२० जानेवारी, २०२४

"The problem with eating out in America today is that it’s making us fat."

"Studies done at my laboratory at Tufts University showed that the relationship between eating out and weight gain is very straightforward: The more frequently you eat out the more likely you are to carry excess pounds.... Our metabolism, hunger, and even the synthesis of addiction neurochemicals like dopamine are controlled by our environment.... When we see, smell, or taste something good, the sensory signals that get into our brain through our eyes, nose, and mouth activate what is known as the cephalic (preparatory) phase of digestion. Our saliva secretion increases; our blood glucose drops; our stomach muscles relax (so we have a larger stomach that needs more food in it to feel full); and our digestion accelerates (so we can put away that food more quickly to get ready for more)....."

From "Why Restaurants Make You Fat/Restaurant Syndrome: 1. Eat out. 2. Eat too much. 3. Feel bad. 4. Repeat" by Susan B. Roberts (The Daily Beast).

By chance, last night, I was watching a movie where there were characters who regarded a restaurant as a strange new form of business that was going to wreck the good thing that they had going (a saloon). 

Dialogue: 
"Have you ever seen a restaurant? They serve food. Next, the church will open up again...."

"The Judge is losing his grip. He's afraid of a place that sells vittles. Vittles and a pack of calf-faced girls...."
The "calf-faced girls" were the wholesome women who were coming to town to work in the restaurant — so different from the saloon women. 

Here's the Wikipedia article about the restaurant business depicted in that movie: "Fred Harvey Company."
Fred Harvey is credited with creating the first restaurant chain in the U.S. Harvey and his company also became leaders in promoting tourism in the American Southwest in the late 19th century. Harvey promoted the region by inspiring the "Indian curio" (native memento) shop, as well as guided tours through the American southwest called "Indian Detours." The company, with its employees including renowned waitresses later known as Harvey Girls, successfully brought higher standards of food service and cuisine to a region then mainly known as "the Wild West."... 
In 1883, Harvey... placed ads in newspapers throughout the East Coast and Midwest for "white, young women, 18–30 years of age, of good character, attractive and intelligent." The girls were paid $18.50 a month, plus room and board, a generous income by the standards of the time.

The women were subjected to a strict 10 p.m. curfew, administered by a senior Harvey Girl who assumed the role and responsibilities of house mother....

The restrictions maintained the clean-cut reputation of the Harvey Girls, and made them even more marriageable. Cowboy philosopher Will Rogers once said, “In the early days the traveler fed on the buffalo. For doing so, the buffalo got his picture on the nickel. Well, Fred Harvey should have his picture on one side of the dime, and one of his waitresses with her arms full of delicious ham and eggs on the other side, ‘cause they have kept the West supplied with food and wives.” However, just the opportunity to leave their homes, enjoy travel, have new experiences, and work outside the home was very liberating for thousands of young women.

So significant was the impact of the Harvey Houses and Harvey Girls that their female employees are said to have helped to "civilize the American Southwest." This legend found expression in The Harvey Girls, a 1942 novel by Samuel Hopkins Adams and in the 1946 MGM musical film of the same name which was inspired by it, starring Judy Garland.

Not to be confused with the Madison restaurant called The Harvey House. There's no Judy Garland movie about that.

At this point, you may be thinking, in the old days, people just weren't fat like we are today, and Judy Garland was never fat... was she? But that's a sad story:

“Most of her teen and adult life, she had been on either Benzedrine or a diet or both,” [her third husband, Sid Luft] wrote, explaining how Garland attempted to manage her weight. “Unlike other actresses, she could not successfully camouflage extra weight, especially because she was dancing and singing in revealing costumes. Just 4 feet 11½ inches, she could be underweight and still appear heavy or out of proportion onscreen.”..

Adding to the pressure surrounding food, the press often grilled Garland about her weight. In an interview in 1951, Luft wrote that she told reporters “I may be awfully fat, but I feel good.” (She was actually pregnant, and would later have an abortion).... 
Luft and Garland, who married in 1952, were living “virtually separate lives” a decade later. He said the constant struggle to diet caused her to descend further and drove them further apart. “If I were to show concern, she’d abruptly tell me to ‘f— off.’ ” he wrote.... 
She died in 1969 [at age 47] from an accidental overdose. “She couldn’t have weighed more than ninety pounds,” he wrote. “She was totally burned out. Destroyed. I couldn’t save her.”

५० टिप्पण्या:

gspencer म्हणाले...

"The 'calf-faced girls' were the wholesome women who were coming to town to work in the restaurant — so different from the saloon women."

Hooters girls could probably multi-task it.

D.D. Driver म्हणाले...

There is something about him giving some kid advice on his first car that (to use Gen Z slang) gives me "the ick." I can't quite put my finger on what it is. Maybe it seems arrogant and presumptuous? Did the athletic kid ask for this advice?

But it also reminds me that Biden is too fucking old to drive. If he was your father, wouldn't the family be having conversations about "taking away his keys"? That a common experience for "impressive families" when a stubborn old grandparent reaches Joe's age. Old Joe's gonna plow through a table of alfresco diners one of these days and, what? We are ALL going to pretend that none of us saw it coming?

Humperdink म्हणाले...

Friday night is take-out night at the local restaurant. Consists of broiled fish and cole slaw. The downside? Price is up about 60% since the demented one assumed command.

gilbar म्हणाले...

people used to go to Mc'Ds and get:
a hamburger, a fries, and a 8 oz coke

Then the hamburger became a Big Mac, the fries became a Large fries, and the coke became a large coke

Remember the old fries? they were a white paper sack, that would fit into the palm of your hand.
You can't even order them any more

MadTownGuy म्हणाले...

We watched that movie while riding the Southwest Chief from Chicago to L.A.!

On our last visit to Madison, we dined at the Harvey House. Love what they've done to the old depot and one of the passenger cars. Pricey but great food and service...worthy of the name.

MadTownGuy म्हणाले...

Best (used-to-be) Harvey House: La Posada, Winslow, Arizona.

We've stayed at its sister hotels in Las Vegas, New Mexico - The Plaza Hotel and Hotel Castañeda. Links to both on the La Posada website.

tim maguire म्हणाले...

Restaurants make us fat because the portions are too large. No need to gussy it up with stuff about neurochemicals and sensory signals. There's two meals worth of food on the plate and we eat it in one sitting.

Jim म्हणाले...

For the first year of covid, we went to no restaurants and ate carry out only 2x. I went from 225 to 215. My wife; 107 to 105. One thing we did figure out, ALWAYS take a Togo box. They give you too much food.

Kate म्हणाले...

Aw, love the Harvey Girls movie.

Jersey Fled म्हणाले...

“The problem with eating out in America today is that it’s making us fat”

I can attest to that.

Ernest म्हणाले...

During our Route 66 excursion – which we did from Barstow CA to Amarillo TX – we stayed one night at the La Posada Hotel and Gardens in Winslow AZ, originally a Harvey hotel. The hotel was nice for a restored historic property, but we were not impressed by the over-priced food at the Turquoise Room.

boatbuilder म्हणाले...

More "Science" from The Daily Beast.

The real problem with eating out these days is that it makes us broke.

wild chicken म्हणाले...

My parent was taking diet pills circa 1960. She was short too. The pills made her moody and she swung from one extreme to the other.

But she did stop taking them eventually though not after giving me a few for cramps. Yeah man! Kids get Rx for it now. I was born too soon! But I think it's messing up their moods too.

Anyway, she loved the Harvey Girls movie and we watched it together.

wild chicken म्हणाले...

I used to look down on waitressing but damn it's a good way to keep your weight down. Better than sitting on your ass all day.

Heartless Aztec म्हणाले...

We can never finish our restaurant meals. So we just order an extra salad and split one meal or sometimes just order an appetizer and two salads. We drink water.

Wilbur म्हणाले...

Here's a diet tip: Get Covid. I tested positive Thursday morning and have lost 3 lbs since then.

My restaurant experiences are different than described above. I always, yes always, eat about half what I eat at home. I fill up so quickly, it's strange. But I get to bring it home so there's that.

And Frances Gumm was too skinny to ever be attractive to me, especially as she aged.

Temujin म्हणाले...

I remember when raw food restaurants were supposed to be all the rage. I guess no one wanted to go out to eat raw carrots.

Robert Cook म्हणाले...

"Restaurants make us fat because the portions are too large."

Yep. Years ago I was dining with casual friends at a still-extant BBQ restaurant in NYC (named DALLAS BBQ) that had several outlets in the city. When the server delivered the food-laden plates to our table, I was astonished. I could consume only half of my meal and I said to my companions, "This restaurant's portions are too big!" They both reacted as if I were insane, unable to conceive anyone might ever complain about a restaurant serving "too much" food!

American restaurant-goers have been habituated to crave calorie-rich fatty foods, served in large portions.

rehajm म्हणाले...

Eat less AND move more…

planetgeo म्हणाले...

@tim mcguire: "Restaurants make us fat because the portions are too large."
#boatbuilder: "The real problem with eating out these days is that it makes us broke."

Solution to both of the above: For the last few years when we eat out we've been buying one meal and splitting it (take turns selecting). Delicious. Satisfying. Easily control our weight and our budget.

Howard म्हणाले...

Restaurants are modern opium dens for the obese addicted to metabolic syndrome. Brought to you by Oh Oh Oh Ozempic.

Aggie म्हणाले...

Restaurant dining is infrequent for us always an event with friends. If I eat at one more than once per week, I start feeling, I dunno, logy. Often too salty, often hyper-palatable, like it's been tweaked to assault your tongue - and too much to eat. Our circle of friends eats out pretty frequently - I guess they don't enjoy cooking as we do. And I don't like leaving food on the plate. We always take it home, and it's never as good warmed over (unlike my cooking).

If I'm working the land though, there's a gas-station taqueria on the way. It's got a huge parking lot usually filled with pickups/landscape trailers, utility trucks, workmen. Family-run and staffed 100% by women, many of them related. 'Mi Familia' - Best to-go tacos and burritos around, serving from 06:00 to 14:00. Everything made on premises, including the tortillas and tamales.

tommyesq म्हणाले...

That study feels like it might be confusing cause and effect. Does eating out "cause" one to be fat, or does the lifestyle choices (that include the decision to eat out a bunch) of an individual cause them to be fat? Also, does "eat out" mean sit at a restaurant with an elegant menu and wine list, or does it mean grab dinner at Burger King five nights a week?

hawkeyedjb म्हणाले...

"1. Eat out. 2. Eat too much. 3. Feel bad. 4. Repeat"

For a million years, humans and pre-humans could only dream of a world where this was possible. And when it did become obtainable, it was only for the very rich. Beware those who want to make it unavailable again (looking at you, Davos snakes).

Zavier Onasses म्हणाले...

Well, duh! Notable ingredients are corn syrup, grease, corn meal, and salt. Chicken nuggets: 1/8 inch cube of chicken encased in 3/4 thick envelope of heavily salted corn meal, soaked in hot grease, washed down with super size beaker of flavored corn syrup.

n.n म्हणाले...

Popular sex memes, liberal culture, sedentary lifestyle, and scientific mythologies promulgated by government, institutions, and corporations.

rcocean म्हणाले...

Around here, the restaurants are making people much less fat. The amount of beef and chicken you get with your meals have gone down by 1/2, while the prices have gone up at least 25 percent.

I would agree that eating out does make people fat. One thing is that if you're paying for a meal, you feel obligated to "clean your plate", since you're paying good money for it. At home, you many eat part of it, and have left-overs the next day.

I stopped going to buffetts for that reason. Plus, my wife hates them.

n.n म्हणाले...

The problem with eating out is one of moderation: to sustain single parent households, to pay for single/central/monopolistic schemes, to compensate for both mom and dad earning taxable capital, to support shared responsibility habits, to supplement undocumented deficits, etc.

BG म्हणाले...

People get fat from eating at home, too. Ever notice the long snack aisles in the grocery store? That and the soft drink aisles.

Mark म्हणाले...

Along with many others, I note the increase in portion size. In my suburb the two local burger places have both super-sized their burgers of late ... one only has double patties on the menu and the other one eliminated all burgers without cheese.

Prices higher too, of course.

My family of 3 regularly gets takeout from the good BBQ place as one order from them (intended for one person) feeds us all.

Ann Althouse म्हणाले...

"People get fat from eating at home, too. Ever notice the long snack aisles in the grocery store? That and the soft drink aisles."

Yeah, I think a lot of people just don't know how to make their own food. But if they would just make good choices when they are shopping, and limit what they have in the house, they could exclude the chips, cookies, ice cream, pizza, etc., that are involved in overeating.

tcrosse म्हणाले...

I had a restaurant consultant explain to me that the cost of the ingredients is a small part of the cost of a restaurant meal. Labor, rent, utilities are a bigger part. So in order to justify the high price the restaurant must charge it will put more stuff on the plate, which doesn't increase its cost by much.

Old and slow म्हणाले...

Blogger MadTownGuy said...
Best (used-to-be) Harvey House: La Posada, Winslow, Arizona.

I was here to mention this very place. No cooler hotel exists in such a shitty little town anywhere else on this earth that I've been.

I found myself in the Winslow emergency room a few years ago when my family was having a sort of get-together and all staying at La Posada. I told the ER nurse that our family was having a reunion in Winslow and he replied "Who's idea was that? Someone who really hates your family?"

I thought it was pretty funny.

Howard म्हणाले...

Shop the perimeter of the grocery store is a good rule of thumb. Fresh fruit and vegetables, meat, eggs, dairy, frozen fruit and vegetables. Every once in a while go down the wisles for coffee, spices, bone broth, canned fish and beans.

Narr म्हणाले...

One of the high points of my first and so far only visit to KCMO back in Nov '22 was learning about Fred Harvey and his girls. (Yes, I'm that kind of geek.)

The restaurants we frequent, whether Mexican, Asian fusion, Mediterranean, BBQ, or old-fashioned homestyle don't generally give us too-large portions, but they do often prepare their dishes with too much salt. I've become quite the picky customer and often tell them not to salt.

We almost never order desserts, and drink only ice water, and on the rare occasions when there's too much food we take it home.

Narr म्हणाले...

From Martyn Rady's wonderful history of the Habsburgs, p. 136--

Following Burgundian custom, it had been usual in the sixteenth century for Habsburg rulers and princes in Central Europe (but not in Spain) to be divided two ways at death, with their hearts and corpses separately interred. The practice of three-way burial began with the tri-partition of Matthias's corpse in 1619 . . . . The postmortem dissection of Habsburg bodies into three parts was not designed as a macabre death cult but had an intensely religious purpose. The three-way housing of the corpse in separate churches increased the 'treasury of merits' belonging to the dead person. In each church, Masses were recited for the deceased, and their efficacy was enhanced by the physical proximity of his or her remains, speeding the soul heavenward at thrice the pace of ordinary sinners.

The dissection of the corpse on death symbolized the intimacy of the dynasty's connection to the Host, which was displayed whenever priests performed a Mass beside a body part.

*******

Chopin's heart was sent to Warsaw, even though the rest of him is buried in Paris, IIRC.


Joe Smith म्हणाले...

Kind of shocking to die at only 47 and have such a huge impact in her field.

Kind of like Hank Williams only making it to 29.

As for restaurants, we didn't eat at one as a family until my junior year in high school.

I will always remember it...Black Angus.

To my dad it must have been a shock to pay that bill...

rcocean म्हणाले...

The restaurants version of a dish is often better thany yours. Their secret ingredient is tons of butter and/or Oil.

NMObjectivist म्हणाले...

It's french fries and soft drinks with unlimited refills. Get a burger and a bottle of water. You'll be fine.

Narr म्हणाले...

Sorry--that bit about the Habsburgs was meant for the Malia Ann thread.

Ralph L म्हणाले...

they could exclude the chips, cookies, ice cream, pizza, etc., that are involved in overeating.

I've taken to snacking on Aldi's fifty cent loaves of white bread with their spreadable butter, which has olive oil and sea salt, so it has to be healthy. At least I'm overeating cheaply.

Without eating out, I put on 30 lbs in my late 50s when my thyroid slowed down (honest). I'd hoped the Synthyroid would bring my weight back down, but it hasn't happened in 5 years.

Bruce Hayden म्हणाले...

“We can never finish our restaurant meals. So we just order an extra salad and split one meal or sometimes just order an appetizer and two salads. We drink water.”

We just made plans to eat at Olive Garden tonight. When we can, we ostensibly dine in, because the portions are maybe a bit better, and they don’t short you on pasta sauce. Same with the Mexican place down the block. And then they have the effrontery to ask for a (hopefully 20%) tip. Sounds bad? Except that we live on left overs. We will probably get 4 days of meals out of it, and then do it again, maybe Wednesday. Tonight it will likely be unlimited soup and salad, and you get to take one bowl of soup with you. I will likely also add a package of 10 meatballs, and one of their premade spaghetti orders. That easily stretches to 3 more meals. Maybe 4.

When we take our first set of grandsons out, we invariably end up at an upscale burger place, with generous portions. The funny thing is that the 20 year old does just like we do, and his 22 year old brother doesn’t overeat either. Both are bulking up nicely, with the younger maybe 190, and the older one 180. Younger one never had fat on him, and older one took it off living alone this last year in our house in PHX. Both work out - a lot. The people at these dinners who do overeat are their stepfather (nearing 240 at 5’9”) and the younger’s GF. Four years ago, when they first got together, she was cute and almost slim. At this rate, I expect her in a motorized cart by the time she is 30. Both of the over eaters order extra, and eat every crumb on their plates. It’s going to be interesting to see #3, now a freshman at ASU. Still thin, and his HS GFs were all lookers. None carried extra weight. I expect him to pick more upscale places with smaller portion sizes.

Final note. We crave fat, as we do sugar. Partly it is trained (my partner and her sister don’t have that craving because of how they were raised). But part of it is historical/environmental. We are very similar there to bears. Interesting to me, the other Apes don’t have our layer of subcutaneous fat. Why is that? One theory is that we (as a species) had a million or so of semiaquatic living, where the fat helped keep us warm in the water, as well as helping us float. With other related adaptations, we could be called the Swimming Ape (part of why we are the Naked Ape probably is probably related). Our subcutaneous fat layer seems to vary significantly by where our ancestors came from, because it is advantageous in cold climates, and a detriment in hot ones. This adaption is probably why most of our ape relatives were limited to warmer, even hot, climates, and we were able to expand our range throughout most of the world (tool and clothes making helped too). In any case, I think it likely that we got our fat craving, in particular, in order to build up our insulating fat, and to provide energy to keep us warm.

The Vault Dweller म्हणाले...

gilbar said...
Remember the old fries? they were a white paper sack, that would fit into the palm of your hand.
You can't even order them any more


I believe you can still get them though they are no default with any of the value meals. They are the small size.

MadisonMan म्हणाले...

Studies done at my laboratory
Talking about my laboratory rubs me the wrong way for some reason. It shows a lack of confidence IMO.

Josephbleau म्हणाले...

The La Fonda in Santa Fe was a Harvey House. Lots of stories about Oppenheimer and the Los Alamos guys hanging out at the bar there. A very nice place with lots of art. Supposedly when someone asked Oppy what was going on at Los Alamos he said they were making windshield wipers for submarines.

Jamie म्हणाले...

The restaurants version of a dish is often better thany yours. Their secret ingredient is tons of butter and/or Oil.

Exactly right. You really have to work to get homecooked food to taste as - I think the exactly right word here is "unctuous" because of the butter and oil, but I will go with "delicious" instead - as restaurant food. You have to use a lot of enhancements - excellent searing technique and browning just to this side of burning, more herbs or spices and especially more salt than you think you need, pasta water, pressure cooking, learning to make bread (of you eat bread) or make pasta from scratch (of you eat pasta), unexpected crunch or sweetness or tartness, strongly flavorful cheeses that you can use less of, a drizzle of the best oil you can afford, paying extra for the extra-fat and/or fermented "European style" butter and then using it very sparingly and at the end of cooking to preserve its flavor...

It's easier to cook really delicious and healthful food at home now than it's ever been, but it's still not easy. And it helps if you enjoy cooking, or else it just feels like an unending slog, I imagine.

Rocco म्हणाले...

“Why Restaurants Make You Fat…" by Susan B. Roberts (The Daily Beast).

Ann said…
“By chance, last night, I was watching a movie where there were characters who regarded a restaurant as a strange new form of business that was going to wreck the good thing that they had going (a saloon). “

So what saloon does Susan B Roberts have a stake in?

Jim at म्हणाले...

Haven't eaten out since COVID. Not even fast food. See no reason to start up again.

Bob म्हणाले...

A feature of the saloons of old was "free lunch." Robert Ruark wrote of the free lunch in his coming-of-age memoir The Old Man and the Boy:

"I never heard of free lunch," I said. "What was it all about?"

"Free lunch was an invention of the angels, thought up by honest bartenders to encourage the purchase of beer and to prevent drunkenness in the clients, so they could buy more beer without making a nuisance of themselves. When I was a younker a man with two nickels could feed like a king. The bartender was a little suspicious if you dug into the grub on the strength of one beer, but when you bellied up and ordered the second, you were a guest of the house and could eat your head off."

"What did they give you?"

The Old Man smiled wistfully, then blissfully licked his lips. "Everything," he said. "There would be a big glass crock of pickled pig's feet, and a wooden pair of scissors to fish them out of the brine with. There would be a bowl of hard-boiled eggs, naturally, and another of raw onions. Some barkeeps fancied hot roast beef, others liked cold tongue or cold beef, but they all competed to see who set out the best free lunch. There was usually a big loaf of salami, a bowl of mulligan, and nearly anything the Germans liked - - sardines, herring, and all sorts of cheeses. A man drinking whisky could run the course. A man drinking beer had to pace himself a little, so the beer could keep up with the vittles."

When Prohibition came, and they started making this needle beer and inventing whisky in the barn and sending people home with the staggers, the country died. Whisky, legal, might come back some day, but I vow there won't be any more free lunch to go with it. Things wont ever be like they used to be."

mikee म्हणाले...

Was Chicken Fried Steak invented via the scene in "The Last Picture Show" where Sam the Lion tells Genevieve, "What are you grinnin' about? Chicken fry me a steak and try to use meat this time!" Or is that just a bit of Hollywood faux historical trivia?

Restaurants overserve with large portions, and use lotsa butter, fat, salt to make the food taste good. Self control is perhaps the answer. Don't eat out without counting calories and limiting your own intake. (Said the fat guy to everyone else, who all nodded sympathetically.)