The Role Of Appearance In Garlic And Sapphires By Ruth Reichl

As a renowned restaurant critic, Ruth Reichl paid little or no attention to her appearance while dining out. The food was the same for everyone, regardless, she had thought. However, while in New York, she learned that her belief was flawed. Hundreds of restaurants were studying her appearance. Waiters planned on serving her like royalty in order to get a good review from her. Reichl knew that dining as herself would not help her acquire a authentic evaluation of each restaurant. “If every restaurant in New York knew what I looked like, I had to look like someone else,”(24). In Garlic and Sapphires, Reichl argues the role of appearance and a status in society by utilizing personal anecdotes regarding each of her disguises. With the help
A weary old woman walked onto the bus, struggling to carry her shopping bags. As she walked down the aisle, no passenger was willing to give up their seat. Reichl stood up and gave the poor old lady her seat. “For me? Thank you, dearie. No one ever stands up for me. Sometimes, I feel invisible,” said the woman in a soft voice. Following the woman off the bus and home, Reichl watched how horribly the old lady was treated. “My invisible woman was Betty Jones,” she said looking at the lists of names next tot buzzers on the door. This invisible woman was the perfect cover for Reichl. Acquiring a clothes from the Salvation Army and a cheap gray wig, Reichl became Betty. At Tavern on the Green, Betty was treated, as one would expect, poorly. She and her party of old ladies were seated by a window in the dead of winter without their coats. The hostess insisted that they leave them in the front. While taking Betty’s order, the waiter craned to hear her soft voice. She was forced to write down her order because he did not care to listen anymore. Betty’s timid nature and raggedy appearance influence her service. Like Molly, she was not acknowledged, let alone