A restaurant employee turned to the internet to share their head chef’s unsettling observations: Millennials are ruining the fine dining restaurant industry. Here’s what millennials have to say about it.
Note: Some quotes in this piece have been lightly edited for grammar.
The Complaint
The head chef spent ten minutes complaining about how millennials only want to eat healthy food at restaurants and that “‘they don’t care if it looks like crap because they’re always looking at their phones.'”
A Counter
One person suggested that millennials who can afford to eat at a fine dining restaurant are like a walking miracle. “There’s no cheap food anymore,” they say. “And most people can’t afford to pay 50 bucks for a scallop meticulously placed on a smear of purée.”
Give Me Healthy
A millennial stands by the healthy food statement. “I do want healthy food because I can’t afford good health insurance.” What does that mean from a fine dining perspective? They say, “I can’t eat a tub of fried butter garnished with duck fat because I can’t afford the resulting heart attack.”
Such a Joke
A millennial says that “fine dining is definitely out of the question for them.” They reason, “I took my parents to Five Guys yesterday, and I won’t financially recover till my next paycheck.”
Blameworthy
Millennials ruining fine dining has nothing to do with them wanting to eat healthy or looking at their phones, argues one person. The disappearance of the fine dining experience is “what happens when wages are kept artificially low, and inflation is allowed to grow unchecked.”
Redefining Fine Dining
One person suggests that millennials are reshaping traditional fine dining. “What exactly is “fine dining” anyways?” they ask. “Eating some overpriced strip of steak in a dimly lit room that costs more than a week of groceries? Because for me, fine dining is getting a delicious burrito for $10 that leaves me unable to eat (or breathe) for the rest of the day.”
Totally Wrong
A millennial who isn’t a stranger to fine dining disagrees with the head chef. “The Michelin-star restaurant I went to last month had a tomato salad for an appetizer, which was both healthy and delicious.” Shall we assume they didn’t look at their phone while dining on their salad either?
Changing Industries
“What’s next on our agenda?” asks a millennial who jokes their generation has been “putting in a lot of wins lately.” They suggest millennials should keep running “industries using the same tactic, being underpaid and overworked.”
The Right Side
“Why pay 300-500% markup on food made by exploited workers?” questions a commenter who isn’t keen on fine dining. To make matters worse? Such food has diminishing portions and increasing prices.
Hard Stop
One millennial laughs at the thought of ruining fine dining. They say they’re ruining fine dining altogether by not eating out anymore.
Take the Check Back
A millennial said it cost them $80 to take four people to breakfast at a fancy restaurant in Minnesota. “No fancy extras,” they added. “Just eggs and toast and bacon.” Their take on it? “Fine dining should come with a massage or something afterward if breakfast is those prices.”
Better Idea
Who needs fine dining when you can marry the chef? A millennial says they’ve helped ruin fine dining because they “have the fine dining at home, [which is] much cheaper and all the more Fine.”
Someday
A millennial says they’d love to have a fine dining restaurant experience. The problem? They have “McDonald’s money,” with “a casual sit-down restaurant at a stretch.”
Wrong Generation
An elder millennial believes the head chef misspoke, saying Gen Z is the generation more prone to requesting healthy food and keeping their face glued to their phones. They explain, “I’m well versed in the difference between paying for atmosphere (with slightly above average food) and paying for quality ingredients turned into a meal worth the cost.”
So Confused
One person says that the head chef’s complaint doesn’t mirror their experience. “I thought the complaint about millennials was that they only wanted good-looking food because of their phones.”
Never Again
A spouse took their wife on a “fancy dinner date” that cost nearly $150. Their take on it? “Never again.” They explain, “The food was good but nothing I couldn’t have had elsewhere for half the price at most. ‘Fine dining’ is a joke.”
From Experience
A millennial chef weighs into the conversation, saying fine dining restaurants target the “double income, no kids” demographic. In their opinion, “Boomers are the worst diners: main course, one drink, and bad tip.”
In contrast, “Millennials tend to dine in groups, which means more appetizers, more drinks, desserts, and a nice tip because they understand what it means to work for a living.”
Source: Reddit.
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