@skinnylatte I feel like sometimes the notion of "authenticity" in food, especially with foodies, is about turning cultures into a product if that makes sense. Like the purpose of buying the food for them is to possess someone else's culture - and show to their friends that they have been able to collect the trendiest cultures - it's all about conspicuous consumption and for that all the people at the restaurant need to play the right role. Similarly with some foods needing to be visibly cheap