I love studying people. Love it. One of my favorite things to do is to blend into the background and simply observe human behavior. This works especially well in airports, at the grocery store and at an all-you-can-eat buffet.
We seem to have a bevy of buffets here in southcentral Pennsylvania. A few weeks ago we decided to take our kids to
Village Greens in Strasburg, PA for miniature golfing. When I called the golf course for a restaurant recommendation, they recommended
Hershey Farms. We rarely visit buffets, but thought it would be a nice change from our usual restaurant rut (which is to say that we eat out maybe twice a month, and it's always burgers or pizza).
I was actually pleasantly surprised in the food selections - everything appeared homemade, including rolls, whoopie pies, fried chicken, pretzels(!), and shoo-fly pie. Many of the foods were typical Pennsylvania Dutch, which for some may appear exotic, but to us, are just very familiar.
It's so interesting to see how people eat at a buffet. I saw people with three pieces of prime rib on their plate. I saw vegetarians trying in vain to find suitable choices. I saw people from other countries excited to sample our startch-heavy cuisine.
I almost think it's similar to a personality test of sorts. It seemed like there were people who were simply interested in eating as much as they could, as fast as they could. There were some who were there for a meal and didn't want to compromise their eating habits. Then there were the people who were there simply to investigate another culture through it's food.
We were there because we'd heard there were homemade pretzels.
It was so fun to see what our kids chose for their first round.
 |
| Kate went with a fried chicken drumstick and stuffing - typical carbivore food choice |
 |
| Josh chose fried chicken, shrimp, fries, and chicken nuggets |
Emma's first plate contained fried chicken, green beans and carrots. We love us some fried chicken.
 |
| I chose: prime rib, green beans, shrimp, and mussels |
 |
| the main dinner offerings |
 |
| the dessert table - Emma was dying to get to the chocolate fountain |
 |
| my third plate - salad with a pickled egg |
 |
| Emma, finally able to sample the chocolate fountain |
 |
| the kids in front of the cheesy Amish statue |
 |
| We were all very full! |
We had such a fun family night. The miniature golfing was really fun, too. The golf course is a little different that the typical windmill-type experience. The setting is very rural - there are ponds, woods, bridges, creeks, and a par of 74!
Do you visit buffets? What do you think you would have started your meal with? Do you enjoy people-watching?
I go straight for soup and fried rice at the buffet! And the the fries. And meat with gravy.
ReplyDeleteI love people watching- I make up the most outrageous stories about the people I see.
Honestly K- that pickled egg looks suspect....
I very rarely go for buffet's. I end up eating more than I would normally. I don't stuff my face though. I would have started with a salad, then gone back for carbs!!!! I would always leave room for something sweet.
ReplyDeleteI remember once in Singapore watching a local guy get a bowl, fill it, then very carefully arrange large slices of cucumber around the edge, so that they were 3/4 out of the bowl. Then he filled up with more until it reached the top of the cucumber slices.
I agree that pickled egg looks very suspect.
would anyone believe me if I said the setting [of the camera] made the egg look weird. It actually was good - nice and pickly :)
ReplyDelete