You might’ve noticed that quite a few American food habits have disappeared. But they didn’t vanish overnight, and they simply stopped being things that we do automatically. We no longer eat the same things at breakfast tables or do the same things for weeknight dinners. Here are eight food traditions Americans are slowly letting go of, for better or worse.
A glass of cow’s milk with meals
There used to be a time when parents would always pour a glass of milk for their kids at lunch and dinner. It was normal to have a glass with your pasta or meatloaf, even with sandwiches. But such a habit has begun to disappear. Fewer American families see milk as the default drink for their kids at the dinner table.
There are so many other options out there now, including almond and soya milk. That’s not to say that people have stopped drinking milk outright in America. It’s simply that you’re more likely to see people using milk for coffee or cereal, rather than being poured alongside dinner each night.
The classic boxed cereal bowl breakfast
You couldn’t have a weekday morning without a bowl of cereal in the past. The routine itself hasn’t disappeared, but it’s no longer the standard breakfast option that it once was. Most Americans have looser morning schedules, and their eating times are far more disorganized than they were before.
It’s more the exception than the norm for people to sit down to have breakfast together in the morning. Quite a few people eat breakfast while they’re on the move or later in the morning. The idea of pouring a bowl and eating as a family is more of a nostalgic image than anything real.
Fruit cocktail “salads”
Practically every family gathering used to have a bowl of ambrosia or a similar fruit-based “salad.” These were made with canned fruit cocktail and marshmallows, along with coconut and a topping of whipped cream. One of the reasons people enjoyed them was because they were so easy to make, but they’re not as popular anymore.
Canned fruit is less of a staple food for the pantry, and that led to these dishes eventually falling out of rotation. It’s more likely that you’ll see people making them as a throwback dish, rather than a standard part of a potluck that everyone expects to be there.
Monthly church potluck dinners
That’s not all for potlucks. These events were once part of the church calendar, and they happened every month, sometimes more often than that. Churchgoers showed up knowing that they could share some food with fellow members of their flock. But the routine has started to change.
A few congregations do still hold potlucks, yet these aren’t as regular as they once were, and attendance isn’t always a guarantee. Many people’s routines have changed, and they’re unable to make the time to go to church. Some people have changed their priorities entirely. The potluck is no longer the fixed food tradition that it once was.
Complimentary bread baskets as a default starter
You used to get a basket of bread almost immediately once you sat down at some restaurants. Sometimes it’d be warm, sometimes it wouldn’t be, but either way, it was there. You never had to order it because it came automatically. Such a practice has started to disappear from many restaurants.
Plenty of places ask you instead whether you want bread, and they’ll skip it unless requested. They also make you pay for it. Quite a few restaurants treat bread baskets as a separate menu item instead of a complimentary item. These baskets aren’t a standard part of the meal like they once were.
Free chips & salsa when you sit down
It’s the same story with chips and salsa at some Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurants. Waiters used to refill these baskets without discussion or extra chargers, but the setup has changed in the majority of these establishments. Chips and salsa are now listed as a priced item.
The majority of servers will wait for you to ask for them, rather than bringing them right away. A few restaurants do still follow the old approach. But the idea that you’ll get chips and salsa by default doesn’t really exist anymore.
Cooking the whole Thanksgiving meal at home
Cooking a Thanksgiving meal was a lot harder in the past than it is today, mostly because you had to buy and cook everything yourself. Buying a prepared meal and serving it was quite a foreign concept. Some people do still make the entire meal from scratch, but more households order parts of the meal.
Some families will get a prepared turkey delivered, while others might simply get the desserts. Many grocery stores even sell full holiday packages for people to reheat at home. The holiday still happens at home, but without any actual cooking happening there.
Traditional Christmas ham as a centerpiece meal item
Christmas is another holiday that’s going through some food changes. A ham was once the main event of every Christmas table, and families would plan the meal around a baked or glazed ham. It’s not that way anymore.
Quite a few households alternate between ham and turkey, while others choose different proteins altogether. You might even find a few families choosing to skip a centerpiece roast completely. A Christmas ham isn’t an expected part of a festive meal anymore, and you’ll probably see people eating something else instead.
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