How do you judge the quality of a restaurant dish?

[Edmond_Dantes]

Full disclosure, I grew up poor. For me, food was just fuel. if it filled me up for a cheap price, chances are I like that dish.

Being an adult now, that bias still carries with me. I've done well for myself and can splurge on fancy dishes if I want. But I still judge the quality of a dish contingent on its portions. Yea, it can be delicious and have an explosion of flavors, and be beautifully plated, but if I'm still hungry, I will judge a dish on that merit.

what about you?

what metrics do you employ in judging a dish?

1) Flavor composition
2) Plating
3) Price

or do you use different standards all together?


Quick anecdote to illustrate my position . I went to a fancy Italian restaurant recently and ordered Tortelli al Porcini. It was delicious, balance of flavors, unique to me, beautifully plated, but the portions were too small, and I found myself having to "get full" off the complimentary bread.

and for that reason, I don't see myself going back.

 

[EndlessCritic]

I have my favorite spot in town that truly serves the most delicious food on the planet for a fair price. Today they served brown rice mixed with root vegetables, eggplant, a giant piece of Jamaican pork, and a side salsa and side coleslaw. Pride: $10 for a small, or $14 for a regular.

No matter where I eat, it's never as good as this place, and typically twice as expensive.

 

[Fla graplr]

"They literally made me stop eating foods that were shaped like dicks. No hotdogs, no popsicles. You know how many foods are shaped like dicks? The best kind!"

 

[mb23100]

Price to taste ratio. If it's expensive I except it to taste great. If i's cheap not so much. If it has both going for it then id say its a good restaurant. Plating is a nice bonus but I don't really give a shit. Current favorite is this poke bowl place not far from my house. $15 for a regular bowl and they load it up with all kinds of stuff including a good portion of poke.

 

[emefer]

If it doesn’t break while I eat my meal and isn’t paper or styrofoam then it gets a 10.

 

[Ponchik]

I'll be honest, I just seek for ways how to fill my stomach for as little money as possible.

As long as it's not poison (or I'm unaware that it is), I'll eat it and won't complain. I know it's a shitty thing to do, but I can't help it.

 

[Get To Da Choppa]

A balance of taste, presentation, portion size and ingredient price. If a small dish is made from lettuce, I don't care how tasty it is, how nice it looks and how upscale the restaurant is, it better not cost more than $15. If I'm getting a steak for $350 it better come with the cow's medical history and biography

 

[Fugazy]

A balance of taste, presentation, portion size and ingredient price. If a small dish is made from lettuce, I don't care how tasty it is, how nice it looks and how upscale the restaurant is, it better not cost more than $15. If I'm getting a steak for $350 it better come with the cow's medical history and biography

For $350 that steak better come with a night with the farmers wife.

 

[Renard]

The taste and price-to-value ratio. For example stuff like pasta, pizza, fried rice, etc, has massive profit margins because the ingredients going into it are very cheap. Under 2$ of ingredients being sold for 15$+ a dish. Meanwhile another item on the menu might have a really tight margin for the restaurant because the raw ingredients are valuable, like meat or fish. Even if the meat dish is low profit, they'll try to get you to fork for drinks, side dishes, desserts, etc, that have a higher profit margin for them.

 

[Edmond_Dantes]

For $350 that steak better come with a night with the farmers wife.

yea, no freakin kidding

I took the wife out for dinner one night, she wanted steak. it was one of those "a la carte" fancy restaurants so we had to order sides as well.

We ordered some wagyu steak, and yea it was good. but was it worth the 350+ price tag for everything? I gotta say no.

 

[Misfit23]

Price to taste ratio. If it's expensive I except it to taste great. If i's cheap not so much. If it has both going for it then id say its a good restaurant. Plating is a nice bonus but I don't really give a shit. Current favorite is this poke bowl place not far from my house. $15 for a regular bowl and they load it up with all kinds of stuff including a good portion of poke.

Poke is dank but unfortunately most places around here have tiny portions.

 

[mb23100]

Poke is dank but unfortunately most places around here have tiny portions.

Place is new. I'm sure they will raise their prices soon.

 

[FyrFytr998]

I can eat at a fancy restaurant, I can eat at a food truck. Good food is food food.

That being said, I do judge Italian joints on how good their chicken parm is.

 

[DaysOfThunder]

Personal taste

 

[TheTickG]

Full disclosure, I grew up poor. For me, food was just fuel. if it filled me up for a cheap price, chances are I like that dish.

Being an adult now, that bias still carries with me. I've done well for myself and can splurge on fancy dishes if I want. But I still judge the quality of a dish contingent on its portions. Yea, it can be delicious and have an explosion of flavors, and be beautifully plated, but if I'm still hungry, I will judge a dish on that merit.

what about you?

what metrics do you employ in judging a dish?

1) Flavor composition
2) Plating
3) Price

or do you use different standards all together?


Quick anecdote to illustrate my position . I went to a fancy Italian restaurant recently and ordered Tortelli al Porcini. It was delicious, balance of flavors, unique to me, beautifully plated, but the portions were too small, and I found myself having to "get full" off the complimentary bread.

and for that reason, I don't see myself going back.

I can cook well. The wife can also cook well. For restaurants it either has to be something we don't know how to cook, is annoying to cook, or is somehow better than what we can make.

From there it is taste, texture, portion, presentation, service, and experience.

An example would be steak. Unless it is a specific type steak restaurant, I can't order steak because what I eat at home will be better.

 

[NoSmilez]

If it taste good then it's good food to me. Maybe if the ingredients are higher quality or uncommon. In general you are paying for plating or ambiance of the restaurant.

There is a weird prejudice when it comes to certain cuisines. French food is overpriced for what it is. Indian, Chinese and Mexican food are just one step above fast food in terms of pricing. I understand if an authentic Japanese restaurant is expensive. They are autistic in their preparation of food. Thai food in America is pretty expensive for cheap shit you eat on the street.

 

[genecop]

Taste…
Which includes everything

 

[Edmond_Dantes]

Taste…
Which includes everything

expand on this,

are you more of a spicy guy, savory? what is your go to order at a particular restaurant?

 

[lowlife]

I like Chipotle because it's cheap, fills me up, has nutrition and shit, and tastes "neutral." Looking forward to the day we consume our meals in pill form.

 

[lowlife]

I like Chipotle because it's cheap, fills me up, has nutrition and shit, and tastes "neutral." Looking forward to the day we consume our meals in pill form.

And ironically tomorrow I have to attend a birthday dinner at Vic & Anthony's Steakhouse, so I get to spend a bunch of money on a meal I won't even come close to appreciating LOL fml.