dinner" at the Golden Corral. Often not clean, food not good and he claims how cheap it is. Sometime cheap comes with a side of e coli. That really is the only place I can think of that I go to, albeit not with any enthusiasm, where cleanliness is an issue

But now he loves this fish fry place around since the 50s. And while fish fry is bad for you, at least at this place the fish is fresh, not frozen and despite being old, it is meticulously clean.

[FLA]

Hole in the wall, honest cooking. Cheap, made from scratch.

In the city, we had this hole in the wall cheap place that always made the top quick restaurants list. Line out the door starting at 11 am. One night, strolling with a date, I saw something out of the corner of my eye, it was rats running on the grill top of this place, it closes after lunch. I have never witnessed a public health issue quite that bad. I did call the health dept on that one, one rat I probably wouldn't want to turn in a place, over 12 rats? I called!

[LivingAlmostLarge]

You guys haven't been to some of the best chinese places if they weren't dirty. Try oakland, favorite places are not clean but delicious. NYC too. Actually many major cities the best ethnic foods to be had are not really clean. Have you been to Asia? Those are not clean, except maybe Japan and even then some of the better places are small places that are not impeccable by Japan standard. And noodle stands and food carts are not pristine.

Mexican restaurants are not clean either if you go find some of the hole in the wall. If you've seen the bathroom. Also Vietnamese pho places, the best ones are the ones where they make it in bulk. I've never had it at an upscale place that was good.

I skip all chains if possible and only go when friends invite us and insist. I'd rather cook than do applebees or perkins. Although I have to say my favorite chain to go to is CPK if I can get people to go there. I don't like cheesecake factory or friday's or the other.

I like food I can't or don't want to make at home.

[John Doe]

We're all expected by our societal corporatocracy to drive big shiny cars, live in big McMansions, eat in chain restaurants, load ourselves up with excessive piles of clothing and gadgets, aimlessly wander big box stores, and stare at TV screens in our down time. If you don't do these things, you're often relegated to being a social outcast. The funny thing, though, is that none of these things make us happy or healthy or make the world a better place. Restaurants? You're not missing much. The food is loaded with chemicals. It's way overpriced. The seats are designed to be uncomfortable to encourage tables to clear to maximize profit. It's all a game, a system designed to pry you from your wallet. Restaurants give me a funny unnatural elated feeling when I enter and a sick feeling of remorse and fatigue when I leave. Don't do it. Embrace reality. Avoid restaurants. Live real life.