Straws, napkins and big portion sizes.Have you ever thought about the waste a restaurant makes daily?
Let’s talk about straws for a second.
I was given an unexpected straw in my drink during a local restaurant visit.
And it helped put things into perspective for me.
I even put together a list of tips that can be used when you next visit a restaurant.
Want to know more?
Keep on reading!
PREPARATION EQUALS SUCCESS
How many times have you sat an exam, glanced over the test paper and said to yourself, ‘I wish I prepared more’.
Hopefully, that isn’t too many of you…
…but, sometimes we focus our attention elsewhere (better known as procrastinating).
We are all guilty of procrastination and experiencing the ooh something shiny moments.
Let me prove it to you…
As I’m writing this blog post, I’ve had a Youtube tangent lasting over 1 hour and I’ve checked my Instagram feed more times that I would like to admit.
You would agree that the more time you spend preparing for an exam, the better score you would receive?
Well, not really.
You can analyse the potential of what would be on a test paper by identifying trends from past papers. Or even recognising what topic an instructor or teacher draws most of your attention to.
It seems obvious, that if you prepare for a science exam by studying only chemistry, you will not achieve a high score if the paper involved chemistry, physics and biology questions.
Make sense doesn’t it?
HOW DO I PREPARE MYSELF FOR A RESTAURANT?
The realistic answer is to try out as many different types of restaurants you can, to recognise trends in what experience a certain restaurant provides. For example, are you provided single use condiment packet or plastic cutlery?
At the end of this post, there is a summary of how you can be prepared for your next restaurant visit. You could scroll straight down to the bottom right away, but carry on reading, because after all, you want to be fully prepared to tackle the restaurant issue don’t you?
During week 7 of my Zero Waste challenge, I visited a local restaurant with my family. We sat down and the waiter took our drink order. Everyone ordered wine and I asked for a glass of water.
The waiter brought over our drinks and I noticed there was a straw inside my glass.
I didn’t say anything to the waiter until my next drink…
When he came back over to check if we were enjoying our main course. I asked for a refill in the same glass and made it clear that I did not want another straw.
I quickly visited the bathroom and on my return, my second drink was waiting for me on the table…
…in a different glass.
I noticed this because there was a slight lip imprint from my lipstick on my first glass and the glass on the table was lip print free. [click here for the lipstick recipe]
I felt like this was the cheese lady experience all over again [click here to find out about her]
Now, here are 2 things that bugged me:
- The waiter didn’t fulfil my same glass and no straw request
- If I left the straw on the table or told the waiter I didn’t use it, I’m pretty sure he would throw it away
What did I do?
I took the straw home. It now sits at the bottom of my bag waiting for the opportune moment to be re-used.
YOUR EYES ARE BIGGER THAN YOUR BELLY
Have you ever heard that phrase?
It means you want more of something you can’t handle or control.
My stomach is the size of a walnut. For this reason, I never order a starter because I could never finish my main course. In fact, it’s pretty rare if I ever order a dessert after my main course too.
During my restaurant visit, each member of my family ordered a starter, main and dessert.
As soon as the waiter read back our food order- I knew I had accepted the ultimate eat every leftover challenge.
Why?
I hate wasting food. And it really bugs me when people leave food on their plates.
My portion size was gigantic! Luckily, there is a trick I will share with you, so you can find out the portion size of a meal before you order it.
It’s common for us to discreetly look around at other people’s meals, as reassurance that you will make the right meal choice. Now, do the exact same thing but focus on the portion size.
If you have noticed the portion sizes are on the larger side, don’t order any sides with your meal or refuse a starter or dessert.
The second strategic tactic is to take leftovers home, but that’s not all. Step up your planning game and choose to eat the food in the restaurant that can’t be reheated or won’t taste good the following day.
Remember, take a small container to the restaurant with you to transport leftovers home.
NAPKINS AND RESTAURANT LOGIC
The general restaurant etiquette is to provide every customer with a clean set of cutlery and a napkin.
This could be a recipe for disaster, especially if the napkin is disposable.
Not every customer will use their napkin, but it is common practice to ball it up and throw it on top of the finished meal anyway.
So what should you do?
It may sound extreme to some people, but if you are willing to prepare and remain confident- you can prevent further landfill waste.
The easy solution is to take your own reusable napkin into the restaurant with you. Keep the restaurants napkin aside and don’t use it. As long as the restaurants napkin doesn’t look creased or has any food splashes, the waiter should give it to another customer.
That said… It can depend on how focused the waiter is when clearing the table.
What you can also do, is keep a set of cutlery in your bag. If you use your own cutlery and napkin, when the waiter comes round to clear the table, they will notice the untouched items and reuse them for another customer.
ZERO WASTE IN A RESTAURANT SUMMARY:
- Tell the waiter you do not want a straw and would prefer for your glass to be reused
- Use your own reusable napkin and cutlery and leave the restaurants supply untouched on the table
- Take a look at the other customers portion sizes to judge if a starter, side and a dessert is necessary
- Bring a container with you to take home any leftovers
- Bring your own supply of salt and condiments if the restaurant serves you items in packaging
- Think ahead before you visit a restaurant, it is always better to be over prepared than under
- Make a note of what experience the restaurant provided, so you can be better prepared during your next visit
How are you going to take action?
Are you going to take a reusable napkin to your next restaurant sitting?
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