What/Who is a "Foodie"?

[Ling]

^Tripe and filet mignon were merely examples...I didn't mean that everyone must enjoy offal for me to think they like good food. I regard filet mignon to be relatively flavourless compared to other cuts of meat, and it's expensive to boot. My example was more to illustrate someone who orders something that is expensive, regardless of flavour.

(Of course, as you suspect, I do very much enjoy elaborate tasting meals, but I equally enjoy a good $2 carnitas taco. )

[FabulousFoodBabe]

Foodie = Food Groupie.

[hsimay]

Foodie = one who lives to eat.

I used to eat just about anything just for the experience of it, from fried ants to whales (yes don't kill me, I have tried a piece decomposed whale meat) to any body part of an animal that was considerable untouchable by the rest of the mass population

Then I became a seafood-vegetarian.

[Jaymes]

Wow.  The various definitions and meanings to different people really run the gamut.  I never ever realized that the term had slightly negative connotations.  I think most people in this forum are foodies to some extent, but I don't think the term is all-encompassing. 

If you "never ever realized that the term had slightly negative connotations," you're lucky. It shouldn't. It should be a fun and inclusive word describing fun and inclusive people that enjoy a fun and inclusive activity.

But unfortunately, after you're on eG for a while you'll realize that every time this subject comes up, which it does about once a year, the same crowd of "usual suspects" arrive to tell you how much better they are than those awful, trendy, no-nothing, pretentious, chef-groupie, lemming-like foodies.

That's okay, hungryCAT. If you're a foodie, you can hang with me. I'm one, too.

And damn proud of it.

[daisy17]

Like Ling, I've always really disliked "foodie" - to me it sounds pretentious and snobby. There are people (who probably call themselves foodies) who want to go to the "best" restaurants only because it's hard to get a reservation and they want to say they've been there; they don't revel in the experience of eating, their faces don't contort with ecstasy at a new bite, they aren't moved by any of it, and I feel incredibly sorry for them. I consider myself someone who just loves food. I seek out food pleasures wherever and whenever I can, whether it be addictive tacos on a dusty mexican street or a deeply satisfying, exquisite meal at the French Laundry. I remember the first time I lurked on egullet, years before I actually got up the nerve to join and post, I was astounded and relieved that I had finally found so many people who were like me. I don't care what you call yourselves. But I know that you think about food as much as I do, and I like it.

[johnsmith45678]

I agree with Ling, Simon_S, and daisy17. The time I see the term foodie used the most is by newspaper writers in the food section in which they brag -- er, write about the latest and greatest restaurants they've been to. It's like they're food socialites. You never see these people writing up about how they went to a farmers market, bought all these great ingredients, then made something fantastic (oh, yeah, because they're amateurs). If people at farmers markets refer to themselves as foodies, I've never heard it - or maybe if pressed they would admit they are, but they don't wear it like a badge of honor like the food socialites/snobs do.

Edited July 27, 2006 by johnsmith45678 (log)

[hungryCAT]

Wow.  The various definitions and meanings to different people really run the gamut.  I never ever realized that the term had slightly negative connotations.  I think most people in this forum are foodies to some extent, but I don't think the term is all-encompassing. 

If you "never ever realized that the term had slightly negative connotations," you're lucky. It shouldn't. It should be a fun and inclusive word describing fun and inclusive people that enjoy a fun and inclusive activity.

But unfortunately, after you're on eG for a while you'll realize that every time this subject comes up, which it does about once a year, the same crowd of "usual suspects" arrive to tell you how much better they are than those awful, trendy, no-nothing, pretentious, chef-groupie, lemming-like foodies.

That's okay, hungryCAT. If you're a foodie, you can hang with me. I'm one, too.

And damn proud of it.

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I'm right there with ya, Jaymes!!

[hungryCAT]

I've always thought the term "foodie" referred to pretentious people who collect Michelin stars, but don't necessarily know much about food/cooking.

Maybe it's the air-quotes thing...I dunno. I really hate the term. In my own experience--present company excluded, of course--people who refer to themselves as foodies are those who actually know the least about food. They are the kind of people who will rave about a mediocre meal at a top restaurant because the restaurant has a reputation, and is expensive. They can't see past the price tag, the ambience, and the polished service and realize that the food itself is not that great. They are ones who wrinkle their noses at things like tripe or tendon, and instead order the $70 filet mignon.

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I can't see myself having a mediocre meal and thinking it was wonderful just

for the sake of saying so. Now, I did mention earlier that atmosphere sometimes makes a

difference, but sometimes not. There's a restaurant that opened not far from my home a few months

ago. Nice ambience, attentive servers and . . . average food.

I've been there 3 times and I've tried to enjoy it, but just can't.

I've since given up on it. I just can't imagine a foodie-type not seeing an average

meal for what it is - average.

[MarketStEl]

It's been my impression so far that most people on eG are not of the type who look down their noses at well-prepared, tasty humble fare simply because it is humble while extolling mediocre food at a fancy restaurant simply because you have to take out a second mortgage to eat there.

[Jaymes]

In my mind, a foodie is a food nerd/geek, and also somewhat snobby, elitist, trendy, fussy, etc. And they're also amateurs (i.e. they've never gone to culinary school and/or worked as a cook/chef). I think such a definition is necessary because I just can't bring myself to label somebody like Anthony Bourdain as a foodie - to him, the dining experience is irrelevant (he'll eat anything, anywhere), it's the food itself; to a foodie, they usually seem to expect to fine dining atmosphere and great service and foods that are high end. Even though AB is becoming more and more of a (gack) TV personality (I think he needs to get back in a kitchen pretty soon).

I thought of this while perusing the "No Reservations" thread. Somebody over there posted this link: Weekend America.

I found this bit particularly interesting: "Bourdain talks to Bill and Alex Cohen about the two blissful days he had in Beirut as a foodie, and the subsequent week he and his crew spent trapped in their hotel."

"Bourdain....as a foodie," eh? I wonder if they intended to be insulting. I wonder if Bourdain took it that way.

I'm bettin' the answer to both questions is no.

Edited July 30, 2006 by Jaymes (log)

[johnsmith45678]

No...but in pointing that out, they're saying that he's so obsessed with food that that was the main (almost exclusive?) reason for his travel.

[Chufi]

Nederlands (Dutch)

iemand zeer geïnteresseerd in eten

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thanks. I'll be using that one.. "Hi, I'm Klary, and I am very interested in food"

[percyn]

In my definition a Foodie = an appreciator of good food.

[Daniel Rogov]

When Anne Barr and Paul Levy wrote "The Official Foodie Handbook" the term foodie had a certain appeal to it - an almost self-derogatory and self-amused, perhaps even post-modern point of view. When used in that sense, I have no objection whatever to the word but when used in earnestness it rings of being just a bit too cute, a bit too self-congratulatory.

Personally, when it comes to fine dining I think more of the gourmet who might be considered "a distinct species of people who give priority in all human affairs to the discriminate pleasures of the palate".

To the gourmet, this connoisseur of fine food and drink, gastronomy is part of a humanistic vision. After all, one of the reasons we human beings are unique is because we are the only animals who cook our food, and are capable of eating when we are not hungry. Nothing to the gourmet could be more gratifying to the gourmet than the satisfaction of the palate, and no social act is more enjoyable than that of sharing a meal and meditating on its merits. Literary critic Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve, a famous gourmet in 19th nineteenth century France, bemoaned the fact that he had to earn a living, in the following words: "But rejoice my little stomach, for all that I earn is yours.".

Now it is true that gourmets exaggerate, but they do so in the sense of fun. In that, I'm as opposed to "foodies" as to those who sit down to "din-din" but I'm all for the gourmet

[Jaymes]

Now it is true that gourmets exaggerate, but they do so in the sense of fun.  In that, I'm as opposed to "foodies" as to those who sit down to "din-din" but I'm all for the gourmet.

Unfortunately, the words don't seem to really matter that much. Folks that want to categorize other classes of people as being inferior in some way will manage to do that.

I've certainly heard many, many people deride "gourmet" as having most of the negative aspects that some people here ascribe to "foodies." Although "gourmet" doesn't seem to summon the groupie aspect, I know many people that, when asked if they are a "gourmet," will say emphatically, "Oh, no. I HATE that term. That implies that I'm trendy, fussy, pretentious, etc., and only interested in haute cuisine blah blah blah...."

So what are you gonna do. As I said, the nomenclature doesn't seem to really matter. People that want to look down their noses at others are going to figure out a way to do it.

Myself -- as I've said, I have no problem being labeled a foodie. Or gourmet or gourmand or any of the rest of them, either. To me it just means that I enjoy and am interested in food.

Which in my view, is a very good thing.

[hungryCAT]

I am reading The Nasty Bits. On page 198, in reference to one of his

dining experiences in Vietnam, Bourdain writes

" . . . I quickly duck under the tarp, walk bent over at the waist to the table, and scrunch down and try to find

someplace for my knees among a large, extended family of Vietnamese.

Linh, a fellow foodie, just smiles and shakes his head."

Next page -

"What do you eat here?" I inquire.

"Eel," he replies. "This is the eel shop. Only eel."

"How did you find this place?' I ask.

"A friend took me here. He knows I like eel - and he heard about it from

a friend."

I explain to Linh what the word 'foodie' means and he seems very pleased.

"Yes," he agrees. "Often you must go off the road. You must investigate."

Apparently, the word is not offensive to Tony, and if it's good enough for him,

well, it's certainly fine with me!!

[scubadoo97]

In your opinion, what makes a foodie a foodie??

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A foodie is anyone interested in food. The diversity and complexity of foodies must be as endless as the all the recipes of all the cuisines of all the world!

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I would agree a foodie is one who has a intense interest in food. Not all foodies can travel or dine at the best restaurants. When your most important decision when you wake is what you're making or where you're going for dinner you are a foodie.

[s_sevilla]

This makes me want to bring up my little adventure last weekend....tell me if it makes me a foodie:

I went on a 10-hour bike ride just so I could have an excuse to ride through Napa valley and visit Bouchon Bakery to get a couple of croissants.....needless to say, they tasted really damn good, probably the best I've ever had, although that could be the heat induced delirium and exhaustion.

I also have a great interest in home production of food-stuffs and local produce, although I would say this classifies me as more of a slow-foodie, Although I would tend to agree with some of the first posts stating that a foodie is someone who seeks out different, specific, and new experiences in food. I believe the person going on a pilgrimage to various taco/burrito places is as much a foodie as a person visiting the 4-star restaurants of a region, or someone sifting through their farmers market looking for heirloom varieties of fruit/veggies.

[ThatGrrl]

As to whether one can be a professional (as in a chef or one possessing a culinary school education) and still be a foodie, I'm thinking the answer is yes. To me, the term refers to a certain attitude about food.

Some foodies are not chefs or culinary school educated. Probably most of them, based on sheer number. More people seek out the excitement of new, varied and suprelative food experiences than are formally trained in food preparation.

Some chefs are not foodies. The joyless chef, who sees his job as merely a means to a paycheck, is not a foodie. If you do not enjoy your relationship with food, you aren't a foodie. At least, not in my opinion (for what it's worth).

Some chefs are both. In fact, they have sought out a career in food because of the depth of their love for all things food-related. I'd throw Tony Bourdain into this category.

Also, mark me as another who had no idea that the term could be used to imply an aspect of snobbishness or elitism. I associate it far more with a certain childish wonder and excitement about food, than the idea of setting oneself apart from or above anything. Quite to the contrary, I see foodies as people ever seeking to make new connections, with the enjoyment of food as a driving force behind it all.

[hungryCAT]

I agree with you whole-heartedly, ThatGrrl!!

[Jaymes]

Me, three.

[evongvisith]

The question of who is and isn't a foodie, as it pertains to being a snob, reminds me of how everybody here in Colorado complains that no one else on the road knows how to drive on ice or snow except themselves, when really they're just as careless as the next guy. It's always those other people that are the smug, picky elitist types, right?

FTR, I too agree with ThatGrrl -- the term "foodie" doesn't have to have negative connotations. I'm guessing most of the "non-foodie" population probably regards the likes of us with a certain amused benevolence, rather than thinking we're all snobs.

[johnsmith45678]

Another thing with the word "foodie" is that it ends in "ie." Such words are usually intended to denigrate those people they describe: trekkie, commie, kiddie, bookie, druggie, floozie, groupie, hippie, kookie, newbie, rookie, stoolie, weinie, ...

[hungryCAT]

I think you're reaching here, John!

[johnsmith45678]

I think you're reaching here, John! 

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Know of some "ie" words that are used to label people and that are flattering?