Real Women Eat Steak; Why Can't I?
Not having been on the dating scene for, oh, 30 years, I didn't know that young women are consuming large quantities of red meat on dates to convince their companions they aren't salad-eating wusses. Is this true, or is it a figment of a New York Times style editor's vivid imagination? If it is true, it is a most welcome trend.
But what about us guys? My wife never allows me to eat a huge hunk of red meat in peace. "Will [our son] and I really want you around the next 30 years," she says, sticking a steak-knife-sharp stick of guilt right into my solar plexus.
The last quote of the piece reflects my situation perfectly:
"When a guy sits down and eats something fatty and big, you wonder if they eat like that all the time," said Brice Gaillard, a freelance design writer. "It crosses my mind they’ll probably die early."
I hope my wife doesn't read the Times this morning.
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12 Comments:
Don't believe the hype Ed. Eating a steak once or twice a month won't make you die any earlier, and in fact, a little red meat is good for you, as long as you don't eat a 20oz steak EVERY DAY. Stress is much greater health risk factor, so eat your steaks, and also, make sure you eat them happily, and guilt free. Enjoy it, most importantly, try not worry. Yes, you need to get your cardio in regularly, do some resistance work, get plenty of sleep, and you'll be fine, for at least another 30 years and hopefully much more. Stay away from corn syrup though. That shit is a killer.
seyo at 11:54AM on 08/09/07
You better hope your wife doesn't read Serious Eats now, Ed. ;)
Adam Kuban at 12:04PM on 08/09/07
this story was somewhat interesting, but also drove me nuts. if i order a steak or a burger, it's because that's what i am in the mood for. same if it's a salad. are people really ordering food and worrying about how they're going to be percieved (aka judged)? sheesh.
j at 12:10PM on 08/09/07
i agree with j. i don't mean to get worked up by a fairly innocuous article, but... i love food, and i tend to lean on the healthier side - i love vegetables, tofu, etc., and as much as i love a great burger i also love a great salad. while i've happily had sliders and beer at a bar on a date, if i order a salad, it's because i want one! and i'd hate to think that someone would think i have "food issues" or am neurotic or pretentious (to quote someone interviewed in the article) because i'm in the mood for a salad. and in the same vein, like j said, someone should order a steak or a burger because she wants one - not because she wants to be viewed as a low maintenance "guy's girl." cute article, yes, but we should order what we're in the mood for - not what we think will make a good impression.
don't worry, Ed - i don't judge you. eat that steak if you want it.
rebeccadiamond at 12:26PM on 08/09/07
Interesting little fluffy story. I agree with j and rebeccadiamond, you should order what you want - be it a salad, whatever. I think most people can see through the "I'm ordering this because I want you to think such and such" bit with either sex. I'm pretty sure I've never had to exert my manliness by ordering a slab of meat larger than my date or try to impress anyone by ordering the most expensive thing on the menu for the sake of showing that I can.
That said, if you (this goes for the dudes and the ladies) order a salad, at least get a good salad. I swear, if I go out on one more date with a woman that orders the teeniest, little, crummy, garden salad instead of real food...
corycm at 1:42PM on 08/09/07
I believe in letting a guy know my meat appetite on the first date . I think it's just fair that he knows what he is up against before comitting any more time or money. I don't care if he gets turned on or off. I remember when my hubby and I were dating, when he couldn't finish his steak, I quickly finished mine so I can finish his. Pig? Maybe.
Veron at 1:42PM on 08/09/07
I'm eating a HUGE salad right now. After this, I will have a couple soft boiled eggs. Then I will go to the gym. After that, I'm going to Oppenheimer's to buy a prime porterhouse for dinner tonight. My mom loves steak :)
seyo at 2:15PM on 08/09/07
This is really less a food story than one about the sociology of dating. I'm thankful that I love food enough that what I want to eat is more on my mind than what my date is going to think of me for eating it. So sad!
Although I will confess that I will avoid linguine or spaghetti on a date--tho' not pasta in itself. There are certain things one should only eat in the presence of intimates.
klg19 at 2:21PM on 08/09/07
Geez, articles like this make me really happy I'm not dating anymore. :D
The night I met my husband (at the wedding of a mutual friend), I ate steak. I ate steak frites on our first date (not to impress him, but because it was what I wanted) and I have since shared and enjoyed countless steaks, burgers, pork and veal chops with him. We do tend to eat lighter dinners during the week (at least one meatless and seafood 2-3 times a week), but we look forward to indulging on the weekends.
Ed, I definitely think there's a place in a healthy diet for red meat (and if you go with grass-fed, you get the benefit of heart-healthy omega-3s). Hopefully your wife will come around. :)
Jennifer Hess at 5:19PM on 08/09/07
On our first date, my wife and I were both hyper-sensitive to looking like pigs in front of each other. I ordered a salad and she ordered a bowl of soup -- and neither of us could finish. And no, it wasn't that we were so into each other that the food was an afterthought -- I had to work at that :-) After the initial first-date awkwardness, we both let our true selves show in our next meal, where we split a 14" pizza between the two of us.
I concur with the rest of the commenters, Ed -- eat your steak. Just remember: Everything in moderation -- even moderation!
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 8:30PM on 08/09/07
I took my wife on our first date to the Corner Bistro. You want to talk about a trial by fire. She dug right in.
We go back regularly and laughed one time when we saw a woman on her first date attempt to use a knife and fork on a Bistro burger. My wife pointed at it and my immediate response was, "There probably wouldn't have been a second date if you did that."
It was, however, the last time I saw her drink a beer.
crackblind at 12:24PM on 08/10/07
i'm a firm believer in the meat-on-the-first date thing. i suppose it's less important to me to order a giant steak or something, but the major point is that a first date should be casual and comfortable if that's the type of girl you are. the place you choose for a first date really reflects who you want to be perceived as. me? i'm a beer and burger/wings kind of girl and i want a guy to know that.
crafty at 6:37PM on 08/10/07