Who boxes your food?

This subject has probably been addressed at some point, but I'm curious about how you all feel about this. Once you've eaten all you can at your dining experience, and realize you have food that you need to take home, how would you like it handled? Would you rather the server bring you what you need to package it yourself, or would you rather they take it away, box it, and bring it back?

Option 1! Once the food is with me I do not want it out of my site again. Call me cynical because I am?

[Robin Garr]

That's a very interesting question, Kim! And by "interesting," I mean "I hadn't thought about that!"

I tend to think of it as a restaurant price point/elegance issue. At a fancy, pricey place, I'd feel funny if they threw a couple of boxes at me and said "Have at it," but I'd feel all right about that at a diner.

I can kind of see Jerry's point, but really, given that strangers in the kitchen are prepping, making, and serving my meal, I doubt they're going to lose their sanitation skills when they box it. So I guess my answer is that I'm all right either way but might think it was a lapse if a fancy place made me box my own.

Remember when the fancy places used to wrap your food in foil and then made the foil into an origami swan?

That's a very interesting question, Kim! And by "interesting," I mean "I hadn't thought about that!"

The reason I ask is because I'm rather particular about the way my leftovers are boxed, and I almost always have leftovers. I don't want things all piled on top of each other, for example.

Many places are very caring about how they box your food - Volare comes to mind. But we recently went to an upscale restaurant, and it seemed the server just dumped the food into the containers. I had about half of a seafood pasta dish leftover. I was mostly interested in the seafood and intended to just eat a little pasta. The seafood was all on top, so it was pretty easy to manage that. When I got home, all the seafood was on the bottom - clearly it was just dumped in there instead of carefully slid in the way I would've done it. My husband's meal was a meat and 2 sides. They too were piled on top of each other. Just made me wonder if other people are also particular about how their leftovers are boxed.

[Robin Garr]

Kim, I didn’t know I was particular until I read your experience! I would have been irritated about that, too! I don’t think it was typical, but what do I know?

Yeah I'm with Kim on this for the same reasons. Also I kinda feel that after I've eaten and paid the check, my server can move on. Any service obligations they had for me have been met and I can take it from there.

Yeah, I feel like if you have to question what they are doing to your food when they box it, maybe they aren't trustworthy enough to begin with.

That even speaks to the point everyone raised about how it's boxed. At my previous restaurant, I worked very hard with the FOH staff to make sure great care was taken to box the food as if you were re-plating it, not just dumping it into a box. Sadly when the diner is tasked with doing this, that can often be the end result when all you have to work with is a knife and fork. When the FOH staff has a rubber spatula or tongs and can carefully take the time to re-plate your leftover food, you can end up with a really nice repeat performance the next time you open the box.

Honestly, this conversation perfectly exemplifies the difference between "service" and "hospitality."

[Robin Garr]

Good analysis, Ronnie. Thanks!