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Dear Helena,
I work in food media, and knowing my job, people often ask me, "Oh, are you a foodie?" I am not sure what they mean by this. Sometimes I think it's an innocent question; other times I think the word is vaguely insulting. Is it a rude question, and what is a good answer?
—Annoyed Food-Lover
Dear Annoyed Food-Lover,
According to Barry Popik, a contributor-consultant to The Oxford English Dictionary, writer Gael Greene was the first to use the word foodie in 1980 in New York magazine, but British author Paul Levy also used it in 1982 and claims to have come up with the term independently. Levy later coauthored a book, The Official Foodie Handbook (1985). Both Greene and Levy used the term to denote "someone who has a passion for food." It did not have negative associations.
But the word quickly became ambiguous, and remains so. There is no agreement on exactly what it means or whether it's now an insult. The author of the Wikipedia entry for foodie claims that a foodie is the opposite of a finicky gourmet: "foodies differ from gourmets in that gourmets are epicures of refined taste, whereas foodies are amateurs who simply love food." But others interpret foodie to be a synonym for gourmet. Jim Leff, cofounder of Chowhound, defines the foodie thus: "They are a separate breed, an avatar of that 1960's archetype, The Gourmet. Foodies eat where they're told; they eagerly follow trends and swallow the hype."
The term certainly seems to get under people's skin. Bloggers and food websites love to rant about it. Rebecca Harrach, creator of the blog Kitchen Preserve and author of one such rant, says "Foodie applies to a person who is obsessed with super-high-end food or who would go to the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market [in San Francisco] and buy carrots that are $10 a pound."
It's pretty obvious why so many people interpret the word as a pejorative: the suffix. In one of several Chowhound threads debating the meaning of the term, Chowhound maria lorraine comments: "It's the damn '-ie' ending that bothers me. A word with an '-ie' ending usually connotes something small or sweet: doggie, cookie, auntie, bootie, hankie, cutie." The "-ie" suffix makes it seem as if there is something faintly frivolous, even infantile, about being interested in food. Harrach says, "It makes it sound like food is a silly little hobby, when really it's the central health concern for most American families. It trivializes how important it is to be thinking about your food in an intelligent way."
So does the person asking you the question intend to mock your great passion and, in fact, your entire job? Probably not. David Kamp, coauthor of The Food Snob's Dictionary, says: "When people ask me, 'Are you a foodie?,' it's like nails on a chalkboard." But, he admits, "Their intent is not malevolent." The problem is that there isn't a positive or even neutral term for "someone who is passionate about food."
These days there are many different ways to be passionate about food, whether you are a compulsive online restaurant reviewer, a home-pickling obsessive, a school-lunch crusader, or an urban beekeeper. But be aware that the person asking the question may have no idea of this, and no idea that food can intersect with culture, history, politics, health, and the environment. To him, an interest in food still may be pretty much synonymous with a love of fine dining.
So how should you respond to this inquiry? You don't have to accept the label, but there's no need to flare up either. Just say, "I am really interested in food." Then go on to explain why in a way that shows that your passion has nothing to do with the truffle tasting menu at Per Se.
I started an interesting discussion of the term foodie back in 2008. It's wrapped up with a discussion of the old vs. new Chowhound manifesto.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/532567
Mr Taster
lol...in a world where there are truly hurtful things we call each other (and sometimes ourselves) regularly, being called a foodie is way down on my list. and gilliard61, please don't be offended but, while i understand your preference of the term "gourmand", it screams haughty pretentiousness at my midwestern sensibilities and southern roots. i love a sandwich that leaves a grease stain on the...+READ
lol...in a world where there are truly hurtful things we call each other (and sometimes ourselves) regularly, being called a foodie is way down on my list. and gilliard61, please don't be offended but, while i understand your preference of the term "gourmand", it screams haughty pretentiousness at my midwestern sensibilities and southern roots. i love a sandwich that leaves a grease stain on the bag as much as i love foie gras, so foodie is fine by me.
one other thing to add to the mix is (my opinion) that food should be a vehicle that brings people together rather than become another in far too long a list of things that we use to classify and therefore divide one another. my grandmother wasn't a chef, she was a cook and she didn't know anything about vikings (she had little or no education) and sub-zero was the temperature in chicago during the winter...but her love of food was a way of her to project love into the world.
and to the person who believes that having dined at per se is somehow a rite of passage for someone who is passionate about food...puh-leeze. i work with some great cooks (that's right, i said cook, not chef) who eat, sleep and drink food and they've never even been to new york. a passion for something, especially food, is not directly related to the names you can drop or the places you can list on your gourmet resume. that is the very attitude that gives a term like "foodie" the same negative connotation as "yuppie"...do you notice the parallel? go have a sammich.-COLLAPSE
Other than food, my biggest interest is probably history. When I tell people I like history, they inevitably refer to me as "a history buff" and assume I go out and tromp around in a Civil War uniform doing reenactments...And while there is nothing wrong with that, it just isn't something I do or have any desire to do. Where we run into the problem is that people make the assumption that everyone...+READ
Other than food, my biggest interest is probably history. When I tell people I like history, they inevitably refer to me as "a history buff" and assume I go out and tromp around in a Civil War uniform doing reenactments...And while there is nothing wrong with that, it just isn't something I do or have any desire to do. Where we run into the problem is that people make the assumption that everyone who likes history does or wants to do reenactments, simply because a very visible part of history aficionados do.
It's the same for food (and really, probably anything else). I wouldn't ever call myself a "foodie", but if called one I also would have a hard time denying it, because I do have a great interest in food. Does this mean I want to cook like they do at El Bulli, or put creme fresh on everything, or force all my friends to eat macarons instead of normal cookies? Not at all, while all those things are fine, they simply are not the part of food I'm really that interested in.
"Foodie" is basically just another grouping of a lot of sort of similar people into one big group. Should you find it insulting? I suppose only if you find the majority of other people in that group stupid or offensive for some reason.
But hell, what do I know? I'm drunk.-COLLAPSE
It's a stupid word, period.
Sorry DK, both you and CHOW missed the boat on this one. The problem is that there isn't a positive or even neutral term for "someone who is passionate about food." Yes, there is: gourmand. And since education leads to enlightenment, I suggest that you use this opportunity to do both. That way both you and the inquisitor walk away with your dignity intact.
I really don't understand anyone getting all huffy about being called a "foodie." In a world where so many people often resort to calling others names that leave no doubt as to their hurtful intent, why waste your time and energy getting upset about one that's so ambiguous as "foodie." To me, it just means "someone interested in food," and I think that suits me well enough that I use the term all...+READ
I really don't understand anyone getting all huffy about being called a "foodie." In a world where so many people often resort to calling others names that leave no doubt as to their hurtful intent, why waste your time and energy getting upset about one that's so ambiguous as "foodie." To me, it just means "someone interested in food," and I think that suits me well enough that I use the term all time to refer to myself.
And I'm not alone.
What Bourdain has to say about the matter:
In The Nasty Bits on page 198, he's talking about dining in Vietnam:
". . . I quickly duck under the tarp, walk bent over at the waist to the table, and scrunch down and try to find someplace for my knees among a large, extended family of Vietnamese. Linh, a fellow foodie, just smiles and shakes his head."
Page 199:
"What do you eat here?" I inquire.
"Eel," he replies. "This is the eel shop. Only eel."
"How did you find this place?' I ask.
"A friend took me here. He knows I like eel - and he heard about it from
a friend."
I explain to Linh what the word 'foodie' means and he seems very pleased.
"Yes," he agrees. "Often you must go off the road. You must investigate."-COLLAPSE
It is not much different to saying you are a Home Economist, or a HomeEc. teacher, or a domestic engineer. or a district home economist, terms used in the 70s, 80s, meaning your have a Bachelor of Science degree, which does not allow you to teach, a B.Ed will allow that. So technical. I would consider myself a foodie, as all the areas of food prep, presentation, flavor , color , texture, are of...+READ
It is not much different to saying you are a Home Economist, or a HomeEc. teacher, or a domestic engineer. or a district home economist, terms used in the 70s, 80s, meaning your have a Bachelor of Science degree, which does not allow you to teach, a B.Ed will allow that. So technical. I would consider myself a foodie, as all the areas of food prep, presentation, flavor , color , texture, are of interest to what I consider a foodie to be!!!!!!-COLLAPSE
Wow, there's a lot of hand wringing going on here! First and foremost, any trendsetter is bound to be annoyed when the wannabes (read: "hipsters") co-opt the coolness. Especially when it tends to be the hipsters who coin the term for the thing you'd been doing for years just being you. Oh well. It's what hipsters do. Ignore them, and they'll eventually go away.
As for "foodie" being a proxy...+READ
Wow, there's a lot of hand wringing going on here! First and foremost, any trendsetter is bound to be annoyed when the wannabes (read: "hipsters") co-opt the coolness. Especially when it tends to be the hipsters who coin the term for the thing you'd been doing for years just being you. Oh well. It's what hipsters do. Ignore them, and they'll eventually go away.
As for "foodie" being a proxy for "snob," so what? Have you noticed that folks who use the term in the pejorative tend to do so when you're refusing to eat at a sushi place that smells like the Fulton Street Fish Market in August or who can't understand why you'd rather have homemade leftovers instead of Subway for lunch at the office? If being conscious of or selective about the food I put into my body makes me a snob to some people, that's their problem, not mine.-COLLAPSE
"Then go on to explain why in a way that shows that your passion has nothing to do with the truffle tasting menu at Per Se."
My problem with the term "foodie" is encountering far too many people who have labelled themselves as foodies, but haven't heard of Per Se (let alone eaten there), don't know that it's a Thomas Keller restaurant, don't know who Thomas Keller is, have never eaten a real...+READ
"Then go on to explain why in a way that shows that your passion has nothing to do with the truffle tasting menu at Per Se."
My problem with the term "foodie" is encountering far too many people who have labelled themselves as foodies, but haven't heard of Per Se (let alone eaten there), don't know that it's a Thomas Keller restaurant, don't know who Thomas Keller is, have never eaten a real truffle and confuse chocolate bonbons with chocolate truffles. The term "foodie" has become negative because it's a meaningless word due to self-labelling by people who may enjoy a good meal, but are neither passionate nor obsessive.-COLLAPSE
I suppose it depends on who uses the term. Among people who like and respect food, I don't see it as a negative. Among posers, non-food lovers, and snobs of whatever ilk, it is likely to be used as negative since their intent is to demean the individual or the subject.
We all, at various points in our lives, follow trends, reject trends, and enjoy sharing ideas and/or going our own way. There...+READ
I suppose it depends on who uses the term. Among people who like and respect food, I don't see it as a negative. Among posers, non-food lovers, and snobs of whatever ilk, it is likely to be used as negative since their intent is to demean the individual or the subject.
We all, at various points in our lives, follow trends, reject trends, and enjoy sharing ideas and/or going our own way. There is little to criticize for being somewhere on that path as we each make our own unique journey. There is actually little difference between those that love pâté de foie gras and those that love balut. It is a matter of circumstance, experience and preference.-COLLAPSE
There's absolutely no reason that the word foodie should have a negative connotation. It's simply an abreviated way to say, "I'm a food lover". However, there are plenty of snobs out there, whether they're into food, art, clothing or anything else. So having a passion for deliciousness gets a bad name. Regardless of the term you come up with, your passion for food will probably be misinterpreted...+READ
There's absolutely no reason that the word foodie should have a negative connotation. It's simply an abreviated way to say, "I'm a food lover". However, there are plenty of snobs out there, whether they're into food, art, clothing or anything else. So having a passion for deliciousness gets a bad name. Regardless of the term you come up with, your passion for food will probably be misinterpreted as snobbish by people who don't understand the pleasure to be had by consuming a wonderful meal.
I'm not embarrassed to say I'm a foodie. Whether I'm eating lobster, or something as simple as pizza, I enjoy eating the best version of that food that I can get my hands on! People who don't share that passion are missing one of life's greatest pleasures!-COLLAPSE
I know entirely too many people who don't experience any pleasure eating food - eating is a means to an end for them and they would eat all meals in pill form, if it were possible.
For a sad and funny account of some of these people you might want to look at Steven Bratman's book Health Food Junkies - about folks who are obsessed with healthful eating to the point of it turning into an eating...+READ
I know entirely too many people who don't experience any pleasure eating food - eating is a means to an end for them and they would eat all meals in pill form, if it were possible.
For a sad and funny account of some of these people you might want to look at Steven Bratman's book Health Food Junkies - about folks who are obsessed with healthful eating to the point of it turning into an eating disorder, which he calls Orthorexia Nervosa.-COLLAPSE
I know some people who don't like food TheClamBelly. I am kind of scared of them.
Each person uses their vocabulary in a different way. For instance, if I call you a foodie, it is defnintely a perjorative. Whatever its original meaning and origin, the majority of people I have run into that consider themselves to be such are trend following, emperor worshipping, cliche tossing sheep, whose culinary opinions I wouldn't seriously consider with a ten-foot skewer. Not that I have...+READ
Each person uses their vocabulary in a different way. For instance, if I call you a foodie, it is defnintely a perjorative. Whatever its original meaning and origin, the majority of people I have run into that consider themselves to be such are trend following, emperor worshipping, cliche tossing sheep, whose culinary opinions I wouldn't seriously consider with a ten-foot skewer. Not that I have a strong opinion on the subject. ;-)-COLLAPSE
The problem is that there are a lot of pretentious douchebags who claim to love food, and then exude snobby elitism about it. They're a visibly loud minority of the foodie community, and thus for many non-foodies, what they've come to expect of foodies.
I hate the term Chowhound. It's just a silly relabeling of foodie, and has no meaning to the general public outside of this website, really....+READ
The problem is that there are a lot of pretentious douchebags who claim to love food, and then exude snobby elitism about it. They're a visibly loud minority of the foodie community, and thus for many non-foodies, what they've come to expect of foodies.
I hate the term Chowhound. It's just a silly relabeling of foodie, and has no meaning to the general public outside of this website, really. Instead of shunning the term foodie, demonstrate that you are a foodie who isn't a pretentious, insufferable bore, and take back the term. Latching on to another term is nothing more than an avoidance tactic that is temporary at best: there is no shortage of insufferable douchebag vocally prominent Chowhounders as some of my experiences here suggest, so if the term Chowhound becomes mainstream, which it will if people flock from foodie to Chowhound, the same reputation will plague it.-COLLAPSE
The strange thing to me is that it doesn't seem to have any negative connotations to the person calling someone a foodie, but it often seems negative to the one being called a foodie. That's odd, no?
I guess it's a bit like "yuppie"--when the term just came out, it hadn't acquired all the negative baggage that it soon did. The same seems to have happened to foodie, though to a lesser degree as it is not pejorative coming out of the mouth of all speakers. Perhaps, it is getting more negative as time goes on. I agree about the "-ie" ending, but it is extremely common to coin phrases this way in...+READ
I guess it's a bit like "yuppie"--when the term just came out, it hadn't acquired all the negative baggage that it soon did. The same seems to have happened to foodie, though to a lesser degree as it is not pejorative coming out of the mouth of all speakers. Perhaps, it is getting more negative as time goes on. I agree about the "-ie" ending, but it is extremely common to coin phrases this way in English. Please, say "vegetable" not "veggie" give the food some of its dignity...the dignity of vegetables.-COLLAPSE
I just call myself fatso, it's more accurate. Foodie sounds like some kind of sexual deviancy.
Foodie usually sounds slightly arrogant to me. An uncreative adjective, in the vein of Hipster. I prefer calling myself a Chowhound ;)
"Fooshbag" is a much better word to use as a perjorative.
What?!? People need to lighten up. I have 2 passions in life, art and cooking. I love food. I love to cook. I love the snobby gourmet stuff, and I love the not snobby gourmet stuff. Whatever tastes great. I also work at Sur la Table. We all love food and love to cook. This is the first time I have ever in my life heard that "foodie" has a negative connotation.
>>> ." The problem is that there isn't a positive or even neutral term for "someone who is passionate about food."
How about Chowhound
I use the word exclusively to refer to people who let their enjoyment of food get in the way of enjoying their food.
I agree with this, Helena -- foodie does have a negative connotation, that you're hifalutin, snobby, picky. I don't think I'm snobby. I might, however, pay $10 for a pound of the most beautiful precious gemlike carrots you have ever seen, and then I'd take them home and coo over them and make something wonderful from them. I wouldn't make a practice of it. But I'd do it at least once.
Yes...it has become a put-down, though it didn't start out that way. It's now just a shorthand cliché to suggest that you're someone who likes food...a LOT. But, come on...who DOESN'T like food?