Welcome to Sunday Sobremesa, a bimonthly thread to discuss food and culture while sipping on a café americano (or un gin tonic1, if that’s more your style!).
Earlier in the week I talked about gazpacho, which I actually kind of hated at first but now love. Writing the newsletter made me think about how our tastes van cambiando2 over the years. Since I was a picky eater as a child, I have a whole list of things that I swore I would never, ever eat but now do. Some of them I trained myself to appreciate (like mushrooms), but others just happened naturally (like black coffee, olives, and mustard—minus yellow mustard and honey mustard, which I still can’t stand).
How have you gotten more gastronomically adventurous over the years? Is there something that you swore you’d never eat—either as a child or as an adult—but now enjoy?
I’m excited to hear how your tastes have evolved! See you in the comments!
Un gin tonic: A gin and tonic. You probably figured that out on your own, but I’ve always found it curious that it’s called a gin tonic here instead of a gin y tonic, which would be the direct translation.
Well you didn’t like a lot of food! You were fine before you started school then everything changed. You would eat just about anything including spinach when I would round it into little balls but not just scooped out to eat! You were spoiled but well loved is what I always said🥰
Haha food presentation is important! I can see how when I was five or six years old tiny spinach balls would be way more fun to eat than a whole pile of it. Actually as an adult I still prefer cutting my apples into slices and arranging them neatly on a plate rather than just eating one whole!
I definitely remember being picky when I was younger (as you know I write about it a lot!). Were you also a picky eater? Is there anything you didn’t like when you were younger and then ended up liking later in life?
I thought think I wasn’t a picky eater. We ate what Mom fixed. Unlike you and your brother if you guys didn’t like what I fixed I’d usually make you a grilled cheese sandwich. Or something else but usually a grilled cheese!
Ooh avocados are a good one. I feel like unusual textures can be a huge turnoff for some people- it’s actually one of the main reasons I used to dislike mushrooms!
I didn’t like avocados, either, but my dislike was more related to taste. I think the first few times I tried them was by way of poorly-seasoned guacamole. Once avocado toast started to take off I retried them and liked them much better.
I love them like this, too! Sometimes I eat them in salads or with egg dishes to add some extra creaminess since I can’t have cheese. They also work well as a cheese replacement in quesadillas!
I hardly ate anything when I was a kid, but I vehemently refused to eat mushrooms. Oh, and I hated tomatoes even though I loved marinara sauce and ketchup.
Mushrooms are such a common no-go. I like them now, but sometimes if I think about it too much, the texture still weirds me out. I’m trying to work myself up to trying a portobello burger but I’m a little intimidated (plus I love regular burgers, so they often get chosen over the portobello 😂).
I’ve definitely heard of people loving tomato products but not tomatoes themselves!
Well you didn’t like a lot of food! You were fine before you started school then everything changed. You would eat just about anything including spinach when I would round it into little balls but not just scooped out to eat! You were spoiled but well loved is what I always said🥰
Haha food presentation is important! I can see how when I was five or six years old tiny spinach balls would be way more fun to eat than a whole pile of it. Actually as an adult I still prefer cutting my apples into slices and arranging them neatly on a plate rather than just eating one whole!
I definitely remember being picky when I was younger (as you know I write about it a lot!). Were you also a picky eater? Is there anything you didn’t like when you were younger and then ended up liking later in life?
I thought think I wasn’t a picky eater. We ate what Mom fixed. Unlike you and your brother if you guys didn’t like what I fixed I’d usually make you a grilled cheese sandwich. Or something else but usually a grilled cheese!
I didn’t like avocados 🥑 until I was an adult! Now they are one of my favorite things - something about the texture put me off when I was younger.
Ooh avocados are a good one. I feel like unusual textures can be a huge turnoff for some people- it’s actually one of the main reasons I used to dislike mushrooms!
I didn’t like avocados, either, but my dislike was more related to taste. I think the first few times I tried them was by way of poorly-seasoned guacamole. Once avocado toast started to take off I retried them and liked them much better.
Yes, it was the texture that turned me off! Now I love them with a drizzle of olive oil and lemon!
I love them like this, too! Sometimes I eat them in salads or with egg dishes to add some extra creaminess since I can’t have cheese. They also work well as a cheese replacement in quesadillas!
👍 😋
I hardly ate anything when I was a kid, but I vehemently refused to eat mushrooms. Oh, and I hated tomatoes even though I loved marinara sauce and ketchup.
Mushrooms are such a common no-go. I like them now, but sometimes if I think about it too much, the texture still weirds me out. I’m trying to work myself up to trying a portobello burger but I’m a little intimidated (plus I love regular burgers, so they often get chosen over the portobello 😂).
I’ve definitely heard of people loving tomato products but not tomatoes themselves!