In contemporary society, as fast food becomes a more prominent part of our daily meals, people have adapted, considering all sorts of dishes made from inferior ingredients and which require no skill to cook as "delicious cuisine". I highly doubt that these persons with easily-satisfied taste buds can be called foodies or gourmets. The ability to appreciate high-end and well-prepared cuisine is dependent on wealth, which allows one to gain a basic acquaintance with such delicate cuisines.
As we have seen in a variety of TV commercials, “delicious” and “cheap” are promoted as the main features of fast foods. As a result of this, the ones who argue that food money doesn’t have a significant role take the example of fast foods and consider them to be both economical and palatable. Admittedly, though not originated from U.S, fast foods still spread out widely and rapidly across the whole country thanks to the characteristics of easy for preparations and low prices. Dating back to 1912, when the very first fast food restaurant was open in U.S., fast foods started to stand out from the traditional cuisines which required time to dine in and gain popularity among the public. Since then, fast foods which were designed to meet the basic needs of human beings became the favorite meal for a significant amount of people, especially the ones who had a tight budget and crammed time schedule. With the support of this group of people, fast food industries expanded and a variety of choices of meals emerged, for instance, hamburgers, sandwiches and Mexican wraps. Their enthusiastic supporters claim them to be real cuisines and call themselves foodies. However, these dishes barely require any cooking techniques or complex ingredients. “Fortunately”, I had a chance before to take a glimpse of the kitchen of KFC. Instead of calling it a kitchen, I would rather mention it as an assembling line. Every worker just engaged in his or her own part and repeated the same action over and over again carelessly. Without basic passion and respect toward the food they are dealing with, they just looked like a bunch of teenagers playing with boring toys. It might only be a tiny chain store of KFC and could not represent the whole industry of fast foods. However, it’s indisputable that foods cooked by some amateurs can never be called real cuisines or gain the appreciation from the foodies.
Despite of all the flaws the fast foods have, a majority of people still adore foods like these because of some simple reasons. On one hand, the fast pace of life has left the modern people little time to enjoy a real cuisine thereby gradually lowering their standards for a “delicious” meal. Their taste buds have adapted to taste all types of burgers and deep-fried chicken and eventually lose their ability to distinguish the inferior taste of these fast foods from delicious cuisines. On the other hand, due to the fact that a considerable number of Americans fall into the categories of middle classes and working classes, particularly during the time of economic depression, these people’s main focus was to burden cost of their families instead of being obsessed with food or going to high-end restaurant like a real gourmet would do. For those who were living at the verge of poverty would not even care what they obtained for dinner, as long as they had something to eat. Accordingly, most Americans are easily pleased with this kind of convenient and inexpensive form of food regardless of its shortage in nutrition and taste.
This affection toward fast foods among the public did impact the eating habits of generations and generations of Americans. Sarcastically, the food that gained enormous popularity like hamburgers and french-fries never appeared on the menu of high-end or delicate restaurants and they were the last dishes a profession food critique and gourmet like Ruth Reichl would like to write reviews on. It’s not hard to observe from the examples above that fast foods are not delicate cuisines and those people with easily-satisfied taste buds should not be regarded as gourmets.
In my opinion, a gourmet is someone who has a refined taste in food. To be qualified as a gourmet, he or she must understand what on earth delicious food is perfectly. This qualification can hardly be achieved without frequent acquaintance with the delicate cuisines in high-end restaurants and well-prepared dishes made at home.
Comparing to fast foods which can be prepared and made in a short notice and with a simple method, cuisines in the fancy restaurants are relatively expensive and time-consuming. To dine in an exclusive restaurant, a reservation is required and proper clothes are needed. Moreover, for a gourmet, appetizer, main course, dessert and a nice bottle of wine which goes with the palatable dishes and pleasant atmosphere are all important components of a perfect meal which will take plenty of time and energy. Nevertheless, only in this way, can people realize what good food is like and appreciate the beauty of dinning. Take the famous “devil” in “Hell’s Kitchen” Gordon Ramsay as an example; though he was extremely emotional and always yelling at everyone, no one could violate his authority in cooking. His expertise was accumulated through his frequent contact with diverse delicate French cuisine. After his football career ended, he had already made a small fortune which could support him to pursue his real interest: cooking. Without the financial support, there was no way that he could go to those prestigious restaurants in Europe and gain precious experience. Also, without his exquisite sense toward food, we would surely miss the opportunity of watching the fierce scenes of him humiliating the contestants and an incredible TV show.
What’s more, fine taste in food can also be developed at home. The home cooking is not referred to some microwave food and instant noodles which are designed to fulfill the basic needs of human beings. These simple food made from mass production have ruined the essence of home cooking. From my perspective, a real gourmet will obtain all the ingredients he or she needs fresh from market, use mature cooking techniques and taste the meal whole-heartedly. Like what it appears on the cooking show “French Chef”, lobster is the kind of dish which needs careful preparations to cook at home and refines taste buds to appreciate. Julia Child, as a gourmet in French cuisines displayed some professional behaviors when dealing with the lobsters: from her exquisite cooking skills to the amazing way of eating the lobsters. She even used some unique equipment like tiny pinchers and scissors in order to get every single part of the delicious lobster meat. This is what a gourmet or foodie would do when encountering home making food.
However, no matter a person is going to a restaurant or cooking dishes at home, money always plays a significant role. How is it possible for someone to go to a delicate restaurant or cook delicious food at home without adequate money in the pocket? China is also famous for its dazzling cuisine. There is a popular cliché in China saying that “Money is not everything, but without it you can do nothing”. As a matter of fact, it is also the case for becoming a gourmet. Good financial status not only allows people to dine in a variety of distinctive restaurants to broaden one’s horizon about food, but also can ensure certain visits to some superb ones to develop high-end tastes. They know exactly what they want as well as what a fine cuisine is like. These people make stark contrast with the ones who are struggling for money in their life and would not care about how elegant their food is. As a result, money does make a difference in foodie culture. In various restaurants, the atmosphere can be very different, the service is assorted, and even the same dish can still remain quite distinct characteristics. So for a foodie, every single culinary experience is like an adventure to them which has brand new surprises to find out and interesting experiences to accumulate. In spite of that, people with sufficient wealth have the kind of time and emotion to enjoy food comparing to normal people. They can put on dazzling dresses and suits; savor every drop of their favorite soup and come back home elegantly without worrying about if they will be unemployed tomorrow.
To sum up, foodie or gourmet refers to someone who has substantial knowledge of food and a decent taste in foods. Foodie culture is essentially part of our life now. However, some biases must be clarified. Although the fast food is generally accepted among public for its convenience and inexpensiveness, no specific expertise is required to appreciate fast food and therefore, those who claim to be a “gourmet” of fast food cannot be considered as a real foodie. So keep in mind, becoming a foodie is not as simple as it seems like and there is a "price" to pay to be a real gourmet.
References:
1. James P Farrell. "The Evolution of the Quick Service Restaurant". A Management Consultant @ Large. http://jpfarrell.blogspot.com/2007/11/evolution-of-quick-service-restaurant.html. Retrieved February 14 2008
2. http://www.gordonramsay.com/
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