tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post3285310476840321785..comments2024-03-13T09:47:40.487+00:00Comments on Cockpit Conversation: Refills and StrawsAviatrixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-87228637927615060922008-08-23T17:36:00.000+00:002008-08-23T17:36:00.000+00:00In a restaurant in Virginia (an all-you-can-eat ch...In a restaurant in Virginia (an all-you-can-eat chinese, if I remember right), I had my almost-finished Coke topped up with iced tea. I wasn't happy :-)<BR/><BR/>GottleAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-58289831908068688842008-08-23T01:13:00.000+00:002008-08-23T01:13:00.000+00:00American restaurants "proactive"?"Obtrusive" = the...American restaurants "proactive"?<BR/><BR/>"Obtrusive" = the word which more accurately describes restaurant service in the USA.<BR/><BR/>Eating out in the USA is often quite an interrupted and irritating experience for those of us accustomed to unobtrusive service.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-33344734759899063682008-08-22T17:51:00.000+00:002008-08-22T17:51:00.000+00:00LOL!!!I'm a blogging aviatrix too, and I really me...LOL!!!<BR/><BR/>I'm a <A HREF="http://pilot-in-command.blogspot.com/" REL="nofollow">blogging aviatrix</A> too, and I <I>really</I> meant to comment on one of your posts about flying, but got totally sidetracked by this one.<BR/><BR/>It's so true: We may scrimp on everything else but by God, the Soda Will Flow.<BR/><BR/>This is probably why American restaurants will charge you .50 cents for a side of ranch dressing, or $1.50 for a slice of cheese: to make up for all that lost revenue in Coke and Diet Pepsi.<BR/><BR/>It's been a while since I've read it, but I think the right to Free Refills is in our Constitution somewhere.Callsign Echohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07394192594808060440noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-82032847822445162802008-08-21T13:50:00.000+00:002008-08-21T13:50:00.000+00:00@Anonymous: "so you can tell they're not just recy...@Anonymous: "so you can tell they're not just recycling them?"<BR/><BR/>I'm *pretty* sure that's done for hygiene. You can open a straw and stick it in a glass for a customer w/o actually touching the straw. For many, straws are seen hygiene issues altogether -- some people are phobic of drinking from glasses they haven't washed themselves.<BR/><BR/>Of course, ultimately, it's a bunch of waste plastic. Food concessions at zoos and sealife parks got rid of straws years ago because animals end up choking on them.<BR/><BR/>A Japanese friend once told me that straws were considered "very American": They are associated with drinking milkshakes, ice-filled drinks, and while riding in cars and in spacecraft.dpiercehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03397601206317363858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-68914321980942399332008-08-20T19:58:00.000+00:002008-08-20T19:58:00.000+00:00I was very surprised with free refills in US resta...I was very surprised with free refills in US restaurants.<BR/>I've only stayed for about one month in the USA but I understood how easy it is to get fat.<BR/><BR/>I missed my french restaurants! :-)<BR/><BR/>I prefer quality over quantity.<BR/>And nothing compares to a quality meal accompanied by a glass of wine for pleasure, and fresh water.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-10665630379888850052008-08-20T19:22:00.000+00:002008-08-20T19:22:00.000+00:00I'm always amused when they give you a straw, with...I'm always amused when they give you a straw, with a bit of the paper left on.. so you can tell they're not just recycling them? I prefer to risk the faceful of ice to drinking from a straw, usually. Straws make me feel like a fly sipping the sugar water.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-59858720708389238812008-08-20T18:15:00.000+00:002008-08-20T18:15:00.000+00:00One of the nearby restaurants hubby and I frequent...One of the nearby restaurants hubby and I frequent changed hands about a year or so back. One of the changes new ownership made is that soft drinks are now sold per can, and refills are no longer free. This has forced me to learn how to make one drink last a whole meal -- which gets interesting, especially when spicy food and condiments are involved.<BR/><BR/>Water, though, is still free, and the thinking part of my brain tells me it's better for me anyway. Given what's in a lot of those other drinks, and given how much of them I tended to drink, maybe I shouldn't mourn the loss of the free refills too much. <BR/><BR/>I'm trying to wean myself off the sugar water (or, more precisely, the artificially-flavored sort), and am trying to see it more as an occasional treat than a staple of my diet. It's not been easy, but I sure don't miss the afternoon headaches and grumpiness. (It's also meant I don't dump as much money into the nearest vending machine, too.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-34287672967656626102008-08-20T18:06:00.000+00:002008-08-20T18:06:00.000+00:00It wasn't intended as an accusation of laziness or...It wasn't intended as an accusation of laziness or greed, just an observation. I'm the one who can't control her sugar water intake when it keeps being placed in front of her. :-)Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-45286808447286260482008-08-20T16:58:00.000+00:002008-08-20T16:58:00.000+00:00Straws aren't (just) about laziness; they're a con...Straws aren't (just) about laziness; they're a convenient way to avoid having to use one's mouth as a liquid-from-ice strainer. I suppose you'll retort that only Americans are silly enough to dilute their drinks with frozen water. :-)<BR/><BR/>The pricing model here seems to include a thin profit margin on food and an astronomical markup on drinks, both soft and hard. The cost of bag-in-box drinks is negligible compared to their exorbitant menu prices (US $1.50 - $2.50), so offering free refills is (I guess) a cheap way to increase customer satisfaction.<BR/><BR/>Not all of us are drinking sugar water, either. Everywhere you go, there will be Diet {Coke | Pepsi} and possibly other sugar-free drinks. (Whether the artificial sweeteners will give us all cancer is another matter...)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com