Pet Peeve...

Wow how the time flies. I really have meant to be more diligent in updating this but life has a funny way of getting in the way. I have many topics jarring around in my head so this will probably end up being like a pressure relief valve and I will post until the voices quiet down and then take a break and then when they start up again, I will too.

There has been something that has been bugging me for years that occurs at many restaurants around town. It occurs in fast food places as often as upscale or fine dining establishments equally. I blame the culinary arts school for instilling a need in new chefs to make their plates look cool or pretty or different, etc...

Ok, here it is...

When you are served a salad, everything in the bowl needs to be in edible form and equally distributed! I should not have to remove things to further cut them down to size, I shouldn't have to take a pile of oh, lets say cheese, from one side of the bowl and sprinkle it around the rest of the bowl with my fingers and a fork. I shouldn't have to fish out and then cut down tomatoes, cucumbers, or anything else.

Recently I was at a place that shall remain unnamed for the time being that insisted on serving me wedges of tomatoes that were 1/4 of a whole tomato. I have a pretty large oral capacity for food as my wife and others can attest and yet I found these monster wedges to be ridiculous. If you ever have tried cutting a tomato wedge in a inherently unstable bed of lettuce with a plastic knife you know what happened next.

Having been in the "business" in various capacities from busboy to general manager, I know the drill when it comes to prep standards and serving specifications. It isn't the poor pimply faced kid behind the counter's fault - they are usually just doing what they are told to do. I blame the idiot in charge who thinks it's more important to have the food look pretty than be conveniently edible.