Some restaurants remove seasonings from tables. Why? Should you, at home?

I saw my friends doing that. I think if they are used to eating out in places that don’t season a lot, it becomes a habit, without thinking. Quite annoying indeed. Between husband and wife, it’s another story. There is always this reactance thing: tendency of doing exactly the opposite, at least mine is like this.

I think the only seasoning I leave at times on the table is the lemon juice and the chili sauce/ tabasco.

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Uh, no . . . thanks, but I’ll pass on that suggestion. If someone wants salt/pepper, they can ask. Oddly, no one does – that is to say, I cannot recall the last dinner we had at home where someone asked for salt or pepper. (Again, breakfast/brunch is another story.)

That’s easy, and it depends . . . I don’t need to taste (e.g.) my eggs to know I want to add pepper when I’m at a local diner, and – as you say – freshly ground pepper on my salad, or freshly grated Parmesan on my pasta. But when I am dining out – and at a certain “level” of restaurant (i.e.: not the “greasy spoon”) – I will always taste before requesting S&P, if at all. And, again, I rarely do.

On the other hand . . .

I cannot imagine a scenario where I would get offended if my wife reached for a pepper grinder (unless it was to throw it at my head – that would certainly make an impression!), nor can I imagine a case where she would be offended were I to add pepper to a dish that she prepared . . .

Now, I’l confess that I am rather lucky: not only has she never thrown a pepper mill at my head, but she is an excellent cook. Yet she is the first one to say, for example, that “This needs more salt/pepper.”

And because not everyone likes the same level of “heat,” we will put various hot sauces, etc. on the table when serving _______________.

The only person I would ever admonish to “taste it first” is my husband and only if I had made something delicate that I felt was in perfectly seasoned. People like what they like–far be it from me to tell them otherwise. As for restaurants yes, s&p should be on the table but if not and you really feel additional seasoning is called for it should be provided without comment.
Putting ketchup on anything but fries (and not always) is anathema to me but I know it is second nature to a lot of people. It’s never on our table unless the niece and nephew are coming for burgers or, of course, if someone asks.

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Hot sauces but no salt & pepper? Huh.

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Well, I was thinking off-hand of serving fajitas, for example, or a curry – and, as I said, not everyone in the household enjoys the same levels of heat. And I don’t think of salt and pepper as a tableside condiment with most Mexican or Indian dishes – in their preparation, yes; but adding it at the table, no. (That’s probably just me, however.)

This thread has pointed out to me that I rarely put s&p on the table. I have attractive, table-sized ones but generally don’t think about it. I guess I should.

Perhaps what I’ve done isn’t kosher but I have seen salt mills. I took an old pepper one and put coarse Hawaiian pink salt in it. It works great! Only problem is I think it is getting old. When I am through it still wants to dribble a bit.

I always put salt on the table when serving guests and prefer to see it on the table at restaurants as well. I never need it at truly fine dining establishments in NYC, but there are a LOT of restaurants here that are simply expensive for the sake of being expensive (business accounts, much?) and the food at these places tends to be mediocre and often not seasoned with care. I try to avoid these places as much as possible, but when I have to go to one for a work lunch or whatever, it annoys me if I get attitude when asking for the salt shaker. Despite the price of the meal, this is NOT Jean Georges-level cooking!

In my husband’s company canteen, the pasta is never cooked in salted water and most food are just not seasoned correctly. My husband had a causal talk with the chef, he said that some clients required low salt (on diet?!), some no salt (health problem etc) , so to make everybody (or nobody) happy, very little seasoning is used. If someone needs more, help themselves.

It is simply inhospitable to do otherwise, IMO. The food set before a guest or patron is their food, not the cook’s. It’s theirs to oversalt if they wish, and theirs to send back if it arrives overseasoned. The hubris involved in denying a guest or patron the ability to adjust seasonings to their own taste speaks volumes about the host.

Even a request for ketchup for the foie gras should be honored if it’s within the host’s power to supply it.

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It’s the difference between cooking for people and cooking at them.

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Fabulous way of putting it!

A couple of friends have admonished me for throwing condiments on my meal before tasting it. That’s fair…though these days, it’s tough to fight my insatiable craving for something spicy.

I grew up very rarely wanting to add salt to my foods, so I guess it’s unusual for me to see people adding this to foods (not including special sauces, ketchup, etc.). I don’t even have a salt shaker at home, and have never even though about offering this to anyone. It doesn’t really offend me though if someone wanted more salt, soy sauce or whatever seasoning they want.

Even when I’ve been in a restaurant that serves bland or bad food, I don’t find sprinkling salt to help. It just adds a top layer of saltiness that doesn’t enhance the flavor. I just chalk it up to bad food and not return.

That’s what you say. :wink: It seems a fairly common thing for chefs to oversalt. No, I shouldn’t say that; they salt it the “right amount” in their mind, which is too salty for many of us. Some of us are on a low sodium diet and are somewhat weaned off salt.
Perhaps not appealing to some, but when I have a lot of veggies in a dish (and often my cooking has an Asian flare) and if I want salt, I like to add soy or one of the chili sauces. They always have salt in them and they add flavor.

Why? One reason is to prevent loss. Cute little peppermills and such have a way of disappearing.

It doesn’t offend me if a restaurant trusts the kitchen to deliver appropriately seasoned food and chooses keep the table clear of clutter until the diner requests additional condiments.

Hmm, they’re pretty cheap if they’re trying to stop pilferage. $8 for 12 sets? http://www.webstaurantstore.com/5-oz-mini-salt-and-pepper-shaker-24-pack/80830SP.html Also not a lot of clutter.

The same could be said for dispensing with forks or knives–if we trust the kitchen to deliver perfectly tender bite-sized preps, a spoon should suffice, and then the patron can request a real place setting? :wink:

Unfortunately, many restaurants have become like modern parking lots–packing more patrons into ever-smaller tops barely large enough for two dinner plates and wine glasses. ‘Intimate’ almost always equates with ‘cramped’, so maybe that extra 2 square inches the S & P would take is a big deal.

I think I’ve been lucky. Very rarely have I had a super salty meal that I couldn’t choke down, but my general preference is for more natural, clean tasting flavors unless I am craving fried or spicy foods.

As long as you don’t add soy sauce to rice, I won’t be offended. :wink:

Lol, K, I haven’t been out much lately, is that what Canlis and Altura are using? Tom and Ethan in their empires? (For people not in Seattle, fine and moderate dining, check average probably $40-50pp++ for the lower end.) I was talking about the nicer versions, many to choose from that will actually grind pepper and not dispense the tasteless dust mentioned above. http://www.webstaurantstore.com/search/pepper-mill.html Now, I don’t have a collection of stolen pepper mills, but I do recall one drunken evening in 2001 when a votive holder at a restaurant bar was just far too tempting.

It’s always been true that running a restaurant is a fairly tough business, and with the increased competition and labor costs, I sympathize with restaurateurs trying to cut any little corner here and there. 20 fewer S&P sets to fill and wipe down every night also saves a half hour of side work. I think your last point about table acreage is true as well - gotta make room for all those small plates delivered at the same time :joy:

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I don’t recall what they’re using, but it’s not Baccarat.

You know, I wouldn’t mind the places omitting the shakers if the server immediately asks if s/he can supply salt and pepper. But this requires yet another RT to the station (x times per shift), and then when that gets delayed or forgotten, there are hard feelings. I think it’s better to at least have the “tasteless dust” within the patron’s reach.

Wipe down every night? That’s a rarity. More like store them under the hood for a nice sticky coating…

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