Do you expect grilled or steamed anything to have butter on it?

I always assume I’ll be getting unhealthy fats when I go to a restaurant, and I’m generally right. It’s a fair bet your dish wasn’t even soaking in real butter either, because that’s more expensive.

As for ordering grilled and getting it soaked in oil/grease/butter, I’d send it back asking for them to at least wash it off. I’m also thinking they had a new cook who screwed up on the dish.

I don’t think it was screwed up at all. It’s a chain restaurant. I now realize they use a flat top grill, not a grill grill. That to me is deceptive also. I think the average person assumes grilled means open flame grill.

The waiter specifically checked if it was oil or butter and they said butter (this was after the fact. We were in a big rush and I was not going to send it back. I could have sopped up a bunch of the butter with a napkin). I agree it might be some other fake stuff, but that would really be false advertising. I hope it was the fake stuff.

I always want butter on it. You can ask them to serve the butter on side.

@trailsillustrated But do you expect it to have butter on it when it says it was grilled or steamed?

I don’t expect anything low in fat when I go to a restaurant, period. I probably would never order steamed vegetables at a restaurant because I’ve never eaten a vegetable at a restaurant that I actually enjoyed, but if I did, I’d be glad there was butter on it. I don’t go to restaurants to eat healthy; I go there to enjoy myself.

It’s definitely not dishonest or misleading unless they tell you there’s no butter on it and then serve it to you swimming in butter. When in doubt, ask. If you don’t ask, you get what you get.

When I cooked for a living, grills were both open flame style slatted grills and solid steel grills. Grilled on the solid grill meant applying a scoop of oil and then the object(s) to be grilled.

Yes, I would expect grilled zucchini to be slathered in oil, but not real butter as @snowberry mentions.

Always ask 1st. Most cooks will be just as happy not to add the extra oils.

No expectations. I have had it all ways. If I don’t want butter I just ask for it on the side.

I would not expect it to have butter or any sauce on it, but for grilled it might have some olive oil on it as it is applied before being placed on the grill.

But nothing if it is steamed.

Three simple words. Send. It. Back. You are paying for your food at a restaurant, you are not a guest in someone’s home where you have to be super polite and eat it anyway. More people need to send back things they don’t like or food service won’t get better.

I don’t expect butter. I wouldn’t be the person to send back the food, though. Food is food and sending it back is a waste.

My experience cooking in restaurants is similar to that of @Dan_Lyons, especially in a chain. “To grill” means to make a pool on the flat-top with butter-like oil (from a container that sits in a warm spot near the stove or grill) and place the item(s) in the puddle.

I would expect oil to be used unless 1.) I specifically requested it to be prepared without butter or oil, or 2.) it was presented in the menu as a “healthy” item, prepared without oil or butter.

@cazzie Before one has to resort to sending things back, one should first ask questions about food prep that might affect your dietary restrictions.

Yes, I expect butter to be on most everything.

Restaurant dining does involve cooking methods with oil or butter on almost everything. The best thing to do is ask at the beginning of ordering that butter be off of your plate, period. Including cooking methods. They’ll figure it out.

@zenvelo ‘Steamed’ at restaurants translates to microwaved in a plastic bag. Might as well eat the butter than the carcinogens.

I happen to like buttery vegetables. I can’t say I eat out often enough to “expect” anything done any particular way, though. I get what I get, and not being a particularly picky eater, I’m usually happy.

Personally, I would expect grilled vegetables at a restaurant to be a ‘lighter option’ and therefor free of excess oils and salt. I considered “griddled” to be the same as “fried”. “Grilled” I associate more with “broiled”, much like you, @JLeslie.

When I worked in restaurants, we used “Prep”, a “buttery flavored cooking oil” and it was a lot like the fake butter they put on popcorn at the theater. I can assure you that they did not put the veggies on the flat top with real butter…it smokes and scorches too easily.

Lastly, having worked in a good number of restaurants in my day, I either eat what is brought out, or I do without. I will not return food to the kitchen and I will not eat food that leaves my sight after serving. And no, I do not “want another one”.

What really ticks me off these days is the “bacon craze”. Although I eat seafood, I don’t eat meat and a number of times I’ve gotten a dish that contained bacon, although there was no mention of it on the menu and no discernible reason to ask, “Is there meat in that?”

I would never assume anything when someone else is preparing the food. Anyway, when I steam vegetables, sometimes I will melt a little butter over them later – or pour a buttery sauce over them. There is no food that doesn’t go well with butter! Steaming and grilling are not only for people who are trying to avoid specific fats.

At any restaurant, I always feel comfortable asking and always do.

I would expect the description on the menu to specify how it is served. If it is going to have a pool of butter, I would hope it would say that.

I wouldn’t ask about something like that, just because I wouldn’t expect it.

However, I also wouldn’t send it back. If you do, by the time you get your new one, everyone else at the table would be done eating while you sat there for 20 minutes.

I might write to the restaurant – not to the Customer Service Department, but to someone at the very top, like the President or CEO. Tell them what you were not happy with. If you want your voice to be heard, go right to the top.

When writing, be sure to compliment what you do like about the restaurant. Here’s an example: “I always like your restaurant because I have found the quality of the food to be great and the service is usually quick and friendly. I was in the Orlando location on Friday June 9th with two of my friends. We went in around 2:00 pm for lunch and some drinks. I ordered the grilled vegetables off the appetizer menu. It was served nice and hot, and quickly, but I was not happy to find it served in about a half a cup of butter. Etc., Etc.”

Writing to the President or CEO will ensure the information trickles down the hierarchy appropriately. You may also get some coupons or something giving you money off for the next visit.

I’d expect steamed to be steamed, with butter on the side. I’d expect grilled to be grilled, maybe with some olive oil coating, not dry skinned and seared without some sort of butter/oil, but dripping in butter, no.

On a side note, Ruby Tuesday’s was once my favorite chain restaurant, having a ‘Monster Grilled Fish Sandwich’. Grilled fish on garlic bread with fixins. After a while, they eliminated the garlic bread, and while not as good, it was still the best grilled fish around. The last time I visited, the grilled fish was gone entirely.

I went to the corporate website and wrote a note (similar to the one here) but extolling the fish sandwich and telling them how disappointed I was, and that there now seemed little reason for me to visit. Never received a single word in reply. Never went back.

@ibstubro: That’s why I recommend writing to the CEO or President, not “Customer Service.” In my experience, you get a response when you write directly to someone very high up, but not necessarily to some overwhelmed, vague department.

No. Like when I steam broccoli I don’t put butter on it. I do put cheese on it tho. The only things I put butter on are potatoes and breads, mostly. Can’t think of anything else….wait, I like it on my corn and green beans, too.

Grilled, maybe, if the food warrants it. Certain vegetables and sandwiches come to mind. Steamed food? That stuff shouldn’t have any extra fat or oil aside from a light toss in an olive or sesame oil.

That night I wrote Ruby Tuesday’s through their website. I told them the restaurant is one of my favorite chain restaurants, and I often seek it out when travelling. All true. Then I told them about what I expected when ordering grilled, also mentioned steamed as an example, although it did not directly affect their menu, and that there is nothing on the menu for people watching cholesterol and fat except for salads. I mentioned having some vegan options that would be appealing to everyone. I don’t doubt the “butter” is actually butter flavored oil, so if that is the case maybe they will forward to the manager they gave the wring information. People with lactose intolerance might be skipping that dish or ordering it no butter, when there is no butter to begin with. The note was written in a way that I hope conveyed what I would like to see n the menu rather than as a complaint. I mentioned that I had not asked the waiter before ordering, and so was not criticizing the service in any way, just surprised something that souds healthy is so unhealthy.

I should mentioned that it is not just because I am concerned about health. I have never liked food sopping in oil, I tend to like dry food. I never up mayo or butter on my sandwich (not even as a young skinny kid) I don’t like pasta floating in cream sauces, it just is not my taste. I even prefer regular cake to ice cream or mousse for dessert and I don’t like whipped cream.

I usually ask before I order if I think there might be an issue. I always ask if there is cheese on a salad, because I dislike cheese on salad. I always ask if the house dressing is creamy, because I generally don’t like creamy dressings, I always say no butter when I order steak, and I say light on the oil at the omelette bar in a buffet breakfast, and now I will remember to say no oil or butter on my veggies.

Frustrating honestly. Not everything has to be soooo full of fat. I am not looking for restaurants to cook no fat, because I realize that can be troublesome with many dishes, but just not swimming it.

I really appreciate everyone answers! I found them interesting. A big variety of answers.

@JLeslie That was a great approach! All that complaining and tripadvisor garbage is so unnecessary and never solves problems.

I doubt your message will ever be read, let alone make it to anyone that could actually control that. And if, by some miracle, it did, one non-complaint won’t lead to a change in how they cook their food. Might as well get used to asking for no butter or oil.

Who knows. One is a part of many.

I think I actually started my note, “Goodbye, old friend.” Then proceeded to describe the deterioration of my relationship with Ruby, @JLeslie. I was actually pretty proud of the note, being a little tongue in cheek while telling them that if there was no more incentive than presently offered, we wouldn’t be back. I can only guess that they were good with that.

You never know, @livelaughlove21. I worked in a factory for a major multinational food corporation, and every month they posted the customer complaints on the (glassed in) bulletin board that were pertinent to our department only. Many of them we chucked at, some you could tell were extorting free product, and then there were ones that made the more contentious cringe – we didn’t think enough got through to be noticed.

They responded the next day, I should have mentioned that. It was very form lettery though. I do think it gets passed forward to the right department though. If enough people say the same thing you never know.

I once wrote PF Changs about something on their menu and they wrote me back. We went back and forth a couple times actually by email. They were great, I definitely felt like they took my complaint/suggestion seriously. They sent me a $15 coupon also.

Publix supermarket is one of the best at listening to customer feedback. Not just messages sent to them via email, but the managers inntheir stores are some of the most competent I have come across in supermarkets.

Edit: I kind of remember a while back Ruby Tuesdays had calories counts on their menu and they fouńd it did not affect what was ordered at all. People still mostly big the fatty calorie laden foods. Does anyone remember anything about that? I might have it wrong. I seem to remember the company decided it was better to remove the calorie counts.

^ Publix is the best. When their cashiers ask “Did you find everything you were looking for today?” they actually listen to your answer. Once I had actually gone in looking for loose leaf Earl Grey tea, and mentioned I didn’t see a space for it on the shelf. Next week, there it was!

I’ve been to Publix once in my life: to apply for a job. My friend loves working there.

WHAT? Ok. Homework assignment for you: Go to Publix, to the deli. Order a Boar’s Head Ultimate sub on white, with whatever toppings you like. I recommend Submarine Dressing instead of just plain ol’ oil and vinegar. Come back and tell us your plan for having Publix subs mainlined into your bloodstream for the rest of your life.

I love Publix.

My husband always gets annoyed when they get pushy about taking our groceries to the car for us, though. Not that he lets them know he’s annoyed. He waits until we get outside – “I’m a 24-year-old guy. I don’t need a 70-year-old lady to help me with my bags.” I have noticed perfectly capable spoiled rich people taking them up on that offer, though. It’s their job to ask, but some of them do get rather persistent about it. It’s still 100 times better than shopping at Walmart.

I repeat: If you want a good, personalized result, write to the President or CEO.

I have a file with many letters written to the top, and the replies. Only one was a form letter, from Sears Tire Center, from about 15 years ago (never went back because of their lack of response). One was not replied to at all (Sirius). The rest, great, effective responses.

I expect most steamed things to be served with butter or olive oil (and if they’re not, I will usually add it) but there’s a difference between a light coating and “swimming in it”. I have sent food back that was drowned in a pool of oil. Also my expectations in a chain or fast-food restaurant are different from my expectations in a higher-class independent one.

@livelaughlove21

Here’s the secret: Having people help you to their car is their plan to reduce the number of shopping carts left in the parking lot. It frees up parking spaces, avoids accidents and auto damage, and reduces the amount of time an otherwise-customer-service-oriented person has to spend rounding up carts.

@Seek Luckily (for them), we’re not those assholes that leave the cart in the middle of the aisle.

I would think as far as labor goes, it takes more employees to be on hand to help customers to their cars (maybe 3 or 4), than it takes to gather up carts from time to time (might take 2 and it might not be a constant job).

The people who help you to your car at Publix are the same that bag your groceries. I almost never take them up on the offer, and I never feel they are being pushy about it. I agree with @Seek that they can collect a few carts on their way back in, so it offers a service when they need to go out to the lot anyway. The carts need to be brought in from not only people who leave them willy nilly, but also from the cart corrals if the lot has them.

@jca On a few occassions I have written the top people directly. I’ve done it when I was not getting the response I needed from the lower levels, I don’t think I have ever started with the CEO. For certain things now I would go straight to the top, because I have discovered if you start near the bottom and they suck at handeling the problem, if it is something really important, then by the time you get above their heads they are preparing their story about how you, meaning me, is all wrong and horrible and hysterical, or whatever things they will try to explain away to CYA. Deoending on the CEO sometimes their bullshit works, sometimes not, I rather not risk it.

I think one of the reasons Publix is so great with customer service is that it is employee-owned.

We have to put a coin in the shopping cart to get it out and then when we return it to its place, we get our coin back. We also have to pay for our plastic bags. It’s different here.

@cazzie I think Aldi does the cart thing here in the US. Several stores here give a small credit for bringing your own bags to the market. 5 or 10¢ per bag or something like that. I never pay much attention to how much, but the cashier often tells me they gave me a credit for my bags. I’m happy for the credit, it isn’t that I don’t care about it, I just will take whatever it is and don’t scrutinize what store gives how much for it. I am pretty sure Publix gives me a credit? Maybe @Seek knows for sure. I just purchased two more insulated bags from Publix so now all my groceries go into an insulated bag at check out. I no longer worry about anything being out in the heat on the way home and melting or wilting. Not as much of a concern for you where you live.

@JLeslie there are not any chain restaurants such as that here, they are mostly artisan venues so If it’s grilled its served with butter on the side. Perhaps don’t go to chain restaurants maybe.

@trailsillustrated You made me think about the fact that now almost all chain restaurants serve salad dressing on the side. Maybe butter on the side will be the next thing to happen of people ask for it enough or push for it enough. I think probably part of the problem with the butter and oil is it is partly used so food does not stick to the cooking surface. I just think many restaurants, not just chains, are too heavy handed with it. I was recently at a hote that had a breakfast buffet. I ordered an omelette and asked them to use very little oil. Instead of dong that he wiped the pan clean and sprayed cooking spray. That’s not what I said. Then the women cooking the omelette was letting the veggies burn a little, I could tell bu the smoke coming from the pan, but I said nothing. She said something about there not being enough oil, that the omelette might stick, and I told her not to worry if the omelette wasn’t perfect and also told her it was fine to add a little oil. She sprayed cooking spray on top of the veggies. How is that going to help the egg not stick? She finally pours the egg in (egg whites from a carton) and fairly quickly that is beginning to burn too. I told her, “I think the flame is too high,” I couldn’t watch everything burn any longer without saying something, and her reply was, “no it’s not it is on 8.” my point with this whole idiotic story is the oil makes the cooking more foolproof.

My guess is in Australia if something says grilled, it better be over an open flame. Here they get away with calling a flat grill a grill when it is actually what most regular people would call a griddle. Basically, it means the food is fried or sautéed, not really grilled in the way most people think about it. At least not how I think most people think of grilled.

@JLeslie “my point with this whole idiotic story is the oil makes the cooking more foolproof.”

Well… exactly. @trailsillustrated has a point. This is the level of quality one can expect from a chain restaurant.

@dappled_leaves: But when @JLeslie described what she thinks restaurants refer to as a grill which is really a griddle, it’s not just chain restaurants that use those.

@jca I think that must really be a cultural difference. I wouldn’t expect to see that here, unless in the American chain restaurants.

Another thing restaurants do to make food appear grilled is they have it with black lines on it. You can buy chicken frozen in bags that has black grill lines on it. Whether it’s really grilled is up for debate.

I can’t believe anyone would return to a restaurant that served food like that! I can prepare better food at home. If I’m going to a restaurant, it’s because I want to eat well.

Actually, the restaurant @JLeslie is referring to, Ruby Tuesday’s, is one of the better chains, better than Crapplebee’s or stuff like that. Another chain that seems to have consistently good food is The Outback.

@jca To be honest, I would always choose what @trailsillustrated calls an “artisan venue” over one of these chains. It’s just not worth throwing money at the Walmarts of the food business.

@dappled_leaves: I agree, but sometimes in my case, I am with people who want a chain, or more likely, I’m in an area where there are only chains convenient at the time. One of the reasons chains are popular is that when people are traveling and don’t know what local restaurants are good and which are gross or a ripoff, a chain will pretty much always be consistent. Go to Ruby Tuesday in New York and go to one in Florida and they’ll likely be very similar, so you know what you’re getting (good and bad).

American chains that are good: Mortons steakhouse. Ruth Chris. Some of the Outbacks. Chipotles.

Aldi has the deposit cart and makes you pay for bags. Most people use boxes from the product shelves instead. Cuts down on bag purchases, and the employees don’t have to break down so much cardboard.

Publix – at least regular Publix – doesn’t offer a credit, but they’re almost always running some kind of special to give you a free reusable bag with purchase. I don’t know what the Publix Greenwise Market’s policy is about bags. I’m almost never in that part of South Tampa.

There’s a place in the Providence area called Price Rite that has the quarter-deposit carriages and charges for bags. Good for them. Nobody needs abandoned carriages and bags going everywhere. Especially bags, those should go away.

we have to bring our own bags or pay 15c apeice for them I hate it when I forget. The trolleys however are free.

@trailsillustrated: I never had Mortons, I agree about Ruth Chris but when traveling or with a group of friends looking for something casual, Ruth Chris may be a little pricey and a little fancier than we might like.

No, because I don’t care too much for the taste of butter or margarine. I don’t even use butter on popcorn or baked potatoes.

This ticks me off with cheese too, since I’m not a big cheese eater. I have to always assume the jerks will put cheese on my hamburger, hoagie or other foods.

Fortunately, I rarely eat out anymore. I usually cook my own food. I also love growing and jarring my own vegetables too.

Ruth’s Chris is very expensive. At Ruth’s Chris I always order my steak no butter, they use a ton of butter. I can’t for the life of me understand why butter is necessary on a steak. Outback is the very chain that serves steamed green beans with a hunk of butter, they are steamed in a plastic bag in the microwave, like the veggies you can buy in the frozen section of the supermarket.

I most often eat in chains when travelling, because I know what I am going to get, and there is usually some level of consistency in cleanliness too. I also know what kind of neighborhood I am probably stopping in, and when we travel we are often hauling my husband’s Porsche race car. I don’t like to stand out too much and attract too much attention. Moreover, we need to be able to park, and chains often have large parking lots. Additionally, we are often stopping along the interstate, so the options generally are fast food or chain restaurants. When we arrive to our destination we look for recommendations of local restaurants.

Some of it is regional. Local in the south is more likely to be loaded with fat than local in California.

I still really like Ruby Tuesday’s and Outback. Fancy privately owned restaurants add a lot of butter and oil to food also, they just do it all from scratch more likely, while the chains have a lot of the food prepared. Chef’s are taught fat adds satiety and better mouth feel and that nothing tastes like real butter.

Fat is added all the time where no one realizes. Huge hunk of butter added at the end in Japanese fried rice that was already prepared with oil on the griddle. It is completely unnecessary in my opinion for flavor. Steak cooked in butter or a hunk of butter melted on top at the end,mike I mentioned about Ruth’s Chris.

When we are at home we only eat out about once a week, twice at the most. It’s a combination of local and chain.

I ate at those places when in the us and they are not available here. However, I still eat the same. I have always loved ruth chris’s and morton’s. I eat butter and I like it. I am slender and just like my food to be made where I can see it, on a flaming gas stove, in hot pans quickly. In my last year in the us, I ate at artisan venues in Seattle, San Francisco and Portland. It was never soaked in butter or oil. Same over here. I don’t get too carried away, if the food is shit I kinda gulp it down (or not) and leave. Fortunately, I’ve been lucky to not have that experience too much. I’m not worried about butter.

example: I ate here last weekend. This place is in a teeny tiney beach town.
http://www.leonardsmill.com/our-philosophy.php

I worry about butter more for cardiac disease reasons than my weight. I can reduce calories somewhere else if I eat too many at one meal. The cholesterol and fat I can’t do that. Once ingested it’s in. When I was a very thin young person my cholesterol problem was still exactly the same. Besides what I said about not generally liking food that is excessively oily, buttery, or creamy., and my interpretation of excessive is probably different than other people.

I’d never heard of Ruth’s Chris. I’m someone that never understood the appeal of butter on steak myself. Yuck! I’m not a big steak eater, but I prefer frying steak with onions, peppers, mushrooms and maybe some worcestershire sauce. Butter simply does not seem to match any type of meat to me, but like I’d said above I’m not a fan of butter, though I do like to whip my own and use a little bit on pancakes. I do like butter in some cakes and deserts too, but not overpowering.

@Paradox25 Many many restaurants put extra butter on their steak just before serving. Most people don’t realize it. That does not even acknowledge that some of them are seared in butter. I believe both Texas Roadhouse and Outback use butter. My husband always tells the waiter no extra butter at all restaurants now, and the waiter’s response is almost always something that confirms there would have been butter if nothing had been said. Who knows if they comply with his request. I once asked the waiter at J. Alexanders for no butter on my salmon and he told me they don’t use butter. They cook it right out in the open, anyone can see it is brushed with butter before serving. I figure if they do what I ask half the time I am a little ahead. It I was deathly allergic I would be dead by now.

I don’t keep kosher, but I think possibly some things about how my family prepares food over the generations partly comes from previous generations being kosher. We never put butter on any poultry or red meat, and also things like we never drank milk with dinner. I eat everything though, bacon, lasagna, shrimp, so I guess it seems inconsistent in a way. Like I would not put butter on my steak, but if the baked potato next to it on the plate had butter, that seems totally normal. I don’t even out butter in my potatoes anymore, I am just explaining the inconsistency in how I think about it. LOL. I’d rather have the extra butter on the dry potato than on the already fatty steak if I am going to use any extra fat.

@Paradox25: Ruth Chris is a chain of expensive steak houses. It’s basically steak and potatoes, and the restaurant style is austere and contemporary. I guess you’d compare it to Morton’s but I think Ruth Chris is probably more expensive. There’s one near here at a Marriott, and they probably get a big business clientele.

Ruth’s Chris is definitely for the corporate card set in my opinion. My husband does not like Ruth’s Chris, he prefers Sullivan’s and Felmings if it is going to be one of those more stodgy, ridiculously expensive (in my opinion) steak chains. I don’t think he has ever tried Morton’s and I have not been there in so many years I don’t even remember if I liked the food at Morton’s. I do like when a more formal atmosphere at times, I like having a new fork for each coarse (why does any restaurant expect you to keep your dirty fork when they remove your plate from your first course?) but since I rarely order two courses it isn’t that big of a deal usually. To me formal and stogy don’t have to go together.

My husband’s favorite steak place is Texas Roadhouse. The place has peanut shells on the floor, which isn’t really our schtick, but the steaks are delicious and I really like their salad dressing also. I like Texas de Brazil a lot. Maybe that is less likely to have butter since they are carrying it around the restaurant on skewers, but honestly their salad bar is the real deal there in my opinion.

@JLeslie: Good point about the fork.

I like the salad bar at Ruby Tuesday. It’s not got a huge selection, but does seem to be more homemade stuff, as opposed to out of a jar. I like to get protein at a salad bar, like cheese, egg, and then some stuff like beets and peas, and a little potato salad (which is where I like it homemade in style). I am not big on loading a plate with iceberg and some fattening creamy dressing. I also appreciate when the salad bar has good bread.

@jca My husband really likes the salad bar at Ruby Tuesday’s, especially one of the pasta salads on it. My husband and I had our first date at Ruby Tuesday’s. Actually, he took me to Outback and the wait was an hour and a half so I asked if he would take me to Ruby Tuesday’s instead that had just opened in a new plaza that I wanted to see. The salad bar at Texas de Brazil has marinated vegetables, salmon, sushi (I don’t eat sushi) bacon strips, good bread, a few types of greens, delicious dressings (Ruby’s does not have any dressings I love, they target middle America more and have mostly creamy dressings) rice, beans, olives, cheeses (I don’t eat cold cheese) salami, and soups.

The only Ruby Tuesdays I know of was a dive bar in Wichita in the 70’s. They always ended the night by playing the song “Good Bye Ruby Tuesday.” “You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here!”

LOL.

Oh reading these makes me so hungry- I so wish there was mexican food here. I wish there were some chains, like a buffet.