Fuddland

It’ll be interesting to see what happens here come the beginning of April, when a five percent tax on disposable [wooden] chopsticks will be introduced, to try and reduce the burden on natural resources and encourage the use of re-usable, but arguably less hygienic, plastic chopsticks in restaurants.

I’ve eaten out pretty much every night since I arrived [oh what a decadent life I lead], mostly in middle-of-the-range restaurants, and have never been offered anything other than wooden chopsticks — which, aside from their obvious environmental downside, also threaten painful mouth-based splinter danger if one isn’t careful to rub off any loose bits beforehand.

I can imagine a large number of establishments will simply absorb the tax into their budgets and continue to provide the disposable variety, rather than losing business from customers not willing to risk using a possibly-not-washed-very-well plastic pair. But perhaps enough smaller businesses will be forced into switching to make a significant impact on the country’s timber use.

I wonder if it would be considered rude if, as a compromise, I took to carrying around my own pair of re-usable chopsticks?

#1

susannah | 2006 / 03 / 28 – 15:52

Cleanliness isn’t especially important to most restaurants here. Take a peek in the kitchen at Mama and Baba’s.

#2

David | 2006 / 03 / 28 – 16:34

Re #1: That’s more along the lines of “what the eye doesn’t see, the chef gets away with”. I’ve seen restaurant-goers refuse a dirty glass and wipe down plates with a napkin before use.

If plastic chopsticks are already perfectly acceptable because nobody cares about hygiene, why don’t more restaurants invest in them already, instead of handing out wooden ones all the time? It can only save money in the long run if they throw them into the washing-up along with the dishes, no matter how cheap wooden chopsticks are at the moment.

Commenting on this post is closed. Thanks to all those who left comments. If you'd still like to say something about this entry, feel free to email me.