Cossetta’s, Pho Ca Dao, On’s Thai Kitchen, Big Daddy’s Barbecue
I like to eat far more than I like to cook. While I’m pretty good at the latter, I’m even better at finding great food close to home. I especially like food that I don’t know how to cook like Pho or that I’m simply to lazy to make–Cossetta’s ravioli and mushroom salad, for instance.
Tonight’s pulled pork on my salad was incredible. The Styrofoam containers or number-5-the-city-won’t-recycle containers never are.
We need an affordable, environmentally friendly alternative.
No, I don’t have a solution. Do you?
Here are a few ideas:
1) A city-wide packaging cooperative. Put economies of scale to work and find better substitutes.
2) Ask restaurants to make a reasonable committment to using more earth friendly products.
3) Promote restaurants that do use paper vs. styrofoam.
4) Ask patrons if they want disposable forks and spoons. I think that many people, like me, bring the food home and use real plates, bowls, and silverware.
5) Challenge a local design school to create a better package. If IKEA can design from the packaging point of view, why can’t we start with the landfill’s perspective?
6) Lastly, lobby the government to incentify packaging producers and restaurants to use recyclable and compostable products.
What’s your idea?
Sara Kerr 