# An expensive meal you couldn't eat?



## NancyNGA (Dec 10, 2017)

Did you ever go out to eat at a nice restaurant and order something you just couldn't eat?  

It was ingrained in me since childhood that you never waste food, because of the poor children in the world that didn't have enough.  Plus you never went out to eat, period, because it was too expensive.  But it happened a couple of times.  

Once was she crab soup, in Charleston, SC. Charleston is famous for this dish.  It was so thick, like trying to eat a bowl of fishy tasting pancake batter.  You could literally taste the calories. :yuk:  Couldn't go it.  Of course I never told this to my mother.


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## AZ Jim (Dec 10, 2017)

When I was a kid Mom used to say "eat your food, think of the starving children in China".  I used to think...Give it to them!!


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## Falcon (Dec 10, 2017)

Nope.   I've never been served anything I couldn't eat.  

I've never ordered anything with  which I wasn't  familiar.

Came pretty close one time when the hostess served spaghetti  flavored with fennel.

Who wants spaghetti  that tastes like licorice?


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## debbie in seattle (Dec 10, 2017)

AZ Jim said:


> When I was a kid Mom used to say "eat your food, think of the starving children in China".  I used to think...Give it to them!!



Think that’s a universal saying.


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## NancyNGA (Dec 10, 2017)

Agree totally about the fennel, Falcon.  I thought it was anise.  Anyway I really don't like licorice flavored pizza or spaghetti sauce either.  

Eating out is when I sometimes try things I can't, or won't, cook at home.  The only other time, I ordered shrimp scampi.  Had never had that before.  Wanted shrimp, but not fried for a change.  I just looked at the picture. 

Shrimp has such a delicate sweet taste, but it was so heavily loaded with garlic, you might as well have been eating boiled potatoes.


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## Kadee (Dec 10, 2017)

Yes about 12 months ago we went out with friends for my hubbies birthday ,We useally just have a Seniors meal at another location but decided to go to a more expencive hotel ....I ordered a roast ...I was served partly frozen sliced corned beef  like you get in a supermarket deli ...with cold  lumpy white sauce .,I quickly said no sorry that was supose to be roast pork ...he said sorry we ran out so this  is the “roast “ ...I didn’t eat it or get a refund as I didn’t want to cause a scene ...the self service salad bar was filthy 
I reported it to the public health department and the health inspector didn’t even know what corned beef was :yuk:


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## terry123 (Dec 10, 2017)

I usually know what I am going to eat when I go out and what to expect.  I usually know what is going to be served before I eat at friend's houses.  I am hesitant about eating much at my best friend's house.  She and her husband are Yankees and their food is quite bland.  When I lived closer to them they loved eating at my house since I use a lot of seasoning and they liked trying new things.  Her husband always insisted I bring my peach cobbler to church suppers as he loved it.  When I would go to retrieve my dish to leave, he would be scraping the dish clean.  They liked my southern cooking but preferred their blander food which was fine with me as I preferred mine.


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## Aunt Bea (Dec 10, 2017)

Not yet!


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## RadishRose (Dec 10, 2017)

No, and I do try new things, but there's not much left that's new to me except offal and most game.

Terry123, I'm a Yankee and my food is anything but bland, same with most people I know up here. Just so's ya know. It's true though, peach cobbler isn't a big deal here. Apples and blueberries are.


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## CeeCee (Dec 10, 2017)

Falcon said:


> Nope.   I've never been served anything I couldn't eat.
> 
> I've never ordered anything with  which I wasn't  familiar.
> 
> ...



Most Italian sausage is flavored with fennel seeds I think, don't you eat that either?  I'm not fond of fennel but do like it in Italian sausage.


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## Falcon (Dec 10, 2017)

I don't care for a lot of highly seasoned food.  Chefs and other cooks seem to know how much to use.

I HATE  garlic  with a passion !  If you eat a lot of it  even your perspiration  stinks.

I've been around peeps  who use a lot of it and it's enough to bring you to your knees !


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## RadishRose (Dec 10, 2017)

Not fond of licorice either but I LOVE fennel seeds in Italian sausage!

 Also, sliced fennel and onion combined with a demi-glace was used as a stuffing for a beef roast for a dinner I had at a friend's club- it was to die for!

I think when using it with savory, it's better than as candy.


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## SeaBreeze (Dec 10, 2017)

Steak Tatare (raw ground meat and raw egg), I ordered it when out with my husband and his parents years ago, without really knowing what it was.  Didn't eat it, but hubby and his folks took care of it for me, they liked it.


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## Pappy (Dec 10, 2017)

I’ve always liked sea foods. One time I thought I would try shark. Maco, if I remember correctly. Anyway, I just could stomach it. Was way to fishy and tasted almost like raw fish. A pricy dish to have to walk away from.


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## jujube (Dec 10, 2017)

AZ Jim said:


> When I was a kid Mom used to say "eat your food, think of the starving children in China".  I used to think...Give it to them!!



We got "the starving children in Africa", my husband got "the starving children in China" and my dad always said it was "the starving children in Armenia" at his house.  I think a lot depended on your religion....and where your church had missionaries....the Protestants in our area tended to get Africa, the Catholics got China and who knows who the atheists got....


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## Smiling Jane (Dec 10, 2017)

I was coming off a stomach virus one time when a couple of friends invited me to dinner at a seafood place I always enjoyed.

My fish entrée was served with its head on. I couldn't do it, no matter how hard I tried. I don't want my food looking at me when I'm at my best, much less feeling a little queasy. The waiter was very understanding. He took it to the kitchen, had it decapitated and returned it to me. It was delicious, but I still shiver when I remember how it looked originally.


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## NancyNGA (Dec 10, 2017)

Smiling Jane said:


> ...My fish entrée was served with its head on. I couldn't do it, no matter how hard I tried. I don't want my food looking at me when I'm at my best, much less feeling a little queasy. ...


Oh yeah, I forgot about that!  Happened to me one time also, 40 years ago.  I couldn't do it either. :yuk:


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## RadishRose (Dec 10, 2017)

Yep, I'm Catholic and I got China, where a child only got ONE baked potato a day and nothing else!


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## Lethe200 (Dec 10, 2017)

We eat most things. There's only a few things I don't care for - brains, beef tendon, chicken feet, pork trotters (altho my mom adored them!). Sea cucumbers are uninteresting; like jellyfish they are a "texture" food, with no real taste. 

Love foie gras, octopus, tripe, snails. Fish heads don't bother me, I used to go fishing. Don't bother my DH, either, since he's from Hong Kong and getting a whole fish is considered an indicator of better quality (you can't check the freshness of a fillet, but the eyes of a raw fish will show how fresh the fish is). 

Not much in love with lamb or chicken tartare, although I enjoy beef tartare if they don't pile on excess toppings. Fleming's Steakhouse gave us a beef tartare once that was so tarted up with sauces and greens and shaved cheese, the beef got completly lost. Better restaurants are usually smart enough not to do such ridiculous things. 

Certain recipes, whether homemade or restaurant, I don't care for. There are some dishes that are super-hot but without any other flavors. 'N'duja, for example, has never excited me, whereas a really exquisite Sichuan Lamb will have an amazing depth of flavors: salty, bitter, aromatic, sour, hot. And anything with the taste of straight Heinz white vinegar is _verboten, _as far as DH and I are concerned. Champagne vinegar, a good wine vinegar, coconut or palm vinegar, rice or cider vinegar - great. But serving fresh pickles that have sat in plain white vinegar and salt; no herbs, no dilution, no sugar - ugghh! 

However I once had a friend who liked to drink sauerkraut juice, undiluted, so it's definitely "different strokes for different folks", LOL.


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## treeguy64 (Dec 10, 2017)

I can't tolerate pepper of any kind.  I always tell my waiters to make sure no pepper is put on my order.  About 80% of the time, I get what I can eat.  The other times, I taste it, and it goes right back.  It's amazing how many times I've been told, "Well, it's pre-made, so we can't take the pepper out."  Really?  I cooked at three different restaurants, as a kid.  If someone wanted no pepper, I gave them no pepper.  With pre-made sauces, I simply made up a quick copy, sans the pepper.  No big deal.  I think many "cooks" these days are simply "by the numbers" plate compilers. Too bad.


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## treeguy64 (Dec 10, 2017)

Lethe200 said:


> Clip - - - -
> 
> However I once had a friend who liked to drink sauerkraut juice, undiluted, so it's definitely "different strokes for different folks", LOL.



I used to love kraut juice, until the high acid content started doing a number on me.


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## RadishRose (Dec 10, 2017)

I used to like pickle juice on a hot day after playing outside.......maybe we needed to replace salts?


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## Smiling Jane (Dec 10, 2017)

treeguy64 said:


> I can't tolerate pepper of any kind.  I always tell my waiters to make sure no pepper is put on my order.  About 80% of the time, I get what I can eat.  The other times, I taste it, and it goes right back.  It's amazing how many times I've been told, "Well, it's pre-made, so we can't take the pepper out."  Really?  I cooked at three different restaurants, as a kid.  If someone wanted no pepper, I gave them no pepper.  With pre-made sauces, I simply made up a quick copy, sans the pepper.  No big deal.  I think many "cooks" these days are simply "by the numbers" plate compilers. Too bad.



Plate compilers may be entirely too generous. I suspect what they are is glorified microwavers.

I ferment cabbage, sometimes with fruit. I only use salt and water, no vinegar.


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## Smiling Jane (Dec 10, 2017)

Lethe200 said:


> …Fish heads don't bother me, I used to go fishing. Don't bother my DH, either, since he's from Hong Kong and getting a whole fish is considered an indicator of better quality (you can't check the freshness of a fillet, but the eyes of a raw fish will show how fresh the fish is)…



The fish on my plate had not been raw for some time, so its eyes were no indication of freshness or quality.

I grew up hunting and fishing, and attendance at hog slaughtering every fall was mandatory. I've seen dead people and I've seen dead animals. I still don't want dead things looking up at me from my plate.


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## Ruthanne (Dec 11, 2017)

SeaBreeze said:


> Steak Tatare (raw ground meat and raw egg), I ordered it when out with my husband and his parents years ago, without really knowing what it was.  Didn't eat it, but hubby and his folks took care of it for me, they liked it.


Ewwww, yiiiiiick!  I couldn't eat that either!   I've yet to be served something I couldn't eat.


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