The Case Against Foodies???

Hold on.  What? The case against foodies? 

Those words caught my ear as I was finishing up my second latte of the morning (yeah, I know, but it's all the coffee I get each day).  I write this food blog, pull my own espresso shots, and cook not just to survive but because it delghts me.  So yes, I'm a foodie and these words hit me personally.

Joe and Mika were going on about this Atlantic Monthly piece (which I haven't even read yet but plan to digest over lunch) and it wasn't good.  "Dinner is a transactional affair", Joe said.  "I wish I could cook a meal", Mika said.  There was much railing against those who come home fron work and watch the food channel for hours on end and those folks who search out the rarest meals on the planet and butcher animals with their bare hands. 

I'm not sure either example qualifies one as a foodie--avid television watcher and butcher, maybe.  But foodie?  Not so sure.  If you get a chance, read the article and let me know what you think in the comments.

Comments

[Anisa Willis]

I may have two comments--sorry about that.

I am a bit of a foodie too, we have a garden (I should say my mother in law has a garden that we eat)and we like food. A lot.

My fear is that the entirely respectable goal of being a decent home cook has been lost on a couple of generations now. Food is more entertainment than sustenance.

Also, there is something seriously off kilter in a society where I can spend hours on a great meal--and days discussing it afterwards--and the kids in the (relatively affluent) school down the street are eating tater tots and canned fruit cocktail and many just go hungry other than that, when people buy grocery carts full of frozen and boxed junk they can ill afford because there is no modeling of the middle ground.

[Susan]

Very interesting article. I am going to be thinking about it for a while.

One problem is the term "foodie." It could mean anything. The article uses it for a very self-absorbed and selfish group that has fetishized food. The article makes a good case that this group has become a law unto itself, living by ammoral standards that they themselves have defined.

Anyone who has ever thought of themselves as interested in food needs to beware of elitism in all its forms, even when the elitism looks like efforts for the common good, but I think the "foodies" this article profiles cross a line into elitism for its own sake.

[Owen O'Neill]

That is one of the most offensive articles I've read in quite some time. It attempts, in a few short pages. to lump together all people who have an appreciation for well cooked food made form quality ingredients into some sort of wannabe cultural elite. That gross generalization, along with the assumption that a small number of celebrity chefs and "food celebrity" authors are the arbiters of taste and speak for the millions of people (in the United States alone), is narrow minded and shows a sort of prejudice and lack of comprehension that might be attributed simply to bad writing and inadequate research but comes off as simply mean spirited.

The following two sentences are the prime examples of what I reference:

"Even if gourmets’ rejection of factory farms and fast food is largely motivated by their traditional elitism, it has left them, for the first time in the history of their community, feeling more moral, spiritual even, than the man on the street."

Call us gourmets, foodies or perhaps just "cooking and dining enthusiasts" - we still can't be lumped together and elitism is rarely involved. Is there a tiny minority of our food enthusiast community that loves to tout how they can afford outrageously expensive meals comprised of luxury ingredients at restaurants where it takes months of calls or serious connections to get a table? Absolutely yes but tiny minority is the operative phrase here.

"It has always been crucial to the gourmet’s pleasure that he eat in ways the mainstream cannot afford. Even if gourmets’ rejection of factory farms and fast food is largely motivated by their traditional elitism, it has left them, for the first time in the history of their community, feeling more moral, spiritual even, than the man on the street."

BS. Like many people, I constantly look for ways to eat well cheaply. Let's not even start on the fact that we in the US on average spend a smaller percentage of our income on food than most people in other developed countries do. I believe that most of use would love to see a better balance of affordability and quality for the mainstream but typically we can only influence our own consumption habits.

Surprising as it may be... I think reverse snobbery is the underlying motivator for this article - surprising in light of the fact that Atlantic Monthly is hardly the sort of magazine known for pandering to the masses. I've seen this tone in some coffee industry related articles (always written by people who tend to think of coffee as a caffeine delivery vehicle.) You know the type... "if you think that $15 or $20 per pound coffee or $4 cup of high end specialty coffee in a progressive cafe tastes better than Dunkin Donuts coffee then you're just a snob."

Some of us can taste the difference in food and beverages, CARE about the difference, and are willing to adjust our budgets to accommodate. I spend 1/3 of my life sleeping and no one questions the wisdom of buying a very good quality (and expensive) bed. I eat three or four time each day and will for the rest of my life. Why shouldn't I eat what tastes good to me and why should it matter to anyone else?(apart from selling magazine ad space)

[Raquel]

I saw the interview this morning and was very intrigued to read the article. I have spent the last 10 years in the high end restaurant business (owning and managing) so i thought i knew something about foodyism. The interview made sense to me, the article is a rant.

I agree that our society is too food oriented considering people in this world (and in our backyards) are still starving. However, this article is a gross over generalization.

[Cindy]

Wow- sometimes I'm in the mood to search out unusual ingredients and cook interesting and exotic meals- sometimes I'm in the mood to cook very healthy meals- sometimes I relax watching people make food on TV that I never will make- and sometimes I stop and get take-out on the way home! The authors of this article are way too exercised about the choices that other people make. Be happy, lighten up! And as my Italian grandmother used to say: mangia!

[Susan]

Here is a response from a food writer I admire, Francis Lam on Salon - http://www.salon.com/food/food_fights/index.html?story=%2Ffood%2Ffrancis_lam%2F2011%2F02%2F11%2Fbr_myers_moral_crusade_against_foodies.

I particularly like this quote:"I cook food because I love food. I eat food because I love food. But I write about food because I love people -- I love the stories of people who cook and eat and share food, of how they come together around it, how they see the world through it, and how you can see a part of them through it."

[dave s]

An excellent polemic which seems to have served its purpose.

[Elliptical reviews]

No offense, but if there's a facebook like button, it'll be much easier for me to share.