stories : Table Manners
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Bring Your Own Plastic ContainerThe greenest takeout packaging |
No reader question this week, Table Manners fans: Helena has her own etiquette dilemma.
I usually bring my lunch to work in recycled yogurt containers. It bothers me to see my co-workers, who eat out, discarding so much trash: plastic clamshells from Caesar salads, Styrofoam pho containers, and cardboard sandwich boxes. Many are conscientious about recycling, but not all containers can be recycled. In any case, as we all know by now, reuse is always better. Ecoconscious Chowhounds are bringing their own containers to restaurants to hold their takeout food or leftovers. So recently I found myself wondering: Do health and safety codes allow this? And is there a specific type of container restaurants prefer that you bring? I decided to investigate.
Andrew Goenn, a server at Soup Freaks in San Francisco, said that although the store uses biodegradable containers, it “would be great” if people brought their own.
Restaurant regulation varies from state to state, but the FDA Food Code serves as a model. This states that it’s OK to refill containers belonging to the restaurant, provided they are properly cleaned and sanitized. But it says nothing about filling customer-owned containers. Neither does the health and safety code belonging to my home state of California. Here, a restaurant should not allow customer-owned containers into its food preparation area, but “giving the customer a plate of food and allowing them to transfer the food to their own container should not pose a problem,” says Kathie Griley, director of industry education for the California Restaurant Association.
If you’re using your own container as a doggy bag, it’s easy enough to fill it yourself. But at a busy takeout place, it’s too time-consuming for staff to first serve food on plates so that customers can transfer it to their Tupperware (not to mention that they’ll waste energy washing those plates).
If restaurants want to reduce waste without violating health and safety codes, there is a practical solution: provide reusable containers. Customers would receive a small rebate for returning containers, and the restaurant could then sanitize the containers per health and safety regulations. Some microbreweries already do this, by giving customers growlers or Mason jars they can refill with beer.
But unless more places start doing it, what’s a Styrofoam-hating takeout eater to do? According to Griley, there is a loophole in the FDA Food Code. If a restaurant can fill your container without taking it back into the food preparation area (“like if the pizza oven is right behind the counter”), some health inspectors would turn a blind eye, and restaurants will happily fill your receptacle.
Sure enough, when my husband took a china dinner plate to the pizza joint around the corner, the guy behind the counter readily plopped his slices onto it (although Jordan noticed the other customers giving him “weird looks”). The next day, I took a plastic container to an Indian place and ordered a vegetable curry. The server filled it for me without raising an eyebrow. It probably helped that my container was sturdy and clean. So if you want a restaurant to fill yours, don’t use a cracked margarine tub.
Table Manners appears every Wednesday. Have a Table Manners question? Email Helena.
I once worked for the National Audubon Society. At the time, one of the great environmental scientists around (he still is) worked for them. He almost always had lunch from the salad bar around the corner. He just kept washing out the plastic container they originally gave out. The Tare Weight was the same, it looked the same, so they didn't care. I would suggest that doing the same today would pose no problem.
That guy was a god! And while I do not do as well as the scientist did, I continue to bring my own containers when I can, and for sure at the bulk department of the food coop. When you shop at a place that gives you 5 cents back for having your own container, it can be amazing to suddenly see that you used 8 of your own containers instead of theirs. It's the best 40 cents you ever saved. And isn't trying to save the planet good manners?
Why not just call ahead and ask the eatery if you can bring your own container?
Just Salad in Manhattan has a re-usable bowl program. Salads are a bit pricey, but ingredients are high quality and you get 2 free toppings when you bring in your re-usable bowl. Such a cool program! I wish other spots would jump on this green bandwagon.
http://www.justsalad.com/green_js.html
What a brillant idea! This never occured to me. Thanks Helena!
My neighbor at work gets thai most days for lunch. It comes in a plastic container and this ONE plastic container is in a plastic bag. At the end of the meal, it all goes in the trash. He definately doesn't need the plastic bag and could very easily wash the container and leave it at work for other days. I don't think that it's my place to lecture him but I'll have to find a way to bring this idea up in conversation.
I bring my luch to work in tupperware containers, and thats it.
I will never start bringing my own containers from home for leftovers, or carry-out from a restaurant. Never.
Whenever I got out for dinner I can never finish my order. A couple of times I've by chance had a plastic container on me and I would put my leftovers in that. I've gotten some strange looks from people sitting around me, but for the most part haven't had any bad experiences. The most difficult part is to bring one with me when I head out!
This is slightly off the topic, but I can't resist posting. Oftentimes whenever I eat lunch at my favorite Subway restaurant, I get more paper napkins than I can use. Alas, I'm reluctant to throw away the clean ones in the trash, so I keep one on hand for dessert, which consists of a soft-serve ice cream treat at the Dairy Queen that happens to be adjacent to the Subway restaurant. So far, my biggest challenge has been to keep the nutrition info about the Subway sandwiches out of sight from the customers and the staff at the local Dairy Queen. (Dairy Queen has its own napkins, complete with the Dairy Queen logo.)
Please let me know your thoughts on my thoughts. I'm trying to do my part for saving a tree or two, but I'm not sure if it's good manners.
We save our delivery and take-out containers, which are usually plastic that's sturdy enough to wash. Saves us money on tupperware.
What happened to the aluminum foil swan?
I've been reluctant to microwave in plastic lately so I would prefer to take a ceramic or pyrex type of container to fill myself from my plate after the meal, or before if I am trying to limit my consumption. Haven't actually tried this in a restaurant yet but have thought I'd like to. Perhaps this could evolve into an environmentally correct, culturally acceptable norm? And I do love restaurant leftovers, makes going out a mite more economical to get two meals out of the deal, and easy to pack and take to work. Personally I avoid aluminum foil as well due to potential aluminum seepage into the food.
I love this as an idea, but in practice it just is not going to work for me to carry around extra containers. I bring my lunch to work in re-usable containers but going out for dinner and needing to lug around a piece of tupperware just doesn't work. Someone needs to invent collapsible tupperware or something so that those of us without gargantuan purses or cars can be earth friendly too.
And Corileigh - No swan, sadly, but I do occasionally ask for foil instead of plastic/foam containers and places usually oblige.
I have done this at cooking classes where I know there will be leftovers available to take home. In my town, I can't give a restaurant my containers to fill for take out but, I can put leftovers in a container at my table when I go out. I'm not as good about taking my own containers as I should be.
FYI - Starbucks cups for cold drinks can be recycled.
One thing I try to remember to do when I pick up takeout is to use my reusable shopping bags to bag it up.
I've noticed a related trend in San Francisco takeout where some restaurants use decent quality plastic trays or tubs to package the food, rather than foil lined cardboard or Styrofoam. Since they're dishwasher safe, we reuse them and they make great leftover containers. It definitely factors into which restaurants we use when ordering in.
I would think that if it violates health code, that technically if you brought your own container and put the leftovers in it yourself, there would be no problem. Interesting idea though, I've never thought about it or seen anyone do it myself. I've sort of stopped taking leftovers because I never end up eating them, I just do it "to be polite"(I'm aware that sounds ridiculous).
I hope this is a start of something.
I keep a collapsible "accordion-like" plastic container in the car to take in with me when I go to restaurants. I admit I feel self-conscious about having it so I keep it out of sight as much as possible. I'd love it if my favorite places had their own reusable leftovers containers - I buy canvas bags with store logos on them like they're going out of style, I'd do the same with containers. And like someone above me said, I used to re-use my Starbucks iced drink cups, at least until the company offered some clear plastic cups designed to look like their iced cups (for a limited time). I bought two.
I have a neighborhood Thai place that I go in and drop off my (obviously clean sturdy containers) when I order. I come back shortly and my bins are full. They told me they love when I do this. Hard to remember when "going out" but I'd like to be more consistent. Idon't find it embarassing or weird.