by emma taylor Web Resources: Slow Food Official Homepage Slow Food in Israel Slow Food Guide to the Wines of the World The Slow Food Manifesto (Approved at the founding conference of the Slow Food Movement, Paris, December 9, 1989.) Our century, which began and has developed under the sign of industrial civilization, first invented the machine and then took it as its life model. We are enslaved by speed and all have succumbed to the same corrupting virus: Fast Life, which disrupts our habits, pervades the privacy of our homes and forces us to eat Fast Foods. To be worthy of the name, Homo Sapiens should rid themselves of speed before it reduces them to a species in danger of extinction. A firm defense of quiet material pleasure is the only way to oppose the universal folly of Fast Life. May suitable doses of guaranteed sensual pleasure and slow, long-lasting enjoyment preserve us from the disease of the multitude who mistake frenzy for efficiency. Our defense should begin at the table with Slow Food. Let us rediscover the flavors and savors of regional cooking and banish the degrading effects of fast food. In the name of productivity, Fast Life has changed our way of living and threatens our environment and landscape. Slow Food is now the only truly progressive answer. That is what real culture is all about: developing taste rather than demeaning it. And what better way to set about this than an international exchange of experiences, knowledge, and projects. Slow Food guarantees a better future. Slow Food is an idea that needs many qualified supporters who can help turn this (slow) motion into an international movement, with the little snail as its symbol.

When I was a kid, I once had really bad gas. My mother told me that if I chewed my food and ate more slowly, it would go away. She was right. But that's not the only benefit to lingering over a meal. There are so many benefits — and so many firm believers in these benefits — that there's actually an international society of Slow Food evangelists. The Slow Food Movement was founded in Rome, naturally. Back in 1986, McDonald's announced that a new McBranch would open in Piezza di Spagna in that city. To most Romans, this was tantamount to ketchup on filet mignon. Or farting in church. Carlo Petrini, a member of the Italian gastronomic society Arcigola, was particularly offended. Arcigola added the words "Slow Food" to the beginning of its name, and formed the International Movement for the Defense of and the Right to Pleasure. Other countries were quick to follow with their own chapters, and in 1989, at the Opera Comique in Paris, representatives from each chapter endorsed the Slow Food Manifesto (see left). But the movement never really took off in the United States. For one thing, the official Slow Food Web site is mostly in Italian. Sebastiano Sardo of Slow Food returned my "Does anyone here speak English" e-mail with an apology and a vague hope: "We really apologize for not having yet informations in English in our Web site, we're going to set the new home page also in English. It'll be ready in few weeks, I swear!! Furthermore, I'd like to thank you for paying attention to our movement, we are sure that your article will raise a lot of interest towards us in U.S.A." Not that Italians have a monopoly on how to enjoy a good meal. It's not even a European concept — after all, Jesus knew the importance of setting aside an entire evening for a meal with friends. Drive-thrus didn't exist then, and a good slow meal with a glass of wine was easier to come by. (Or harder to avoid, depending on your perspective.) The Slow Food Movement doesn't exist simply to demonize the fast food industry. It's the fast food attitude toward eating that goes against everything in the Slow Food Manifesto. Why do you think those places are all yellow and red? It makes you want to get the hell out of there. Now you can even see your order timed on a stopwatch above the counter to see how your server rates. And ever since the advent of drive-thru you don't even have to burden yourself with companions at meal time. God forbid a little conversation between mouthfuls! Late last year, McDonald's opened its first McSki (yes, that is official company lingo), at the Lindvallen ski resort in Sweden. "No need to take off your skis," a company spokesman said. "You just ski up to the counter, order your food, and ski off." What ever happened to hot chocolate with mint schnapps in front of a roaring fire in the ski lodge? That's the only part of skiing I do well. It's no wonder Pepto-Bismol is part of a multimillion dollar business. Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating the return of the three-martini lunch. That went out with the Exxon Valdez. It's just that somewhere along the way, we lost the concept of the "meal" and replaced it with "eating." Slow Food is about treating food like wine, savoring the taste, holding it in your mouth, comparing notes with friends. And yes, chewing. But what if you only get a 20-minute lunch break, and Burger King is the only "restaurant" within walking distance? It's all right, because Slow Food is as much about attitude as ingredients. Sardo explains, "The association continually strives to instill the concept of creating an atmosphere of conviviality, valuing time, the 'slow' life philosophy." If you only have time to run to BK, maybe you should be brown-bagging in order to save those precious minutes? Even drive-thru takes at least ten minutes. Pack a lunch and you can spend all twenty minutes savoring the food. Or the coffee. Or the cigarette. The caffeine and nicotine are my own footnotes to Slow Food philosophy, but Slow Food isn't religion. You can adopt what you like, corrupt what you sort of like, and abandon anything you don't believe in. Slow Food is also about supporting local food. Where I live, this might mean buying my ingredients from the community farm instead of from Stop and Shop. In New York City, it might mean avoiding chains and buying at the corner store. Slow Food is an international movement, but the passion is all local. Ira Abramov is the Web master for the Israeli chapter of Slow Food (inaugurated earlier this month). When I asked her why she joined, she was quick to point out that, "The name suggests some militant underground activists against fast food joints, but it really isn't like that." It was rather her love of home cooking that led her to Slow Food. "Israel's Slow Food organizes farmer's markets once a month, where people can come and get home-cooked things, homemade juices, homemade honey, olive oil, cheese, and so forth. Since the ethnic soup in Israel is so colorful, you can get Indian chutney, mid-Eastern olive oils, South American snacks — there's even a woman who studied Japanese cooking and makes sushi and nigiri." Future events include olive oil and wine-tasting seminars. "The important thing is that it's all directed at the simple guy in the supermarket, and not only those who can afford the monthly trip to France," Abramov explained. "The aim of Slow Food in Italy and around the globe is basically to show people the alternatives they might have forgotten about: Natural foods you can enjoy, and that are usually healthy, too." Of course, McDonald's did open in Rome in 1986. And McSki will flourish, no doubt. But it's like a can of Yoohoo and a good Merlot: There's room for both in this world. And one man's steak is another man's dog food. I had a slow lunch the other day. I went to the Chef's Hat (the only local diner that doesn't try to be a Diner) with some friends from work, and ordered grilled cheese and coffee. We sat there forever, talking about life and taking advantage of the free refills on coffee. It's a local specialty. Emma Taylor is an editor at Tripod. She always takes lunch. © 1997 Tripod, Inc. All Rights Reserved.