Last week I blogged about plate sizes and research that shows that the size of your plate affects the size of the portions you serve yourself and ultimately, your weight. Around the same time, my husband pointed out that our own plates and dishes (wedding gifts from the 1980s), were dwindling in number and not looking nearly as spiffy as they had when we watched the Huxtables eating from a similar set 20 years ago.
Browsing online, I decided to look for a ten-inch plate like I blogged about last week, and for the first time ever, paid attention to the actual size of dinnerware. Wow. Oversized is in, with advertisements literally bragging about how much their big dishes will hold.
And apparently, size is important to Americans. I ended up ordering a basic white set of restaurant dinnerware from Williams Sonoma. It met my requirements—neutral, tough, and it has a 9 ¾ inch dinner plate. Before I ordered, I skimmed the 91 reviews that customers have submitted. Size matters, and was frequently mentioned among reviewers who couldn’t agree whether the plates were too small or just right. A few like me had actually been drawn to the dishes because of the smaller plate size.
I’m a little nervous. I’m the only female in a house with three males who love to eat. Our current plates are not only bigger, they have a lip around the edge that allows for “extra.” Will I face a mutiny? Brian Wansink’s team claimed the downsizing was painless. I’ll report back.
Take good care,
Melissa
