Yeah, similar here. What I like about stuff like that is that it encourages you to eat properly (in a civilised manner), and at a table enjoying a nice selection of freshly prepared food, not a 'TV dinner' plonked on a tray, with a plateful of just anything!:doh:
As I've said before too, the continental way of eating is not to have your plate piled high with food, almost as if, if you didn't do that someone would beat you to it (lol), but with an empty plate and separate bowls/serving spoons for veg and meat, which you then put a *little* of on your plate (as much as you think you'll manage in one sitting), then once you've eaten that if you're still hungry, going back for more, whilst everything is kept nice and warm.
I've no idea where the habit originated from here, with the 'pile plates high full of food' thing, as a) it's not very appealing to look at (a big pile of mush), b) makes you feel pressurised into finishing it all/clearing your plate, whether you feel for it or not, and c) encourages waste..
That's why when I take pics of the food I've eaten, sometimes it might not look like much on the plate, but it doesn't mean to say that's all I've eaten, as second helpings often apply!;)
Marco.
