The Stainless Trough

        This is not a totally joyous subject for me to write about.  I have been taught that wasting food was wrong and cleaning up your plate is a virtue.  I guess no one wanted food scraps in the trash or we thought it was terrible to throw away food when there were starving people in Africa. It is too bad we cannot deliver our extra food somewhere.

        Weight Watchers worked on me and helped me realize that throwing away food could be a good thing. (Of course, choosing smaller portions is the best plan.) Then, there was the strong idea that some of the food that we were not eating was not “food” any way!

        My dad used to light up when he would talk about an “all you can eat” buffet.  Many people I can recall, as far back as the 1960’s, used to consider these dining establishments the pinnacle of pleasure.  I am certain that those who grew up in the Depression would find them an expression of the affluent life.

        I tread lightly.  Now, it is November, 2013 and times have changed.  Thanksgiving is nearly upon us and we as a nation have so much for which to be thankful.  I have never been truly hungry and I just bought a 25 pound turkey for Thanksgiving.

        Last Saturday night, my husband wanted to take me out for dinner.  Now, honestly, I usually pick.  It is not that I always want my way, but that he never has an opinion. I pick the restaurant by default; unless we are with friends and can get someone else to choose.  On this particular night, however, he had a strong opinion and I, biting my tongue, agreed.

        He chose an “all you can eat” buffet of national fame.  It was recently in the papers for hiding food from food inspection.  The initials are G.C. (I have often wondered why it was considered to be “golden” and why people would want to eat at a place where horses were corralled.)   My name for it is Stainless Trough.

        I was hoping that we might have to leave, because there were not many parking spaces. We finally found one, so in we went. It was very crowded that night. 

        You get a tray, if any are available, and silverware, if the pieces you need are available.  You get a drink, if you want one, and pay before you enter.  There are few seasonal decorations, but the most overwhelming sight is people.  People of all shapes and sizes, who were clamoring for plates and getting in lines in six or seven areas for various parts and pieces of a meal, were the overriding view on this occasion. A meal of epic proportions one can eat here; yes, it is an “all you can eat” buffet.

        We were looking very hard to find seats and the only seats to be found were in the furthest corner from the food.  You actually had to walk further to get from our seats to the troughs than any other seats in the establishment. No wonder no one else wanted them.

        The salad bar, taco bar, pizza bar, dessert bar, ice cream bar and hot food bar were totally surrounded by people dipping in all that food.  There were utensils to dip food, but the children and some adults did not see the need to use such items; fingers are easier and faster. I can imagine Melvin Udall, Jack Nicholson’s OCD character in As Good As It Gets, at this place.

         The most popular area was the place for the steak. The steak was cooked to order and bore a label as to how it was prepared.  I can also imagine how some people I know would find it incredible that for $12.99 you can get all the sirloin steak you wanted and all those other meats and fish, too.

         Tread lightly…It must be terribly hard to keep a place clean with all those hungry people.  Tread lightly…I actually had to tread very lightly and watch where I was going, because of the children underfoot and plops of mashed potatoes and pieces of chicken skin on the carpet. There were stacks of used dished and utensils and plates on every table waiting to be picked up. The stainless steel rolling carts holding just washed dishes and silverware were everywhere, but you had to be careful, because some of the melamine dishes just did not look like they had made it through the dishwasher.

         I never liked to go to buffets, because I thought I ate too much and I just did not like to see all that food sitting out there for who knows how long.  I just prefer not to see it all laid out like that. Cleanliness is another issue.  When restaurant food comes out, served to you at a traditional restaurant; some how you have the illusion of cleanliness and freshness, even if not the reality.  On this night, I ate very little.

        My husband had three steaks, lots of mashed potatoes and gravy, all kinds of other items and several dishes of ice cream.  Before we walked out, he left the older woman, who fastidiously, refilled our drinks, a generous tip; then he walked to the ice cream area and got himself an ice cream cone for the road.

        On our way out, he remarked that it was pretty “bad” and “when you have that many people, it is hard to keep it clean”; but he seemed pretty content to me.  My mom used to say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.  (I will write more about that later. Not that I am an expert on men, or anything…)  Tread lightly…

        As for me, an old Danish proverb says it best, “When serving food, first put out the flowers, then putout the food."