Even supermodels — the ultimate calorie watchers!? — will have to eat at some point…
In other words, food is a topic that everyone can relate to.
And hey, I’m Malaysian, which makes me extra qualified to write about food… I think?
Well, we have a crazy variety of cuisines, thanks to multiple colonizers (Portuguese, Dutch, Japanese, British). So, I suppose something good did come out of colonization…
In this article, I will share a list of food-related questions to help you spark conversations.
And, to make this as comprehensive as possible, I interviewed Chef James Makinson, a chef who worked at top restaurants such as Berners Tavern, Hotel Arts Barcelona, and La Rotonde (Casino Le Lyon Vert), and Selena Kaw, a new friend of mine who started a supper club in the UK.
Best questions
Alright, first things first, I know 117 questions is a lot. So, I’ve picked my favorite questions here:
- What was your favorite food as a kid?
- What food reminds you of family?
- What is the most exotic or unusual dish you have ever tried, and how did it taste? h/t: Chef Makinson
- What does your favorite food/beverage say about your personality?
- Would you rather have free grocery store meals for the rest of your life, or free Michelin dishes for the next ten years?
- Would you rather have the superpower to eat without getting fat, or the superpower to eat everything for free?
- If you became your culture’s food ambassador, what would be the three dishes that you recommend?
- If you lost your taste in all flavors except one, what flavor would you like to keep? (the five flavors are sweet, bitter, sour, salty, and meaty/umami)
- If you could only eat one type of cuisine for the rest of your life, which one would it be and why? h/t: Chef Makinson
- If you were the king/queen of the world, what would you make everyone eat? What would you ban?
- What meal made you cry?
- If you were to die tomorrow, what would your last meal be?
Small talk
- What’ll you be having for breakfast/lunch/dinner?
- When do you usually have your breakfast/lunch/dinner?
- Are you a breakfast, lunch, or dinner person? Why?
- Do you usually cook at home, eat out, or get food delivery? Or a mix of all three?
- Are you strict about your meal times or are you more flexible?
- What’s your favorite meal?
- What’s your favorite snack?
- What’s your favorite restaurant/cafe?
- What’s your No. 1 food pet peeve?
- What was your favorite food as a kid?
- Do you share your food with others? Why or why not?
- How good are you with spice?
- Do you like to cook? Why or why not?
- Have you ever had an accident while cooking or baking? h/t: Chef Makinson
Additionally, Chef Makinson suggested the following questions, as he pointed out, “Since more and more people seem to have food allergies, it is important to know.”
- What types of foods can’t / can you eat?
- Which foods are you allergic to?
- Do you have a “gluten allergy?” “lactose intolerance”? “seafood” etc.
Questions for foodies
- What’s your guilty pleasure food?
- What’s your favorite comfort food on a bad day?
- What food should everyone try at least once in their lives?
- What’s the most overrated food ingredient in your opinion?
- Is there a particular food or ingredient that you absolutely cannot stand, and why? h/t: Chef Makinson
- What is the most exotic or unusual dish you have ever tried, and how did it taste? h/t: Chef Makinson
- What’s the best meal that you have ever had, and where? h/t: Chef Makinson
- What food did you think you would hate but end up loving?
- What food combo sounds weird but is actually amazing?
- What food should NEVER be eaten together?
- What’s your go-to dish when family or friends come over?
- If your boyfriend/girlfriend was NOT a foodie, would that be a dealbreaker?
- If you were a restaurant owner, what would be the name of the restaurant and what would you serve?
- What’s on your food bucket list?
- Would you consider frozen food as good food? Why or why not?
- On a scale of 1-10, how picky of an eater are you?
- Are you particular about where your food comes from? Why or why not?
h/t: Selena Kaw
“Would you ever…” questions
- Would you ever go on a water diet? (Learn more about water fasting here)
- Would you ever go on a three-day fast? (Learn how to fast safely here)
- Would you ever eat McDonald’s for one entire month? (Here’s a guy who actually did it)
- Would you ever try lab-grown meat?
- Would you ever try eating insects? (you could specify e.g. grasshoppers or silkworm pupae)
- Would you ever drink raw egg white?
- Would you ever eat unchopped, raw garlic or onions?
- Would you ever become a competitive eater?
“If you…” food questions
- If you were a competitive eater, what would your nickname be?
- If you could only eat the same breakfast, lunch, and dinner for one year, what would you eat?
- If you lost your taste in all flavors except one, what flavor would you like to keep? (the five flavors are sweet, bitter, sour, salty, and meaty/umami)
- If you were a dish, what dish would you be?
- If you could only eat one dish for the rest of your life, what would it be?
- If you could only eat one kind of fruit/vegetable for the rest of your life, what would it be?
- If you could travel back to the past, what would be the first dish you eat?
- If you could eat at any restaurant for free, which restaurant would it be?
- If you could have a meal with anyone in the world, who would it be?
- If you were the king/queen of the world, what would you make everyone eat? What would you ban?
- If you swapped bodies with a MasterChef participant, what would you serve Gordon Ramsey to make him mad?
“Would you rather…” food questions
- Would you rather have free grocery store meals for the rest of your life, or free Michelin dishes for the next ten years?
- Would you rather eat overheated or cold leftovers?
- Would you rather eat your favorite food every day, or never get to eat it again for the rest of your life?
- Would you rather have the superpower to eat without getting fat, or the superpower to eat everything for free?
- Would you rather eat chicken breasts without salt or salads without dressings for one month?
- Would you rather be a supermodel that eats as little as possible, or a competitive eater that eats as much as possible?
- Would you rather be a homeless person that dumpster dives for food, or a king/queen that eats possibly poisoned dishes?
- Would you rather eat 100 hotdogs or 100 pieces of fried chicken in a competitive eating contest?
Note: you can tailor the “this or that” questions to this format.
“This or that” food questions
The good…
- Doughnuts or muffins?
- Pizza or ramen?
- Sushi or tacos?
- Chips or popcorn?
- Ice cream or cake?
- Coffee or tea?
- Wine or beer?
- Breakfast or dinner?
- McDonald’s or Wendy’s? (Can be any other brand)
- Sweet or savory?
- Crunchy or chewy?
- Crunchy or fizzy?
…and the bad 🙂
- Cottage cheese or soft-boiled eggs? (credit: this hilarious Reddit thread)
- Raw oysters or raw mushrooms?
- Boiled sausages or boiled egg white?
- Tomatoes or celery?
- Snails or sashimi?
- Fried scorpions or bamboo worms? (yep, classic Thai delicacies)
- Super spicy or super bland?
- Sour or bitter?
- Fermented or fishy?
- Gritty or slimy?
- Lumpy or runny?
“Yes or No” questions
- “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” – yes or no?
- Dinner for breakfast – yes or no?
- MSG – yes or no? (Don’t ask Uncle Roger, LOL)
- Beautiful plating – yes or no?
- “Mayo makes everything better ” – yes or no?
- “Fast food is NOT real food” – yes or no?
- Phones at the dining table – yes or no?
- Roadside stalls – yes or no?
Food & culture questions
- What food represents your culture the most?
- What’s the most underrated food from your culture?
- If you became your culture’s food ambassador, what would be the three dishes that you recommend?
- How do you define authentic food?
- What’s the simplest recipe from your culture – one that will take 5 minutes or less?
- In your culture, what food used to be popular but no longer is?
- What do you think about fusion cuisine? Love it, hate it, don’t care?
- If you could only eat one type of cuisine for the rest of your life, which one would it be and why? h/t: Chef Makinson
- Would you rather only eat food from your culture, or all other cultures except yours?
- In your culture, what do you eat when you’re sick?
- In your culture, what do you eat when you’re drunk?
- How does your culture celebrate birthdays?
10 Questions that Good Chefs Will Know the Answer to
If you happen to hang out with someone who loves cooking, these questions by Chef Makinson will get them thinking and/or talking…
- What’s the Food Danger Zone?
- What’s the minimum cooking temperature for steaks?
- Why does ground meat have to be fully cooked?
- What’s the Maillard Reaction?
- What’s a chef’s knife?
- What knives are must-haves for every chef?
- What are some essential ingredients every home cook should have in their pantry?
- How do you properly season and flavor your dishes?
- What’s the first thing you do after cooking a steak?
- How many ways can you cook an egg?
PS – If you want to learn how to cook meals that will impress your family and friends — without the stress! — check out his course here. I’ve learned a lot from him and I think you will too 🙂
Deep questions about food
- Have you ever eaten alone? Why or why not?
- What food reminds you of family?
- What’s your earliest memory of homecooked meals?
- What’s your favorite meal with me?
- What meal made you cry?
- How has your diet changed/not changed over time and why?
- What does your favorite food/beverage say about your personality?
- What do your food choices say about your values?
- If you were to die tomorrow, what would your last meal be?
- [A morbid version of #12] If you were a death row inmate, what would your last meal be?
- Overall, is food delivery good or bad for society? Why?
- Are table manners outdated or essential still?
- How is our relationship with food different from our grandparents’/ancestors’ times?
- What food would encourage conversations? (Examples: tapas, hotpot, barbeque, pizzas, etc.) h/t: Selena Kaw
When and how to use these questions
- Ask one question at a time. Gauge their response before going deeper. If they seem disinterested in the topic, switch to something else instead.
- Balance between asking and talking. Make sure that you share your answer to the same question, or comment on their answer, so that the conversation doesn’t become an interrogation 🙂 I’ve been guilty of that.
Related article: 6 ways to keep a conversation going without asking too many questions
- Most importantly, modify the questions based on what feels most natural. Different people have different ways of saying the same thing, after all.
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