Too Much Of A Good Thing — By John Reed

Too Much Of A Good Thing
I’m beginning to think no one eats at home anymore. Last week saw the opening of our latest eatery and coffee bar, Mocha on Main. The owners have done a great job of transforming the old Western Auto building into an inviting bistro.
In addition to an ever-growing plethora of national fast-food chains, we have Manna, Aunt Mary’s, Ruby’s, Ray’s, Papa’s, Dick’s…all we need is a Tom’s and a Harry’s. Many ethnic options are available: Mexican, Chinese, Southern, even Italian, sort of, with two – and soon to be three – pizza joints here. Anyone remember the wonderful and sadly short-lived authentic Italian place we had?
One look at my waistline will show anyone that I frequent all of these places. I’ll bet I’m not the only one on first name terms with most of the owners. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the offerings are processed, high sodium, high calorie food.
I have personal favorites at each stop. Hardly any of them are good for me. Sure, it’s possible to get healthy choices, even salads at most of these places. But I’m guessing very few people do. Chef Roman Coley Davis is planning a farm to table diner in Lumber City, but that dream is still a long way off.
Meanwhile home cooking has become the rare treat that eating out used to be. Coleridge’s classic line “water water everywhere and not a drop to drink” could be paraphrased here: “food food everywhere and nothing to eat.”