“Give me a bite” Everything is the same on how to stop boredom in restaurants 05/05/2023, 08:34

In the modern world, everything flows and changes so fast that sometimes it feels like we can’t keep up with new products and trends. It seems like yesterday everyone was drinking matcha together and today they’ve switched to bubble t-shirts with cheese mousse. Restaurants open and close so often that you don’t have time to list them. The dishes are getting tastier, the presentation is more original, it seems that we tried absolutely everything, and many even managed to get bored. “Everything has become absolutely the same in Moscow,” says a beautiful girl in an elegant outfit with a sad look. And this despite the fact that on average about 11 thousand workplaces are open at the same time in the capital.

But indeed, it can be agreed that very similar concepts often open up with very similar products. Now not only sloths bake cheesecakes, cut avocados and serve beef cheeks, it seems, even Caesar salad began to give way to them in popularity, but no one thought that this was possible.

In this review, we have compiled a list of tips worth paying attention to for those who seem to have already tried everything or, on the contrary, are afraid to start.

The first is a simple kitchen.

Yes, we often go to cafes and restaurants for new sensations. We want to try something we have never done at home. However, if dining out is becoming a routine activity in general, it may be helpful to quell your lingering curiosity and pay attention to simple meals. Considering that intuitive eating is now in vogue, you will also follow the trends.

In fact, most of the time we want something mundane: rich broth, potatoes or scrambled eggs, but we don’t allow ourselves that because we came to the restaurant, why spend money on it. But we’re just trying to have fun, so what’s wrong with eating whatever you want?

What’s more, in terms of our brain’s dopamine response, it’s sometimes helpful to lower the degree of improbability on the plate. Constantly trying to find something to say “wow”, thereby raising the norm, and then ordinary food begins to cause boredom and even irritation. If we keep this level normal, it will be much easier for us to enjoy life.

Meanwhile, many chefs feel that excessive requirements are becoming a problem for both restaurants and guests, so they are increasingly trying to preach comfort food.

Second, better products and an at-home restaurant approach.

This point seems to contradict the previous one, but in fact it is not. In the modern world, people eat familiar, sometimes even not very high-quality food at home, while people are ready to spend money on lunch in restaurants.

This creates a huge gap between a boring daily homemade dinner and at least a festive exit to the nearest cafe, but if you really go higher, then in all respects all at once.

Try to turn your attention to farm products: milk, meat, sausage, cheese, fruit and vegetables. They are usually more expensive than store-bought, but more convenient. For comparison, this week we bought a box of cheap blueberries from the supermarket and a large box from the farm food store. The cheap one was already a little wrinkled, a third of the fruit even had to be thrown away (which actually raises the final cost), the expensive one had really big juicy berries and was eaten all the way through. Definitely more fun. And as you know, life should be enjoyed.

Or oil. Try to eventually switch to a good raw pressed olive oil or, if you’re used to it, simply arrange a high-quality olive oil tasting. Firstly, it may be news to many that the taste is dramatically different, and secondly, you will learn something new about yourself. For example, what exactly do you like: bitter taste or herbal aroma?

To make your restaurant trips more interesting, you should work on your sense of taste and smell at home. Organize tea tastings with your friends, learn how to brew, get special meals, try cheese from local cheese dairy, find your favorite bakery in town. It’s a big world that many don’t even come close to.

Third, new dishes.

It seems the idea is simple, but start buying something new now. Avocado toast, let’s not argue, is a win-win option, but the menu is not written on the whole page for nothing, there are other lines.

Even if you don’t like something, it’s also part of self-knowledge. Knowing what you don’t like is just as important as knowing what you like. It can be scary and also a pity for money, but the more you expand your circle of ideas about yourself, the easier it will be for you in the future.

Fourth, start asking.

This item is not suitable for everyone: in restaurants there are people who are not ready to communicate with the staff. But in a good institution, they can tell you a lot and give you advice. The dry lines on the menu are not always written so that you decide to have a meal right away, but a few nicknames from the waiter’s lips with personal advice (yes, they’ve actually tried these dishes if the restaurant is getting closer to learning) will make you decide right away.

Sometimes you can even find out the history of a dish or an idea, how the chef came up with such a cook – and then you’ll have something to tell your friends for dinner, believe me, you’ll be the center of attention!

Fifth – don’t expect to go to a restaurant or cafe as a whole activity.

Maybe we’ll reveal the secret at this point, but it’s not necessary to delay going to a restaurant for a month, to order everything there at once. People do not need much food. You can dine with an unusual soup or have a cold pizza for two, it will not be expensive for your wallet and you will have new taste experiences. And don’t forget to pay attention to the little concepts, albeit only to the dining floors near the house. Of course, we are not talking about fast food in the classic sense, but among establishments that are not completely ordinary, you can often find a diamond. For example, in a small cafe in a residential area, we tried the best pilaf in Moscow, which was prepared not by famous chefs, but by ordinary residents of Uzbekistan.

Sixth, try again.

The last piece of advice I want to give is this: if you don’t like it, try again. This applies to many things. If they made a mistake at a restaurant your friends recommended to you, they did it badly, it doesn’t always mean it was bad. Sometimes giving a second chance pays off. It does not always justify itself, but sometimes it is useful to reduce the level of denial.
This also works with products. Do you remember how in our childhood we did not like olives and dark chocolate and then we got used to them? The taste of truffle is also far from falling in love with itself. But from time to time, you may find that tastes have changed by going back to products we don’t like. It shouldn’t be missed.

We often underestimate the senses of taste and smell and believe that they are somehow laid out for us, and if we do not understand something, then it is not given.

But it is not. Every day we have the opportunity to exercise these senses, such as sight, hearing, and touch, but we don’t do it as often as we should. We encounter the same thing, we collapse the catering world into a tunnel and then we get bored and we can’t understand where the sense of innovation is. Just as athletes change loads, gourmets must understand that there are certain rules that help keep fit. Do not neglect them, you will feel the result.

The author expresses his personal opinion, which may not coincide with the editors’ position.