The Eating Out Generation

[Toliver]

In another current discussion ("A hunger for food television in the land ...., Food is an antidote to modern life?" Gifted Gourmet posted a quote from the FoodNetwork stating

"...Research shows that "the job of America" is to get out of cooking, not to spend more time cooking..."

And last week, while (ironically) eating out with my 73 year old mother, she was amazed at the number of people in the crowded restaurant. She said "Thirty years ago you would never see this. People didn't go out to eat very often back then."

Given that her assumption is correct, that a generation ago people didn't go out to eat as often as they do today, what's changed between then and now?

Do we have more comparative income so we can afford it now?

Or has the cost of eating out come down enough that eating out is more economically feasible for the average family?

Or is it just that there are more restaurants now so we have more options?

Do we really want to "get out of the job of cooking" and so we eat out more?

Or have we been "culturally trained" (through advertising and the media) to eat out more?

What's changed? And what will this mean for the next generation?

Is cooking at home an art that's becoming extinct?

[NulloModo]

I'd wager that some of it has to do with the fact that today it is much more common for both husband and wife to have full time jobs than it was thirty years ago. These days there are also many more single-parent/alternative families than there were 30 years ago. When there is not one person whose general occupation is 'homemaker' it forces everyone's hand in the family to adapt, either by taking extra responsibility, or by paying someone else to do it by going to a restaurant.

[Carolyn Tillie]

I think Nullo got it -- 30 years ago, my mother stayed home and cooked for her brood. Now, with just Shawn and I, there are too many occasions when cooking is just too much work after a long day at the office (yep, even for me at my lovely, lush office!)

[Carrot Top]

I agree with your mother, Toliver...and for all of the reasons you listed plus probably more.

To be a 'homemaker' in today's world is to be similar to a dinosaur, or close to it. It is almost an extinct species.

When given the variety of choices in life, women (who used to be at home cooking, providing the daily meals in general) in todays world will naturally for the most part choose what seems will be most rewarding.

My career history is as follows...( I've made a notation, also, with 'smiley faces' of the effects the statements I make about myself affect people I meet, the responses I generally receive.)

I was a working chef who became an executive chef in a fine-food environment.

I was a VP in the Operations Division focused on foodservices and made lots of money.

I am now at at-home Mom and will remain so till my kids no longer want me to greet them with a hug as they get off the school bus.

So...I think it is unlikely that many women will choose to stay home and cook in today's environment.

And for two-income families that work outside the home all day long...even moreso for those with children...it can be mind-numbingly tiring to try to sort out a decent meal to cook at home. So yes...family style restaurants come to the rescue. (And there goes the paycheck, unfortunately! )

It is good to read eGullet, though, for here....there are people who are still trying to make good food at home...whatever their situations! Great to see!

Edited September 23, 2004 by Carrot Top (log)

[Carrot Top]

Oh...to get a bit more to the point rather than my previous indulgence in the la-la land of one of my favorite hobbyhorses to rant on about...

'Surveys' by 'reputable' (does anyone wonder why I put in those quotes?) newsagencies report that American families eat three to four of their weekly dinners out at some sort of food facility (I haven't seen whether it is mostly fast-food or sit-down places...) so nope...it is not 'special' anymore for many folks but just a part of life.

[TheFoodTutor]

Do we have more comparative income so we can afford it now?

Or has the cost of eating out come down enough that eating out is more economically feasible for the average family?

Both, actually. More families have two incomes from both spouses working. And while my rent has doubled in the last decade, the cost of eating in restaurants - every level of restaurant from fast food to fine dining - has changed very little, and certainly not doubled.

Restaurants have been very competitive in keeping their prices down, in response to the number of choices that the average diner has when it comes to spending their money. That's one of the things that makes restaurant work so difficult.

[Carrot Top]

Both, actually. More families have two incomes from both spouses working. And while my rent has doubled in the last decade, the cost of eating in restaurants - every level of restaurant from fast food to fine dining - has changed very little, and certainly not doubled.

Restaurants have been very competitive in keeping their prices down, in response to the number of choices that the average diner has when it comes to spending their money. That's one of the things that makes restaurant work so difficult.

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Agreed. And what is terribly upsetting is that not only are many restaurants struggling along on slim profit margins....just trying to keep their guests happy and well fed....but the employees who are doing this job of making people happy are in many cases disenfranched, in terms of being part of the American Dream, because so few have health insurance. Small restaurant owners can not find the profit margin to offer it, often. This is a subject for a separate thread, (that I don't want to start because I will get too pissed off at the state of things) but your comments made me think of it....

[emilymarie]

"When given the variety of choices in life, women (who used to be at home cooking, providing the daily meals in general) in todays world will naturally for the most part choose what seems will be most rewarding." (copied quote incorrectly, sorry!)

I'd just like to say that many women still do choose to stay at home and raise their children. And while this may have been less an option and more a given back in the days of my mother's youth, this is one of the many choices that women have these days.

Having lived in New York City for four years, I noticed a few things: People ate out so much because there were so many restaurants to eat at, from noodle and sushi joints, to French bistros open 24 hours a day, to small Italian places where you can get a plate of pasta and a salad for $25. In addition to that when you work late, the likelihood of cooking becomes less and less attractive as the evening wears on.

As for more families eating out together, I think that everyone's hit it on the head--with 2 parents working, the whole dynamic of dad working and mom staying home and cooking dinner is no longer the reality. Dinner won't be on the table when the parents get home and then I think the same principle applies--eating out is just easier, especially with the plethora of family-friendly restaurants popping up everywhere where you know you can order off of a kids menu and not pay too much for it (not that I think the food is better at such establishments, per se).

I'd also like to add this: People may be cooking less because there is so much good-quality prepared food available (and I'm not talking Perdue cooked chicken breasts. YUCK). For example, Whole Foods carries a real varied display of prepared foods and baked goods that, while somewhat pricey, can replicate fairly well something you'd make at home, is not unhealthy, and requires minimal cooking/cleanup time. Even if people aren't serving whole prepared meals brought in from a supermarket, they are supplementing home-cooking with these items.

[Jujubee]

My career history is as follows...( I've made a notation, also, with 'smiley faces' of the effects the statements I make about myself affect people I meet, the responses I generally receive.)

I am now at at-home Mom and will remain so till my kids no longer want me to greet them with a hug as they get off the school bus.      

So...I think it is unlikely that many women will choose to stay home and cook in today's environment.

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For me anyway, this is a huge reason. Regarding cooking in general, I think when people find out that I cook well and we eat at home most of the time (especially unusual in our group of yuppie DINK couples), they might think that's cool, but in a condescending "oh, how quaint" or "are you trying to be Martha Stewart or Betty Crocker" way. It's not considered worthwhile for a well-educated young woman with a promising career to value cooking when you can just pay someone to do that (never mind food quality - but I think most people really don't care that much).

Similarly, and more directly to what Carrot Top was saying, my husband and I want to start trying for our first baby. We're in the talking-to-parents-and-friends-to-get-information stage. When I told my mother that I was considering staying at home for a few years, her response was that it was a waste of time and that my brain would turn to mush. I told her my job in Corporate America was mind-numbingly boring and I welcomed the opportunity to take a break, and hopefully change tracks into something I liked better in a few years. She said boring jobs were the best for raising kids, because then you could concentrate on the kids. Um?!?! Needless to say, this conversation ended badly soon thereafter. But my point is that domestic things, whether cooking or staying at home to raise kids (because it is hard to have both people work 12 hours - my current situation - and still get a meal on the table even without kids) is just not respected. Forget the lipservice ("Mothering is the most important job in the world.") When it comes down to it, most people look down on domestic activities, and while I would like to think I don't care about what people think, I do. And I think I’m not alone.

Edited September 24, 2004 by Jujubee (log)