Topic 13 :
Some people prefer to eat at food stand or restaurants. Other people prefer to prepare and eat food at home. Which do you prefer? Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer.
As economic condition has been improved over a period of time due to the advance of technology taking place in the last centuries, people, therefore, have more choices of goods and services to enjoy. Food is not an exception. I do not mean that in our ancestors’ times, there were no food stalls. Food stalls have been developed since the ancient time. However, it is not until recent years, when globalization has been accelerated that customers are provided with a wider range of food such as Korean food, Chinese food, Indian food, etc., which makes the choices between eating at home or going to restaurants become more balanced. From my perspective, I prefer eating at home to spending time and money at restaurants.
First of all, this is due to economical condition. When you go to the restaurants, besides the cost of foods or cooking, the cost of services such as servants, physical layout where you enjoy your meal are also added to the bill. In general, these added fees are much more than the cost of food and cooking, which are very small as the result of economies of scale. Instead of expending a lot of money on a dinner in the restaurant, it would be much more economical to have a meal at home. Having meals at home will help you halve the cost spent at eating and these amounts of money saved each day will be accumulated, and you can not imagine how huge these amounts are. These amounts of money can be used for other activities such as traveling, entertaining, which usually yield more satisfaction to me, at least.
The next reason to explain for my predilection for having meals at home is the problem pertaining to hygienic problem. Every day, there are often a lot of news on television or newspaper about people poisoned by unhealthy or substandard food, which are mainly supplied to customers by the dilapidated or illegal food stalls, which have not been allowed to do business by the authorities. The consequences are often calamitous.Some may argue that there are now more and more food stalls of better quality going into business, however, it is often of higher cost and it comes back to my first reason.
Then, it is the matter of spirit that back for my preference for home-made food. Firstly, it is the feeling of gratification when you accomplish a meal by yourself or with the help of family. People often feel joyful when enjoying their own products and there are no exception there. Secondly, meals at home are the best time for all family members to gather and being connected. Meals cooked by wives or moms are not only help family members get out the feeling of starving, but also feel the sense of true happiness, true sense of families. Researches taken by many sociologists also pointed out that it is the lack of family meals that significantly contribute to the escalating rate of divorcing in some societies. Without chances of having activities with each other, it seems hard for husbands or wives to understand and sympathize with each one and the break-up is something inevitable. Meals at home are also time for parents to talk with children to share stories relating to life, work with their daughters or sons, which are really helpful in educating children. The frequency at which children have meals with their families is proved to be positively related with the behavior of children. As pointed out by some researches, teenagers spending more time with parents in the meals tend to have more proper and upstanding behaviors. Meals at home, in my opinion, bring about the feeling of family of being together and help strengthening the family.
Some people may take issue with my third reason as they think that the requirement of meals at home may prevent the freedom of women, and this idea is contrast to the movement to liberalize women that have taken places for more than a century. They may say that it will put a burden on women to do meals for better marriage life. In fact, it does not what I mean. For happy families, it is necessary to have the efforts from both family members and meals at home are just one of the factors leading to the happiness and harmony in families. Meals at home, of course, have to be contributed by both members in families.
Eating at food stand or restaurants is not bad at all as it will blow a new atmosphere into our life and provide us with a wider variety of food, which help us gain more knowledge relating to cuisine and culture. However, in my opinion, it is better if we just keep these times as a small proportion to the amount of time we spend at home. Meals at home not only help people save a lot of money, which can be used in other activities, but also guarantee your health as well as strengthen the happiness of families and create a better environment for children-rearing.
I also have found on Internet an article relating to this, I will read it later and get some professional ideas for my writing. Internet is damn helpful, I have to think of ways being less dependent on its sources.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1200760,00.html
- The Magic of Family Meals
Beyond promoting balance and variety in kids’ diets, meals together send the message that citizenship in a family entails certain standards beyond individual whims. This is where a family builds its identity and culture. Legends are passed down, jokes rendered, eventually the wider world examined through the lens of a family’s values. In addition, younger kids pick up vocabulary and a sense of how conversation is structured. They hear how a problem is solved, learn to listen to other people’s concerns and respect their tastes. “A meal is about sharing,” says Doherty. “I see this trend where parents are preparing different meals for each kid, and it takes away from that. The sharing is the compromise. Not everyone gets their ideal menu every night.”
Fragriver 
I never thought of it that way, well put!
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Thank you for the useful information! I wouldnt have gotten this myself!
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