You could be eating all day and all of the night
We judge absolutely everything we see. How
much is this? Is that good value? Could I get better? Should there be more?
Modern life is filled with the scrutiny and
the constant reviewing of situations, products and services.
Sometimes, it’s nice to just step back from
all the madness and think about the bigger things (touches his thumbs and
forefingers together while looking at the sky).
Now I am not getting philosophical or
anything, I am no Nietzsche (look him up, wink) or about to dye my clothes
orange and shave my head. When I say “the bigger things”, that is literal, not
theoretical – portion size.
I took in two meals in the past month that
have both been of good quality, but left me feeling a little confused,
questioning the very foundation of dinner-time appraisals.
The process of thinking started after a
very good meal at the East Coast Dining Room in Tankerton, Whitstable. The
beachside restaurant is somewhere I had eaten before – Review Here - and I had
a rough idea what I could expect.
As with the majority of things in life, you
get what you pay for– apart from with dentists and mechanics, those feckers
will be judged at the pearly gates – but in general quality costs cash.
The East Coast Dining Room delivers on both
quality of food, quality of service and general all-round goodness.
However, you do have to pay for the
privilege. It’s not that it is overly expensive, although it’s not cheap
either, but it does leave you wanting a little more. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t leave hungry but
I didn’t leave full either. You might say that is irrelevant if you had a
quality meal – and in the most part, I would doff my cap to them and agree.
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| Guinea fowl breast |
- Pecorino custard, mushroom jelly, herb croutons, radish and cucumber salad £8
- Roast guinea fowl breast, confit leg, parmesan mash, sweetcorn fritter braised baby gems £18.50
- Lemon sole, pea sauce, rainbow chard, garlic gnocchi, pickled grapes £17.50
But portion size is a real sticking point.
 |
| Lemon sole |
Some say that being left wanting more is no
bad thing and guarantees the customer’s purchase of a desert or coffee.
It is also argued that NOT feeling rotund
after a meal is a blessing.
And the more high-end restaurants might
dispute that filling a plate to the brim is a sign of poor quality, lack of
care or inadequate portion judgment.
But as the American style foods continue to
grow in popularity on menus and in wacky concepts – see Bubble Dogs, Patty
& Bun etc – should the varying portion sizes of UK restaurants come under
closer examination?.
We know how the yanks can be about the size
of their feed, - See The Great Outdoors with John Candy and “The old 96er”.
You rarely have to ask an American to
“speak up a little” neither do you have to ask if they’d like a side of ‘slaw
or beans or onion rings. It’s a given.
So should we be scrutinizing portion sizes
more closely?
It is a very difficult thing to do…. How
can you judge a really good steak against a sushi dish. You can judge the
quality, yes, but isn’t the object of eating to feel at least pleasantly full?
Though we enjoy it, we do eat to create
energy, to be able to write ridiculous blogs about eating and creating energy.
Anyone else's head spinning more than a chav on a children's round-about?
This brings me to my next restaurant
experience. The Woodford Bridge Country Club in Devon.
Six of us sat down to dinner at Cromwell's Bar & Bistro, set in the middle of a field, with no expectations whatsoever.
The food was of very good quality, nothing
swish or fancy, just tasty and wholesome. But not one of my party managed to
clear their plate.
The beer battered cod was monstrous. – and
could have easily been split into three pieces (as you can see from the picture it is bigger than a human arm). The burger was ludicrous and
its ciabatta foundations were the width of the plate even before it was heaped
with 6oz patty, pulled pork, smoked applewood cheddar, brie and salad.
The fish pie, featuring various white fish,
prawns and potatoes came with a side of potatoes and more vegetables.
Maybe they are more used to hungry farmers
coming into feast after a hard day’s work – I don’t know. But the portion size
was large to the point of offensive. Needless to say we took doggy bags home –
something I never normally have to do.
And it was modest in price.
I suppose the point I am trying to make is
where do you draw the line. There is a definite correlation between size and
price but I don’t know where or how it works or what the best combination is.
Once upon a time I would have thought,
bigger portions, more expensive.
But with the refined cuisine of modern
Britain – the normality has been turned upside down - it is usually the smaller
portions that end up being more expensive.
But what happens to the correlation graph
when the food is good, portions are massive and the price is low. My head is
going to explode. Make your own mind up.
What would you rather have in front of you?
One excellent partridge that may leave you hungry, or one average to good
turkey that you definitely know will fill you for days?
The top critics will lambast a restaurant
if they leave hungry, no matter how good the food is.
I guess it is just horses for courses. For
some size is important, for others quality.
But as Goldilocks found out, you will pay handsomely for those dishes
that are just right.
