Restaurant charges for wasted food

DOWNSIDE: will this potentially increase our obesity rate in the US? think, if people order the food, and they either dont want to pay, or they cant pay, they are being forced to eat the food.

also, this "wasted food" is not going to save anybody in Africa. its just thrown away, it has to be for sanitation purposes. i think this is a pretty bad idea, it would be a better concept if this food was bagged and shipped to starving countries.

problem with f-ng americans is they feel the need to load up their plate all at once , as if they're too lazy to to visit the buffet again , or as if someone else is gonna eat the good stuff if they're not quick about it . the key to good buffet dining is to eat several progressively smaller plates of stuff .

Finish Your vegetables boy!
But really, this is a very smart way to promote not over eating actually, because people order exactly how much they can eat rather than safe guess and order more.

yes! now children will have food to eat in China!!!

Sounds like when the airlines started charging you for an extra bag. I'd be interested to know what it does to their business seeing as restaurants are already hurting with the bad economy. I certainly wouldn't eat there, just on principle.

YEAH! It's all you can eat... not all you can pile on the plate. How can people think discouraging waste is a bad idea?

Im not big into throwing food away, but charging because you cant finish a plate? That extra money goes into the pockets of the restuarant owner, not the starving children of Africa. Oh, and guess what, that food is still being tossed out...

People are either going to a) be more aware and not waste food or b) overeat just to save a few bucks. Knowing Americans, they'll most likely overeat and continue to put on the pounds.

Yeah this isnt anything new....Ive been to several restaurants in the bay area (mostly Japanese sushi buffets) that charge for wasted food.

I personally think its a good idea :)

There is an all you can eat sushi bar in Davis, CA thats like this. Its 13 dollars for lunch, but if you leave sushi on your plate it costs another 3 bucks.

Jolly good, about time .. and HURRAY!

Uhhh... This has been going on for years at plenty of japanese restaurants.

LOL, boy would I like to go there. I would heap a plate of food onto the floor under the table jsut for kicks! Idiots.

jess
http://www.online-privacy.se.tc

This may be new to NY but local sushi places offering 'all you can eat' in South Florida have been doing it for 15 years. They even have a price structure for certain items left on your plate.

It's great to hear New York is catching on. Maybe in 15 years someone else will copy this policy.

Yeh this is a really good idea, it's stupid to take too much at those all you can eat buffet places anyway, as that's the joy of a buffet, you can go back.

Americans tend to be wasteful people in general. I hate to see food wasted knowing of all the hungary people around the world, however, this restaurant is being greedy with its surcharge. Most restaurants sell their "leftovers" to hog farmers as do grocery stores. Once you buy something it is yours to do with as you like.

Makes sense that they were Asian. Chinese Buffets don't like fountain drinks. They like cans. That way refills are not free.

It makes sense it was a buffet. If it were any other style of restaurant it would not make sense because you already fully paid for the food. What you do with it then...does not matter. A buffet is different. You could fill the plate up and not eat it all and waste good food that someone else could have eaten.

Briliant. Considering the amount of food that gets thrown away, the American public should be charged to waste food. The extra money could go to programs to feed the ones that are not willing to waste food...the homeless or disadvantaged, for example. Bravo!

I think that's a good idea. I am one of those people who would have to pay :( My eyes are always bigger than my stomach.

i makes sense. if it's all all you can eat buffet, and people are taking advantage and taking extra stuff home, then the logical thing would be to charge a little for the 'freebie' takeout.

The very concept of 'all-you-can-eat' is that, at a buffet for example, you can go back for seconds, thirds – as many times as you wish. Allowance of an indefinite amount of food SHOULD mean that people naturally exercise some sort of reasonable self-restraint; however, that's clearly not what takes place. The majority of buffet diners seem to mindlessly overload their plates, regardless of whether or not they plan on actually eating all they take. I see nothing wrong with charging wasteful consumers.

Not going to be a trend of places that is going to do it. However people should know how much they can eat to at least not leave a plate like on the picture. Buffets are great and that means you need to get up a few small trips than trying to fill it on one trip. People in other countries and even our own are starving. When the plates are emptied into a garbage bag and set outside, now there is the oder, the rats and other germs from people who sat and eat. If someone starving they will raid the garbage and what happens if some catches something. Lesson is less portions and more trips.

I love buffets and all you can eat, but I don't put more on my plate than I can eat. I have been amazed, when at such a place, at the amount of food some people put on their plates. I think the worst offender I have ever seen was a man who put mashed potatoes on his plate with gravy all over and the pile was about 5 inches high. WTF?? It was the ONLY thing on the plate. That is being a pig.

Just give it to the homeless dudes in the alley behind your restaurant. The portion sizes in most restaurants these days is outrageous to begin with. Now I get charged because I can't scarf down the pile of slop stacked 4-inches high on my plate! Ridiculous.

When I was travelling in Thailand they made you pay for wastage. Jolly good job. Nothing worse that seeing someone pile their plate high then realise their eye is bigger than stomach!

According to this article Half of the food produced is wasted
http://current.com/items/89231957/study_finds_half_of_all_food_produced_worldwid...

I dunno...maybe looking at food through money colored glasses is just what we need...I mean, our collective national ass IS gigantic.

Since Its an all you can eat buffet it seems logical that they should charge for portions you take and don't eat ...

Though I think some sort of allowance should be made when you take something to try it out and find you don't like it. Should you have to eat it or pay extra for it then?

Or worse yet .. you choose some concoction that you think is something else taste it and find that it's something you can't eat or are allergic to.

this is a load. i pay you for service, clean dishes and utensils, and good food. now you want me to pay for what I can't eat? get a life.

is this the same thing as eating at a really expensive restaurant and getting a really small portion?

i hope the atmosphere is worth it. this will never be a trend.

i cant finish my food- there is a hair in it...

Seriously! I can't stand it when people dine out and order so much food they don't eat half of it. It's such a waste and this seems like a very smart and efficient way for people to be more aware of how valuable food really is.

i like this, when people are starving somewhere this (wasting food)should never happen. just like mom says: "kids are starving in africa, ya kno?!"

i was about to post this. i want this to get serious attention. finally. i hope this catches on