Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Sounds like you don't like this site. Sorry it doesn't live up to your expectations of the name. Go somewhere else.

Bu-bye!

Would you like some bread baked in a flower pot?

Maybe you could try elitist.com (0=

Didn't we just go through all of this recently? I thought that we had settled things on that. To each their own. The best part about this site is that it is both serious and not serious at the same time. There are so many sites out there, that one can surely find something that is more to one's liking, if this particular site does not suffice one's needs. I for one not only have a great time starting and responding to strings, but I also sometimes learn a lot. One site can be both, and this one is.

Pray tell, what would be an example of a "proper" serious topic? (Let's have some real fun, now.)

"If I didn't like Serious Eats, I wouldn't read it."
Now I am confused. What's the problem?

I think Serious Eats could be more than what it is. Why is that a problem?

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. The Serious Eats logo includes what I consider to be a big smile. I think the term serious is referring to intense or concentrated food talk rather than pretentiousness.

@juliebugsmama: that site says that there are 71 million (I rounded up) web sites. Food sites account for far less than 1% (unless I'm doing the math wrong). That means that there are only 700,000 food web sites. I've only looked at a few dozen.

I'm always up to talk about something silly. I like your attitude. Good, bad. or ugly, it's all worth reading.

@simon ~ You are SO HOT when you talk like that. I want more!!

@Simon: Please do not take this or any conversation to a personal level. At least Don Luis was critiquing the threads on the site and not the people on it. That seems to me to be deeply uncalled for.

And for the record, I am not a housewife. I studied for a PhD in Archaeology, and will coon complete my Master's in International Business with a focus upon marketing research. I travel frequently and have a lot of cooking, baking and world experience from which to speak. but sometimes, I just like to relax by coming here. By making personal attacks on people or the general population of this or any site, you are creating a very hostile environment, which is conducive neither to relaxation nor positive critiques that may lead to improvments, if that was Don Luis' intention (needed or not). Please leave personal attacks at the door.

@Don Luis -- I think you may have missed this part of the site:

Web pages in the world, February 2007: multiplying our estimate of the number of web pages per website by Netcraft's February 2007 count of websites, we arrive at 29.7 billion pages on the World Wide Web as of February 2007.

But, WHATEVER, that is so not the point.

You are, of course, entitled to your opinion, and entitled to express it. Just as we are entitled to like or dislike it, read or not read it, comment or not comment about it. If you are man enough to express your opinion in such a public way, then I am sure you are man enough to expect the reactions, however varied they may be -- good, bad, ugly.

Actually, Don Luis, I live in a democracy too, which means I have the right to free speech and I can tell you to go somewhere else if I want to. There is no logic in telling me that it makes me stupid, and as far as arrogance goes, it makes me no less arrogant than you.
It's fine to express an unpopular opinion, but don't expect a positive response when you put out nothing but negativity. Making some positive suggestions or posting an intelligent and serious thread once in a while might actually achieve your goal of making the site more to your tastes.

I'd just like to point out that the Internet and user contributed content based sites (like this one) are generally going to have more fluff, idiotic commentary, and objectionable topics that aren't worth your time, more so than, say, the New York Times or The Wall Street Journal. The reason is due to the anonymity and lack of editorial oversight on these message boards. Everyone knows not to believe everything you see on TV. Similarly, the internet is full of lies, garbage, idiocy, conspiracy theories and also a lot of great stuff. This website is for fun and for gaining some knowledge and it is neither an encyclopedia, publicly traded company, nor college classroom. That means that people are free to post silly comments without having to own up to editors, shareholders, or professors and others are free to comment or to not read them. You are free to post more serious topics if you feel this site needs them (actions speak louder than words). As to the comment that this site is U.S.-centric, yes, it is. I believe most, if not all of the contributing writers on this site live in the U.S. If you think that the web deserves a site devoted to exploring other places in the world, then you should seek to organize that effort or use your bitter energy to write some articles for Serious Eats and perhaps they may even publish them.

can't we all just get along?

@don luis - thank you for being comfortable enough to share your thoughts with the site.... sometimes things get a little fluffy, but then again sometimes it's a break from the cruel world..... i've learned a lot from people here and hope i've added some things as well.

in any relationship - there are good things and eh-things....

you guys are so silly. hehehe.

I must say, I've enjoyed the reactions to my post, from the "get out" to the "lighten up", it's all good. Makes me think.

I think the name Don Luis kinda gives it away.

I think she knew you were a man cause you said that you are a "bitter old man" (0;

well, Don Luis is a male name. Luisa is female, no? And isn't Don also a male thing in Spanish? If you were a woman, you would be Doña Luisa right?

Anyway, back on the subject, if you want a really serious food site, you should be reading eGullet. This site is about entertainment. eGullet is about serious food.

@DonLuis, back on August 20th you implied you wanted a way to cancel your account even though you supposedly didn't want to. Change your mind yet? ;-) Honestly, if you don't like it, and obviously others do, you don't have to be here. You can rather obviously go somewhere you like, and not be a complainer there. Have at it!

I always thought of serious in the context of this site as in, "That's one serious burger" not as in "This is a serious situation."

Serious? I am a househusband who enjoys drinking a glass of wine or seven and getting down to some serious reading on this site, such as which foodstuffs will make my wife wanna have nookie. Trust me you can't get much more serious than that. In fact these facts may save a marriage, lead to more procreation, possibly even spawn the future leader of the free world all because I read to put oysters on a pizza! How dare you say this isn't serious!

From Webster's Dictionary:

Serious:
1: thoughtful or subdued in appearance or manner : sober
2 a: requiring much thought or work b: of or relating to a matter of importance
3 a: not joking or trifling : being in earnest barchaic : pious c: deeply interested : devoted
4 a: not easily answered or solved b: having important or dangerous possible consequences
5: excessive or impressive in quality, quantity, extent, or degree

Like the definition, our "Serious Eats" is sometimes thoughtful, sometimes earnest, sometimes not easily answered and almost always excessive and impressive in quality and quantity!

@izatryt: Ha! See? This is precisely why people like me need "silly" topics on this site! I sometimes take myself and life *way* too seriously and I need to have some fun sometimes...this is a big reason why I love this site!

Oh, and sorry then, @simon. Please forgive me rant.

Sounds like a disgruntled Canadian, eh?

@Don ~ Truly intelligent people don't need to say it out loud.

@ zatryt: too true; is it too late to retract?

I want to be strong enough to know that I am strong.

Now this is entertaining.

@izzy~ i prefere valium and a lg ice coffe myself. lmao!

I live in Tribeca, and I think it it is a far from an "irrelevant patch of land". I am, however, sure, Don Luis that any country that you reside in, is indeed poorer having you as an inhabitant. I feel you are certainly free to critcize any website and create debate. But you are lacking in manners and social skills, as shown by your callous comments. The people contributing to this site are very diverse , and that is the beauty. I embrace this, apparently you do not.

A lot of the conversation here seems serious to me. Over 90% of my posts are about hot dogs, but I'm darn serious about them. From the brand used, to the texture, style, method of preparation, and strongly held opinion that ketchup on a hot dog is an abomination and the last of the deadly sins. Yet people who disagree with me take some of my opinions TOO seriously to the point of putting words in my mouth and accusing me of wanting to ban it and prevent others from using it. It's an opinion board, so how can one's opinion be wrong?

Frankly, I think this post is silly. I mean, honestly, @DL, what did you think was going to happen when you put something up ripping apart a site that, clearly, people here choose to be a part of?

It's all in the tone. You're not so good at the tone.

Simon's right. Go check out egullet.com. You can be terribly serious there. And, should you feel like the chattier talk stuff once in a while, ya got here, yes?

There are a few comments that I would like to make about your questions, Don Luis. I do not live in NY - and I agree that many of the posts on this site focus on that city, or other large cities in the US. I actually don't ever expect any of the posts on this site to be about an food location that is remotely accessible to me (*exception - I live in Maine, and I am just a 15 minute drive from the Friendly Toast in Portsmouth NH, which was reviewed about a month ago - it made me sooo happy!). However, that doesn't lead me to believe that I can't enjoy the posts that are made about these places that I will probably never get to eat at - I still think it's fun to read about them. And if I ever get to go on a real vacation, maybe I will get to eat at one of these places.

Additionally, there are posts daily that include many different ethnicities of foods - notably Asian, but I have seen Italian, Spanish, French, Indian, Mexican, German, Greek, etc, etc, etc... So in no way does this site pretend that the rest of the world doesn't exist. One of the great things about eating ethnic foods is that it exposes you to places that you might not otherwise be able to get to. So I don't think that comment was exactly fair.

In terms of "serious" - as in, critical or essential - posts, the post two spots above this one when I come on tonight was about Honeybee colony collapse and the advancements being made by scientists to deal with this. This is an example of a serious discussion, and I get a lot of information on topics such as this from this website. And as was pointed out above me, there is the whole "serious efforts" threads that have been implemented.

Finally, I agree with the poster who said that their take on serious eats was not somber, critical, thoughtful, or subdued. My initial reaction to your post was the thought that, "I am looking for a serious cheeseburger, man, and this site has brought me some burger-nirvana." That is my interpretation of the seriousness of this site. Look at the graphics. We are meant to have fun here. Seriously.

I appreciate your attempt to express yourself. Please know that I would love to see more "serious" - your definition - posts here. As long as you understand that us "serious cheeseburger" people have a place here too. :)

I like how this site is both lowbrow and highbrow, arch and mundane, sarcastic and earnest. I don't think these oppositions create tension (until you posted), but rather accessibility.

Alright Don, I called you an elitist casually and in a joking manner but clearly people are offended by your approach to your opinion. I honestly could care less, but I feel that it is my duty as a person who is not a chef (for a living)...just someone who happens to love food...... to say STFU!!! If you don't like the posts....DON'T READ THEM! We all come together and discuss WHATEVER intrigues us and I'm soooooooooo sorry (insert sarcasm) that it doesn't live up to your expectations of what us "serious eaters" should be discussing. I don't know you and maybe you are one of the best chefs in the world...who knows?!...but you are clearly unhappy with this website, so why even bother being here? Unless your objective was to get everyone all riled up?! If that's the case, then great job..........anywho, I'm going to bed.... Goodnight my Serious Eats folk... and FYI I love all of your "silly" posts! (0=

Oh, and one more thought ... how many of you righteous posters are members of the ACF? Yeah, that's what I thought.

Hmm. I thought this topic was already addressed at least in the Talk section by Serious Efforts. Perhaps those who would like to see more bare bones, strictly to cooking topics should do more posting under Serious Efforts. I haven't seen as much under Serious Efforts TaIk as I expected, after that bit of debate.
I like both the chatty and the streamlined staying on strictly on topic. A little of both worlds to add balance to what I'm reading.
And just as when I'm reading a magazine or newspaper--if the headline is not of interest or if the opening couple of sentences are not of my interest, I simply skip it.

ACF = American Culinary Federation

80 posts??? He definitely got the attention he was seeking! lol

Negativetouch (aptly named moniker, btw) : yes, I started a thread about the hard boiled egg. I was looking for insider secrets about the chemistry of hard boiled eggs. I did not inquire as to how to peel them. I was looking for advice on how to cook them properly so as to not have difficulty peeling them. I did not ask about which pan to cook them in, or whether to put salt or Mrs. Dash on them, or whether or not to hard boil them or soft boil them, or if I made the right decision to make hard boiled eggs that day, yada yada. JV? Yes. That's why I came here. I received a good tip as well, which I appreciate.

I freaking say whatever I want. Mr Tomato is always working just like he should be. Ok can we stick a fork in this because it is done.

Somebody get grandpa his oatmeal and a mug of ersatz postum!

@smallkitchen: For the record, I only ever once made any kind of bread from a mix of any kind, and it was foul. i never even use a bread machine (no space and no money, plus kneading a special form of therapy, as anyone who does it on a regular basis knows...).

Great, now I want to bake bread..why can't my office kitchen have an oven?

thank goodness for Jerzee calling an end to this, "seriously".. (0= you rock!

If it says anything, I'm also registered to Chowhound, but I visit Serious Eats everyday and Chowhound only rarely with a very very specific query.

@magannesta~hey leave velveeta outta this. lol.

OK, no one is making comments on this thread anymore. So it's a perfect time for me to weigh in! Yes, we are all silly, as Don Luis has noticed. But we shouldn't be defensive about it. I can cook pretty well--but when I come home from work, my favorite dinner is the Costco shrimp wonton soup that I see Asian families loading into their carts, because they know it tastes good, too. I am a bundle of paradoxes; I can taste the difference between good and bad food, but does that mean I always want to create it? Much of the time I am a lazy slug.
So Serious Eats appeals to the part of me that wants to cook "grand" and eat out very well, and also to the "slugfest" (that comes out of a frozen box, or a box of noodles) I occasionally yearn for.
I think Don Luis' original post was playful and challenging. It was not devastating and hurtful. So my take on this thread is "Blog ON!!!" Don Luis: keep up your comments. And tell us what YOU do well after a long day of work!

@izzy~sorry i forgot. i still have the block i stole from your curb, way back when. i'm gonna use it like a chi-pet and see what grows. i'm thinking something in the color green.

@smallkitchen~~I sometimes think the difficulty or not of peeling the HBE is proportionate to the rough life the chicken had before it laid said egg before it became a HBE. (trying to be serious but laughing at myself, even)

I love this site, it's entertaining and educational, and I keep coming back for more.

@mich23: "I am, however, sure, Don Luis that any country that you reside in, is indeed poorer having you as an inhabitant."

I could not, however, have said that, any better, myself. Well, perhaps I could: Don Luis, I'm sure that any country in which you live is poorer as a result.

@shipwreck: Hint: if you want to ignore a post, don't respond to it.

Where are you from? I don't recognize the accent. Perhaps you should write in your native language; you are not much good at English.

Um, sail on dude. Whatever.

@Teachertalk: sometimes I make pizza from scratch, and sometimes I make hot dogs and Kraft mac and cheese. Costco sells a frozen French onion soup that I love: I always have it in the freezer for when I need it. I cook several time a week for an extended family of six. It's always a challenge to find food that everyone will like, food we can afford, and food we have the time to make.

I was trying to be playful, and I regret that many people took it the wrong way. I am serious about food, perhaps too serious. Thank you for your post.

I joined Serious Eats at the beginning, and I'd just hate to see it go the way of the Food Network. I'm just not willing to follow their lead in trading Mario Batali for Guy Fieri. I'm a long time Serious Eats reader and sometimes contributor; if I didn't care, I wouldn't comment.

@ those of you who pointed out that I must be a man, because my screen name is "Don Luis", and I wrote "I'm a bitter old man":

Newsflash: you can lie in the Internet. Were it not for the anonymity, I doubt that some of you would have had the courage to post what you did. (BTW, I'm actually a 19-year old Swedish super model named Inga.)

Come on guys, give Don a break...you know that a lot of what he said is true, you just don't want to own up to it.

When you say "Checking the boards", whatever that may mean (and it certainly doesn't mean trolling) it belies your age. Here's a site that talks about trolling. I'm sure that there are still "message boards", but most of us post on "blogs" now.

Please take a look, and stop SHOUTING.

I don't have an itsy bitsy X in the corner of the page; I don't use Microsoft products. No sane person does (for the more sensitive, I'm kidding).

Many here say "go somewhere else." Do you assume that I don't look at other food sites? I do. All the time. And I'd like SE to live up to some of those other sites.

When you say "3 of him of Mario's washed up fat ass", I'm guessing you mean "three of him over Mario's washed up fat ass". To me, that's the issue. Guy is a hyped-up, Food Network husker. He can't be washed up: he has never been. Mario is a talented chef, known the world over. He's certainly done some questionably commercial stuff, but he's a proven chef.

Personally, I wouldn't do illegal stuff with either of them. That would be illegal.

Indeed Chelley, indeed.

i can feel the love. @ chelley, iz see ya on the other side.

amen.

@Don Luis: This is obviously a very late response, but I don't check into SE as often as I did so I missed it when it first went up.

I think your reaction arises from a misunderstanding of what SE is, or means to be.

My impression is that SE began as a NYC-based blog, and that the response from all over the US expanded its focus. I don't think it's unreasonable for a blog to have a regional focus, particularly given that SE is not presenting itself as a global food-related site.

Although I am a New Yorker (meaning 'born there, and spent the largest portion of my life to date there'), I now live outside the US (in Denmark, to be precise), and many of the references to various cooking shows and foods go over my head, but if I'm really curious, I can usually find clarification on YouTube, or elsewhere on the net.

Perhaps what you see as an excess of silliness has more to do with the veiled (or not) hostility that more serious/technical posts sometimes meet; I no longer see many of the more serious posters, which I think is a shame. On the other hand, I think the 'silliness' can be fun and interesting, I just wish there was more of a balance (for those of you who are thinking of reiterating that there are other sites, I know this, but I happen to like SE, and think of it as a big kitchen; shouldn't there be room for all sorts of cooks and eaters?).

Anyway, I think SE is worth taking for what it is; I can understand deciding that you'd rather not post (although you don't seem to have done that), and only look in occasionally, but do recognize what it is, and why.