Worst Food Trends of the Decade

From onion blossoms to overhyped chefs, these things need to go away
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 22, 2009 2:40 PM CDT
Worst Food Trends of the Decade
The too-sweaty, too-greasy onion blossom is "served like county fair food on porcelain."   (Flickr)

Asked to name the decade's worst dining trends, chefs and other food experts couldn't shut up. There were too many (including "mache, water sommeliers, organ-meat entrees, unisex bathrooms, bacon tattoos on chefs, over-flaunted kitchen burns, chefs tables") for Christopher Borrelli to list them all, but he hits the top 10 in the Chicago Tribune:

  • Fried onion blossoms: Too sweaty, too greasy, too little onion, and too much fried stuff.
  • The $40 entree: When your neighborhood bistro has hit these heights, it's time to say enough is enough.

  • Communal tables: Why do restaurants assume we want to sit with strangers?
  • Obnoxious fast food: Really, KFC: A bacon and cheese sandwich using fried chicken as the bun? Is this some sort of joke? Not to mention Carl's Jr. and Hardee's burgers that top out at 1,420 calories.
  • Online reviews: Done in moderation, fine. But to review a restaurant on opening night is "crazy and wrong," says the owner of a food-centric bookstore.
  • Foam: For goodness' sake—"it's suds."
  • Media-whore chefs: "They cook, of course. They also sell shoes and star in reality shows. Sometimes they cook."
For the complete list, click the link. (More food stories.)

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