The Making of a Foodie: The F Word

I knew this day would come. The day when I would be asked to define or defend why I choose to call myself, an often criticized word: foodie.

Some think it is an insulting "cutesy" term, that makes fun of anyone with a passion for serious food. Others, think it is a term applied to those people who are only interested in eating and mindlessly reporting every morsel of food they consume.

Today, you cannot escape the word: foodie. Mainstream media and popular culture has picked it up and it is plastered everywhere you turn. It seems that it is here to stay, and ours to define.

I received an email today from a lovely lady named, Julie, asking me to define and defend what the word foodie meant to me for an article she is writing on the subject.

I thought you also might be interested in reading her email to me and my response to her. I learned a lot about myself by writing it. Hopefully, you might learn something about yourself by reading it.

Hi Jenny,

I stumbled across your web site while doing some research. I am a locally-based food photographer and stylist. My question for you is "What is a Foodie?". I don't know why but I have a gut instinct that it is slightly insulting but it seems like you could educate me. I feel like the term implies that you eat but can not cook. Why not say you are a gourmet? Is that too high and mighty? Is foodie a more approachable term? I'm writing an article about it and if you had the time I'd love your input. Your web site is thorough and beautifully arranged. Thank you for your time. Julie

Hi Julie,

Ah, yes . . .why would one call themselves a foodie?

Funny, how one little word has created so much controversy in the world of food. I think it has a lot to do with the personal preference, definition and opinion of the person choosing to call (or not) themselves a foodie. So, although I cannot answer the national debate of if “the f word” is a good thing or a bad thing, I can tell you why I call myself one. Clearly, I do not find the word embarrassing or insulting, as I believe true foodies do not lack in character, substance, expertise or heart. I simply think the word foodie implies an intensity and drive around food, that the word gourmet or gourmand does not.

My definition of a foodie is: Anyone who loves and is driven, more than anything else in the world, to grow, butcher, bake, cook or eat food. You do not have to do all of those things to be a foodie . . .even if you do only one, really, really well, I still think it qualifies you as a foodie. However, the more skills you acquire around food, well, the more complete foodie you are. The key is the variety of interests in all areas of food from production, to assembly, to consumption. I’d like to consider myself a fairly well-rounded foodie. My butchering and baking skills are not the best, but I am working on them.

The stereotype seems to be that foodies are the young, inexperienced, up-starts with no real palate to speak of, and gourmets are seen as old farts too stuck in their ways. I think neither one is 100% accurate, but I would much rather have the general public placing me in bucket A, rather than bucket B. Contrary to some, you do need more than just your mouth, to be a foodie.

A foodie is a food explorer, who is curious. We want to know the answers to the questions we have around food, and we always have lots of questions around food. A foodie reads, listens, converses, tastes, talks, tweets, travels and potentially makes a living around their interest in food. It is an interest and passion that drives them to always want to know more. Calling yourself a gourmet or gourmand sounds like you already know it all . . .like you are at the end of your journey. It sounds final . . .and to me, fatal. I never want my journey with food to end. Ever, ever, ever.

I also choose to call myself a foodie, because it is the best word to describe all of the various interests and pursuits I have related to food. It is not just about knowing where to find a specific hard-to-find ingredient because you read about it in a magazine, it’s about knowing where to find it because you have been on that quest yourself. It is because you went out and met the farmer that grew it, and you now know why it is so hard-to-find. Finally, it is about sharing what you have learned with others. Not in a haughty, stuffy or competitive way, just in a way that allows you to have all the information you need to help connect good people with good food.

I do think the word foodie is friendly, approachable, and it's not intimidating. Who could hate a foodie? If the goal is to connect all people to good food, why would you want to be intimidating? What does anyone gain by making food intimidating? Nothing. Food is something we all know at least a little something about. Much like what has happened with the world of wine, food should be demystified if we are going to reach as many people as possible about the fascinating and fun parts of food, as well as the serious parts . . .like the state of our farms and our food, and how we plan to feed ourselves as our population increases, as well as obesity and hunger issues.

A love of food is not an exclusionary passion or past-time, it is one that all foodies are busting to share. Almost everyone you meet could have a foodie hiding inside of them. I like to see if I can find the inner foodie in people, and draw it out. If I can proudly call myself one, it makes it okay for those who are a little unsure if they have it in them, to let their inner foodie shine. Come on, if I can do it, anyone can do it. I had no training, no background and no sliver spoon in my mouth to educate me about food. I put myself on this path. You can too. It’s easy. No, really, it is.

“Foodie” is also not too cutesy, infantile or unprofessional in my book. I think it is a very serious title. It’s like calling yourself a writer or an artist. It means you have to have the knowledge, talent and experience to back it up. A foodie can and often does have very thoughtful opinions on the food they are eating, making or creating in some way. They usually have a vehicle (blog, book, podcast, radio show etc.) where they share that information with others.

I guess if the people that call themselves a gourmet or gourmands, take issue with me calling myself a foodie, then there are prejudices and unfair judgments being made on both sides of this debate. They don’t want to be called a “foodie,” anymore than I want to be called a “gourmet.”

There was a magazine article written in 2004 by Heather Irwin for the North Bay Bohemian newspaper, covering California wine country, called “Fessin' Up to the 'F' Word, Proud confessions of a foodie.” She perfectly describes the passion and pride of someone who calls themselves a foodie.

In fact, there is a quote from her article that I use at the top of my resume that says: “Foodies of the true calling, dear friends, are forever. They are not groupies. They are true eaters who have a passion for food. Identified by their clean plates and round bellies, they tend to carry around mental lists of the best places to find not just foie gras, but pork skins, Spanish cheese and tikka masala. They know where to find fish roe at 8:00 am. They tend to congregate and talk a lot about food--yes, maybe sometimes to a fault.”

I think this whole issue on the word foodie is petty and more importantly, it's divisive. It does not serve the greater good of uniting people together around food . . .which is my ultimate goal, always. As a cheerleader of the culinary arts, I choose to use all of my skills for good rather than evil, and I think this debate around the word foodie is pretty evil.

So, I would invite anyone who confesses to love food, but who turns their nose up at the word foodie, to sit down and share a meal with me. I bet they will find my knowledge, passion and experience around food to be every bit as strong as theirs. I am guessing, whether they want to believe it or not, we are one and the same.

I’d like to make them eat their words, along with my delicious food. ;-)