My size may be deceiving, but I'm the biggest foodie out there. Just short of snob. So naturally I find myself instantly attracted to men (slightly questionable) who can reference famous chefs by their first names. However, most of the time my attraction quickly fades into disgust the moment the topic changes from food. After a few failed dating attempts with “foodie” men, I started to ponder: can I date someone who isn't a foodie? I'm sure the answer will be "depends on the right guy," but should a foodie like myself automatically discount a man with certain food allergies, dietary restrictions, or just plain finickiness.
Below is a short listing of non-foodie men in descending order of foodie dateableness.
The Sicko: No one should fault anyone with legitimate medical allergies. Although it can be funny to see someone break out in hives after eating shellfish, I try to be mindful of people's food allergies (more so if they could die from them). Usually these guys don't expect others to coddle them and their allergies, but watch how they order food to see if they are dateable. If the fella politely ask for substitutions, dateable. If he unexpectedly gets feta cheese in his salad, he’s dateable if he eats around it rather than send it back. However, if you sense any hint of fussiness or self-entitlement, undateable.
There is a narrow exception to the dateable Sicko. If the Sicko has too many allergies to make himself the equivalent of a vegan, then his dateable points go down. This includes those guys that are lactose intolerant and allergic to gluten. You’ve got to be realistic, eating out with these guys will just get frustrating and annoying.
Please note that guys who are just hypochondriacs and THINK they have allergies, avoid these guys like you would if you found a roach in your food. These guys are just needy and will expect you to coddle them at the dinner table and in everything else.
Just Green: These guys are inexperienced, either by choice, disinterest, or they just lived in a bubble (i.e. the meat-and-potatoes guy from Idaho). These fellas are the ones that shock me when they say they have never had sushi, dim sum, or naan. Los Angeles is not lacking in ethnic foods, and anyone who hasn’t tried common ethnic foods also is a good indication of their lack of traveling. Usually, the green ones are dateable and sometimes they can be flipped into foodies with the right sensai. But a red flag goes up for these guys because there’s a chance that they not really green, but are so disinterested in trying new food they are just narrow-minded idiots (see below). A good indicator in spotting these idiots is if they won’t order something based solely on the fact they can’t pronounce the dish.
The Dieter: Living in LA, you meet plenty of actor/model/waiters, and so most are conscious on what they eat. Usually the dieter’s food restrictions don’t affect foodies, but I personally feel strange when I’m the only person eating while my date is nibbling on a salad and sipping water. I’m usually more masculine than most guys I meet, so I don’t want to be reminded of it at the dinner table. I constant dieter will eventually be too frustrating for me to handle, but the occasional dieter trying to maintain his weight is welcomed and dateable (especially since I won’t date fatties).
The Vegetarian/Vegan: These are the tricky ones. On the one hand, I admire the veganetarians since it takes a lot of self-restraint to stay away from meat and dairy. And if they are doing it for humanitarian or environmental reasons, more power to them. But then again, one of my favorite places to eat is called Animal and last month I just ate a foie gras popsicle. Facing the realization that I’d rather spend time with those who enjoy eating and trying new restaurants, the veganetarians are likely not dateable unless there are other major plus factors that compensate. In my case, if the guy is witty, funny, and artistic I can try to look pass the food issues so long as the guy accepts my eating habits.
Junky: This isn’t referring to the William Burroughs sort, but rather “men” who have the eating habits of 8 year-old boys. Junkies will pick out the lettuce and tomatoes out of their double cheeseburgers, they believe Taco Bell is authentic Mexican, and their fridges contain only condiments and take-out containers. Us foodies pride ourselves (maybe a bit too much) on our refined palette and dating someone who actually eats Del Taco other than at 3am will never work, not to mention it’s just plain disgusting.
Narrow-minded Idiots: The most exasperating men of all. The fellas who refuse to eat seafood because it's "fishy" or won't try sushi because it's raw. The men who think "duck" is exotic. When I interface with these idiots, I can't help but look confusingly disgusted by them. I mean, to not even try something based on some preconceived notion that it won't taste good is absolutely absurd. Fucking try it and then decide not to like it. What's the worse that can happen, really? Not only is the narrow-mindedness an indication of odd reasoning abilities, it's a great way of spotting the bores. Absolutely Undateable!
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