In an odd coincidence, both the New Yorker and the New York Times have run stories this month about the psychology of how restaurant menus are designed.  They cover some of the same ground, although the Times' article is much more in depth, and follows a menu designer through the process of redesigning a menu.

A valid (if sad) point raised by the articles is that restaurants were never terribly profitable, and in the last few years, times have gotten very desperate.  Anything a restaurant can do to increase profits, no matter how slim, is worth their consideration.  

Oddly enough, I have found myself going out to dinner more in the last few years, even as I have worked hard to trim any excess spending from my budget.  When I worked at an office, I would go out to lunch at least two or three times a week (my secret budgetary shame) to the tune of $5 to $10 a pop.  And for food that, let's face it, was not the greatest.  

Now that I work from home, I not only feel justified in going out to a real restaurant a few times a month, but I also find that it's a great way to connect with friends.  When you go out to dinner with someone, you spend at least an hour of quality time with them, away from the distractions of home (television, movies, video games, etc.)

Overall my food budget has dropped by at least half since I started working from home, since I cook 9.8 out of 10 meals from scratch for myself.  The remaining .2 out of 10, I'm happy to eat at a restaurant.  (For one thing, leftovers!)

I have a local "restaurant friend," and she and I frequent small, family owned restaurants.  (Not least because there aren't any chain restaurants within half an hour of here.)  I was amused to think of those restaurants' menus in the context of these articles.  

There is the menu of the Mexican restaurant, for example, which simply lists the ingredients in the item.  Which lends a certain sameness, considering that most Mexican dishes have the same ingredients.  (Tacos: beef/pork/chicken, lettuce, cheese.  Flautas: beef/pork/chicken, lettuce, cheese.  Enchiladas: beef/pork/chicken, lettuce, cheese.)

Or the menu for the Chinese restaurant, which divides all of their dishes up by the kind of noodle used.  For the life of me I can never remember the difference between "wide crispy noodle" and "narrow crispy noodle."  Ordering dishes there is kind of a crap shoot (unless you order the combination dinners, or regular fare like Mongolian Beef) but fortunately it's all delicious.  And I particularly love them for using a little tealight candle in a teapot warmer, to keep your table's tea warm.

I think that, despite the dire warnings of the CSPCI food cops, most of us are reconciled to ordering a ton of food when we go out to dinner.  We divide it in half and take the rest home as leftovers (or we plan to, anyway).  Or we simply go out to eat less often.  These articles make it sound like a mental arms race between you and the restaurant, but it's only like that out of desperation.  And think how self-satisfied you can feel now, if you go out to eat tonight instead of cooking at home!