7 ms·

Instagram is ruining food

16 points by gammarator 9y ago

polskibus 9y ago
Is it just me or this story requires fb login? Maybe it's time for HN to introduce some form of tagging such articles during submission?
- asdfologist 9y ago
  Just hit "Close" on the top left.
- dee-see 9y ago
  There is a subtle "close" link in the top left corner of the pop up.
- jonawesomegreen 9y ago
  I would love to see some tagging for paywalled articles. It feels like I've been seeing more of them lately.
zacsme 9y ago
The article has a video included: "How to take better food photos for Instagram"
teh_klev 9y ago
archive.is linky for those who can't get past the paywall using all the usual tricks: http://archive.is/cBsdO http://archive.is/cBsdO [edit: oops, forgot the link]
bobthepanda 9y ago
Instagram has largely been a net positive for food and restaurants. Pre-Instagram, creating buzz for a new restaurant was pretty difficult; now at least some types of restaurants are able to get the word out quickly.
- dmreedy 9y ago
  The article discusses this extensively, and is perhaps more even-handed than its title might suggest. The balance seems to be that Instagram may be a net positive for restaurants, but not for food; those things are not the same, and the author's hypothesis is that short term optimization for the former may result, in the longer run, significant negative impact on the latter, which will of course circle back around again and hurt the former dramatically. This seems pretty compelling to me. It's easy (and not always wrong) to dismiss dismissivness around advertising in food as hoighty pretension, but I think there's a worthy conversation to be had in the form-over-function optimization it encourages. Visual spectacle is only one axis on which food needs to be appreciated, and the concern here is that it's being over-emphasized at the expense of other, very important factors.
- loco5niner 9y ago
  Just being honest here: I don't want a restaurant to survive or thrive because it can create a buzz. I want it to survive because it has good food. Good service is a nicety too. If it doesn't have those, I want it to fail. In all the products/services we create and consume, we should be focusing on providing quality rather than creating an appealing appearance that ultimately doesn't satisfy. I feel like real food has suffered in this way, just look at what has happened to Red Delicious apples and standard grocery tomatoes through the past decades. Very beautiful in appearance, but lacking in substance.
  - bhauer 9y ago
    You and I both. But in my experience, this has always been the case, since before Instagram and it will continue after Instagram. Some people like dining to be a more holistic experience that is less emphatically focused on the taste of the food and the quality of the ingredients. Appearance, buzz, hype, and everything else that comes from the non-food elements of dining out has never done much for me and my wife. But we know plenty of people who value those attributes highly. When going out with friends, we'll often be swayed to go to places that have more visual or thematic embellishment than flavor and food quality. And that's fine. It sounds like Instagram is simply a continuation of that, perhaps an amplification of that. But some of us will continue to prefer restaurants that focus on flavor and quality first. Yes, atmosphere matters, but I never take selfies, and I very rarely photograph my food. The delight of a free market is that I can support vendors that respect the things I value, and do so regularly, all the while others have distinct preferences and the market serves us both. Even this article is a bit of the market in action: a non-trade signal to chefs to remember that some out there may spend their money on a really good stew.
magic_beans 9y ago
Instagram is elevating food. It's an amazing discovery tool for finding new places to eat. This entire article is predicated on the fact that no-one Instagrams boring ol' stew -- but this is not true at all. Clickbait title. Useless article.
rabbyte 9y ago
this is the most petty thing. I mean... wow. maybe care less about what other people are into? if the food you're eating doesn't taste great that's entirely on you, there are so many great food options today! I'm supposed to be upset people like to snap their meals and restaurants are working harder on presentation or mood lighting? oh no! the horrors.

16 points by gammarator 9y ago

Is it just me or this story requires fb login? Maybe it's time for HN to introduce some form of tagging such articles during submission?

asdfologist 9y ago
Just hit "Close" on the top left.
dee-see 9y ago
There is a subtle "close" link in the top left corner of the pop up.
jonawesomegreen 9y ago
I would love to see some tagging for paywalled articles. It feels like I've been seeing more of them lately.

zacsme 9y ago

The article has a video included: "How to take better food photos for Instagram"

teh_klev 9y ago

archive.is linky for those who can't get past the paywall using all the usual tricks: http://archive.is/cBsdO http://archive.is/cBsdO [edit: oops, forgot the link]

bobthepanda 9y ago

Instagram has largely been a net positive for food and restaurants. Pre-Instagram, creating buzz for a new restaurant was pretty difficult; now at least some types of restaurants are able to get the word out quickly.

dmreedy 9y ago
The article discusses this extensively, and is perhaps more even-handed than its title might suggest. The balance seems to be that Instagram may be a net positive for restaurants, but not for food; those things are not the same, and the author's hypothesis is that short term optimization for the former may result, in the longer run, significant negative impact on the latter, which will of course circle back around again and hurt the former dramatically. This seems pretty compelling to me. It's easy (and not always wrong) to dismiss dismissivness around advertising in food as hoighty pretension, but I think there's a worthy conversation to be had in the form-over-function optimization it encourages. Visual spectacle is only one axis on which food needs to be appreciated, and the concern here is that it's being over-emphasized at the expense of other, very important factors.
loco5niner 9y ago
Just being honest here: I don't want a restaurant to survive or thrive because it can create a buzz. I want it to survive because it has good food. Good service is a nicety too. If it doesn't have those, I want it to fail. In all the products/services we create and consume, we should be focusing on providing quality rather than creating an appealing appearance that ultimately doesn't satisfy. I feel like real food has suffered in this way, just look at what has happened to Red Delicious apples and standard grocery tomatoes through the past decades. Very beautiful in appearance, but lacking in substance.
- bhauer 9y ago
  You and I both. But in my experience, this has always been the case, since before Instagram and it will continue after Instagram. Some people like dining to be a more holistic experience that is less emphatically focused on the taste of the food and the quality of the ingredients. Appearance, buzz, hype, and everything else that comes from the non-food elements of dining out has never done much for me and my wife. But we know plenty of people who value those attributes highly. When going out with friends, we'll often be swayed to go to places that have more visual or thematic embellishment than flavor and food quality. And that's fine. It sounds like Instagram is simply a continuation of that, perhaps an amplification of that. But some of us will continue to prefer restaurants that focus on flavor and quality first. Yes, atmosphere matters, but I never take selfies, and I very rarely photograph my food. The delight of a free market is that I can support vendors that respect the things I value, and do so regularly, all the while others have distinct preferences and the market serves us both. Even this article is a bit of the market in action: a non-trade signal to chefs to remember that some out there may spend their money on a really good stew.

magic_beans 9y ago

Instagram is elevating food. It's an amazing discovery tool for finding new places to eat. This entire article is predicated on the fact that no-one Instagrams boring ol' stew -- but this is not true at all. Clickbait title. Useless article.

rabbyte 9y ago

this is the most petty thing. I mean... wow. maybe care less about what other people are into? if the food you're eating doesn't taste great that's entirely on you, there are so many great food options today! I'm supposed to be upset people like to snap their meals and restaurants are working harder on presentation or mood lighting? oh no! the horrors.