do you think it is rude to express negative response to someone's food?

let's say someone ordered a big plate of liver and onions (as an example only..insert whatever food dish).

and someone at the table goes, "oh gross! bleechhh!! you eat that crap?"

seriously? i was taught at a very young age to kinda keep my mouth shut when it came to what i thought was gross or not gross. every walk of life eats something different. i get it.

i just got the most horrid reaction when i pulled some homemade pickled beets from my bag...it was like i yanked out a...mutant alien bbq'd eyeball..(<--not that it is gross or anything if that is your thing )...

i'm 1st generation american born Chinese..i've seen and eaten "fear factor food". hahah.
i still remember grade school when i ate the school lunch. kids would freak out on me if i ate the corn or whatever veggie served to us. it was weird then..it's weird now (to me)

IMO it's always rude if it's meant critically. OTOH, among good, close friends (which I recognize can sometimes actually include members of one's own family), it should be acceptable if meant solely humorously.

If you're at a restaurant/home, super rude unless your input was requested. These are places where you should expect these things.

If it's in the kitchenette at work, somewhere you kinda have to be, then I can understand if it's smelly or messy. Other than that, super rude.

Yes, it's rude. And childish. However, it's likely due to ignorance and a lack of proper upbringing, rather than meant to be deliberately insulting.

larrybard said:

IMO it's always rude if it's meant critically. OTOH, among good, close friends (which I recognize can sometimes actually include members of one's own family), it should be acceptable if meant solely humorously.

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great point..

i should probably not grab my throat and fake choking when my friends drink Coors light

If you can't say something nice...

boomchakabowwow said:

great point..

i should probably not grab my throat and fake choking when my friends drink Coors light

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Or Corona, or Corona Light (like that was needed:laugh.

Otherwise I am of the camp that if you don't have something nice to say....

My kids say "don't yuk my yum!"

Mrmnms said:

My kids say "don't yuk my yum!"

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+could not have said it better. For me it's hard to embrace those that have food ambivalence.

If you can watch someone eat a bowl of natto rice for breakfast, you can pretty much handle anything. uke:

I agree that it's completely boorish to critique someone else's food/bev without specifically being asked to do so.
With the exception of the light beer thing of course.

boomchakabowwow said:

let's say someone ordered a big plate of liver and onions (as an example only..insert whatever food dish).

and someone at the table goes, "oh gross! bleechhh!! you eat that crap?"

seriously? i was taught at a very young age to kinda keep my mouth shut when it came to what i thought was gross or not gross. every walk of life eats something different. i get it.

i just got the most horrid reaction when i pulled some homemade pickled beets from my bag...it was like i yanked out a...mutant alien bbq'd eyeball..(<--not that it is gross or anything if that is your thing )...

i'm 1st generation american born Chinese..i've seen and eaten "fear factor food". hahah.
i still remember grade school when i ate the school lunch. kids would freak out on me if i ate the corn or whatever veggie served to us. it was weird then..it's weird now (to me)

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I'm a southerner with a love of odd foods.

I get "That's gross" all the time, but I'm crass so I just snap back

"You're dumb and I hope you starve to death.".

Why bring up the southerner part? Well, I have relatives from up north that won't eat thing like Black eyed peas. The call them "Hog food" so I like to sing lady humps while gyrating about wildly and eating them cold from the can. On top of that I also love most anything pickled, including meat.

They gag, but no one asked them whether they wanted cornbread anyways.

I work with a fellow who insists upon changing seats/tables if anyone is having an aromatic food he doesn't like. This response includes (but is not limited to) coffee, seafood, yogurt...

I shouldn't let his behavior bother me; eating something is a pretty intimate event (even for a slob like me) and one can't will themself such exposure to something they find truly repugnant...

My challenge at accepting those who must speak out about another's food is that it feels like egocentric behavior. "I don't like it so no one should etc..." As I passed my collegue today at lunch I noticed that his chocolate pudding, with dollup of home made peanut butter looked more like diaper s**t than food...and I just smiled to myself.

The greater quandry is why I find myself craving tuna sandwiches when he's around.

Black eye peas can be delicious. If fed to a pig first.:cool2:

drawman623 said:

I work with a fellow who insists upon changing seats/tables if anyone is having an aromatic food he doesn't like. This response includes (but is not limited to) coffee, seafood, yogurt...

I shouldn't let his behavior bother me; eating something is a pretty intimate event (even for a slob like me) and one can't will themself such exposure to something they find truly repugnant...

My challenge at accepting those who must speak out about another's food is that it feels like egocentric behavior. "I don't like it so no one should etc..." As I passed my collegue today at lunch I noticed that his chocolate pudding, with dollup of home made peanut butter looked more like diaper s**t than food...and I just smiled to myself.

The greater quandry is why I find myself craving tuna sandwiches when he's around.

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I don't know exactly why but I find this person behavior offensive. At least I hope that he was being polite and apologized when changing tables.

rami_m said:

I don't know exactly why but I find this person behavior offensive. At least I hope that he was being polite and apologized when changing tables.

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I have never known him to appologize, though he thanks people on occasion when they leave to honor his objection to their food. The man is offensive though he does not deliberately attempt to offend...he simply seems immune to the fact that others are unable to feel empathy for his preferences. His antics are well known though I have yet to understand them.

I find his conduct especially difficult given the diversity of my workplace. Different cultures have different preferences and he shows no tolerance or evidence of effort to accept that which strays from his limited norm. I believe he is about 60 so I hold no hope for change.

To get back to the point of the OP, culture plays a role in my expectations. The culture of the region or specific location merits a more open minded approach to odd foods. I love to play billiards and never miss a chance to visit the Carom Cafe when I am in the Flushing area. Thanks to that kitchen, I've learned to love kimchi rice and oxtail soup, both of which were difficult for me to appreciate at first.

Short answer yes. Long answer if you know the person and ate close enough that brutal honesty is not a problem then go for it.

Disclaimer: that only applies when ordering food. If someone has gone to the time and effort to prepare a meal for you then keep your mouth shut

daveb said:

Black eye peas can be delicious. If fed to a pig first.:cool2:

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You and me? We's enemies.

Austin said:

You and me? We's enemies.

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That's how I feel about canned blackeyed peas.

Or since I'm from Alabama, purple hull peas.

if somebody tells me what i am eating is gross, i make sure they see the full blunt of me enjoying it, taunting them with my mouth open while chewing..

Dardeau said:

That's how I feel about canned blackeyed peas.

Or since I'm from Alabama, purple hull peas.

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You take that back! They are delicious and a staple of my diet.

I take it back, but only because you're from Texas, and may not have been taught better. Seriously I can't wait for spring. Peas and butter beans.

Doesn't matter to me. Maybe it's rude, maybe its not but I think it's a pretty trivial thing to get upset about. I don't know, I just dont get upset that easily.

TurdMuffin said:

Doesn't matter to me. Maybe it's rude, maybe its not but I think it's a pretty trivial thing to get upset about. I don't know, I just dont get upset that easily.

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How little it matters to me is not related to how rude it is. But yeah...it's a pretty trivial thing to give someone much power over you about.