Non Sequitur by Wiley Miller for June 19, 2018

He leaves a two dollar tip. The ketchup pack in the middle. Then a smash down with a napkin covered hand.

On temporary loan, and with rounder faces, the bears today are visiting In Security.

The place I go to for pub trivia serves a Monte Cristo, but for some reason it doesn’t come with a thing of fruit preserve for dipping. The waitresses have learned that when I arrive with my own little cup of preserves, they don’t even have to ask me what I’m going to order.

I’m with the waiter on this one.

Why cover up the taste of a good steak with tomato?

Ketchup is for smokers and those who hate food.

My mother-in-law insists on putting tomato sauce on lasagne. And spaghetti. sighs

Burger joint in New Haven CT claims to be the first ever. You can’t get ketchup, don’t even ask.

The customer is always right.

@brass orchid: given the growth of over the top behaviors, that’s no longer the 100% solution. Poor behavior needs to be handled, not tolerated, and not just in restaurants.

to each his ownfor me black pepper ruins food

The best restaurant we ever went to when I was a kid, even I could see the pained look on the waiter’s face when dad asked for A-1 Sauce.

There used to be a restaurant in one of the Disney Hotels that if you asked for Ketchup, the Waiter/Waitress would loudly stand and call out “DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY KETCHUP??” , and within 30 seconds, EVERY BOTTLE of Ketchup in the place would be on your table! Then, of course, they would all be cleared off, and you would be left with one. All in the spirit of good fun, of course…

A couple of weeks ago, my brother took me to a fancy restaurant (Hearthstone in Collingswood, NJ. About a 2 month wait for a reservation.) for my 65th birthday. No condiments on the tables. None needed. The food was amazing.

La sauce American.

Catsup (ketchup, whatever) + Worcestershire sauce makes an OK emergency steak sauce.

Amazing how many people think that their way is the only way. Get a life.

There’s something here I don’t get: why should it bother anyone what someone else puts on their own food? I can understand the snark and outrage if someone went about sprinkling catsup on another’s food, but on their own? De gustibus nobis non disputandum est, as my old Latin teacher might say. ;-)

You know, one can calculate a zero-percent tip under appropriate circumstances. It’s pretty easy.

The good Chicago hot dog joints keep ketchup under the counter for tourists. Bad enough to put on fries but on a hot dog?

My grandkids here in Ecuador, mix ketchup ( salsa tomate ) into their chicken and rice ( cringe ).

The oldest, now a teenager, puts that stuff on everything ! For his birthday, I gave him a large container of his favorite ketchup for his own personal use.

I don’t care what people do or what they put catsup on, but, DO NOT PUT CATSUP ON EGGS! That is so disgusting to me. For one thing, I hate yellow and red together.

I haven’t thought of the Cafe Boeuf since Garrison Keillor went off the air…

Bottom line: Who’s paying for the meal? I don’t tell the waiter what to eat, and I would expect the same respect in return.

A million years ago (maybe 1970’s), there was a Dennis the Menace strip with the caption “Anything tastes good if I put enough ketchup on it.”

I’ll admit to smuggling in Taco Bell taco sauce to a real Mexican restaurant. Why do they expect you to eat a naked taco?

I’d like to think the comments here are all for humor and that nobody really cares what someone else puts on their steak, hamburger or hot dog. Almost all of them are funny and I enjoyed reading them.

Says the guy who happens to like Hawaiian pizza.

“I am not asking for Ketchup, I am DEMANDING it. Now get you pretentious backside into that kitchen and serve me what I order.”

In this case, I gotta agree with the King “Have it your way!” You can put catsup, cheese wiz or orange marmalade on your burger. Just don’t ask me to put it on mine.

Years ago I had a grade-school best friend who was the eldest of several siblings. Her father took the family on a really special vacation to NYC, one event being dinner at 21. The family, the part old enough to understand, cringed when the daughter who was going through a there-ain’t-no-food-‘cept-bologna phase ordered a bologna sandwich and couldn’t be budged. That waiter calmly took her order, staff stepped out the back kitchen door to a local deli (NYC, after all!), and presented her with her bologna sandwich. Now THAT’s how it’s done!

Quite frankly, after a few dinners at some so-called “high end” restaurants, where the prices were off the graph, the portions less than minuscule, the service sneering and condescending, and the drinks watered down, a good bottle of ketchup would have been a relief. I read on the menu that a gratuity was “automatically included” on the final tab. I could understand why.

Every business looks for repeat customers. I’ve only been to a restaurant once where my family was looked down on by the waiter, as if it was just too much trouble to feed us. Never went back.

Ketchup is what you use to cover up the taste of Ruined Food.

Ketchup is only for French fries. Period. And only a little bit on each. (Unless there’s some balsamic vinegar available. Then sprinkle on some of that.)

It has been written that the definition of totalitarianism is assuming the right to tell other people what will make them happy. By that token, there are a lot of totalitarians in the restaurant business, and on comic strip comment boards.

Ah, the memories of dining in Paris, where not spitting on the customer is allegedly a high compliment. We learned quickly to pass ourselves off as Canadians to avoid the hassle.

How about ketchup on mashed potatoes? Surely, that’s OK?Barbecue sauce on fried chicken?Maple syrup on baked beans?How about a bologna and grape jelly sandwich?

Mashed potatoes and gravy in an ice cream cone.

Hey, I was in a hurry.

If people want what they want with or on their food so be it. It’s their palate, stomach, and right. I do prefer restaurants who do let you know what they’re going to put on the food you will be served instead of assuming you like mayo or whatever and I’ve learned to ask what goes on or comes with the dish. Yes, you should taste food before seasoning it. Yes, you should be open to trying new foods, seasonings, and cooking methods. No one should put up with attitude. Servers work hard and never deserve your bs just for doing their job. To be fair, if I get bad service I figure someone’s having a bad day and I will ask them about it. I’ll give them or the restaurant a second chance. On the other hand if it’s bad for no reason I won’t skip the tip – that just comes off as being cheap. Leaving a dime gets the message across. I figure if all people hear is the bad things about their job then they’ll feel bad about it so when it’s good I let ‘em know. I also let management know when they’ve got a good worker. It makes things better and costs me nothing. Yes, I do sometimes tell people to keep their opinions to themselves. Remember, everyone already has one butthole and doesn’t need any more than that one.