Fast Foodies

A bit of interesting info from Business News:

"Louisville ranks second in the nation as to how often adults frequent fast-food restaurants, according to Scarborough Research of New York, which identifies the shopping, media and lifestyle patterns of U.S. adults.

In an analysis of quick-service and sit-down restaurant patronage, the firm found that the average adult visits a quick-service restaurant (such as McDonald's, Subway) 5.2 times in a given month, and a sit-down restaurant (such as Applebees, T.G.I. Friday's) 3.4 times a month.


In the fast-food category, Louisville (6.4 times in a month) was topped by Birmingham, Ala. (6.5 times). Other cities included Indianapolis and Lexington (both at 6.1) and Cincinnati (6).

In the sit-down category, the leader was the Orlando, Fla, area, at 4.5 times per month, just ahead of Cincinnati (4.2). Also included were Louisville (3., Indianapolis (3.6) and Lexington (3.1)."


>>>I can't get the body to print the Louisville sit-down; it's 3.8.

I don't even know the last time I had McDonalds (Insert pukey smiley here).
I do eat Wendy's and Subway about twice a month each, and I freely admit that I would eat Chick-Fil-A daily if it were available to me!

Does the "sit-down" category include white-tablecloth too?

Deb

I recall a statistic many years ago where Louisville led the country in per capita dining out. I always thought that explained our excellent dining scene.

I freely admit that I would eat Chick-Fil-A daily if it were available to me!

When I first moved to Louisville I didn't know how to pronounce Chick-Fil-A. I thought it was "Chickn-FEEL-a." Thank god I never said it out loud.

I freely admit my love for much fastfood, though I've done a much better job of regulating it since college. I love McDonald's cheeseburgers, though I can't honestly remember the last time I had one. The three I have the hardest time staying away from are Steak and Shake, Arby's and worst of all, Taco Bell. I eat pretty darn well most of the time though, so I really don't feel that guilty about it at all.

Does pizza count as fast food? That's really the only thing we eat that's fast foody. Occasionally, my teenager will want something from Subway.

And what about a Qdoba or Shiraz kind of place? Where does it fall on the spectrum? They certainly get your food to you quickly. And it's counter service...

Pizza probably depends on the place.

Qdoba would count, I think. I've not been to Shiraz so I can't comment.

I consider "fast food" to be something that takes about 1-3 minutes to prepare when it should normally take 15-20 minutes.

Does pizza count as fast food? That's really the only thing we eat that's fast foody. Occasionally, my teenager will want something from Subway.

And what about a Qdoba or Shiraz kind of place? Where does it fall on the spectrum? They certainly get your food to you quickly. And it's counter service...

I place Shiraz in the excellent food fast category.

[Robin Garr]

Does pizza count as fast food? That's really the only thing we eat that's fast foody. Occasionally, my teenager will want something from Subway.

And what about a Qdoba or Shiraz kind of place? Where does it fall on the spectrum? They certainly get your food to you quickly. And it's counter service...

Interesting questions, Tina. You certainly could describe "fast food" as any place with counter service where the food comes out, um, fast. Shiraz would definitely qualify there. So would Seafood Connection, and a number of other indies. Pizza? Not if it's any good. Real pizza needs to be made to your order, and that takes time. Expect a half-hour wait at Impellizzeri's, even if there's no crowd. "Slow Food" is a good thing, but fine places like Shiraz that use the counter-service model can make slow food fast.

To me, though, the catchall term "fast food" strongly implies mega-corporate entities like McDonald's or Taco Bell, churning out least-common-denominator chow as fast as it can go.

Fast food: food made primarily from fat, sugar, and salt, usually served with lots of melted cheese and mayonnaise.

I remember an exchange student having his first McDonald's burger saying that it was like bad meat sandwiched between two donuts.

I remember an exchange student having his first McDonald's burger saying that it was like bad meat sandwiched between two donuts.

That must have been some time ago. Just a couple of weeks ago I witnessed long lines at the McDonald's in Lusaka. The McD's in the new terminal at the Frankfurt airport is the busiest food vendor there. It is amazing.

Charles

it was. I was shocked at the number of McDonald's that I saw in Paris recently. A cab driver there told me that was his kids' favorite food.

The thing about McDonalds more recently, I think, has something to do with the smaller-sized and healthier options they've offered. I frequent it much more than I used to - mostly because I can get the fruit and walnut salad - apple slices, grapes and a yogurt dip, in a container that's portable enough to eat in my car. Fruit as a snack - it's a wonderful thing on the go! Ditto for Wendy's - I can get strawberry yogurt and mandarin orange slices through the drive-thru.

Couldn't tell you the last time I ate a hamburger, or a sandwich for that matter - at either place