This is the most frequently asked question since I've been writing the blog - and it comes from countries all over the globe. For those of us who have to stretch our budgets, of course there's curiosity about the eating habits and nutrition of those with unlimited means. But the answer might be surprising.
In a recent article in the New York Daily News it seems that people with lots of money go to fast food restaurants more frequently than lower-income families. Somewhat the opposite of what we'd expect, right? But it's not all that shocking since a Big Mac costs five bucks nowadays. For a large family it's far less expensive to cook at home than to run out to McDonald's, dollar menu or not.
While rich people can afford the finest cuts of meat at the local butcher shop and the freshest langostino shrimp imported to their cities by overnight air, they don't necessarily do so, at least not all the time. And they can snack on expensive imported cheeses and hors d'oeuvres brought in by a caterer, or the finest chocolates from Belgium and Switzerland. But again, not always. It's not unusual for us to find an empty pizza box when we get to work in the mornings.
Every night of the week they can afford to go to restaurants like Masa in New York for a minimum of $450 per person, or a more modestly-priced place like Ruth's Chris for a two-hundred dollar steak dinner (although I should mention that Ruth's also offers a fifty-dollar steak on their equivalent of McDonald's Dollar Menu).
They might have a light lunch at the Palm Court in New York, then fly off in their private jets to a late dinner at Maxim's in Paris, or the Brasserie in Monte Carlo overlooking the Princess Grace rose gardens.
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In spite of all this temptation the modern-day rich are health conscious, of course. Many follow the Mediterranean diet both in their homes and when they go to restaurants. That's basically what's going on here where I work. It's more of a lifestyle than a diet anyway, consisting of lots of fish, fresh veggies, pasta, nuts and berries, and olive oil.
But we're not surprised when we find the kitchen cluttered with take-out Chinese cartons when we get to work, or an empty package of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in the trash can. The truth is rich people eat anything they want, whenever they want, wherever they want.
As for their secret to staying slim, my observation is that they take only small portions of whatever's being served, and hit the gym on a regular basis. In centuries past being rich meant getting fat and suffering from gout - known as the rich man's disease. But those days are long gone.
Hope this was informative, and thanks for stopping by this evening,
Andrew
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Eating Utensils for the Rich!
In a previous post entitled Proper Table Setting for the Rich I was rambling on about how Victorian dinner tables might be set with twenty or more eating utensils at each place setting. Then the question came up as to exactly how many types of utensils there are in this world
In prehistory primitive people ate with their hands and fingers, of course. (In modern-day America we've pretty much reverted to that level with our fast-food restaurants. Burgers, fries, tacos, and friend chicken don't really require utensils - in fact no utensils are offered.) But the evolution of flatware is truly fascinating if you have a couple of minutes.
Obviously in primitive times knives came first, made from sharpened stone or flint, which could be used both to cut and lift the food on the point of the knife. Then, as early humans started leaning how to cook, like boiling vegetables and creating recipes, spoons came next - apparently and urgently needed to protect the skin from steam.
But get this: when forks were first introduced as eating utensils it bordered upon scandal, heresy, and wickedness. Why replace using the tip of a knife with a fork? It was considered pretentious, effete and unworthy of nobility. In fact, some catholic writers in the Vatican challenged it's very use as opposed to our God-given fingers for lifting food to the mouth.
While the origins are obscure, apparently forks were developed in the east, Persia most likely, but perhaps the Byzantine empire first introduced the use of a personal table fork. It crept it's way into southern Europe first, and Italians found it particularly useful in their much-beloved pasta creations. Then when Catherine de Medici left Italy to become Queen of France in the mid 1500's, she brought forks along and taught the reluctant French how to use them in court.
Northern Europe was slower to adopt the fork, considering it to be a silly Italian affectation, and it apparently didn't reach England until about the late 17th century. But when Queen Victoria clocked in, all hell broke loose. It was embraced wholeheartedly by the Victorians in the 1800's when proper manners demanded that fingers never touch food. With no TV, internet or smart phones there wasn't much to do in the evenings except fuss with your food. And from that point on dozens upon dozens of utensils were invented, way beyond the basic knife, spoon and fork. One fork simply wasn't good enough for the Victorians; you needed a dinner fork, a salad fork, fish fork, shrimp fork, a beet fork, pickle fork, lobster fork, all kinds of serving forks, and finally for the last course, a dessert fork. The list of knives and spoons is almost as long.
In reality, there's no definitive answer as to how many types of eating utensils there are in this world, from stone and flint knives to chop sticks in the far east to all the madness of the Victorian age. Plus the fact that it's all still quite fluid with designers coming up with new looks and styles all the time. Like the Australian-designed Splayd, or this silliness from Dine Ink.
As you know, dining utensils come in materials ranging from plastic to various kinds of metals such as stainless steel, all the way up to sterling silver - and sold in stores that range from Target to Walmart to Tiffany's. Here's a look at some amazing utensils you might have never seen or even thought about. It's from the Silver Queen: Sterling Dictionary of Flatware Pieces
At the all-night diner where I sometimes go for the blue-plate special, there's a cheap knife, spoon, and fork all rolled up together in a paper napkin. Without any reflection on history or how this all came about, it's entirely adequate to get through the evening meal, isn't it?
Queen Victoria can rest peacefully that our fingers never touch the food with just these three basic utensils, and I feel rather sure she would forgive us if we don't eat our hamburgers with a knife and fork.
Thanks for dropping in this evening,
Andrew
In prehistory primitive people ate with their hands and fingers, of course. (In modern-day America we've pretty much reverted to that level with our fast-food restaurants. Burgers, fries, tacos, and friend chicken don't really require utensils - in fact no utensils are offered.) But the evolution of flatware is truly fascinating if you have a couple of minutes.
Obviously in primitive times knives came first, made from sharpened stone or flint, which could be used both to cut and lift the food on the point of the knife. Then, as early humans started leaning how to cook, like boiling vegetables and creating recipes, spoons came next - apparently and urgently needed to protect the skin from steam.
But get this: when forks were first introduced as eating utensils it bordered upon scandal, heresy, and wickedness. Why replace using the tip of a knife with a fork? It was considered pretentious, effete and unworthy of nobility. In fact, some catholic writers in the Vatican challenged it's very use as opposed to our God-given fingers for lifting food to the mouth.
While the origins are obscure, apparently forks were developed in the east, Persia most likely, but perhaps the Byzantine empire first introduced the use of a personal table fork. It crept it's way into southern Europe first, and Italians found it particularly useful in their much-beloved pasta creations. Then when Catherine de Medici left Italy to become Queen of France in the mid 1500's, she brought forks along and taught the reluctant French how to use them in court.
Northern Europe was slower to adopt the fork, considering it to be a silly Italian affectation, and it apparently didn't reach England until about the late 17th century. But when Queen Victoria clocked in, all hell broke loose. It was embraced wholeheartedly by the Victorians in the 1800's when proper manners demanded that fingers never touch food. With no TV, internet or smart phones there wasn't much to do in the evenings except fuss with your food. And from that point on dozens upon dozens of utensils were invented, way beyond the basic knife, spoon and fork. One fork simply wasn't good enough for the Victorians; you needed a dinner fork, a salad fork, fish fork, shrimp fork, a beet fork, pickle fork, lobster fork, all kinds of serving forks, and finally for the last course, a dessert fork. The list of knives and spoons is almost as long.
In reality, there's no definitive answer as to how many types of eating utensils there are in this world, from stone and flint knives to chop sticks in the far east to all the madness of the Victorian age. Plus the fact that it's all still quite fluid with designers coming up with new looks and styles all the time. Like the Australian-designed Splayd, or this silliness from Dine Ink.
As you know, dining utensils come in materials ranging from plastic to various kinds of metals such as stainless steel, all the way up to sterling silver - and sold in stores that range from Target to Walmart to Tiffany's. Here's a look at some amazing utensils you might have never seen or even thought about. It's from the Silver Queen: Sterling Dictionary of Flatware Pieces
At the all-night diner where I sometimes go for the blue-plate special, there's a cheap knife, spoon, and fork all rolled up together in a paper napkin. Without any reflection on history or how this all came about, it's entirely adequate to get through the evening meal, isn't it?
Queen Victoria can rest peacefully that our fingers never touch the food with just these three basic utensils, and I feel rather sure she would forgive us if we don't eat our hamburgers with a knife and fork.
Thanks for dropping in this evening,
Andrew
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