Skip to main content

Too old-fashioned to use porcelain and glassware?


Serving food and drink in porcelain or glassware was a natural thing to do. They are durable (if you don't break them), do not release poison under high heat, and are washable - so that you can keep reusing them until you break, or chip them. But since when have we discarded that practice and opted for non-reusable tableware?

I guess I can accept someone arguing that they ‘need’ a non-reusable plastic cup for their takeaway drinks, but to serve drinks in that to a dine-in customer? Beats me.

Can someone tell me the point of that, please? Here in Singapore, I am sitting at a table in a restaurant, stationary. Yet, when my drink came, it was in a disposable plastic cup, complete with sealed cover, and a straw strike through it.

They must have heard me wrongly, and thought that I wanted it to go. So I asked them.

They said: No, it’s not a mistake. That’s how we serve drinks here.
But I am sitting down, not walking around or jumping around with the drink in my hand. Why do I need it sealed, plus a straw?
That’s how we serve drinks here.
But I don’t even need a straw. I can drink from the cup. I’m way passed the sippy-cup training stage.
That’s how we serve drinks here.
Can I request for my drinks to be served in normal cups?
That’s how we serve drinks here.

WRONG. The right answer is: "we are too bloody lazy that we can’t be bothered to do ‘unnecessary’ washing up. Traditional reusable tableware is too much a hassle, and doesn't solve our lazy problem. And we do not welcome freaks like you."

I now check with the food outlet’s serving method before I commit to any purchase. Yes I may be an unwelcome freak, but I managed to slow down the process of adding on more unnecessary waste to landfill, slowly but surely.

Comments

Anonymous said…
I whole heartedly agree, disposable cups when you are dinning in is really wrong.

For a short period last year I had to spend some time visiting a UK Hospital, which for some reason went over to dispodable cups. After many complaints from me, other visitors, staff and Doctors they finally went back to proper cups. Victory!

In England, we are bought up to 'not make a fuss' or 'stop complaining' well, as the story above shows, complaining can be a worthwile passtime. Complaining can even lead to campaigning against daft policies and even get them changed .... long live the revolution !!
23 February 2007 at 02:45
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

All I want for Christmas

I love Christmas, but I have much reservation about the notion that, to celebrate Christmas means that you will have to buy something for someone, and subordinate completely to commodity without much thought. Every time I feel like buying something for my friends, I tend to think that I might be adding to: Their clutter - excessive wrapper and trimmings on top of gifts that my friends may have no idea what to do with. Do they throw them away? I may feel unappreciated. Do they reuse or recycle them? That may be too much work for them. They may just throw the wrapping paper away, but it’s still an unnecessary contribution to the landfill. Their chores - things like flowers, nice. But they would have to get the water changed everyday, and I will worry about what they would do when the flowers are dead. I normally bury them, but I can’t possibly expect all of my friends to do that too. Their extreme hassle and guilt as they may have no idea what to say to me - if they totally do not like w
3 comments
Read more

Uniquely Singapore Enbloc Fever

Just when I was talking about unethical agents and enbloc issues in Singapore, I got a text message from my agent yesterday, confirming that our flat in Le Chateau has been enbloc, and that all tenants will have to move out by the end of this month! Less than 1 month notice, and not even a written notice! And she had the nerve to ask me to pay up the full rent for the month of July! In other countries that I have resided in before, including Malaysia and England, I have never experienced this kind of real estate moments. Whether it was a lapse of a contract, or in the event of my old landlord wanting to sell the place, I was always informed formally, given ample time for necessary planning with full refund of my deposit. But the law here seems to be working in the owner's or the agent's favour. In most contracts you will only find rule after rule for the tenant to obey, and nothing for their benefit, for example: what would happen to them when the property is sold, or enbloc in
2 comments
Read more

Are These All That We Can Recycle?

Recycling, in many human’s mind, is a process or action whereby you dump something used or unused into something called the recycling bins. These bins are often painted in different colours according to each designated category of recyclables. Of course, human being human, they need to be educated n terms of what goes into which coloured bin. Despite that, you can still find them shoving the wrong stuff into the wrong bin, or worse – treating them like a normal rubbish bin! Obviously, human need a hell a lot of programming in recycling. After all, this is such a new thing to them. They have been taking greedily and thoughtlessly from their mother earth for millions of years! How do you programme the recycling act into human? First and foremost, the authority (Yes, it’s got to be an authority. Anyone without a title can never convince a human being) has to let these people know what can be recycled. Hence, the different coloured bins for different types of recyclable materials. HOWEVER,
2 comments
Read more