United States - Fatty Food Heaven?

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[Split from this thread. -Tal]

One thing I noticed whilst in America is just how MASSIVE everything is. The cars, the buildings, roads, streets, people. Everything is just supersized.

Plus, it's easy to put on loads of weight in America. Most places you can pay like, 5 or 6 dollars (which is like 3 quid - nothing) and get all-you-can-eat and everything is fatty. I asked for a salad in one place and even that was covered in a greasy looking fatty dressing. Even the drinks aren't kind to you. Most places do free refills on drinks, you just pay for the cup then get what you want. I had about 5 cups of cola in one place before I realised I was getting hair on my teeth, and visibly getting fatter! The portions are huge as well.

Having said that though, its a great place to visit. The people are friendly and welcoming (unless that's just for British people) and there's loads to do. I want to go back to America, and will do as soon as I have the money. I'd love to spend about a year or two there, just travelling around. Buy a camper van or something and just bum across the whole of America.

Just watch your waistline whilst there - it's easy to get fat!

 

Ha. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black... British cuisine isn't exactly the epitome of healthy eating, either.

Watch what you eat and how MUCH you eat and you won't gain weight anywhere. 5 cups of cola in one place? You were doing it to yourself, my friend.

 

Of course I wasn't. A gun was held to my head at the time.... [snip].

I said it was easy to put on weight, because it's hard to find healthy food and fatty stuff is really cheap. As I say, I bought a salad in one place and even that was greasy. The portions are loads bigger than anywhere else I've been, and I've been loads of places around the world. Is that so hard to fathom? Why kick off about it?

 

Christ, drop it. LOL! Nutters. I said portions are bigger than anywhere else and fatty food is cheaper. Travel about a bit and you'll probably notice the same. Everywhere I went in America, practically everything on the menu was fatty. That's my personal experience. Jesus, if I knew this was going to kick off, I'd have never have said anything!

 

BA, you most likely chose to eat at restaurants that you are familiar with (naturally) and that would most likely be fast food places. Unfortunately, one of our biggest exports is greasy cuisine. So, I don't blame you. I don't know how long ago you were here, but in recent years there has been a HUGE movement by fast food joints to clean up their act and give healthier options on the menu. Nowadays, "super-sizing" is not standard and neither are fires as a side. And this is coming from a guy that rather despises fast food. Anyway, I think it is rather unfair to characterize all of our food as greasy because that is absolutely not the case.

As far as the backlash goes against your comments go, we Americans are pretty well versed now at putting the blame for weight gain where it belongs after several lawsuits were brought against major fast food companies in recent years. The plaintiffs felt that it was McD’s fault for why they were fat and not their own eating habits. A total load of BS. So, yeah, you stepped in it there, mate.

 

Sorry, but as an American, I agree with BA. My wife is a prof at a university, so we know a lot of other professors and students from Europe, Asia, South America, etc. All of them consistently mention two things about American restaurants (not just fast food): huge portions, high proportions of fat and/or oil. Not to say you can't find healthy food here or that non-American food is a paragon of health, but it's a pretty accurate assessment.

As far as American fast food cleaning up its act, it's driven (dragged kicking and screaming is more accurate) by two main factors. One is the overnight success of Subway with its (relatively) healthy menu selection and marketing based on same. The second is the threat of litigation or regulation--NYC was considering banning restaurants from using trans-fats in their food. Let's not pretend that Hardee's is going to give up their 1400 calorie, 100 fat gram burger any time soon.

 

I'm surprised that any American would disagree with the assessment that portions are too big and fat content is too high at our restaurants. American nutritionists have been saying exactly that since as far back as the 1980's. Even our nicer restaurants tend to be quite fatty and often have too-large portions, which has been documented time and time again, so I really don't understand why you folks are getting offended.

 

They are huge portions and are excessively fatty, but I wouldn't have it any other way

 

And even scarier, some places, where the food is in over sized portions, still leaves some people hungry after they leave sot hey still need to go for junk food or high sugar deserts!

My family, most of the meals are meat and potatoes or pasta. I'm over 300 lbs, and with a bad back, excercise is unlikely. I guess I may be doomed to be oversized...

 

BA is spot on. It appears it is indeed the portion sizing that makes the difference. Make no mistake, French quisine is anything but not fat, yet still the French on an average are thinner, despite their fondness for it. They also eat longer when they eat.

Two links:
Increasing portion sizes in American diets: More calories, more obesity
Smaller Food Portions May Explain The 'French Paradox' Of Rich Foods And A Svelte Population

As for who's to blame: America is no nanny state, and I presume that the restaurants simply reacted on the market and sold what sold - larger menues, with the argument that they offer more for the same money. Of course that sells. And so it appears that man is still an animal, who, like my tomcat, eats when he can eat.

Health advocates blaming the food industry are, individual responsibility aside, right to some point - not caring for the health of the customer even when he is behaving stupid is poor sevice. Good bartenders and tavern wenches refuse more drinks when the customer has had enough. Try that in a restaurant: "No Sir, you've had enough considering your waistline!" Sizing is way more subtle, especially when considering that US service personnel is pretty dependent on tips.

While at it, how much does one as a polite person give as a tip in the US?

 

Depends on where you eat. At a fast food restaurant and some short order joints, not only is tipping unnecessary, but it is actually discouraged. At a buffet where you serve yourself and the waiter just brings you (non-alcoholic) drinks, it's customary to tip a couple bucks. In most other restaurants, the customary tip is 15-20%.

 

Heh, yes. I grew up in California and lived in the Bay Area for about 10 years. A lot of good restaurants, health food places, and vegetarian menu items (wife and I are both vegetarians). We moved to Durham for two years and were simply amazed at the prolific use of pork and bacon--it was hard to even find a vegetarian salad because odds were it had pork of some type in it. It's the same deal now that we're in Kentucky. I always thought comedians were exaggerating when they talked about Southern food being laced with pork, but apparently not.

 

This is why we don't eat at restaurants very often. My wife and I are healthy eaters (some would say health nuts). When we eat out, it is what we consider a cheat. We eat at nice places, but the food is still not as healthy as what we make at home.

 

What's wrong with pork? And while I'm at it... what's wrong with some fat in foods? The marbled beef is the best for a reason -- the fat in the beef adds flavor, makes it more tender, and keeps it moist. The fat is the reason porterhouse steaks and ribeyes are so good. I go out to eat for taste. If I eat a high calorie meal, I just adjust the next meal to lower calories or cut out snacks.

Most pork products actually have less fat than beef. It's a very healthy meal (a nice meal of grilled pork chops or pork loin).

The real killer in restaurants is the deep fried foods. I go to a restaurant and have my potato mashed or baked -- this has a fraction of the fat (especially of you avoid butter) and nearly half the calories as a side of fries. Here's a tip for people eating out: The deep fried ocra or deep fried green beans are not healthy. Sure you get a serving of veggies, but you also get about a hundred grams of fat. The blooming onion? That's 2,000 whopping calories of mainly fat.

Pick and choose what you eat. Yeah, the fried stuff tastes great, so eat that in moderation. Even McDonald's serves a salad and grilled chicken.

Two more words: Portion control. This is the responsibility of the eater, not the restaurant.

 

T2,
McD's salad sauce is sugar ladden and iirc results in the 'light' and 'healthy' salad to have about as much calories as a burger....

But I totally agree about portion control. When you eat the 'Lumberjack Dinner' but have an office job, don't be too surprised when you are not able to burn all the calories you eat. And I don't think that there are some evil fat meals (like some of my favourites) but rather (lack of) activities and a lifestyle that don't match their nutritiveness. That means practically, you can still eat them, albeit in smaller portions. Which is just fine with me.

And I agree about pork. In fact, while Pork tends to be fat, and takes longer to digest, it's nutritive content is easily absorbed, and is so it especially well suited for little children.

I disagree about deep fried veggies, T2. You're not talking about deep fried veggies but about prepared and typically pre-cooked deep fried food (like 'side modules'). Yuck. Big difference. When vegetables are left untreated (beans normally don't include so much fat), as good deep frozen vegetables ought to be, and just frozen right after harvesting and preparation (typically only a few hours later) they can be just excellent, (counterintuitively) even better and healthier than some of the fresh stuff you can get that can lie around for days.

 

I certainly hope you aren't referring to me, because in no way was I saying that I disagree that portions at restaurants are too big and too fatty. (Hint: they do that on PURPOSE! Eek!) And since nutritionists have been saying it since the ‘80s, it’s not exactly a secret!

What I was correcting BA on was the attitude that he had that it was all but impossible to eat anything here that wasn't fatty and greasy. I pointed out that even at McDonalds, the bastion of grease itself, it is now possible to avoid complete fat overload to some extent if you order right and eat right (like not putting all the dressing on your salad).

Furthermore, portion control is within everybody's ...er, control no matter how much food the restaurant gives you. There is no call to eat a 16 oz. steak, a loaded baked potato, a salad with fatty ranch dressing, vegetables steamed to a limp blob of dull-colored mush piled with more butter, and 3 or 4 rolls in one sitting. That could easily be 2 if not 3 portions. It's up to the individual to know how much is good to eat and not pin it on the restaurant. All of those things I mentioned could be healthy if ordered correctly and most restaurants will accommodate you.

Bottom line: at restaurants you choose where you eat, what you eat, and how much you eat. You are not forced to eat anything you don’t want.

 

These are very good points.

 

Yes? Isn't that somewhat of slim smugness? I for my part am 1,80m @ 73 kg, just to dispel any suspicions

I was taught as a child to always clean up my plate, and I was served richly, after all I had to grow and so forth. It was considered sort of impolite to not eat up, and not doing so would get me admonished, usually by my grandma. Because the rests on the plate would go to waste, and - my parents both had experienced how it is to not have enough food after the war - one doesn't waste food, period. Which in turn made it somewhat hard for me to not eat up even when I wasn't hungry. I am still very reluctant to throw food away.