Doggie Bags

[Kikujiro]

Channel 4 over here recently ran a programme called Fat Plague examining one researcher's theory that obesity is caused by a transmissable virus. More here.

edit: 'recently', not 'reason'. I'm into rhyming typos now?

Edited February 14, 2003 by Kikujiro (log)

[Suzanne F]

To get back to the subject of doggie bags .... do you just ask for a doggy bag at dinner? Would you ask for one if you had leftovers at  lunch or breakfast?

I would, but then I'm another greedy fat American bastard. (Although in my case it's because I spend all day every day on my duff. Overeating is not the issue.)

Well, not if it were something like oatmeal, I guess. And certainly not for the excess toast. But the 90% of a Katz's sandwich I can't finish, or the remains of a platter of perníl and rice and beans from Sophie's Cuban Cuisine, sure. I am NOT greedy; I am frugal. If I cannot stop them from proffering outrageous amounts of food for my hard-earned money, or get them to charge me less money for less food, it is my housewifely stinginess that requires me to take what I have paid for.

The thing is, though, I WILL use that food when I get it home. I do not take it home to admire it; I take it home to transform it into another meal, thereby getting full value out of my dining dollars. Which I mentioned in this related Cooking thread. I would be happy to not be served excess food; but as long as I am, I cannot let it go to waist, er waste.

[Nockerl]

To get back to the subject of doggie bags .... do you just ask for a doggy bag at dinner? Would you ask for one if you had leftovers at  lunch or breakfast?

Many restaurants ask if you would like to take home your unfinished portion. Granted we aren't talking about a Daniel, ADNY or Bouley....

[Jaymes]

But the 90% of a Katz's sandwich I can't finish...

Katz's Reubens are one of my favorites for "plan ahead take-homes." I order the sandwich and an extra pickle and the take-home container at the same time (actually I do that a lot, and remove up front that portion of the meal I'm taking home - reminds me when to stop eating because I've had enough, and is far more appetizing BEFORE I begin eating from the plate rather than after). And I remove at least half of the corned beef from the sandwich before taking a single bite.

At home, the next day, I use that corned beef to prepare a PROPER Reuben Sandwhich, which Katz's are not.

[Ron Johnson]

He said twice a month, remember.  And half 422,000 is, er, about 230,000. 

Actually, I said:

"I would say about once per month each. Maybe twice."

Just to be clear, of course.

[Wilfrid]

I am repeating myself from other threads, but I too deliberately remove a portion of the filling from Katz's corned beef or pastrami sandwiches and use it for omelettes (or as Fat Bloke mentioned hash) the next morning.

[g.johnson]

Channel 4 over here recently ran a programme called Fat Plague examining one researcher's theory that obesity is caused by a transmissable virus. More here.

Not as stupid as if first appears, though even the scientist involved, N V Dhurandhar, is cautious. From an editorial he recently wrote for J. Obesity (6, 745-746, 2002):

The etiology of obesity is multifactorial, and includes obesity of neural, endocrine, pharmacological, nutritional, environmental, seasonal, genetic, idiopathic or of viral origin.

[Bux]

...there is likely to be a genetic component to how many calories an individual absorbs and/or uses.

The form that caloric consumption takes also has something to do with obesity. The body does not handle 100 calories of kale in the same way it handles 100 calories of bacon.

For much the same reason that a pound of feathers is a bigger burden than a pound of lead, I assume.

[yvonne johnson]

Wilf's mentioning a doggy bag from Katz's brought back a horrid memory:

Relatives and their friend visited us one afternoon after lunch at a deli. This friend offered me his doggy bag of chopped liver. I accepted this gift with aplomb, I thought, under the circumstances. (Once they'd gone, in the bin it goes, I thought, but I forgot to do so.)

Next evening, relatives and same friend at our place for pre-dinner drinks. I'd put out olives. Friend said olives didn't agree with him, and he asked if there was there any of that chopped liver left--that and crackers would do him. Oh yes, I said, it's in the fridge. As I got up, G. says, "Er, I put it in the trash."

Awkward pause.

Edited February 14, 2003 by yvonne johnson (log)

[Dave the Cook]

The form that caloric consumption takes also has something to do with obesity. The body does not handle 100 calories of kale in the same way it handles 100 calories of bacon.

For much the same reason that a pound of feathers is a bigger burden than a pound of lead, I assume.

Well, yes -- good point.

Volumetric considerations aside, however, the body puts cellulose to work in a different way than it does fat, as G alludes:

Eating carbs increases insulin which makes you hungry after the carbs have been processed. So you eat more. This is an oversimplification, but the point is that there are feedback loops, not all of which are negative.

[britcook]

... as G alludes:

Off topic (so sue me) but this is the first time I have ever seen alludes used in a grammatically correct fashion on a board (it's intransitive). Congratulations.

Back to topic...

[Kikujiro]

Wilf's mentioning a doggy bag from Katz's brought back a horrid memory ...

I once visited some friends of my parents for dinner and brought along, like a good kid, a box of chocolates. Next time I went to my parents house, there was the same box. I suppose recycling is a good thing.

I realise this is only tangentially related but what the hey.

[elyse]

I can't speak fr anyone else, but I also use restaurants as an opportunity to eat a selection of dishes that I would not typically eat, like an appetizer and dessert. To avoid being a statistic (and because I just can't eat that much) I eat less of my entree in order to accomodate a greater variety of food.

[KateW]

However, once I asked for something to be wrapped and the waiter forgot. The kitchen made a whole new order for me to take home.

This happened to me too. I had a crepes dish layered with cheeses and vegetables and it was very good but very rich. I had a rather large portion left over and I asked for it to be wrapped. Well we waited a while and it never came, so we flagged down the waiter. He told us it had been thrown away and they were making me a new one. It was irritating that we had to wait that long to find out what was going on, but I had a lovely pre-cooked mini crepes meal that I just had to throw in the oven for a few minutes.