Food tasting tips

Short story: Enfant Terrible and I had a food tasting at out wedding venue. I had a nice time, ET less so. Here's why! /terrible clickbait lede.

1. Have a copy of the agreed-upon menu with you so you can make notes and check discrepancies. Ingredients might get substituted without prior notice, or a dish is entirely different from expectations although all components are present.

2. Don't starve yourself beforehand.* You'll just show up famished and gobble the first thing you're   served without tasting it, defeating the purpose of attending a food tasting and leading to the next point:

3. Don't clean your plate. Seems counterintuitive for most guys, but I promise you won't feel hungry after a food tasting even if you have just a few bites/one serving from each dish.

To illustrate my point, you have a 10-item menu (appetizer, starter, and dessert included) and the food is served shared platter style at the tasting. Each platter is as big as your face.** Are you really going to eat every last bite of it? If you're 15 years old, feel free to try, but I guarantee you'll feel ill by the end of it all.

4. Be direct with the food coordinator. You won't love everything, which is why food tastings are held in the first place. At the same time, don't be rude (or "straightforward" or "direct", as some people like to say). Insulting the food, the chef, the coordinator, or the venue is unhelpful. While it's not as if you'll have your event cancelled, you might miss out on other value-added benefits due to the loss of goodwill.***

We had the extra food packed, and I swear it all weighed 2 kg. I thought it would last at least 2 days, but we're down to our last box (containing the salad) already. Also, we got a parking ticket, without which the experience of dining in downtown Kuala Lumpur would be incomplete.

*Also if you're a guest, because you'll probably wind up legless after the cocktail hour.
**They served the two of us enough food for 6 (six) people. Our venue coordinator claims his chef just can't get to grips with the concept of cooking smaller portions.
***We didn't do this, but having seen how some Malaysians "bargain", I wouldn't put it past them!