Every tummy seated around the table rumbles in hunger and anticipation of the meal, expertly prepared by some amazingly gifted people. The food finally arrives. Salivation kicks into high gear. The dishes are artfully presented and the smells whet ravenous appetites. Everyone is dying to tuck in. As the husband reaches for his fork, the wife kindly smiles at him and asks “can we pause for a moment?” She then reaches for her iPhone.
When BBC World Service called me from Lodon to discuss how dining has become a much difference experience in the era of social media, I was excited to participate as I have first hand knowledge of all sides of this debate.
I know how ironic this is on the heels of our previous post featuring the new Turkish restaurant, Kiyi at the Fairmont Ajman and the host of other posts I have photographed while dining out.
How social media changed how we eat
. My own husband savours the experience of eating food only by quickly and immediately tasting. He wants to partake of his dishes at their optimal freshness. The chef in him knows that food is to be eaten the moment it is placed on the table. He hates cold food and thinks it is an offence to the chef in the kitchen to let your food get cold at the table. On the other hand, however, the food photographer, blogger and Instagrammer in me just needs to capture the moment in a photograph. I also hate cold food but as my business and personal interests in social media have grown, so has my need to savour first by capturing the moment. Sharing is caring!We represent the three sides of this debate.
The first side is the click-happy social media butterfly. The second perspective is the chef wanting his/her food to be enjoyed at the peak of perfection. The third and final perspective is somewhat of a middle ground- click and share but do so quickly and inconspicuously.
We know that even though restaurants thrive on people sharing pics of their food online, pausing for too long to take photographs slows down service and how quickly a restaurant can turn tables, which affects profits in smaller restaurants that do not have the space to allow for only one profitable seating for the night.
Plus if you have ever gone out for a quiet and romantic dinner or a serious deal-making business dinner, the last thing you need is for some inconsiderate person to be using flash photography at the table right in front of you or standing on chairs trying to get a better angle for Instagram.
It is even worse when it is breakfast. After all who wants cold coffee or tea because someone has to get a better picture? Plus we all wake up hungry anyway. Sitting watching your eggs and toast get cold before your eyes is a sentence worse than solitary confinement.
But if you love Instagram like me, you will appreciate, like and event comment on a great #onthetable shot when you see one! That said, if we are to really be social with the people we are actually dining with, we have to take them into consideration. Social media friends are nice to hang out with online but you cannot replace the people who show up to be with you face to face. Maybe then there can be a few compromises.
This post was published in Kari’s food column “When Hunger Strikes” in the wknd magazine of the Khaleej Times
Tagging our blogging friends Sally Prosser from My Custard Pie, Samantha Wood from Foodiva, Ishita Saha from Ishita Unblogged, who were all part of the Badoit dinner arranged by Restronaut at La Serre some time ago.
Sally says
Lovely reminder of that evening. Like you I’m on a couple of sides of the debate. I adore Instagram, use social media to promote my own blog and other people’s businesses and have definitely climbed on a chair a few times to get a good shot. However, I hate eating cold food or having the evening ruined because we all have to take turns for the best pic. Personally if I’m out with friends (rather than understanding food bloggers) I keep it to a minimum, try to be discreet and if people hold back I encourage them to eat – it’s nice to get an action pic! Great article Kari – and congrats of being contacted by the BBC World Service. I’d be thrilled.
Chef and Steward says
Sally, I think your points add real substance to the debate. When dining among bloggers, there is a level of understanding that comes with the territory and its part of the whole blogger bonding experience… we have instagram running through our veins so to speak. And yes, for non- bloggers, attention to those at the table is premium.
Sanura of MyLifeRunsOnFood.com says
As a food blogger, I immediately want to enjoy a dish once it’s delivered to the table. The experience and being in the moment is considerate to other guests. Besides, most pictures taken in restaurants aren’t that great, and the time spent to manipulate and post them to social media accounts can ruin a dining experience (unless color corrections are made later). However, when serving meals at home, my boyfriend is annoyed at having to wait for meals, because I want to get perfect pictures (at home, I can control the photos). Needless to say, dinner with a group of food bloggers can sometimes be annoying, because we all want to see how numerically liked we are on our social media accounts by strangers.
Nikki Miller-Ka (@NikSnacks) says
As soon as the dishes for the table, Everyone knows not to take a single bite before everyone takes a pic. It’s food blogger code.
Chef and Steward says
Nikki, this is why it’s actually cool to go go out with blogging friends from time to time but I do understand the importance of paying attention to those at the table as well… that is the people with whom you have real relationships.