Top Ten Worst Food Trends of the Decade

Thought this was interesting. Can't disagree with any of it!

http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2 ... _decad.php

I agree with everything except #7...bacon DOES go with everything! (you knew someone would uphold the reputation of bacon!). Now what happened to #8? Funny article.

Drew

Yawn. Cut from the same dull cloth as that list of 100 things waiters should/shouldn't do.

Ummmm...what about FOAM?! For goodness sakes, that should be number 1 and it didn't even make the list. Otherwise, it was pretty funny...although, I also think bacon goes with everything.

Funny article, but they forgot garlic mashed potatoes so many restaurants serve with beef, chicken, pork, lamb.....I am so tired of it. Now that I think about it, this must be the reason we have not gone out for dinner much lately. This is a big meat and potatoes town, but someone has got to have some creativity.

I like the last one because I too dislike the term 'foodie'. It just sounds so childish and silly. But, I wouldn't say that people who call themselves 'foodies' are part of the problem. We can't all be as reflective and obsessed as those of us around here. So I'm happy even for a general increase in the level of attention to food.

So I'm happy even for a general increase in the level of attention to food.

That is my one and only defense for Rachael Ray. While I despise almost all of what she represents, if she can convince a soccer mom somewhere that would otherwise stop at Burger King or Wong's Wok on the way home and pick that up for dinner for her family and instead drive past and actually go home and cook a family dinner, well then I think RR may have done at least one good deed.

So I'm happy even for a general increase in the level of attention to food.

That is my one and only defense for Rachael Ray. While I despise almost all of what she represents, if she can convince a soccer mom somewhere that would otherwise stop at Burger King or Wong's Wok on the way home and pick that up for dinner for her family and instead drive past and actually go home and cook a family dinner, well then I think RR may have done at least one good deed.

Indeed. And from a purely selfish perspective, there aren't enough of us around to support all the businesses we may like. So we need some 'average palates' spending money in the right places!

What's a slider?

I used to like Natalie Portman.

Slider = greasy hamburger - in my experience pejorative but apparently now not only acceptable but desirable. Ugh!

Slider = greasy hamburger ... not only acceptable but desirable

Oh dear god.

I agree with everything except #7...bacon DOES go with everything! (you knew someone would uphold the reputation of bacon!). Now what happened to #8? Funny article.

Drew

The #8 was covered by the two #11s.

Opinions are like..., everybody has one!

I agree with everything except #7...bacon DOES go with everything! (you knew someone would uphold the reputation of bacon!). Now what happened to #8? Funny article.

Drew

The #8 was covered by the two #11s.

How'd I miss that with all my years of observational training? Happy New Year, Carl, and to all.

Drew

Slider = greasy hamburger ... not only acceptable but desirable

Oh dear god.

To be more precise, a slider is not just any greasy burger. A slider is a small, steam-grilled hamburger that can be eaten in a bite or two. Sliders were popularized by White Castle hamburger joints: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Castle_(restaurant)

A few days before Xmas, a friend gave me a Slider Station to make my very own sliders, seen here with pitchman Billy May: https://www.bigcityslider.com/flare/next

And here's a blog with a recipe: http://armidacooks.blogspot.com/2007/07/hamburger-sliders.html

Slider = greasy hamburger ... not only acceptable but desirable

Oh dear god.

Matilda,
It has been my experience that, just as the word "martini" has been bastardized to mean anything in a martini glass (#15), the "slider" has come to mean anything on a mini-bun or dinner roll. I have been offered meatball sliders, ham and cheese sliders, chicken salad sliders..you name it. The end result, IMHO, is that one ends up with twice as much bread product as filling. A sneaky way to "super-size", because nobody eats just one!

JB

This list seems a bit premature, since that the first decade of the twenty-first century doesn't end until 31 December 2010 (the numbering system for years starts at one, not zero, folks!). I have full confidence in the restaurant industry to dream up new abominations over the coming year.

What, I hesitate to ask, is "deconstructionism" as applied to food? What comes to mind for me is the bad table manners as kids that used to cause our mom to scold us, "don't play with your food".

It's too bad to see how the term "martini" has been debased to mean just about any alcoholic drink. Well, it joins "fajitas" and "coulis" in that department.

I'm surprised that "slider" has become so popular on restaurant menus, though. For me it always evokes memories of those greasy little horrors they serve at White Castle. I wince whenever I see the term "slider" on a menu at a hoity-toity restaurant. Gee, why don't they use the other nickname for White Castle hamburgers--"belly bomb"?

-Paul W.

Another variant: "gut bomb."

Sorry, Paul.

In the immortal and recent words of Paul Krugman regarding the whole dating thing: "Nobody cares very much."

What, I hesitate to ask, is "deconstructionism" as applied to food?

Deconstructing a dish into its specific components. So a 'deconstructed' BLT would have bacon, lettuce, tomato, bread, and perhaps mayonnaise, but not served in the form of a sandwich and most likely separated on the plate with each ingredient prepared in a distinct way.

[Jenise]

I think this guy's throwing the baby out with the bathwater. If it's trendy, he's against it, without pausing to consider whether or not there was any real or lasting benefit associated with any of the things he named. God forbid nothing trendy ever happened and everything stayed the same--we'd all be bored out of our minds. Small plates? I happen to be someone who often ordered three appetizers instead of the usual one plus a main course, I prefer the variety. Truffle oil? Love it--oh sure, every restaurant under the sun was using it for awhile, but as a pantry staple it's here to stay. Sliders? It's about time!

If this guy really wants to do the world a favor with his complaints, he'd order every restaurant in the land not making a caesar salad from scratch tableside to take caesar salads off their menu. Now THAT would actually do mankind some real good.

Harrumph.

Truffle oil and garlic mashed potatoes became so popular because they taste so good. I agree with Jenise that there's nothing wrong with inventing new classics.

-Paul W.

This is merely rote reactionaryism posing as criticism. I don't think the author could even name a single food trend from the past decade that he likes! Just find a way to rain on the parade of each and every innovation that comes about, whether warranted or not.

There is one trend that I find abominable - breakfast bars. I don't know whether this really took off in the 90s or 00s, but if you want a candy bar for breakfast while commuting to work, just call it a candy bar.