Do you like to watch?

Do you like to watch when your meal is being prepared?

  • Yes

  • No

  • Sometimes

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winterybella

winterybella

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I am not being facetious. I seriously want to know if you like to watch while someone is preparing a meal for you. I don't for the most part. I can be a little picky and can be easily turned off especially when it comes to matters of hygiene.

It happens often when I travel and I am eating out. Sometimes I really don't want to see what's going on as a dirty kitchen and people running here and there and everything looking all messy can result in me not eating or enjoying a meal.

What about you?
 
I hate it and I think it shows the controlling side of my nature. When my partner is cooking, I get totally frustrated by the things he does. I always feel the need to make a comment about the methods he is using or the ingredients he is adding. I want to take over the cooking and do a better job of it myself. I haven't made myself sound particularly good in this post but I have to be honest.
 
My husband is a professional chef, and 90% of our meals are prepared at home I do enjoy watching my husband prepare our meals. I have learned most of my own cooking techniques this way. I do completely understand where you are coming from about seeing a messy professional kitchen preparing food though Winterybella.
 
I had no problem with watching my mom prepare a meal for me. However, when it comes to a restaurant I would feel more comfortable purchasing a meal if I did not see it being prepared. There are many times when we buy meals without even giving a second thought as to what went into preparing it, and we just go ahead and enjoy the meal.

I have never really eaten out anywhere where I watched a meal being prepared though. All of this usually goes on behind the counter, not in the full view of customers. I believe that those who prepare meals in restaurants do a good job though, but I would still prefer not to watch all that goes on in the food preparation, even though I may still enjoy the meal.
 
I don't iike and or want to watch. If I'm going to do that, I may as well cook the meal myself, plus I don't like people almost looking over my shoulder so to speak. It can lead to arguments.
 
I prefer to know that there is no dairy involved. Taking a complete strangers word for it is hard because it is hidden in so many different places and ingredients and it have to be so careful. If we are eating out, then every ingredient had to be checked. It is great when companies mark their item as suitable for vegans, but for places that I know find it difficult to cater for vegetarians and have little expertise/experience of vegans I have to talk with the chef that will be cooking my meal in advance to make sure they know dairy turns up in margarine and bread and sorbets and....

As for family cooking it then it is hot and miss. My step father who can't manage a meal without meat is ironically very good at checking ingredients and double checking as needed, so I can easily accept if he says it is dairy free, that it is. My mother-in-law on the other hand has only recently got the hang of vegetarian so vegan is just a step too far and she is convinced that fish is vegan and vegetarian! So I don't take her word for it. Luckily my husband is an exceptionally good cook and I can thankfully take his word for it... our marriage would probably not be approaching 18 years otherwise.
 
If friends are cooking for me then I like to watch and chat, and help stir or open a bottle of wine or something. I don't watch for any other reason and with some older friends, I learn a lot from them as well. I have a dear friend who always makes a vegetarian version of what they are eating for me and I watch her to learn not because I don't trust her.
 
Ella said:
If friends are cooking for me then I like to watch and chat, and help stir or open a bottle of wine or something. I don't watch for any other reason and with some older friends, I learn a lot from them as well. I have a dear friend who always makes a vegetarian version of what they are eating for me and I watch her to learn not because I don't trust her.
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I can see you being comfortable in situations like the ones you mentioned. If I am watching someone to learn something I am fine. I could watch all day and even help out. I am speaking primarily about eating out. I do not like to watch when people are cooking in kitchens and I can look and see the mess. I'd much prefer not seeing. There is a saying " what you don't know" doesn't bother you.
 
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I used to work organizing events and would often go into the kitchen and yell "I need the food now for my people," so I would see what what was going on. In some places you can see the kitchen and the hatch and I'm fine with that, because I always read up on where I eat. In New York, some places have open kitchens, but I tend to ignore them these days.I look at the cleanliness of the venue and if it's not that puts me off.
 
I am the same way. I enjoy watching when the kitchen is nice and clean and if I know the cooks are disciplined, and if not then I'd honestly rather not know. I also think about this a lot and it's why I've started to go to restaurants less and less these days but it hasn't gotten too extreme.
 
Nope, I really do not want to watch my meal get prepared. I like to be surprized by the outcome. The smells and flavors are what are important to me in the long run and I do not want to be disgusted by what I may see during the preparation process. I am a picky eater, so it can ruin the whole experience for me if I actually see the food being made.
 
It depends on where I am at or the the reputation/cleanliness of the person cooking for me. I'm a real big germaphobe when it comes to others making or sharing my food and I won't eat at a nice restaurant if I find out the cooks don't wear gloves or incorporate someway to cover their hair like with a hat or cap. If someone is cooking for me and I know their not the most hygienic, I'll watch them like a hawk and politely explain that they should wash their hands or not do something. Sometimes this makes me feel rude but I'd rather be healthy and rude then sick and nice.
 
I love watching people cook on tv. I can watch Masterchef all day long, I find cooking shows relaxing! In person I find it difficult though because more often than not I want to get involved. My boyfriend has a thing about not letting me help him cook, he likes to control everything that's going into the food and it's very frustrating.
 
I suppose then it's true; what they say. Ignorance is bliss. I prefer to watch. It's a great way to learn.
 
Nothing wrong with watching someone prepare your meal, but if you are are watching based on not trusting their hygienic practices or their compliance to any dietary restrictions and preferences you have, then I think it would be best to prepare your meal yourself. I wont cook anything at my mom's house because she is right on top of you in a very annoying way. She is not interested in the meal preparation. The meal preparation is not an issue, her obsession that her glass stove top must remain looking new is the issue as well as having to count cooking tools like mixing spoons and measuring spoons because according to her , they can easily, accidently, be thrown in the trash! :o_o: Mom even counts her utensils after having company for supper . I find it to be a very odd behaviour and as she did not raise me it is not something I grew up with and am used to.
 
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