4 ms·

> Simply put, what value do we get from human interaction in a dining setting? Sorry if there's a running theme here - using Japan as an example where automati

> Simply put, what value do we get from human interaction in a dining setting? Sorry if there's a running theme here - using Japan as an example where automation, pre-made foods and very hands-on service are all widely available: automated services mean that whatever ingredients you're using need to be consistent in flavor, size, shape etc. Humans have greater capacity to adapt with what resources they have. Pre-made foods are relatively bland as a result of this. It's like the difference between McDonalds, which has very tight processes and a largely inflexible menu, versus a gourmet burger joint which might be using a different cheese, grade of bun, larger patties, more or less condiments from one day to another. Another example would be micro-brewed beers versus macro-brewed beers. Micro-brewed beers tend to be more exotic in their flavors and styles while sacrificing consistency, whereas macro-brewed beers tend to be very consistent in taste at the expense of flavor. Judging from your personal preferences this probably means little to you but, usually for hedonistic reasons, it's important to most other people. The above also ignores peoples needs for social contact, desire to appear more wealthy or sophisticated than they really are etc. It's illogical but humans use these aspects as breeding tools and to trigger dopamine release. Sex and drugs.

jimmywanger 10y ago
Hate to belabor a point but I think there's something I'm missing and want to get to the bottom of it. I think chefs aren't going anywhere for a while. They're in charge of too many things, from sourcing food, preparing and coming up with new dishes, balancing the seasoning for every dish, etc etc. Appearances to the contrary, I really do like eating good food and I have fairly high standards when it comes to food, and I appreciate what chefs have to do to make the most out of nothing. ("Beef tongue is only 1.50 a pound! Guess what's on special tonight") The benefit I'm not seeing is having a human being (be it a fast food worker, or a waiter) take your order. That's the part I don't get. I would love to order through a touch screen and just have the food come out. Unless you're a sommelier, you really don't add any value to the dining experience, unless the customer likes bossing people around.
- icanhackit 10y ago
  > The benefit I'm not seeing is having a human being (be it a fast food worker, or a waiter) take your order All you have to get is that people enjoy ceremony, feeling special, appearing above their station or other individuals due to biological underpinnings. Logical people like yourself are above that silliness, most people aren't and I don't see a renaissance on the way for objective thinking. I'd argue it's going the other way. Edit: this sort of comes back to economic policy relying on rational choice theory or the rational actor, when we know it completely ignores the reality of how people make decisions. Several threads on HN have discussed how economic policy needs to move away from rational choice theory and adopt psychological models to predict behavior. Humans aren't logical.

jimmywanger 10y ago

Hate to belabor a point but I think there's something I'm missing and want to get to the bottom of it. I think chefs aren't going anywhere for a while. They're in charge of too many things, from sourcing food, preparing and coming up with new dishes, balancing the seasoning for every dish, etc etc. Appearances to the contrary, I really do like eating good food and I have fairly high standards when it comes to food, and I appreciate what chefs have to do to make the most out of nothing. ("Beef tongue is only 1.50 a pound! Guess what's on special tonight") The benefit I'm not seeing is having a human being (be it a fast food worker, or a waiter) take your order. That's the part I don't get. I would love to order through a touch screen and just have the food come out. Unless you're a sommelier, you really don't add any value to the dining experience, unless the customer likes bossing people around.

icanhackit 10y ago
> The benefit I'm not seeing is having a human being (be it a fast food worker, or a waiter) take your order All you have to get is that people enjoy ceremony, feeling special, appearing above their station or other individuals due to biological underpinnings. Logical people like yourself are above that silliness, most people aren't and I don't see a renaissance on the way for objective thinking. I'd argue it's going the other way. Edit: this sort of comes back to economic policy relying on rational choice theory or the rational actor, when we know it completely ignores the reality of how people make decisions. Several threads on HN have discussed how economic policy needs to move away from rational choice theory and adopt psychological models to predict behavior. Humans aren't logical.