Is one born a foodie or does one become a foodie?  The question is one of those causality dilemmas like "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?"  My answer?  "I don't really care; I like both! "I recently started a "Meet Up" group on www.meetup.com. You would think that spending 99% of my time in restaurants would make me cringe at the thought of spending my off time in them as well. Wrong.

I can't get enough of the experience, which, is what food is to me. It is not so much the atmosphere, location, service - it's the food and the company! The conversation that a group of like-minded foodies can have can make you salivate in anticipation before any appetizers even hit the table. Truth is I think that we are all born a "Foodie" it's like anything else, it's how you express it and how you pursue it. I was born into a "Foodie" family. Like most things, I had little appreciation of the earlier experiences and exposure I had until it became a passion for me - until I was older. I remember my parents telling me "someday you'll understand the value of having cleaned a lobster by the age of four." Now, it's something I am proud of, during my teens, I had no use for that in any conversation. It's a learning experience and it's ever changing and exciting. We have chefs because they each have a technique and specialty - they can turn the same exact dish into something different because of their own style. In my eyes, the ones who are tuned into their craft are artists - there to present us with a delicate and vanishing masterpiece, a creation from their kitchen to our souls.

So, is one born a Foodie or does one become a Foodie? What does it matter, it is after all, about the love and passion of the meal.