One of my daughters brought something to my attention a year or so ago that made me both smile and frown. She was lamenting the fact that she’s seen a lot of friends and acquaintances, when dining out at restaurants, not only pay a high price for a lot of good food and hardly touch it, but also not take it home. My other daughter chimed in that she sees the same thing. So I was smiling on the inside to see a practical reuse side of my daughters shining through as they live on their own, but sad about all the food waste. You mean everyone doesn’t “do” leftovers? I asked if they just have friends who are picky eaters or just didn’t like what they ordered at the time, or maybe they might have been going somewhere else after dining out and wouldn’t be able to keep leftovers at a safe temperature? They said that’s the case sometimes, but not always, and it happens so often that they just don’t “get” it.
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Neither do I. I mean, how great is it, first of all, to look forward to enjoying those leftovers for lunch another day, and save money at the same time? It’s even better when you forget that you have leftovers in the fridge, and you’re wondering what you’re going to have for lunch, when,… voila! –you look in the fridge and realize that lunch has been taken care of, and delicious food from a great restaurant awaits! And sometimes, it’s even better reheated! (hint: having an air fryer is GREAT for next-day leftover French fries, egg rolls, etc.)
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I also am a leftover lover because I don’t like the thought of a good meal that someone worked hard to prepare just getting dumped in a landfill (and even worse, if there’s meat involved, that animals had to needlessly sacrifice their lives for it), as if it’s our privilege to trash it–while so many people in the world are food insecure, especially since the pandemic began.
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Food waste is a big deal, so much so that communities, and the food industry, including grocery stores and restaurants, are continuing to have a conversation about it, and trying to find ways to reduce it. According to the report “Food Waste in America 2021” by waste management company RTS, the United States discards more food than any other country in the world, nearly 40 million tons (about 219 pounds per person) going to landfills every year, where food is the single largest component taking up space (at-home food waste makes up about 45% of that; restaurant food waste comprises about 40%.) And it’s not just a “taking up space in a landfill” issue– there are greenhouse gases involved when that happens, approximately 11 percent of the world’s emissions.
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Many ideas/solutions are out there, with some states passing laws reducing the amount of food waste going to landfills and others forming food waste task forces. Doing something about “leftovers” is part of the discussion. Some restaurants, whose industry spends $162 billion in costs related to food waste each year according to the RTS report, have cut down on portion size; others have tried menu flexibility, offering more options for “sides” if they keep seeing certain ones left on plates–there are even some restaurants that market themselves as “zero waste.”
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But, as the RTS report eloquently states, “Getting to the bottom of what causes food waste in America is a challenge that traverses the complex landscapes of socioeconomic disparities, confusion, and ingrained beliefs, layered with human behaviors and habits.” In other words, individuals have to change, too. According to one survey I found online that involved more than 1,000 participants, people have pretty strong feelings about leftover restaurant food, either loving or (shock!) HATING it. About two out of every five people surveyed put themselves in the “hate” category, for a variety of reasons, including the “social stigma of taking a food container home” and leftovers that get mushy or leak out of the container. (That survey also surprised me regarding which age group was more likely to take home leftovers– I figured it would be older folks, but “25-34-year-olds” was the age group with the highest percentage of leftover lovers, because it helped save them money– on average, the practice can save around $1,000 per year just by bringing home two meals a week, according to the personal finance website Money Under 30.)
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Perhaps getting the word out about what’s really “acceptable” might help more people be leftover reusers– restaurant reservation booking company Open Table, whose staff knows a lot about restaurants, posted an “etiquette of the doggie bag” article on their blog that implored diners to not feel poorly about making a take-home request, no matter what type of restaurant: “Just because an establishment has nice silverware, white tablecloths, and a tasting menu that costs more than the average car payment doesn’t mean they don’t have takeaway containers in the back. Don’t worry; the staff is more than happy to put the remainder of your truffle-topped cacio e pepe in a box for you.” The article advised to just be sure to take into consideration the extra work the server is doing if you ask them to pack up your leftovers, when you leave a tip.
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To help make diners feel more comfortable with taking leftovers, some restaurants have servers proactively offer the take-home option at the meal’s end, rather than putting the responsibility for bringing up the subject on the diner, who may feel embarrassed. (I think next time that happens, I’m going to thank the server for asking!)
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If you really want to be the most environmentally conscious, RTS suggests bringing your own take-home containers with you when you dine. Not sure I will ever be doing that, unless the restaurant encourages that practice, or maybe sells cool reusable take-home containers with their logo on it (now THERE’s an idea)– or if somehow a foldable, “pop-up” style of sturdy, reusable take-home container is invented that can fit into a purse (are you listening, Target Dollar Spot?).
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For now, I will continue to have no shame in simply asking for a to-go container, and hope that it’s the kind that’s recyclable.