Some restaurants offer free bread or chips to diners. While cutomers are glad to get the tiny bread basket for free, several theories and conspiracies have emerged around the custom. However, nobody knows exactly why restaurants give out the free perks. Recently, a woman claimed that there is a dirty secret behind it.
TikTok creator Crystal (@cowgirl.crystal) explained that restaurants use bread and chips to trick customers into spending more money. While the creator tried to explain it scientifically, not many of her viewers were convinced.
Here’s how restaurants might be tricking customers into spending more
In the video, which has over 775,000 views, Crystal explains that there is a scientific reason behind why restaurants serve free bread and chips. She says that it isn’t because restaurants want people to fill up on the free stuff. She says they hand out customers the menu first and then they bring out the free bread and chips so that customers snack on them while deciding what to order.
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She then says the scientific reason behind it is that the bread and chips spike the glucose levels of customers which makes them feel hungrier. Thus, they may end up ordering more food. That’s not it, right when the glucose hits, Crystal says that servers smartly bring out the dessert menu, to trick people into spending even more money.
While the science behind bread and chips spiking blood sugar levels on an empty stomach hold up, most viewers disagreed with the creator saying it wasn’t the case with them. “On the contrary, me and my wife get full with the chips or bread. We can’t finish our meals and have no room for dessert,” wrote user @financedrewjacksons.
Meanwhile, several users shared other reasons which sounded more plausible to them. “No, the reason is, it keeps the orders in the kitchen at a pace to give the chef time to get orders out to tables without being overwhelmed. It's a snack to keep you from being hungry and impatient,” another user @hurricaneman69 shared.
The history of serving free bread
According to a piece from The Daily Meal, the reason why restaurants serve free bread goes way back. Before restaurants, there were only taverns that had a set menu, typically offering just one dish. These dishes came with bread as part of the meal, to compliment any protein.
With time, taverns morphed into modern-day restaurants. However, during the transition, any attempt to stop serving bread as part of the meal was met with customer resistance. Thus, they continued to offer free bread.
Former chef and blogger Jonas Mikka Luster says that bread holds a special place in food culture. Offering bread to guests is seen as a sign of hospitality and a welcoming gesture. Thus, the saying, “breaking bread with someone”.
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However, no matter what the reason, experts recommend people not to fill up on free bread offered at restaurants. Nutritionist Regina Fazzini, R.D. told SheFinds that most restaurants serve white bread which isn’t very nutritious, so there is no reason to stuff on it.
For more such videos and entertaining content follow Crystal (@cowgirl.crystal) on TikTok.
Editor's note: This article was originally published on July 16, 2024. It has since been updated.
