Microportion Restaurant

Sometimes I just want a little bit of food, and I don't want to take a doggy bag home.

Sometimes I want curry. And chili. And jasmine rice on the side. And a bit of lasagna. And potato chips.

Sometimes I'm intruiged by a dish, but don't know if I'll like it enough to finish it, and want to try out a sample.

Needless to say, none of these things are easy to arrange at a typical restaurant. I can manage the first, however, at a sushi carosel - thus this idea: The Microportion Restaurant. Much like a sushi carosel, the restaurant offers its food on small dishes, color-coded to indicate price. However, rather than confine itself to sushi, this restaurant offers small portions of all varieties of food - or at least, a significant number.

Eaters can select one dish or many, according to what they feel like eating. All prices are in dollar or half-dollar increments.

The dishes are set out in a central area of two-sided cabinets, some of which are kept cool for cold dishes, some of which are kept warm for hot dishes. Food is organized first by hot/cold and then by ethnic origin. Side dishes are always served seperately.

When you're done eating, bring your dishes to the counter and the cashier will add up their colors to determine the price of your meal.

Dieters go away happy and without doggy bags. Snackers go away happy and without doggy bags. Hungry people get to try out a lot of new foods and if they didn't like them, they don't have to leave a lot of food on their plate.