An Australian chef has come up with an innovative way of cutting down on waste. In order to minimise the weight of her own kitchen’s refuse, chef Yukako Ichikako is offering a 30% discount to punters who finish their meals. That doesn’t sound too bad does it? However the Australian catering menace, who lists the ‘rules’ on the door of her restaurant states; ‘finishing your meal requires that everything is eaten except lemon slices, sushi ginger and wasabi… Please also note that vegetables and salad are NOT decorations; they are part of the meal too‘. In addition, the chef and her staff tell those who do not finish their meal to find a different restaurant next time!
This story suggests that Australia has similar commercial catering habits to us in the UK, where all left overs are binned. In the USA the trend is for punters to take their left overs home with them, and restaurant staff offering ‘doggy bags’ at the end of the meal is completely normal. These days however the doggy bag is a polystyrene tray and all US restaurants make sure they have plenty in stock as the trend of ‘take your left overs home’ is firmly rooted.
Here in the UK however, I, and I expect most people would be slightly embarrassed asking for a doggy bag as taking your left overs home may suggest financial hardship or poverty. Daft as it may sound, that’s the reality of the commercial catering situation here in the UK. We’re to scared to take the food we’ve purchased, but haven’t yet eaten, home with us because somebody may think we’re poor. If you run a restaurant in the UK, why not try to kick start the trend? Reduce your waste (for which you already pay to be removed) by encouraging customer to take their left overs home with them. Disposable polystyrene and plastic food containers are available from www.caterdeal.co.uk.
By Barry Summer
